Portfolio Update: Sonora Lithium Royalty

Trident Royalties PLC

19 February 2024

 

19 February 2024

Trident Royalties Plc

("Trident" or the "Company")

Portfolio Update: Sonora Lithium Royalty

Trident Royalties Plc (AIM: TRR, OTC: TDTRF), the diversified mining royalty company, is pleased to provide an update in respect of Sonoroy Holdings Limited ("Sonoroy"), its 50%-held joint venture which agreed to acquire a 3.0% Gross Revenue Royalty (1.5% attributable to Trident) (the "Royalty", and the acquisition thereof, the "Transaction") over the Sonora Lithium Project in Mexico ("Sonora") from the Estate of Colin Orr-Ewing (the "Estate").

In accordance with the terms of the agreement to acquire the Royalty, the long-stop date to complete the Transaction has been extended to 31 December 2026. Trident has also agreed that other than in limited circumstances, the repayment date for its loan to Sonoroy is extended until the earlier of: (i) 31 December 2026; or (ii) completion of the Transaction.

As previously notified, the Royalty is the subject of litigation between the Estate and Bacanora, which is being adjudicated by the Court of King's Bench of Alberta. Trident may terminate the JV if the litigation is finally resolved in favor of Bacanora, or if it is unresolved by the long-stop date. In addition, the project operator Ganfeng Lithium Co, Ltd., and its Mexican subsidiaries, have filed administrative review recourses before the Secretary of Economy in relation to the cancellation of nine lithium concessions by the Mexican Government, which comprise the Sonora project. Ganfeng notes the cancellation as violating both Mexican and international law.¹ Trident is not required to provide funding in respect of Sonoroy to enable it to complete the acquisition, if at the time of funding there are changes to Mexico's regulatory regime which, in Trident's reasonable opinion, materially affects the Sonora project.

Adam Davidson, Chief Executive Officer of Trident commented:

"The Sonora royalty has the potential to become a Tier 1 royalty, providing exposure to a long-life lithium project with expansion optionality and operated by a world class lithium specialist. The transaction structure provides Trident with the ability to participate in the potential significant upside associated with the project from a low-cost and protected position.

This extension to complete the Sonora royalty acquisition gives sufficient time to allow a resolution to both the Alberta litigation, as well as the administrative review filed by Ganfeng regarding the cancellation of the project concessions. The Estate and its advisors continue to be excellent partners, and we look forward to continued work alongside them as the situation evolves." 

References

1:             Source: Ganfeng Lithium 30 June 2023 Interim Results dated 29 August 2023

                (https://www.ganfenglithium.com/ir_detail_en/id/2640.html )

The information contained within this announcement is deemed to constitute inside information as stipulated under the Market Abuse Regulations (EU) No. 596/2014 which is part of UK law by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018. Upon the publication of this announcement, this inside information is now considered to be in the public domain.

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Contact details:

Trident Royalties Plc Adam Davidson / Richard Hughes	www.tridentroyalties.com [phone] / [phone]
Grant Thornton (Nominated Adviser) Colin Aaronson / Samantha Harrison / Enzo Aliaj	www.grantthornton.co.uk [phone]
Liberum Capital Limited (Joint Broker) Scott Mathieson / Cara Murphy	www.liberum.com [phone]
Stifel Nicolaus Europe Limited (Joint Broker) Callum Stewart / Ashton Clanfield	www.stifelinstitutional.com [phone]
Tamesis Partners LLP (Joint Broker) Richard Greenfield	www.tamesispartners.com [phone]
St Brides Partners Ltd (Financial PR & IR) Susie Geliher / Zoe Briggs	www.stbridespartners.co.uk [phone]

About Trident

Trident is a growth-focused diversified mining royalty and streaming company, providing investors with exposure to a mix of base battery, precious, and bulk metals.

Key highlights of Trident's strategy include:

·	Building upon a royalty and streaming portfolio which broadly mirrors the commodity exposure of the global mining sector (excluding fossil fuels) with a bias towards production or near-production assets, differentiating Trident from the majority of peers which are exclusively, or heavily weighted, to precious metals;
·	Acquiring royalties and streams in resource-friendly jurisdictions worldwide, while most competitors have portfolios focused on North and South America;
·	Targeting attractive small-to-mid size transactions which are often ignored in a sector dominated by large players;
·	Active deal-sourcing which, in addition to writing new royalties and streams, will focus on the acquisition of assets held by natural sellers such as: closed-end funds, prospect generators, junior and mid-tier miners holding royalties as non-core assets, and counterparties seeking to monetise packages of royalties and streams which are otherwise undervalued by the market;
·	Maintaining a low-overhead model which is capable of supporting a larger scale business without a commensurate increase in operating costs; and
·	Leveraging the experience of management, the board of directors, and Trident's adviser team, all of whom have deep industry connections and strong transactional experience across multiple commodities and jurisdictions.

The acquisition and aggregation of individual royalties and streams is expected to deliver strong returns for shareholders as assets are acquired on terms reflective of single asset risk compared with the lower risk profile of a diversified, larger scale portfolio. Further value is expected to be delivered by the introduction of conservative levels of leverage through debt. Once scale has been achieved, strong cash generation is expected to support an attractive dividend policy, providing investors with a desirable mix of inflation protection, growth and income.

Forward-looking Statements

This news release contains forward‐looking information. The statements are based on reasonable assumptions and expectations of management and Trident provides no assurance that actual events will meet management's expectations. In certain cases, forward‐looking information may be identified by such terms as "anticipates", "believes", "could", "estimates", "expects", "may", "shall", "will", or "would". Although Trident believes the expectations expressed in such forward‐looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those projected. Mining exploration and development is an inherently risky business. In addition, factors that could cause actual events to differ materially from the forward-looking information stated herein include any factors which affect decisions to pursue mineral exploration on the relevant property and the ultimate exercise of option rights, which may include changes in market conditions, changes in metal prices, general economic and political conditions, environmental risks, and community and non-governmental actions. Such factors will also affect whether Trident will ultimately receive the benefits anticipated pursuant to relevant agreements. This list is not exhaustive of the factors that may affect any of the forward‐looking statements. These and other factors should be considered carefully and readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information.

Third Party Information

As a royalty and streaming company, Trident often has limited, if any, access to non-public scientific and technical information in respect of the properties underlying its portfolio of royalties and investments, or such information is subject to confidentiality provisions. As such, in preparing this announcement, the Company often largely relies upon information provided by or the public disclosures of the owners and operators of the properties underlying its portfolio of royalties, as available at the date of this announcement.

 

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