Noble Mineral Resources Ltd
MEDIA RELEASE 27 JUNE 2008
NOBLE TO LIST ON ASX TODAY - TARGETING ASHANTI
GOLD BELT, GHANA
� A$2M Offer comprising 10M shares at 20c closes oversubscribed ~ increasing exploration capital to A$5.0M
� ASX listing scheduled for 11.30AM WST today (June 27 2008) under ASX Code NMG
� Outstanding suite of tenements covering 88km� in the Ashanti Gold Belt, Ghana - one of the world's richest gold fields
� Aggressive gold exploration campaign to commence shortly including advanced geological modelling and geophysical exploration to target high-grade gold deposits
West African focused gold exploration company Noble Mineral Resources Ltd ("Noble") is set to debut on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX Code: NMG) today (Friday) after closing its A$2 million Initial Public Offer (IPO) oversubscribed. Noble's primary focus will be to explore for large-scale gold deposits in the world-class Ashanti Gold Belt in Ghana.
The Perth-based company said that it had achieved its full subscription level following a strong response from investors. The Company's shareholder base includes cornerstone investor Global Gold Holdings (ASX Code: GGH "Global"), an ASX-listed company with a gold trading business. Global invested $1.5 million in seed capital in Noble and an additional $1.0 million under the Offer and will also provide a A$2.0 million secured loan facility to Noble to add to the funding of the Company's aggressive exploration programme.
"We are delighted to be listing on the ASX, which will provide us with a platform to launch a very aggressive exploration program on landholdings that we believe are as prospective as anywhere in the world for high-grade gold deposits," commented Noble's Managing Director, Wayne Norris.
"We are also very pleased to have secured Global Gold Holdings as our cornerstone institutional investor and on behalf of the Board, I would like to thank Global's Chairman, Tunku Naquiyuddin, and his team for their support, which has been crucial in the development of the Company to date and will serve to underpin our rapid development from here on in," he added.
Noble's primary gold concessions are two Exploration Licences, Cape Three Points and Tumentu, which cover some 88km� and are located within the world-class Ashanti Gold Belt in south eastern Ghana. Ghana is the second largest gold producer in the African continent and is the 10th largest gold producing nation in the world.
Noble's immediate focus will be to evaluate the Cape Three Points concession within the southern extension of the Ashanti Gold Belt. Initial exploration will be targeted towards the Satin Mine Project and the Morrison Project, which both lie in an area of historic underground gold production. Noble believes that there is significant potential for the delineation of additional high-grade gold mineralisation relating to the down-plunge extension to these zones.
As well as these more advanced exploration opportunities, the Cape Three Points concession hosts three other project areas for immediate follow-up and five lower-priority prospect areas that Noble has earmarked for ongoing exploration.
The Tumentu concession is located along strike between the Prestea gold mine and the 1.6 million ounce Salman-Anwia gold deposit currently being explored by ASX-listed Adamus Resources Limited. Artisanal mining, soil sampling, mapping and trench sampling, geological mapping and magnetic surveys have been undertaken and indicate anomalous gold levels within the concession.
The Company intends to apply the latest conceptual geological models and exploration strategies to these relatively under explored, highly prospective projects, with the aim of rapidly defining a JORC-compliant resource for development.
"Our Ghanaian projects are in an area that is in close proximity and along strike from several very successful neighbouring companies including Newmont Mining, AngloGold Ashanti, Redback Mining and Adamus Resources, so it's clear that we have prime land on which to explore," said Mr Norris.
"We are very confident that we can discover and develop a significant gold mining operation in Ghana, which is a mining-friendly country with low sovereign risk and excellent infrastructure, including sealed roads and the port city of Takoradi, located just 40 minutes from Noble's tenement areas," he added.
Noble also has a second string to its bow with interests in the Bindi Bindi applications in Western Australia. The tenements, covering 381km� lie within the Jimperding Igneous Complex in the South West Mineral Field and are located approximately 195km north east of Perth. These areas have the potential for Ni-Cu-PGE mineralization.
Noble's management team is headed by Managing Director, Mr Wayne Norris, who has extensive knowledge in resource projects in Australia and Ghana, including senior management roles in the development of several high-profile projects including OM Manganese's Bootu Creek Manganese Project and the Mt Todd Gold Mine in the Northern Territory.
At the time of listing on the ASX, Noble will have 138.37 million shares on issue with approximately 84% of these in escrow for either 12 or 24 months.
ENDS
Released by: On behalf of:
Nicholas Read/Jason Cunningham Mr Wayne Norris
Read Corporate Managing Director
Telephone: (61-8) 9388-1474 Noble Mineral Resources Ltd
Telephone: + 61 (0) 438 623 568
READ CORPORATE
Public Relations Corporate Communications
T: (+61-8) 9388-1474 | F: (+61-8) 9388-1472 | E: info@readcorporate.com.au | Web: www.readcorporate.com.au
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