Vancouver, British Columbia–(Newsfile Corp. – April 14, 2022) – EMX Royalty Corporation (NYSE American: EMX) (TSXV: EMX) (FSE: 6E9) (“EMX” or the “Company”) is pleased to announce that it has acquired an additional (effective) 0.3155% Net Smelter Return (“NSR“) royalty on the Caserones Copper-Molybdenum Mine located in northern Chile for US$25.74 million. When combined with EMX’s 0.418% NSR interest acquired in August 2021 (see EMX news release dated August 17, 2021), EMX now holds an effective 0.7335% NSR royalty. Franco-Nevada Corporation (“Franco-Nevada”) has concurrently acquired a 0.4582% (effective) NSR royalty on similar terms.
Since acquisition, Caserones has generated pre-tax cash flow to EMX in Q2, Q3 and Q4 of fiscal 2021 totalling $3.6 million from EMX’s effective 0.418% interest. As part of the royalty purchase, EMX will receive royalty distributions covering Q1 of fiscal 2022 for the additional interest acquired.
To finance its purchase of the additional NSR royalty, EMX has agreed to complete a private placement with Franco-Nevada for C$12.58 million (US$10 million). On completion, Franco-Nevada will own approximately 3.5% of the issued and outstanding shares of EMX on an undiluted basis. EMX is delighted to have Franco-Nevada as a shareholder.
Caserones Overview. The Caserones open pit mine is developed upon a significant porphyry copper-molybdenum deposit in the Atacama Region of the northern Chilean Andean Cordillera, 162 kilometres southeast of the city of Copiapó. The mine is operated by SCM Minera Lumina Copper Chile SpA (“Minera Lumina”), which is owned by JX Nippon Mining & Metals Corporation.
Caserones produces copper and molybdenum concentrates from a conventional crusher, mill and flotation plant, as well as copper cathodes from a dump leach, solvent extraction and electrowinning plant. In 2020, the mine produced 104,917 tonnes of fine copper in concentrate, 2,453 tonnes of fine molybdenum in concentrate, and 22,056 tonnes of fine copper in cathodes (results for 2021 have not yet been released by Minera Lumina). The Caserones open pit has operated with an average waste to ore strip ratio of 0.47, has an estimated 17 years remaining in its current mine plan (as at year-end 2020), along with excellent exploration potential.https://embed.fireplace.yahoo.com/embed?ctrl=Monalixa&m_id=monalixa&m_mode=document&site=sports&os=android&pageContext=%257B%2522ctopid%2522%253A%25221542500%253B1577000%2522%252C%2522hashtag%2522%253A%25221542500%253B1577000%2522%252C%2522wiki_topics%2522%253A%2522Franco-Nevada%253BRoyalty_payment%253BShares_outstanding%253BCalifornia%253BCompany%253BPrivate_placement%2522%252C%2522lmsid%2522%253A%2522a0V0W00000HOPDcUAP%2522%252C%2522revsp%2522%253A%2522newsfile_64%2522%252C%2522lpstaid%2522%253A%2522238b4c30-4b4b-3615-902e-17d479fd2222%2522%252C%2522pageContentType%2522%253A%2522story%2522%257D
Acquisition Details. The Caserones mine is subject to a 2.88% NSR royalty created in a 2009 agreement between SCM Minera Lumina Copper Chile S.A., as purchaser, and Compañía Minera Caserones (“CMC“) and Sociedad Legal Minera California Una de la Sierra Peña Negra (“SLM California“), as vendors. CMC and SLM California originally acquired the mineral concessions that overlie the Caserones deposit. Ownership of the 2.88% NSR royalty is currently divided between CMC (32.5%) and SLM California (67.5%). SLM California’s sole purpose is to distribute its royalty income to its shareholders as dividends and pay Chilean taxes on its income.
EMX has purchased today a further 16.23% of the shares of SLM California for US$25.74 million pursuant to share purchase agreements with existing shareholders of SLM California.
Private Placement. Franco-Nevada will purchase 3,812,121 units at C$3.30 per unit for total proceeds of C$12,580,000. Each unit will consist of one common share of the Company and one warrant to purchase one common share of the Company for five years at an exercise price of C$4.45. The shares issued upon closing and issuable upon the exercise of the warrants are and will be subject to a four-month restricted resale (hold) period. Proceeds from the placement totalling C$12,580,000 will be used towards the acquisition of the additional Caserones (effective) royalty interest.
Qualified Person. Eric P. Jensen, CPG, a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects of the Canadian Securities Administrators and an employee of the Company, has reviewed, verified, and approved the disclosure of the technical information contained in this news release.
About EMX. EMX is a precious, base and battery metals royalty company. EMX’s investors are provided with discovery, development, and commodity price optionality, while limiting exposure to risks inherent to operating companies. The Company’s common shares are listed on the NYSE American Exchange and TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol EMX, and also trade on the Frankfurt exchange under the symbol “6E9”. Please see www.EMXroyalty.com for more information.
For further information contact:
David M. Cole President and Chief Executive Officer Phone: (303) 973-8585 Dave@EMXroyalty.com
Scott Close Director of Investor Relations Phone: (303) 973-8585 SClose@EMXroyalty.com
Neither the TSX-V nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX-V) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release may contain “forward looking statements” that reflect the Company’s current expectations and projections about its future results. These forward-looking statements may include statements regarding completion of the transactions, perceived merits of properties, exploration results, budgets and potential, estimated mine life, mineral reserves and resource estimates, timelines, strategic plans, or other statements that are not statements of fact. When used in this news release, words such as “estimate,” “intend,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “will”, “believe”, “potential”, “upside” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, which, by their very nature, are not guarantees of the Company’s future operational or financial performance, and are subject to risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause the Company’s actual results, performance, prospects or opportunities to differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, these forward-looking statements. These risks, uncertainties and factors may include, but are not limited to: unavailability of financing, failure to identify commercially viable mineral reserves, fluctuations in the market valuation for commodities, difficulties in obtaining required approvals for the development of a mineral project, increased regulatory compliance costs, expectations of project funding by joint venture partners and other factors. It is possible EMX may not complete the transaction, as a result of failure to fulfill conditions of closing, unavailability of financing or for other reasons EMX cannot anticipate at this time.
Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this news release or as of the date otherwise specifically indicated herein. Due to risks and uncertainties, including the risks and uncertainties identified in this news release, and other risk factors and forward-looking statements listed in the Company’s MD&A for the year ended December 31, 2021 (the “MD&A”), and the most recently filed Annual Information Form (the “AIF”) for the year ended December 31, 2021, actual events may differ materially from current expectations. More information about the Company, including the MD&A, the AIF and financial statements of the Company, is available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com and on the SEC’s EDGAR website at www.sec.gov.
Vancouver, British Columbia–(Newsfile Corp. – April 1, 2022) – EMX Royalty Corporation (NYSE American: EMX) (TSXV: EMX) (FSE: 6E9)(the “Company” or “EMX”) is pleased to announce the filing of its 2021 annual report Form 40-F, which includes the audited financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2021 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) on EDGAR (www.sec.gov). EMX has also filed its Annual Information Form (AIF), audited Financial Statements (FS), and Management’s Discussion and Analysis (MD&A) for 2021 with Canadian securities regulators on SEDAR (www.sedar.com). The Company’s Form 40-F, AIF, audited FS, and MD&A are also available on EMX’s website at www.EMXroyalty.com under the heading “Investors”. Shareholders may receive a printed copy of the Company’s complete Financial Statements, or its complete Annual Information Form, free of charge, upon request to the Corporate Secretary at Suite 501 – 543 Granville Street, Vancouver, British Columbia V6C 1X8, Canada. All dollar amounts in this news release are CDN unless otherwise noted.
HIGHLIGHTS FOR 2021
Financial Updates for the Year Ended December 31, 2021
Adjusted royalty and other income1 of $12,446,000 (2020 – $7,199,000) included $3,012,000 (2020 – $Nil) in income from the effective Caserones copper royalty interest in Chile.
Royalty generation costs of $18,155,000 (2020 – $16,392,000) of which the Company recovered $8,661,000 (2020 -$7,962,000) from partners.
General and administrative costs totaled $5,600,000 (2020 – $5,172,000). Impacting general and administrative costs were higher professional fees and consultants associated with our two acquisitions, capital raises, and the Bullion Monarch litigation in the US.
Share-based payments totaled $5,216,000 (2020 – $3,121,000) including $1,537,000 (2020 – $1,127,000) included in royalty generation costs (above) which was an increase over the prior year primarily resulting from additional stock option grants and the fair value of restricted share units (“RSUs”) which vested during the year.
Finance expenses of $2,666,000 (2020 – $Nil) associated with the Sprott Credit Facility and the SSR VTB note.
Loss from operations of $12,586,000 (2020 – $9,623,000), and loss for the year of $29,749,000 (2020 – $6,007,000).
Adjusted cash used in operating activities1 of $7,739,000 (2020 – $8,961,000).
Significant items affecting the loss for the year ended December 31, 2021 included $10,496,000 (2020 – $Nil) of impairment charges, primarily taken against the Rawhide investment, unrealized fair value losses on investments of $6,278,000 (2020 – gain of $6,162,000) and foreign exchange adjustments of $4,969,000 (2020 – $177,000).
As at December 31, 2021, EMX had cash and cash equivalents of $25,218,000 (December 31, 2020 – $52,418,000), investments, non-current investments and loans receivable valued at $23,069,000 (December 31, 2020 – $26,126,000) and loans payable of $64,418,000 (December 31, 2020 – $Nil).
Corporate Updates
Acquisition of SSR Royalty Portfolio EMX closed the acquisition of a portfolio of royalty interests and deferred payments (the “Royalty Portfolio”) from SSR Mining Inc. and certain of its subsidiaries (“SSR Mining”) (see EMX news release dated October 21, 2021). The Royalty Portfolio consists of 15 (previously disclosed as 16, but the Company now considers Gediktepe to be one royalty covering both the oxide phase as well as the sulfide phase) geographically diverse base and precious metals royalties including a producing royalty at the Gediktepe polymetallic volcanogenic massive sulfide (“VMS”) deposit in Turkey, four other advanced stage projects in Turkey, Peru, Chile and Argentina, and 10 early-stage royalties in Mexico, Canada, Chile, Argentina and the US. The Company also expects to receive US$18 million in future cash payments (of which US$2.25 million was received in Q4 of 2021) associated with two properties in South America. EMX paid US$33 million in cash and issued 12,323,048 common shares of the Company valued at US$32.5 million to SSR Mining to acquire the Royalty Portfolio. SSR Mining now owns an approximate 12% undiluted equity interest in EMX. The Company will also make deferred and contingent payments to SSR Mining of up to US$34 million if certain project advancement milestones are achieved associated with the Yenipazar project in Turkey.
Acquisition of Caserones Royalty EMX completed the acquisition of an effective 0.418% NSR royalty on the Caserones Copper-Molybdenum Mine (the “Caserones Royalty”) located in northern Chile for US$34.1 million in cash (see EMX news release dated September 3, 2021). Caserones is a porphyry copper-molybdenum mining operation in a top tier mining jurisdiction. Since acquisition, EMX’s Caserones effective royalty interest has provided immediate pre-tax cash flow to the Company in 2021 consisting of US$2,339,000 in distributions related to production from the mine for Q2 and Q3 2021, and US$1,228,000 received subsequently in 2022 for settlement of the Q4 payment.
Subsequent to Year End Settlement of the Bullion Litigation Subsequent to year-end, the Company’s wholly-owned subsidiary, Bullion Monarch Mining, Inc., (“Bullion”) reached a settlement with Barrick Gold Corporation (“Barrick”) and Barrick affiliates and subsidiaries (“Barrick Entities”) with respect to Bullion’s claim of non-payment of royalties by the Barrick Entities to Bullion on production from properties in the Carlin Trend, Nevada. Bullion initiated litigation in 2008, before EMX acquired Bullion in 2012. Pursuant to the settlement, Barrick paid Bullion US$18.825 million, being US$25 million as the settlement less US$6.175 million as payment of a contingency fee to Bullion’s Reno, Nevada lawyers. The settlement of the lawsuit does not affect our 1% gross smelter return royalty from portions of Nevada Gold Mine’s Leeville, Carlin East, Four Corners, and other northern Carlin Trend underground gold mining operations (the “Leeville Royalty”), which will continue to be paid.
Impact of Covid 19 EMX is monitoring developments regarding the ongoing coronavirus pandemic (“COVID-19”), with a focus on the jurisdictions in which the Company operates. EMX has implemented COVID-19 prevention, monitoring and response plans following the guidelines of international agencies and the governments and regulatory agencies of each country in which it operates. EMX’s priority is to safeguard the health and safety of its personnel and host communities, support government actions to slow the spread of COVID-19 and assess and mitigate the risks to business continuity. Most of the restrictions have been removed or relaxed in the jurisdictions where the Company operates (e.g., travel restrictions, etc.), with EMX’s field programs up-and-running at full speed.
Royalty Generation Updates
EMX’s royalty and mineral property portfolio consists of over 270 properties in North America, Europe, Turkey, Latin America and Australia (See Figure 1). The Company’s portfolio is comprised of the following:
Producing Royalties
5
Advanced Royalties
9
Exploration Royalties
157
Royalty Generation Properties
102
Figure 1. EMX’s royalty and mineral property portfolio.
In 2021, the Company’s royalty generation business was active in North America, South America, Europe, Turkey, and Australia. The Company spent $18.2 million and recovered $8.7 million from partners. During the year the Company also completed 25 partnerships across the portfolio all the while continuing to replace partnered properties with new mineral properties. In addition, our partners also directly spent US$20.6 million in exploration of the portfolio.
Highlights from 2021 include the following:
South 32 regional strategic alliance (“RSA”) in the US where EMX and South 32 are in the fourth year of exploring for copper in Arizona, New Mexico, Utah and Nevada. The RSA advanced eight copper projects through field-based work programs, drill tested one copper target, and continued to acquire new projects during the year.
Continued expansion of the gold royalty generation portfolio in the US, particularly Idaho where EMX was an early entrant and has completed nine deals over the past three years. The partnered properties are being advanced by juniors and mid-tier mining companies, including four projects that were drill tested with encouraging results during 2021.
EMX has become a preeminent generative and early-stage exploration company in Fennoscandia by acquiring significant base and precious metals project portfolios, and partnering with multiple junior companies, as well as larger mining groups such as Agnico Eagle and Boliden. The program in 2021 saw partners spend over US$8 million and drill 15,670 meters on EMX projects in Sweden and Norway.
The Company entered Canada in early 2020 with the acquisition of the Perry English portfolio for $2,991,000. Over the past two years the Company has received total cash payments of $885,000 and share equity payments valued at $273,000 while continuing to expand on the portfolio. At the time of acquisition, the royalty and mineral portfolio totaled 84 properties and is principally focused on precious metals.
The Company entered into South America in 2020 with the acquisition of Revelo Resources’ Chilean royalties. With the acquisition of the SSR portfolio in 2021, the Company continued to increase its asset base, as well as expanding the footprint beyond Chile to Peru and Argentina. The portfolio now totals 25 properties with partners exploring for copper, copper-gold, and gold mineral deposits.
In Australia, EMX expanded the portfolio by adding several new projects. While most of the portfolio is centered around gold systems, the Company continues to evaluate base metal opportunities, particularly as they relate to cobalt, copper, and nickel.
Towards the end of 2021, the Company expanded its technical team with the re-hiring of Ankara-based Dr. Mesut Soylu, who will lead exploration programs in the Balkans, central Asia, and other jurisdictions in the region.
Financing Updates
Private Placement In Q4 of 2021 the Company completed a private placement of 6,500,000 units at $3.30 per unit for gross proceeds of $21,450,000. Each unit consists of one common share of the Company and one-half of one transferable warrant. Each whole warrant entitles the purchase until November 6, 2023 to one common share at $4.00 in the first year and $4.50 in the second year.
Sprott Credit Facility In Q3 of 2021, the Company entered into a credit facility with Sprott Private Resource Lending II (Collector), LP (“Sprott”) totaling US$44 million (the “Credit Facility”). The proceeds from the Credit Facility were used to fund the acquisition of the Caserones effective royalty interest in Chile as well as provide additional capital to complete the acquisition of the SSR Royalty portfolio. Subsequent to the year ended December 31, 2021, the Company amended the Credit Facility to extend the maturity date to December 31, 2024.
SSR VTB Note As part of the acquisition of the SSR Royalty portfolio, The Company entered into a Vendor-take-back note (“VTB Note”) with SSR Mining Inc. (“SSR Mining”) pursuant to which the Company borrowed US$7.8 million from SSR Mining which was used to fund the VAT liability on the acquisition of the Gediktepe royalty in Turkey.
Investment Updates
As at December 31, 2021, the Company had investments totaling $20,530,000 (December 31, 2020 – $25,626,000) which included $15,391,000 (2020 – $16,755,000) in various public and private entities, and $5,139,000 ($8,871,000) in non-current investments. The Company will continue to sell certain of its investments when appropriate. Much of the investment portfolio was derived from royalty deals completed as part of our organic royalty generation business.
Write-Down of Investment in Rawhide The Company has a 38.07% equity interest in Rawhide Acquisition Holding LLC (“Rawhide”), a privately-held Delaware company that owns the Rawhide gold-silver mining operation in Nevada’s Walker Lane Belt. The Rawhide mine is an open pit heap leaching operation that produces and sells gold and silver. The Company’s investment at Rawhide has not gone as planned. Mining operations were suspended at year-end, and Rawhide is evaluating strategic alternatives including the sale of the company. EMX has taken a full write-down of its investment in 2021 totaling $10,014,000.
OUTLOOK
The Company completed two transformative transactions in 2021 (Caserones Royalty & SSR Royalty Portfolio), raised $21,450,000 in equity and US$51,800,000 in debt. Production was initiated at Timok and at Balya (as a result of development work), while Leeville saw improvements in production that included new sources of ore. Likewise, the Gediktepe oxide gold deposit was commissioned in Q4, 2021 and is expected to reach commercial production sometime in Q2 or Q3, 2022.
Recent events in Q1 of 2022 included extension of the maturity date on the Sprott Credit Facility from July 2022 to December 2024 and the settlement of the Bullion litigation bringing into the Company US$18,825,000.
The year 2022 will see an increase in revenue coming from our cash flowing royalties including Caserones in Chile, Leeville in Nevada, and potentially Timok in Serbia (pending conclusion of the royalty rate discussions with Zijin). Likewise, Gediktepe and Balya in Turkey have been commissioned and are scheduled to contribute to 2022 cash flows. As in previous years, production royalties will continue to be complemented by option, advance royalty, and other pre-production payments from partnered projects across the global asset portfolio.
The Company plans to give production guidance for 2022 later this year. The Company will continue to strengthen its balance sheet over the course of the year by looking to retire portions of our long-term debt, continuing to evaluate equity markets (including the filing of a shelf prospectus), and the ongoing monetization of the Company’s marketable securities.
EMX is well funded to identify new royalty and investment opportunities, while further filling a pipeline of royalty generation properties that provide opportunities for additional cash flow, as well as exploration, development, and production success.
INVESTOR RELATIONS UPDATE
EMX is provided with investor relations services by Scott Close, who has provided his services from Colorado since June 1, 2007, initially as a consultant and, since Oct 1, 2010, as an employee, and by Isabel Belger, who has provided her services from Germany since January 1, 2018, as a consultant. Neither Scott nor Isabel provides their services on a fixed term basis, and EMX expects to continue to retain their services for the foreseeable future. Their services cover all aspects of liaising with shareholders and the financial investment community. The annual cost for investor relation services has been approximately US$130,000 per year over the past five years which is, has been and will continue to be paid from EMX’s cash on hand. Both have also been granted, from time to time, stock options to purchase EMX shares in accordance with EMX’s stock option plan and TSX Venture Exchange policy.
FILING OF TECHNICAL REPORTS
EMX has filed Technical Reports for the Caserones, Gediktepe, and Timok royalty projects prepared in accordance with National Instrument 43-101 “Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects” of the Canadian Securities Administrators. The Technical Reports were filed on SEDAR on March 31, 2022 to coincide with the Company’s year-end 2021 AIF filing.
The Caserones Technical Report is titled “NI 43-101 Technical Report, Caserones Copper-Molybdenum Mine Royalty, Region III, Chile” and has an effective date of February 28, 2022. The Technical Report was prepared by Gregory W. Walker, Independent Consulting Geologist, SME RM. The Report discloses no material differences than previous Company disclosures for Caserones but provides additional disclosure required by NI 43-101 for a material property.
The Gediktepe Technical Report is titled “Gediktepe Project – Balıkesir Province, Turkey NI 43-101 Royalty Technical Report” and has an effective date of February 1, 2022. The Technical Report was prepared by DAMA Engineering Inc.’s Mustafa Atalay, Senior Geologist, CPG; Metin Alemdar, Senior Mining Engineer, MIMMM; Selim Yilmaz, Senior Mining Engineer, MIMMM; and Arif Umutcan Gelisen, Senior Mining Engineer, MIMMM. The Report discloses no material differences than previous Company disclosures for Gediktepe but does provide additional disclosure required by NI 43-101 for a material property.
The Timok Technical Report is titled “NI 43-101 Technical Report – Timok Copper-Gold Project Royalty, Serbia” and has an effective date of December 31, 2020 and an amended report date of March 25, 2022. The Technical Report was prepared by Mineral Resource Management LLC’s Kevin Francis, SME RM. The second amended and restated Report has no material changes from the initial amended and restated Technical Report dated July 21, 2021, and only corrects two typographical errors in table headings.
QUALIFIED PERSONS
Michael P. Sheehan, CPG, a Qualified Person as defined by NI 43-101 and employee of the Company, has reviewed, verified and approved the above technical disclosure on North America, Latin America, and Strategic Investments. Eric P. Jensen, CPG, a Qualified Person as defined by NI 43-101 and employee of the Company, has reviewed, verified and approved the above technical disclosure on Europe, Turkey, and Australia.
About EMX. EMX is a precious, base and battery metals royalty company. EMX’s investors are provided with discovery, development, and commodity price optionality, while limiting exposure to risks inherent to operating companies. The Company’s common shares are listed on the NYSE American Exchange and TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol “EMX”, as well as on the Frankfurt exchange under the symbol “6E9”. Please see www.EMXroyalty.com for more information.
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release
Forward-Looking Statements This news release may contain “forward looking statements” that reflect the Company’s current expectations and projections about its future results. These forward-looking statements may include statements regarding perceived merit of properties, exploration results and budgets, mineral reserves and resource estimates, work programs, capital expenditures, timelines, strategic plans, market prices for precious and base metal, or other statements that are not statements of fact. When used in this news release, words such as “estimate,” “intend,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “will”, “believe”, “potential” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, which, by their very nature, are not guarantees of the Company’s future operational or financial performance, and are subject to risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause the Company’s actual results, performance, prospects or opportunities to differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, these forward-looking statements. These risks, uncertainties and factors may include, but are not limited to unavailability of financing, failure to identify commercially viable mineral reserves, fluctuations in the market valuation for commodities, difficulties in obtaining required approvals for the development of a mineral project, increased regulatory compliance costs, expectations of project funding by joint venture partners and other factors.
Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this news release or as of the date otherwise specifically indicated herein. Due to risks and uncertainties, including the risks and uncertainties identified in this news release, and other risk factors and forward-looking statements listed in the Company’s MD&A for the year ended December 31, 2021 (the “MD&A”), and themost recently filed Annual Information Form (“AIF”) for the year ended December 31, 2021, actual events may differ materially from current expectations. More information about the Company, including the MD&A, the AIF and financial statements of the Company, is available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com and on the SEC’s EDGAR website at www.sec.gov.
1 Adjusted royalty and other income and adjusted cash used in operating activities are non-IFRS financial measures with no standardized meaning under IFRS and might not be comparable to similar financial measures disclosed by other issuers. Refer to the “Non-IFRS financial measures” section of the Company’s annual MD&A for the year ended December 31, 2021 for more information on each non-IFRS financial measure.
Vancouver, British Columbia–(Newsfile Corp. – February 18, 2022) – EMX Royalty Corporation (NYSE American: EMX) (TSXV: EMX) (FSE: 6E9) (the “Company“, or “EMX“) is pleased to announce that its wholly-owned subsidiary, Bullion Monarch Mining, Inc., (“Bullion”) has reached a settlement with Barrick Gold Corporation (“Barrick”) and Barrick affiliates and subsidiaries (“Barrick Entities”) with respect to Bullion’s claim of non-payment of royalties by the Barrick Entities to Bullion on production from properties in the Carlin trend, Nevada. Bullion initiated litigation in 2008, before EMX acquired Bullion in 2012. Pursuant to the settlement, Barrick will pay Bullion US$ 25 million, of which US$ 6.175 million is owed as payment of the contingency fee to Bullion’s Reno, Nevada lawyers. The settlement of the lawsuit does not affect our 1% gross smelter return royalty from portions of Nevada Gold Mine’s Leeville, Turf and other underground gold mining operations, which will continue to be paid.
About EMX. EMX is a precious, base and battery metals royalty company. EMX’s investors are provided with discovery, development, and commodity price optionality, while limiting exposure to risks inherent to operating companies. The Company’s common shares are listed on the NYSE American Exchange and TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol “EMX”, as well as on the Frankfurt exchange under the symbol “6E9”. Please see www.EMXroyalty.com for more information.
For further information contact:
David M. Cole President and Chief Executive Officer Phone: (303) 973-8585 Dave@EMXroyalty.com
Scott Close Director of Investor Relations Phone: (303) 973-8585 SClose@EMXroyalty.com
Neither the TSX-V nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX-V) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release may contain “forward looking statements” that reflect the Company’s current expectations and projections about its future results. These forward-looking statements may include statements regarding completion of the transaction, perceived merits of properties, exploration results and budgets, mineral reserves and resource estimates, work programs, capital expenditures, timelines, strategic plans, market prices for precious and base metal, or other statements that are not statements of fact. When used in this news release, words such as “estimate,” “intend,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “will”, “believe”, “potential”, “upside” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, which, by their very nature, are not guarantees of the Company’s future operational or financial performance, and are subject to risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause the Company’s actual results, performance, prospects or opportunities to differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, these forward-looking statements. These risks, uncertainties and factors may include, but are not limited to: unavailability of financing, failure to identify commercially viable mineral reserves, fluctuations in the market valuation for commodities, difficulties in obtaining required approvals for the development of a mineral project, increased regulatory compliance costs, expectations of project funding by joint venture partners and other factors. It is possible EMX may not complete the transaction, as a result of failure to fulfill conditions of closing, unavailability of financing or for other reasons EMX cannot anticipate at this time.
Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this news release or as of the date otherwise specifically indicated herein. Due to risks and uncertainties, including the risks and uncertainties identified in this news release, and other risk factors and forward-looking statements listed in the Company’s MD&A for the quarter ended September 30, 2021 and the year ended December 31, 2020 (the “MD&A”), and the most recently filed Revised Annual Information Form (the “AIF”) for the year ended December 31, 2020, actual events may differ materially from current expectations. More information about the Company, including the MD&A, the AIF and financial statements of the Company, is available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com and on the SEC’s EDGAR website at www.sec.gov.
Vancouver, British Columbia–(Newsfile Corp. – February 17, 2022) – EMX Royalty Corporation (NYSE American: EMX) (TSXV: EMX) (FSE: 6E9) (the “Company” or “EMX”) is pleased to announce the execution of an agreement on February 14, 2022 to sell its Mo-i-Rana volcanogenic massive sulfide (“VMS“) project in Norway (the “Project“) to Mahvie Minerals AB (“Mahvie“), a private Swedish Company. In return for the transfer of the Project to Mahvie, the agreement provides EMX with a 9.9% equity interest in Mahvie, annual advance royalty payments, 2.5% Net Smelter Return (“NSR“) royalty interests, work commitments, and other considerations. In conjunction with the Mo-i-Rana transaction, Mahvie intends to establish a public listing on one of the Nordic exchanges. This is anticipated sometime in Q2, 2022.
The Mo-i-Rana VMS belt was acquired by EMX in 2021 (see EMX News Release dated April 6, 2021). This VMS belt is situated in central Norway and contains numerous polymetallic (zinc-lead-copper-silver-gold) occurrences and historical mines (see Figures 1 and 2). Over 200 mines and prospects with VMS and carbonate replacement (“CRD“) styles of mineralization are located within the Mo-i-Rana project area, including ten former producing mines.
EMX and Mahvie will work together to explore the Project, where considerable exploration upside exists at many of the historical occurrences and mines. Much of the historical exploration work was done at a time when VMS models were only poorly understood and only limited portions of the nine individual VMS horizons that exist in the belt have been tested to date. Additionally, most historical drilling was shallow (i.e., less than 100 meters) and clustered around the historical mine workings. EMX and Mahvie will apply modern exploration methods and deposit models to seek additional discoveries in the belt.
Commercial Terms Overview. Via an arm’s length transaction, Mahvie will acquire a 100% interest in the EMX subsidiary company that controls the Project, subject to the following terms:
Upon closing, EMX will receive 75,000 Norwegian Krone (approximately US$8,500 at current exchange rates) in cash and 9.9% of the issued and outstanding shares of Mahvie Minerals AB.
EMX will receive a 2.5% NSR royalty interest in the Project. On the sixth anniversary after closing, Mahvie has the option to purchase 0.5% of the NSR on the Project by paying EMX US$1,500,000.
EMX will receive annual advance royalty (“AAR“) payments of US$25,000 for the Project commencing on the third anniversary of the closing, with the AAR payment increasing by US$5,000 per year until reaching US$100,000.
A financial instrument will be put in place that allows EMX to maintain its 9.9% interest in Mahvie until a total of 25,000,000 Swedish Kronor (approximately US$2.7 million at current exchange rates) has been raised by Mahvie.
A payment of US$500,000, payable in cash or shares of Mahvie, will be made to EMX upon the completion of a Prefeasibility or Feasibility study.
To maintain its interest in the Project, Mahvie will also: (i) spend a minimum of US$200,000 on the Project by the first anniversary of the agreement and (ii) spend aggregate of US$1,000,000 by the third anniversary of the agreement or complete a minimum of 2,000 meters of drilling on the Project.
Mo-i-Rana VMS Belt. VMS and CRD style polymetallic deposits are developed in the Rana-Hemmes metallogenic region of Norway, which is also host to the prolific Rana Gruber iron mines as well as the nearby Bleikvassli Zn-Pb-Cu-Ag deposit, an EMX royalty property (see Figure 1). This metallogenic area represents a tectonically displaced continuation of the Cambrian-Ordovician VMS belts in northeastern North America, which includes the Buchans and Bathurst VMS camps in eastern Canada, and also the Avoca VMS district in Ireland. As such, this represents one of the more prolific VMS belts in the world in terms of total production from its various mining districts, albeit now tectonically displaced and occurring along opposite sides of the Atlantic Ocean.
The most notable historical producer within the Project area is the Mofjell Mine (the core of which remains covered by state-owned mining licenses) which produced 4.35 million tonnes at 3.61% Zn, 0.71% Pb, and 0.31% Cu from 1928-1987[1]. The deposit consists of three rod-shaped elongate VMS lenses, approximately 100 meters wide that extend for lengths of up to 2.8 kilometers. Just prior to mine closure, high gold and silver grades were discovered as disseminations in wall rocks within the historical mine workings (such as 2.8 meters averaging 3.88 g/t gold and 44.3 g/t silver in underground drill hole DD1313 and 3.7 meters averaging 2.30 g/t gold and 75.7 g/t silver in underground drill hole DD781A; true widths unknown[2]) but were never followed up[3]. This underscores the potential for additional discoveries of precious-metal enriched zones of mineralization in the belt.
In 2008, a partnership between industry, the Norwegian Geological Survey (NGU) and the local county administration was formed to investigate additional potential in the Mo-i-Rana belt. This effort generated high resolution airborne geophysical data sets, as well as district scale mapping and geochemical sampling campaigns carried out by the NGU. These represent key data sets that EMX and Mahvie intend to utilize for further advancement of the Project.
Comments on Sampling, Assaying and Adjacent Properties. Samples and geochemical assays mentioned in this news release are reported by Norwegian Geologic Survey. EMX has not performed sufficient work to verify the Project’s historical drill results or production data, but considers this information as reliable and relevant based upon the Company’s reviews of data from multiple independent sources. Additional drilling and sampling would be required to confirm these results.
The Mofjell Mine and other nearby mines and deposits discussed in this news release provide context for EMX’s Project, which occurs in a similar geologic setting, but this is not necessarily indicative that the Company’s Project hosts similar mineralization.
Dr. Eric P. Jensen, CPG, a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 and employee of the Company, has reviewed, verified and approved the disclosure of the technical information contained in this news release.
About EMX. EMX is a precious, base and battery metals royalty company. EMX’s investors are provided with discovery, development, and commodity price optionality, while limiting exposure to risks inherent to operating companies. The Company’s common shares are listed on the NYSE American Exchange and the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol EMX, as well as on the Frankfurt Exchange under the symbol “6E9”. Please see www.EMXroyalty.com for more information.
For further information contact:
David M. Cole President and Chief Executive Officer Phone: (303) 973-8585 Dave@emxroyalty.com
Scott Close Director of Investor Relations Phone: (303) 973-8585 SClose@emxroyalty.com
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release may contain “forward-looking statements” that reflect the Company’s current expectations and projections about its future results. These forward-looking statements may include statements regarding perceived merit of properties, exploration results and budgets, mineral reserve and resource estimates, work programs, capital expenditures, timelines, strategic plans, market prices for precious and base metal, or other statements that are not statements of fact. When used in this news release, words such as “estimate,” “intend,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “will”, “believe”, “potential” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, which, by their very nature, are not guarantees of the Company’s future operational or financial performance, and are subject to risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause the Company’s actual results, performance, prospects or opportunities to differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, these forward-looking statements. These risks, uncertainties and factors may include, but are not limited to: unavailability of financing, failure to identify commercially viable mineral reserves, fluctuations in the market valuation for commodities, difficulties in obtaining required approvals for the development of a mineral project, increased regulatory compliance costs, expectations of project funding by joint venture partners and other factors.
Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this news release or as of the date otherwise specifically indicated herein. Due to risks and uncertainties, including the risks and uncertainties identified in this news release, and other risk factors and forward-looking statements listed in the Company’s MD&A for the quarter ended September 30, 2021 and the year ended December 31, 2020 (the “MD&A”), and the most recently filed Revised Annual Information Form (the “AIF”) for the year ended December 31, 2020, actual events may differ materially from current expectations. More information about the Company, including the MD&A, the AIF and financial statements of the Company, is available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com and on the SEC’s EDGAR website at www.sec.gov.
Figure 1: Location map for the Mo-i-Rana VMS belt in Norway.
[1] Bjerkgård, et. al (2013). The Mofjell Project: Summary and conclusions. NGU (Norwegian Geological Survey) Report 2013.048.
[2] Bergverkselskapet Nord-Norge A/S, 1987. As Reported by Directorate of Mining Norway. The historical drilling was completed by Bergverkselskapet Nord-Norge A/S, 1987 and archived by the NGU. EMX believes these results to be reliable and relevant.
[3] Bjerkgård, et al (2001). Ore Potential with emphasis on gold in the Mofjellet deposit, Rana, Nordland, Norway. NGU Report 2001.050.
Vancouver, British Columbia–(Newsfile Corp. – February 10, 2022) – EMX Royalty Corporation (NYSE American: EMX) (TSXV: EMX) (FSE: 6E9) (the “Company” or “EMX”) is pleased to announce the execution, by its wholly-owned subsidiary Bronco Creek Exploration Inc., of an Assignment and Assumption agreement as well as a Royalty Agreement (the “Agreements”) for transfer of EMX’s Arizona State Exploration Permit (“Permit”) to Cactus 110 LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Arizona Sonoran Copper Company, Inc. (“ASCU”). EMX’s Permit covers a portion of the Parks Salyer copper target, located approximately 1,500 meters southwest of the historic Sacaton open pit copper mine. Sacaton was previously operated by Asarco from 1972-1984 and is now being developed by ASCU and is known as the Cactus Project. The Agreements provide EMX with a one-time cash payment for the assignment of its rights under a State of Arizona Exploration Permit as well as a 1.5% net smelter return (“NSR”) royalty interest, work commitments, annual advance royalty payments, and certain milestone payments. EMX is pleased to see the Permit advance with ASCU as it continues to advance activities at its Cactus project.
Commercial Terms Overview. (All dollar amounts in USD) Pursuant to the Agreements, ASCU will assume all rights under EMX’s Arizona State Exploration Permit by making payments of $5,000 upon execution and $195,000 upon transfer and registration of the Permit to Cactus 110 LLC (“Registration Date”). EMX will retain a 1.5% NSR royalty interest on the Permit. ASCU may buy back one percent (1%) of the royalty for a payment of $500,000 to EMX. EMX will receive annual advance royalty (“AAR”) payments of $50,000. The AAR payments cease upon commencement of commercial production and can be bought out at any time for a payment of $1,000,000. ASCU will make milestone payments of $1,500,000 upon declaration of a mineral resource containing 100 million pounds or more of copper and another payment of $1,500,000 upon further declaration of an additional 100 million pounds of copper contained in a resource. In the two years following the Registration Date, ASCU will make yearly exploration expenditures totaling $2,000,000 prior to the first anniversary and a cumulative total of $4,000,000 prior to the second anniversary.
Parks Salyer Permit Overview. EMX’s Parks Salyer Permit is located approximately 5 kilometers northwest of the city of Casa Grande, and approximately 900 meters southwest of the historic Sacaton open pit copper mine in central Arizona. Sacaton is a porphyry copper-molybedenum deposit within the Laramide arc in the southwestern U.S. The Parks Salyer Permit is comprised of one State of Arizona Exploration Permit totaling 158 acres and covers a portion, roughly one third of the poorly drill defined Parks Salyer copper target area. The target lies beneath post-mineral gravels and contained within a fault-bounded horst block, and has potential for supergene enriched copper and hypogene sulfide mineralization. The target is supported by historic induced polarization geophysical surveys and drilling within and adjacent to the EMX royalty ground.
More information on the Parks Salyer Permit can be found at www.EMXroyalty.com.
Comments on Adjacent Properties. The nearby Sacaton mine provide geologic context for EMX’s Project, but this is not necessarily indicative that the Project hosts similar tonnages or grades of mineralization.
Michael P. Sheehan, CPG, a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 and employee of the Company, has reviewed, verified and approved the disclosure of the technical information contained in this news release.
About EMX. EMX is a precious, base and battery metals royalty company. EMX’s investors are provided with discovery, development, and commodity price optionality, while limiting exposure to risks inherent to operating companies. The Company’s common shares are listed on the NYSE American Exchange and the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol EMX, as well as on the Frankfurt Exchange under the symbol “6E9.” Please see www.EMXroyalty.com for more information.
For further information contact:
David M. Cole President and Chief Executive Officer Phone: (303) 973-8585 Dave@emxroyalty.com
Scott Close Director of Investor Relations Phone: (303) 973-8585 SClose@emxroyalty.com
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release may contain “forward-looking statements” that reflect the Company’s current expectations and projections about its future results. These forward-looking statements may include statements regarding perceived merit of properties, exploration results and budgets, mineral reserve and resource estimates, work programs, capital expenditures, timelines, strategic plans, market prices for precious and base metal, or other statements that are not statements of fact. When used in this news release, words such as “estimate,” “intend,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “will”, “believe”, “potential” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, which, by their very nature, are not guarantees of the Company’s future operational or financial performance, and are subject to risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause the Company’s actual results, performance, prospects or opportunities to differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, these forward-looking statements. These risks, uncertainties and factors may include, but are not limited to: unavailability of financing, failure to identify commercially viable mineral reserves, fluctuations in the market valuation for commodities, difficulties in obtaining required approvals for the development of a mineral project, increased regulatory compliance costs, expectations of project funding by joint venture partners and other factors.
Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this news release or as of the date otherwise specifically indicated herein. Due to risks and uncertainties, including the risks and uncertainties identified in this news release, and other risk factors and forward-looking statements listed in the Company’s MD&A for the quarter ended September 30, 2021 and the year ended December 31, 2020 (the “MD&A”), and the most recently filed Revised Annual Information Form (the “AIF”) for the year ended December 31, 2020, actual events may differ materially from current expectations. More information about the Company, including the MD&A, the AIF and financial statements of the Company, is available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com and on the SEC’s EDGAR website at www.sec.gov.
Figure 1. Location map of the EMX Parks Salyer Permit.
Vancouver, British Columbia–(Newsfile Corp. – January 27, 2022) – EMX Royalty Corporation (NYSE American: EMX) (TSXV: EMX) (FSE: 6E9) (the “Company“, or “EMX“) reports that it has suspended the filing of its Notice of Arbitration to Zijin Mining Group Ltd (“Zijin”) and its wholly owned subsidiary, Nevsun Resources Ltd. (“Nevsun”) pursuant to the Net Smelter Returns Royalty Agreement dated March 16, 2010 by and between Reservoir Capital Corp. (of which Nevsun is a successor in interest), and Euromax Resources Ltd (EMX is the acquirer of Euromax Resources Ltd’s royalty interest) (the “Royalty Agreement”). EMX announced its intention to file a Notice of Arbitration in its news release of December 17, 2021, as a result of a dispute with Zijin regarding the royalty rate under the Royalty Agreement described in such news release.
EMX has suspended the filing as it has commenced discussions with Zijin with the goal of reaching a mutually acceptable resolution. As the outcome of such discussions are uncertain at this stage, EMX reserves its right to protect its royalty interests as it deems necessary which may include the future filing of a Notice of Arbitration which has been prepared. However, at this time, EMX continues to pursue an amicable and mutually acceptable resolution with Zijin.
Timok Project Overview. The Timok Project’s Cukaru Peki deposit consists of a higher level body of high-grade, epithermal-style copper-gold mineralization referred to as the Upper Zone project, and a deeper body of porphyry-style copper-gold mineralization known as the Lower Zone project. Prior to its acquisition by Zijin, a Pre-Feasibility Study (“PFS”) of the Upper Zone and resource estimate of the Lower Zone was completed by previous owner Nevsun, which was filed in August 2018 under Nevsun’s profile on SEDAR. EMX used the aforementioned PFS as the basis for its NI 43-101 Technical Report – Timok Copper-Gold Project Royalty, Serbia dated July 30, 2021 and EMX is unaware of any new, publicly available material scientific or technical information that would make Nevsun’s previous disclosures regarding the PFS inaccurate or misleading.
Eric P. Jensen, CPG, a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 and an employee of the Company, has reviewed, verified, and approved the disclosure of the technical information contained in this news release.
About EMX. EMX is a precious, base and battery metals royalty company. EMX’s investors are provided with discovery, development, and commodity price optionality, while limiting exposure to risks inherent to operating companies. The Company’s common shares are listed on the NYSE American Exchange and TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol EMX, as well as on the Frankfurt exchange under the symbol “6E9”. Please see www.EMXroyalty.com for more information.
For further information contact:
David M. Cole President and Chief Executive Officer Phone: (303) 973-8585 Dave@EMXroyalty.com
Scott Close Director of Investor Relations Phone: (303) 973-8585 SClose@EMXroyalty.com
Neither the TSX-V nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX-V) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release may contain “forward looking statements” that reflect the Company’s current expectations and projections about its future results. These forward-looking statements include statements regarding the payment of the royalty under the Royalty Agreement, the royalty rate, the outcome of any discussions, dispute or arbitral proceedings between EMX and Zijin and any other steps or actions taken by EMX to protect its rights, including any future filing of the Notice of Arbitration,, perceived merits of properties, exploration results and budgets, mineral reserves and resource estimates, work programs, capital expenditures, timelines, strategic plans, market prices for precious and base metal, or other statements that are not statements of fact. When used in this news release, words such as “estimate,” “intend,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “will”, “believe”, “potential”, “upside” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, which, by their very nature, are not guarantees of the Company’s future operational or financial performance, and are subject to risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause the Company’s actual results, performance, prospects or opportunities to differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, these forward-looking statements. These risks, uncertainties and factors may include, but are not limited to: unavailability of financing, failure to identify commercially viable mineral reserves, fluctuations in the market valuation for commodities, difficulties in obtaining required approvals for the development of a mineral project, increased regulatory compliance costs, expectations of project funding by joint venture partners and other factors.
Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this news release or as of the date otherwise specifically indicated herein. We are under no obligation to update any forward-looking statements except as required under applicable securities laws. Due to risks and uncertainties, including the risks and uncertainties identified in this news release, and other risk factors and forward-looking statements listed in the Company’s MD&A for the quarter ended September 30, 2021 (the “MD&A”), and the most recently filed Revised Annual Information Form (the “AIF”) for the year ended December 31, 2020, actual events may differ materially from current expectations. More information about the Company, including the MD&A, the AIF and financial statements of the Company, is available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com and on the SEC’s EDGAR website at www.sec.gov.
Vancouver, British Columbia–(Newsfile Corp. – January 26, 2022) – EMX Royalty Corporation (NYSE American: EMX) (TSXV: EMX) (FSE: 6E9) (the “Company” or “EMX”) is pleased to announce the execution, by its wholly-owned subsidiary Bronco Creek Exploration Inc., of an exploration and option agreement (the “Agreement”) for the sale of the Robber Gulch gold project (“Project”) in Idaho to Ridgeline Exploration Corporation, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ridgeline Minerals Corp. (TSX-V: RDG) (“Ridgeline”). The Agreement provides EMX with cash payments, share payments, and work commitments during Ridgeline’s earn-in period, and upon earn-in a retained 3.25% net smelter return (“NSR”) royalty interest, annual advance royalty payments, and certain milestone payments.
Robber Gulch is a Carlin-style gold property acquired by EMX in 2019 and then optioned to a third party in 2020 that completed work programs consisting of geological mapping, soil and rock chip geochemical sampling, trenching, and a reconnaissance drill program. This previous work confirmed several key gold zones that were delineated by coincident geochemical anomalies and prospective geology. The drill testing was limited in scope and in EMX’s judgement did not adequately test the target zones. The Project reverted back to 100% EMX control in Q3, 2021.
The Robber Gulch Agreement with Ridgeline represents EMX’s execution of the seventh option agreement for Idaho gold projects since 2020. Ridgeline is also advancing the Company’s Swift and Selena royalty properties in Nevada. Robber Gulch is a key example of the royalty generation aspect of EMX’s business model, whereby prospective ground was identified, acquired inexpensively via staking open ground, and then partnered for exploration advancement at no additional cost to EMX.
Commercial Terms Overview. Pursuant to the Agreement, Ridgeline can earn 100% interest in the Project by (all dollar amounts in USD): (a) making execution and option payments totaling $750,000 over a five year option period, (b) delivering 150,000 shares of Ridgeline Minerals Corp. to EMX by the second anniversary of the Agreement, and (c) completing $650,000 in exploration expenditures before the fifth anniversary of the Agreement.
Upon Ridgeline’s option exercise and earn-in, EMX will retain a 3.25% NSR royalty interest on the Project. Ridgeline may buy back up to a total of one percent (1%) of the royalty by first completing an initial half-percent (0.5%) royalty buyback for a payment of $1,500,000 to the Company prior to the third anniversary of the option exercise. If the first buyback is completed, then the remaining half-percent (0.5%) of the royalty buyback can be purchased anytime thereafter for a payment of $2,000,000 to the Company. Ridgeline will also make annual advance royalty (“AAR”) payments of $50,000 that increase to $75,000 upon completion of a Preliminary Economic Assessment (“PEA”) or internal study termed an Order of Magnitude Study (“OMS”), the details of which are defined in the terms of the Agreement. The AAR payments cease upon commencement of commercial production. In addition, Ridgeline will make Project milestone payments consisting of: (a) $250,000 upon completion of a PEA, (b) $500,000 upon completion of the earlier of a Prefeasibility or Feasibility Study, and (c) $1,000,000 upon a positive Development Decision.
Robber Gulch Overview. The Robber Gulch Project is located 30 kilometers south of Burley, Idaho and consists of 117 unpatented lode mining claims covering approximately 9.3 square kilometers. Carlin-style mineralization is hosted in Pennsylvanian to Permian age silty limestones and calcareous siliciclastics that are exposed within erosional windows beneath post-mineralization volcanic rocks. The Robber Gulch geological environment is similar to that at the Black Pine project ~90 kilometers to the southeast.
Previous work on the Project defined two main corridors of gold mineralization along the crest of a gently sloping ridge where prospective Paleozoic host rocks outcrop. Much of the remainder of the property is covered by shallow soil. A 2020 geochemical sampling program (conducted by previous partner Gold Lion Resources) identified robust 1,000 by 550 meter and 850 by 600 meter gold-in-soil anomalies1. Numerous lower level gold-in-soil anomalies are scattered across the property within an overlying sequence of less prospective host rocks.
Trenching across portions of the soil anomalies further defined priority oxide gold targets, including a trench interval of 189 meters averaging 0.43 g/t gold, with a higher grade sub-interval of 0.88 g/t gold over 45 meters. Historical drilling intercepted 57.9 meters (from 21.3 to 79.2 m) averaging 0.34 g/t gold, including 12.2 meters averaging 0.90 g/t gold (hole bottomed in 0.32 g/t gold)2. The last hole of Gold Lion’s 2021 program terminated prematurely in bedrock at 6.1 meters depth, and averaged 1.46 g/t gold across the drilled interval. True widths from the trenching and drilling are unknown.
EMX regards Robber Gulch as a highly prospective gold property within an emerging Carlin-style gold region in southern Idaho. The Company looks forward to the Ridgeline team advancing the Project with the knowledge gained from successfully exploring Carlin-style gold systems in Nevada.
Comments on Sampling, Assaying and Adjacent Properties. EMX has not performed sufficient work to verify the Project’s historical drill results, but considers this information as reliable and relevant based upon the Company’s independent field work and reviews of data from multiple sources.
The geochemical and trench results in this news release from previous partner Gold Lion Resources were sampled and assayed according to industry standard procedures, and reported according to NI 43-101 requirements. EMX believes that these results are reliable and relevant. All trench samples were logged and sampled by Gold Lion personnel. Certified reference material standards, blanks and pulp duplicates were inserted at a ratio of approximately two in every 10 trench samples. Rock samples were collected as continuous 2 to 3-metre-long chip samples along the entire length of the trenches. An effort was made to collect an even volume of bedrock along each interval in order to minimize bias in the chip sampling.
All rock samples were sealed in poly bags and were transported to MS Analytical’s laboratory in Langley, B.C., by Gold Lion personnel for preparation and analysis. Sample preparation was completed by crushing the entire sample to 70% passing -2mm, riffle splitting off 1 kilogram and pulverizing the split to better than 85% passing 75 microns. Using a 30 gram sub-sample, the gold values are determined by the fire assay method, with atomic absorption finish (code FAS-111), which reports results in parts per million (ppm) (equivalent to grams per tonne (g/t)). Using a 0.5 grab sub-sample, the remaining analytes were determined by multi-element ICP-AES with an aqua regia digest (code ICP-130). Representative samples from RG-TR-20-03 were re-analyzed by Cyanide Leach (code AU-CN00) with a AAS finish. A range of samples from low (0.149g/t) to high grade gold (1.502g/t Au; determined by FAS-111) were selected to represent a range of mineralized samples from the trenching program for reanalysis by Cyanide Leach. All analytical results are verified with the application of industry standard Quality Control and Quality Assurance (QA-QC) procedures.
The Black Pine project referenced in this news release provides context for EMX’s Project, which occurs in a similar geologic setting, but this is not necessarily indicative that the Company’s Project hosts similar tonnages or grades of mineralization.
Michael P. Sheehan, CPG, a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 and employee of the Company, has reviewed, verified and approved the disclosure of the technical information contained in this news release.
About EMX. EMX is a precious, base and battery metals royalty company. EMX’s investors are provided with discovery, development, and commodity price optionality, while limiting exposure to risks inherent to operating companies. The Company’s common shares are listed on the NYSE American Exchange and the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol EMX, as well as on the Frankfurt Exchange under the symbol “6E9.” Please see www.EMXroyalty.com for more information.
For further information contact:
David M. Cole President and Chief Executive Officer Phone: (303) 973-8585 Dave@emxroyalty.com
Scott Close Director of Investor Relations Phone: (303) 973-8585 SClose@emxroyalty.com
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release may contain “forward-looking statements” that reflect the Company’s current expectations and projections about its future results. These forward-looking statements may include statements regarding perceived merit of properties, exploration results and budgets, mineral reserve and resource estimates, work programs, capital expenditures, timelines, strategic plans, market prices for precious and base metal, or other statements that are not statements of fact. When used in this news release, words such as “estimate,” “intend,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “will”, “believe”, “potential” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, which, by their very nature, are not guarantees of the Company’s future operational or financial performance, and are subject to risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause the Company’s actual results, performance, prospects or opportunities to differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, these forward-looking statements. These risks, uncertainties and factors may include, but are not limited to: unavailability of financing, failure to identify commercially viable mineral reserves, fluctuations in the market valuation for commodities, difficulties in obtaining required approvals for the development of a mineral project, increased regulatory compliance costs, expectations of project funding by joint venture partners and other factors.
Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this news release or as of the date otherwise specifically indicated herein. Due to risks and uncertainties, including the risks and uncertainties identified in this news release, and other risk factors and forward-looking statements listed in the Company’s MD&A for the quarter ended September 30, 2021 and the year ended December 31, 2020 (the “MD&A”), and the most recently filed Revised Annual Information Form (the “AIF”) for the year ended December 31, 2020, actual events may differ materially from current expectations. More information about the Company, including the MD&A, the AIF and financial statements of the Company, is available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com and on the SEC’s EDGAR website at www.sec.gov.
Figure 1. Location map of the Robber Gulch Project, Idaho.
Note: Soil, rock chip and trench results are from Gold Lion Resources. Annotated drill hole intercepts are historical. True widths for trench and drill results are unknown.
1See Gold Lion Resources news releases dated June 16, and August 11, 2020. 2 Exvenco Resources Inc., 1986, Internal Report on Artesian City Project, Cassia County, Idaho.
Vancouver, British Columbia–(Newsfile Corp. – January 25, 2022) – EMX Royalty Corporation (NYSE American: EMX) (TSXV: EMX) (FSE: 6E9) (the “Company“, or “EMX“). Further to its news releases dated July 29, 2021, August 17, 2021 and October 21, 2021, the Company is pleased to announce it has entered into an amendment to extend the term of the US $44,000,000 credit facility (the “SprottCredit Facility“) entered with Sprott Private Resource Lending II (Collector), LP (“Sprott“) to December 31, 2024 in consideration for the payment of an amount equal to 1.5% of the outstanding principal amount of the Sprott Credit Facility, which shall be added to the principal amount of the Sprott Credit Facility; and to amend the voluntary prepayment rights under the Sprott Credit Facility to permit the prepayment of up to US $10,000,000 of the principal amount of the Sprott Facility at any time on or after June 30, 2023, and permit to the prepayment of the remaining principal amount of the Sprott Loan at any time on or after June 30, 2024. In addition, the Company has entered into an amendment to the postponement agreement between the Company, Sprott and SSR Mining Inc.(“SSR“) to permit the prepayment of the VTB Note (US $7,850,000 principal amount owed to SSR) prior to the repayment of the Sprott Credit Facility, provided that no event of default has occurred or is continuing under the Sprott Credit Facility.
About EMX. EMX is a precious, base and battery metals royalty company. EMX’s investors are provided with discovery, development, and commodity price optionality, while limiting exposure to risks inherent to operating companies. The Company’s common shares are listed on the NYSE American Exchange and TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol “EMX”, as well as on the Frankfurt exchange under the symbol “6E9”. Please see www.EMXroyalty.com for more information.
For further information contact:
David M. Cole President and Chief Executive Officer Phone: (303) 973-8585 Dave@EMXroyalty.com
Scott Close Director of Investor Relations Phone: (303) 973-8585 SClose@EMXroyalty.com
Neither the TSX-V nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX-V) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release may contain “forward-looking statements” that reflect the Company’s current expectations and projections about its future results. These forward-looking statements may include statements regarding completion of the transaction, perceived merits of properties, exploration results and budgets, mineral reserves and resource estimates, work programs, capital expenditures, timelines, strategic plans, market prices for precious and base metal, or other statements that are not statements of fact. When used in this news release, words such as “estimate,” “intend,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “will”, “believe”, “potential”, “upside” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, which, by their very nature, are not guarantees of the Company’s future operational or financial performance, and are subject to risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause the Company’s actual results, performance, prospects or opportunities to differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, these forward-looking statements. These risks, uncertainties and factors may include, but are not limited to: unavailability of financing, failure to identify commercially viable mineral reserves, fluctuations in the market valuation for commodities, difficulties in obtaining required approvals for the development of a mineral project, increased regulatory compliance costs, expectations of project funding by joint venture partners and other factors.
Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this news release or as of the date otherwise specifically indicated herein. Due to risks and uncertainties, including the risks and uncertainties identified in this news release, and other risk factors and forward-looking statements listed in the Company’s MD&A for the quarter ended September 30, 2021, and the year ended December 31, 2020 (the “MD&A”), and the most recently filed Revised Annual Information Form (the “AIF”) for the year ended December 31, 2020, actual events may differ materially from current expectations. More information about the Company, including the MD&A, the AIF and financial statements of the Company, is available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com and on the SEC’s EDGAR website at www.sec.gov.
Vancouver, British Columbia–(Newsfile Corp. – January 4, 2022) – EMX Royalty Corporation (NYSE American: EMX) (TSXV: EMX) (FSE: 6E9) (the “Company” or “EMX”) is pleased to announce results from recently completed geochemical surveys at EMX’s 100% owned Mt Steadman and Yarrol gold projects in central Queensland, Australia. Numerous gold-in-soil anomalies have been identified by surveys conducted on both projects, with several anomalies extending to the edges of the survey grids, meaning that they remain open for expansion. A total of 895 samples were collected, with results including 2.17 ppm gold in a new target area at Mt Steadman. Results from the Yarrol project also delineated several robust gold-in-soil anomalies, as well as a new target area with high levels of cobalt and nickel in rock chip samples. These results highlight the additional exploration potential of both projects.
EMX will continue executing exploration programs on both projects in the coming year, and both projects are currently available for partnership.
Mt Steadman Project. The 5,700 hectare Mt Steadman project is an intrusion-related gold system (“IRGS”) in the New England Orogenic Belt in Queensland, Australia, a province that hosts IRGS-type gold, porphyry and epithermal deposits. Mt Steadman is located along the Perry Fault system, a major structural feature in the area (see Figure 1). The Mt Steadman project was the focus of exploration in the 1990’s when shallow reconnaissance drilling programs led to the recognition and definition of historical gold resources. However little exploration has taken place since (see EMX News Release dated April 26, 2021).
In Q3 and Q4 2021, EMX conducted a broad soil geochemical survey to the north of the Fitzroy historical resource (see Figure 2). A total of 351 samples were collected on 200 meter and 400 meter spaced traverses with samples collected every 50 meters along each line. This program resulted in the delineation of multiple anomalous gold-in-soil trends. The most prominent anomaly extends for 400 meters along trend and reaches a maximum width of 200 meters at its northern extent. The anomaly remains open to the north and includes a sample of 2.17 ppm gold. This new soil anomaly is similar in scale and tenor to those around the historic Fitzroy prospect located 1km to the southeast. This anomaly also exhibits coincident anomalous molybdenum and tellurium geochemistry, similar to geochemical signatures seen at Fitzroy, and closely correlates with the mapped extent of a zone of hydrothermal breccias, quartz veining and alteration.
Yarrol Project. The 17,500 hectare Yarrol project is located between EMX’s Queensland Gold royalty property and Evolution Mining’s Mt Rawdon gold mine, and is positioned along the regional scale Yarrol Fault. Several other historical mines and active exploration projects lie along the Yarrol Fault structural trend. EMX’s Yarrol Project was the site of historical mining activities from the late 1800’s through the 1930’s. Further exploration carried out in the 1980’s and 1990’s led to the definition of two historical gold resources on the Yarrol Project, but little exploration activity has taken place since that time (see EMX news release dated April 26, 2021).
EMX’s 2021 programs at Yarrol included the collection of 544 soil samples, which identified two new gold-in-soil anomalies (see Figure 3). The northern anomaly, known as the Limestone Creek area, lies approximately five kilometers northwest of the historical Yarrol gold resources. This new anomaly has dimensions of 200 by 600 meters, with the strongest results along the southernmost line. The area was identified as a target by EMX on the basis of magnetic inversion geophysical models, previous geochemical results and the presence of numerous historical prospecting pits. The Limestone Creek anomaly also coincides with a zone of albite-silica-goethite alteration developed adjacent to a monzonite porphyry and remains open to the south. The anomaly has a scale and tenor that resembles those over the historical gold resources on the Yarrol Project.
Other gold-in-soil anomalies have been delineated immediately northwest of the historical Yarrol resources, along a contact zone between geological formations within folded and faulted sediments, which also merit follow-up exploration.
In the process of carrying out the sampling programs at the Yarrol Project, EMX geologists also noted boulders of dark manganiferous material in several drainages in the northern part of the exploration license. The boulders were traced back to an outcropping stratigraphic horizon of dark, manganiferous material that has the appearance of a conglomeratic unit.
Nine rock chip samples collected from various boulders, float materials and outcrop exposures averaged 1.1% cobalt, 0.15 % nickel and 10.0% manganese, with a high of 1.6% cobalt with 0.25% nickel. EMX considers this to be a significant discovery of additional mineral potential on the Yarrol Project, as previous efforts had strictly focused on Yarrol’s intrusion-related gold mineralization. Additional sampling programs are underway to better quantify the extent of this unit and its degrees of enrichment in cobalt, nickel and manganese. Barium is also enriched in this material, with eight of the nine samples submitted for analysis exceeding the upper analytical limit of 1% barium.
Upcoming Exploration Plans. Additional geochemical sampling programs will be carried out at both the Mt Steadman and Yarrol projects in the coming months with the goal of extending the soil anomalies and identifying additional drill targets. Drill programs are being planned for mid-2022.
EMX’s Australian Royalty Generation Program. EMX maintains an active royalty generation program and continues to review new project opportunities throughout Australia. The Company currently holds two royalty projects in Australia (Koonenberry and Queensland Gold) and has three exploration projects in Queensland that are available for partnership. More information on these projects can be found on the EMX website (www.EMXroyalty.com).
Comments on Sampling, Assaying, and Nearby Mines and Deposits. EMX’s exploration samples were collected in accordance with industry standard best practices. EMX conducts routine QA/QC analysis on its exploration samples, including the utilization of certified reference materials, blanks, and duplicate samples. All samples were submitted to ALS Brisbane for sample preparation and analysis (ISO 9001:2000 and 17025:2005 accredited).
The soil samples were analyzed using the AuME-TL-44 method which is a trace level gold and multi-element technique consisting of an aqua-regia digest and an ICP-MS finish.
The rock chip samples were analyzed with a four-acid super trace technique (ME-MS61) with an ICP-MS finish. The rock chip samples were also analyzed with a lithium borate fusion prior to acid dissolution (three-acid) and an ICP-MS finish (ME-MS81). Over limit cobalt and manganese samples were analyzed by a HF-HN03-HCL04 digest, HCL leach and ICP-AES (OG62) finish.
The nearby mines and deposits discussed in this news release provide context for EMX’s properties, which occur in a similar geologic setting, but this is not necessarily indicative that the properties host similar mineralization.
Dr. Eric P. Jensen, CPG, a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 and employee of the Company, has reviewed, verified and approved the disclosure of the technical information contained in this news release.
About EMX. EMX is a precious, base and battery metals royalty company. EMX’s investors are provided with discovery, development, and commodity price optionality, while limiting exposure to risks inherent to operating companies. The Company’s common shares are listed on the NYSE American Exchange and the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol EMX, as well as on the Frankfurt Exchange under the symbol “6E9.” Please see www.EMXroyalty.com for more information.
For further information contact:
David M. Cole President and Chief Executive Officer Phone: (303) 973-8585 Dave@emxroyalty.com
Scott Close Director of Investor Relations Phone: (303) 973-8585 SClose@emxroyalty.com
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release may contain “forward-looking statements” that reflect the Company’s current expectations and projections about its future results. These forward-looking statements may include statements regarding perceived merit of properties, exploration results and budgets, mineral reserves and resource estimates, work programs, capital expenditures, timelines, strategic plans, market prices for precious and base metal, or other statements that are not statements of fact. When used in this news release, words such as “estimate,” “intend,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “will”, “believe”, “potential” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, which, by their very nature, are not guarantees of the Company’s future operational or financial performance, and are subject to risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause the Company’s actual results, performance, prospects or opportunities to differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, these forward-looking statements. These risks, uncertainties and factors may include, but are not limited to: unavailability of financing, failure to identify commercially viable mineral reserves, fluctuations in the market valuation for commodities, difficulties in obtaining required approvals for the development of a mineral project, increased regulatory compliance costs, expectations of project funding by joint venture partners and other factors.
Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this news release or as of the date otherwise specifically indicated herein. Due to risks and uncertainties, including the risks and uncertainties identified in this news release, and other risk factors and forward-looking statements listed in the Company’s MD&A for the quarter ended September 30, 2021 and the year ended December 31, 2020 (the “MD&A”), and the most recently filed Revised Annual Information Form (the “AIF”) for the year ended December 31, 2020, actual events may differ materially from current expectations. More information about the Company, including the MD&A, the AIF and financial statements of the Company, is available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com and on the SEC’s EDGAR website at www.sec.gov.
Figure 1. Location map for the Yarrol and Mt Steadman projects.
The summary of historic production at Mt Morgan is cited from Mt. Morgan: A. Taube; The Mount Morgan gold-copper mine and environment, Queensland; a volcanogenic massive sulfide deposit associated with penecontemporaneous faulting. Economic Geology; 81 (6): 1322-1340.
Figure 2. 2021 Soil Results from the Mt Steadman Project.
Vancouver, British Columbia–(Newsfile Corp. – December 21, 2021) – EMX Royalty Corporation (NYSE American: EMX) (TSXV: EMX) (FSE: 6E9) (the “Company“, or “EMX“) is pleased to announce the execution, by its wholly-owned subsidiary Bronco Creek Exploration Inc., of exploration and option agreements (the “Agreements”) for four precious-metals projects (the “Projects” or individually a “Project”) located in Idaho and Nevada to Hochschild Mining PLC (LSE: HOC) (“Hochschild”). The Agreements provide EMX with work commitments and cash payments during Hochschild’s earn-in period, and upon earn-in for a given project, a 4% net smelter return (“NSR”) royalty, annual advance royalty payments, and milestone payments. Prior to final execution of the agreements, EMX and Hochschild agreed to, and commenced, initial exploration programs on all four Projects.
The three Idaho Projects, Valve House, Timber Butte, and Lehman Butte are located in southern and south-central Idaho (see Figure 1). Valve House and Timber Butte host Carlin-style gold mineralization in prospective carbonate-rich lithologies. Lehman Butte hosts epithermal style veins in Eocene volcanic rocks and jasperoids in older Paleozoic carbonate rocks. The Speed Goat Project hosts an intrusion-related gold-copper target located in the greater Battle Mountain-Eureka gold belt of north-central Nevada.
The Projects were recently acquired by staking prospective open ground during EMX’s ongoing regional scale, field-oriented royalty generation gold program. The Agreements with Hochschild serve as an example of the Company’s successful execution of the royalty generation aspect of its business model. Part and parcel to EMX’s business model, the Projects are now advancing with funding from a quality international mining company with EMX receiving pre-production payments while retaining upside optionality with retained NSR royalty interests.
Commercial Terms Overview. Pursuant to the Agreements, Hochschild can earn a 100% interest in a Project by (all dollar amounts in USD): (a) making option payments totaling $600,000, (b) completing $1,500,000 in exploration expenditures before the fifth anniversary of a given Agreement, and (c) reimbursing EMX the previous year’s holding costs. For clarity, the above terms are per individual Agreement covering an individual Project.
Upon an option exercise, EMX will retain a 4% NSR royalty on a Project. Hochschild may buyback up to a total of 1.5% of the royalty by first completing an initial 0.5% royalty buyback for a payment of 300 ounces of gold (or the cash equivalent) to the Company prior to the third anniversary of the option exercise. If the first buyback is completed, then the remaining 1% of the royalty buyback can be purchased anytime thereafter for a payment of 1,700 ounces of gold (or the cash equivalent) to the Company. Hochschild will also make annual advance royalty (“AAR”) payments of $50,000 that increase to $100,000 upon completion of a Preliminary Economic Assessment (“PEA”). The AAR payments for a Project cease upon commencement of production. In addition, Hochschild will make Project milestone payments consisting of: (a) $500,000 upon completion of a PEA, (b) $1,000,000 upon completion of a Prefeasibility Study, and (c) $1,000,000 upon completion of a Feasibility Study.
Project Overviews and 2021 Work Programs. The Projects optioned to Hochschild represent diverse styles of precious metals mineralization within, and along extensions of, key mineral belts in Idaho and Nevada.
Valve House, Idaho. Valve House is located approximately 25 kilometers southeast of Pocatello, Idaho. The Project covers 9.5 square kilometers of Carlin-style alteration and mineralization hosted within lower Paleozoic silty carbonate units. Gold mineralization is both structurally and stratigraphically controlled. The last noteworthy exploration, conducted in the 1980’s, identified three separate areas of gold mineralization and jasperoid replacement in limestone lithologies. Historical drill intercepts from this work included 42.7 meters averaging 0.87 g/t gold (from 10.7 to 53.4 m, true width unknown) and 21.3 meters averaging 0.71 g/t gold (from 0 to 21.3 m, true width unknown)1. Mineralization remains open for expansion.
To date, Hochschild has conducted additional reconnaissance mapping and rock chip sampling, a property-wide soil survey and an induced polarization (“IP”) geophysical survey. As well, Hochschild expanded the property position by staking additional claims. Hochschild’s exploration results are pending.
Timber Butte, Idaho. Timber Butte is located approximately 15 kilometers northeast of Carey, Idaho. The Project is a Carlin-style target characterized by anomalous gold mineralization associated with jasperoid and decalcified carbonate bearing rocks along north-northwest oriented structures cutting Roberts Mountains Formation, a key host to Carlin-style mineralization in Nevada. Cordex explored a portion of Timber Butte in the 1970’s and completed three rotary holes that intersected anomalous gold mineralization. EMX’s work has extended beyond the historical target area with additional targets identified along trend and under shallow colluvial cover. EMX’s rock chip sampling of altered outcrops on the main structural trend returned assay results including 1.25 g/t gold (n=19, avg. 0.1 g/t Au) along a strike length of approximately 3.2 kilometers.
After completing additional reconnaissance mapping and rock chip sampling, Hochschild expanded the land position, completed soil sampling geochemical surveys over key target areas, and collected stream sediment samples. An IP survey is planned for the first part of 2022 while awaiting assay results from the geochemical sampling programs.
Lehman Butte, Idaho. Lehman Butte is located in south-central Idaho, approximately 15 kilometers west-northwest of Mackay. The target at Lehman Butte is low sulfidation epithermal precious metals mineralization in quartz-sulfide veins cutting Eocene lavas and tuffs which overlie Paleozoic carbonate units. The quartz-sulfide veins are commonly greater than one meter wide and associated with widespread quartz-clay-adularia alteration in intermediate volcanic rocks, as well as with jasperoid alteration in the underlying Mississippian age limestone. The Project was identified from an EMX regional stream sediment geochemical program. Follow-up reconnaissance work included a rock chip sample of 3.1 g/t gold and 19.8 g/t silver (n=35, avg. 0.185 g/t Au and 6.7 g/t Ag) coincident with silicified zones and quartz-pyrite feeder veins. EMX and Hochschild are targeting bulk-tonnage precious metals mineralization hosted within permeable tuffaceous units.
Hochschild’s recently completed work program entailed property-wide geologic mapping and rock chip sampling along with an 800-sample soil survey and ground magnetic geophysical program. Results are pending. An IP survey together with an initial drill test is planned for the spring of 2022.
Speed Goat, Nevada. Speed Goat is located within the Battle Mountain-Eureka Trend, approximately 30 kilometers northwest of the Phoenix-Fortitude intrusion-related skarn system in north-central Nevada. EMX identified gold-copper mineralization composed of sheeted quartz-iron oxide after sulfide veins cutting Jurassic granodiorite. Mineralization appears to be related to a series of north-south striking porphyry dikes. Reconnaissance soil sampling by EMX outlined a 0.6 by 1 kilometer gold-in-soil anomaly (n=73, avg. 82 ppb Au) coincident with rock chip assays from outcrop that included 5.1 g/t gold (n=20, avg. 0.67 g/t Au). The mineralization is also anomalous in pathfinder geochemical elements (e.g., Bi-As-Sb-Cu), consistent with other intrusion-related gold systems in the nearby Battle Mountain district.
At Speed Goat, Hochschild completed additional geologic mapping and select channel sampling across the target zone in addition to ground magnetic and IP geophysical surveys in preparation for an initial drill test.
Comments on Sampling, Assaying, QA/QC, and Historical Exploration Results. EMX’s exploration samples were collected in accordance with industry standard best practices. The samples were submitted to ALS laboratories in Reno, Nevada and Vancouver, Canada (ISO 9001:2017 and ISO/IEC 17025:2017 accredited) for sample preparation and analysis. Gold assays were performed by fire assay with an ICP/AES finish. EMX conducts routine QA/QC analysis on its exploration samples, including the utilization of certified reference materials, blanks, and duplicate samples. Gold assays were performed by fire assay with an ICP/AES finish. Silver and other elements were analyzed by four acid digestion with ICP-AES or AAS finish.
From EMX’s independent field work, including geological mapping and geochemical sampling, the historical drill results referenced from Meridian and Cordex are judged to be representative and relevant.
Michael P. Sheehan, CPG, a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 and an employee of the Company, has reviewed, verified, and approved the disclosure of the technical information contained in this news release.
About EMX. EMX is a precious, base and battery metals royalty company. EMX’s investors are provided with discovery, development, and commodity price optionality, while limiting exposure to risks inherent to operating companies. The Company’s common shares are listed on the NYSE American Exchange and TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol EMX, as well as on the Frankfurt Exchange under the symbol “6E9”. Please see www.EMXroyalty.com for more information.
For further information contact:
David M. Cole President and Chief Executive Officer Phone: (303) 973-8585 Dave@EMXroyalty.com
Scott Close Director of Investor Relations Phone: (303) 973-8585 SClose@EMXroyalty.com
Neither the TSX-V nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX-V) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release may contain “forward looking statements” that reflect the Company’s current expectations and projections about its future results. These forward-looking statements may include statements regarding perceived merit of properties, exploration results and budgets, mineral reserves and resource estimates, work programs, capital expenditures, timelines, strategic plans, market prices for precious and base metal, or other statements that are not statements of fact. When used in this news release, words such as “estimate,” “intend,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “will”, “believe”, “potential” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, which, by their very nature, are not guarantees of the Company’s future operational or financial performance, and are subject to risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause the Company’s actual results, performance, prospects or opportunities to differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, these forward-looking statements. These risks, uncertainties and factors may include, but are not limited to: unavailability of financing, failure to identify commercially viable mineral reserves, fluctuations in the market valuation for commodities, difficulties in obtaining required approvals for the development of a mineral project, increased regulatory compliance costs, expectations of project funding by joint venture partners and other factors.
Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this news release or as of the date otherwise specifically indicated herein. Due to risks and uncertainties, including the risks and uncertainties identified in this news release, and other risk factors and forward-looking statements listed in the Company’s MD&A for the quarter ended September 30, 2021 and the year ended December 31, 2020 (the “MD&A”), and the most recently filed Revised Annual Information Form (the “AIF”) for the year ended December 31, 2020, actual events may differ materially from current expectations. More information about the Company, including the MD&A, the AIF and financial statements of the Company, is available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com and on the SEC’s EDGAR website at www.sec.gov.
Figure 1: Locations of the EMX Projects optioned to Hochschild
