Angkor Gold Corp has entered into a Definitive Earn-In Agreement with Australian-based gold company Emerald Resources on Angkor’s wholly-owned Koan Nheak property in northeast Cambodia. Emerald’s Cambodian subsidiary Renaissance Minerals (Cambodia) will invest US$2 million in exploration and development expenditures over a 2-year period.
The agreement also includes a US$200,000 cash payment to Angkor by Renaissance. These conditions will give Emerald a 51% participating interest in the Koan Nheak licence.
Upon completion of the initial earn-in option, Renaissance has the right to acquire an additional 29% participating interest in the licence with the commissioning, and completion, of a definitive feasibility study.
After that, Angkor will maintain a 20% participating interest in the property, or at Angkor’s discretion, can convert to a 3.5% Net Smelter Return on all metals. Renaissance will be the operator on the project throughout.
“Emerald is an established Australian operator, and we are extremely pleased to have solidified an agreement with them on our Koan Nheak licence,” said Angkor’s CEO and chairman Mike Weeks. “Emerald, through Renaissance Minerals (Cambodia), is working towards becoming Cambodia’s next gold-producing operator as they work through the final permitting process on their Okvau Gold Project.
“This strategic partnership positions Angkor with excellent opportunity for future success,” said Mike Weeks, “with Okvau only about 60km from the southern edge of our Koan Nheak licence.”
“This announcement ensures that the maximum attention can be given to exploring the Koan Nheak licence, and allows us to focus our resources on our two other partnerships with Blue River Resources, and JOGMEC (Japan Oil, Gas and Metals National Corporation),” said Angkor’s VP of operations JP Dau.
“Renaissance has an exceptional team on the ground with already well established government relationships to spearhead the exploration and development of the property,” he added.
The Koan Nheak licence lies immediately south of the town of the same name in the northeast of Mondulkiri Province. It covers three prospects of interest - Peacock in the west, centred on a diorite intrusive which is surrounded by multiple stream sediment geochemical anomalies; East Ring in the east, centred on a very much smaller diorite with strong anomalous gold found in a stream sediment survey; and Straddle in the south, where two contiguous arsenic anomalies occur in the stream sediment survey.
Angkor Gold