Mr. Daniel Earle reports
TERMINATES MINORITY EQUITY INVESTMENT, PURSUES FOCUSED WARINTZA STRATEGY
Solaris Resources Inc. has voluntarily terminated the previously announced minority equity investment intended to support the growth of the Warintza project in Ecuador, including the potential major purchase of an adjacent asset. After four months of Canadian regulatory review in an evolving environment, approval has not been obtained and the transaction no longer adequately reflects market value. The company remains financed for its 2024 and 2025 Warintza baseline programs and key deliverables with an additional $40-million (U.S.) available through the offtake financing package announced in December and will pursue a focused strategy that maximizes long-term shareholder value with enhanced strategic flexibility.
Summary:
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Solaris announces voluntary termination of minority equity investment intended to support an expansion of activities at Warintza, including the potential major purchase of an adjacent asset.
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The transaction was priced at a 14-per-cent premium; however, Solaris's share price has increased by greater than 35 per cent in the four months since the announcement and the transaction no longer adequately reflects market value.
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Even with significant appreciation, Solaris's share price has underperformed peers in the recent sector rally due to the overhang of Canadian regulatory uncertainty in an environment of heightened domestic political sensitivity.
Given the minority investment nature of the transaction and that it involved assets outside of Canada with a use of proceeds to expand Canadian interests in critical minerals, the parties expected regulatory approval within the four months that have now elapsed.
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The inability to complete the transaction in a reasonable time frame and remaining regulatory uncertainty together with the unattractive pricing in the context of the market are unfair to the company's shareholders and the investor.
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In addition, the company is pursuing the recently awarded option to acquire approximately 40,000 hectares adjacent to Warintza, with fieldwork already under way on a target with a similar geological and "bullseye" geophysical signature as the Warintza cluster (refer to news release dated April 30, 2024).
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The company remains financed for 2024 and 2025 Warintza baseline programs and key deliverables with a further $40-million (U.S.) available through the offtake financing package announced in December.
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The company reiterates the Warintza project timeline with expected delivery of an environmental impact assessment in the second half of 2024 and a prefeasibility study in the second half of 2025.
Daniel Earle, president and chief executive officer, commented: "This transaction represented a minority equity investment from a well-known and respected, publicly listed foreign company where the proceeds were intended to be used for the growth of a Canadian-controlled company's principal asset in a foreign jurisdiction. That this transaction cannot be completed in a reasonable time frame signals that Canada's critical-minerals policy is counterproductive in relation to foreign assets. We intend to deliver a strategy focused on the growth and derisking of the Warintza project by 2026, and maximize long-term shareholder value with enhanced strategic flexibility."
Qualified person
The scientific and technical content of this press release has been reviewed and approved by Jorge Fierro, MSc, DIC, PG, vice-president of exploration, who is a qualified person as defined in National Instrument 43-101 -- Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects. Mr. Fierro is a registered professional geologist through the SME (registered member No. 4279075).
About Solaris Resources Inc.
Solaris is advancing a portfolio of copper and gold assets in the Americas, which includes: a world-class copper resource with expansion and discovery potential at its Warintza project in Ecuador; a series of grassroots exploration projects with discovery potential in Peru and Chile; and significant leverage to increasing copper prices through its 60-per-cent interest in the La Verde joint venture project with a subsidiary of Teck Resources in Mexico.
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