Metals One (MET1 ) has raised £1.5 million as part of a plan to take it to a 49.9% stake in Lions Bay Resources, the vehicle that it already partially owns that is acquiring a major South African gold project.
Metals One has agreed an option to acquire 19.9% of LBR, to add to the 30% it already owns, through the conversion of US$5 million of the existing loan facility that it holds.
A further C$3 million in loan facilities to Lions Bay Resources held by Metals One will remain in place.
Lions Bay Resources owns a cogeneration plant located in the Karbochem Industrial Park, Newcastle, South Africa. This plant is reckoned to have a replacement value of US$39.6 million.
Lions Bay Resources has also agreed terms with the Business Rescue Practitioner to acquire the assets of Vantage Goldfields in South Africa, subject to creditor approval on 9 April 2026.
The Vantage assets entered Business Rescue after the 2016 Lily mine collapse and are located in the Barberton region with a historical resource inventory of 4.5 million ounces of gold, a central metallurgical complex and extensive underground development.
Metals One will remain the senior secured creditor to Lions Bay Resources, ahead of concluding financing discussions with interested financing parties to facilitate the conditional acquisition of the Vantage assets.
It is anticipated that Metals One will call a shareholder meeting to approve the option exercise following the 9 April 2026 creditor meeting.
The subscription comprises the issue of 75 million shares at 2p per share, representing a premium of 8.16% to the closing price on 31 March 2026.
"Our vision for Lions Bay Resources is taking shape,” said Daniel Maling, managing director of Metals One.
“Having secured the cogeneration plant in Newcastle and an initial 30% stake, we are now focused on closing the Vantage transaction and exercising our option to go to 49.9% of LBR. The LBR operating and legal teams in South Africa have worked tirelessly to progress the Vantage assets deal and we will continue to work alongside them and our partner LBI to secure these and other mining assets complementary to the portfolio.”
View from Vox
The vote at the creditors’ meeting in a few days time will herald the likely completion of a remarkable series of transactions that has taken Metals One into South Africa as a significant player in gold mining. A plant and 4.5 million ounces of gold in the ground are quite the assets to hold, with the gold price still very strong, in spite of some recent gyrations. The shares rose on news of the raise, reflecting the premium that Metals One was able to secure. But that the company was able to secure such a premium is a sign of the quality of the potential that’s on offer.