Ascent Resources PLC (AIM:AST) shares moved higher in Thursday’s early deals after the company announced a new partnership with Beryl International, which sees the pair of companies seek and pursue opportunities in Latin America and Africa.
Targeted projects are expected to have relatively low geological risk and the opportunity of being near-term cash generative, with profitability possible in the first year of operations, Ascent said in a statement.
Beryl is, as part of the venture, investing some £1mln into Ascent – buying new shares at a premium price of 4p – in two tranches (£300,000 now and £700,000 in June) which will see it own a 5% stake in the AIM-quoted firm.
Ascent chair James Parsons told investors that the Beryl partnership is part of the company’s plan to agree its first ‘ESG transaction’ which he said will be transformational for Ascent.
Neverl Kambasha, chair of Beryl International, added: "The strategic collaboration between Ascent and Beryl came at the perfect time as Beryl continues to grow and expand globally.
“We look forward to working with the Ascent team and achieving success together."
Beryl also gets a board set as part of the tie-up, with its chief investment officer Fungai Chitungo set to join Ascent as non-executive director.
In London, Ascent shares were up just over 3% at 3.72p by 9:00am after earlier rising up to 3.89p as the day’s trading got underway.