Solis Minerals Ltd (TSX-V:SLMN, ASX:SLM) has opted to withdraw from an option agreement to acquire 100% of the Mostazal project in Chile, relinquishing the company’s claim to the tenure and releasing itself of any obligations to the vendor.
The agreement – signed June 23, 2021 – offered Solis the option to acquire 100% of the project in return for spending A$7.25 million (US$5 million) on exploration and further payments totalling A$7.25 million (US$5 million) over four years.
The decision to withdraw was prompted by drilling and geophysical survey results from the first phase of exploration on the project, which did not meet the minimum requirements to continue the acquisition option agreement.
Funds better used elsewhere
“Mostazal presented an exciting prospect for us with a known copper mineralised system at surface and historical data supported an exploration thesis testing deeper targets,” Solis Minerals CEO and president Jason Cubitt said.
“However, results from our first phase of drilling and geophysical surveys undertaken by the company in 2022 ultimately did not meet our minimum expectations and management determined that it is in the best interest of shareholders to reallocate the company’s resources.”
SLM maintains a cash balance of A$3 million, a position from which the company believes it is well equipped to advance its portfolio of porphyry and IOCG copper projects in Peru, including Ilo Norte and Ilo Este.
Additionally, early this year Solis acquired more tenure in Peru through the acquisition of seven concessions in the Tacna Region of Southern Peru.
The applications lie along the regional Incapuquio Fault system in southern Peru, which is associated with three large copper-molybdenum deposits currently in production: Cuajone, Quellaveco and Toquepala.