AuKing Mining has announced an agreement to acquire up to a 50% shareholding in Orion Resources, the proposed new owner of the Cloncurry Gold Project in northern Queensland, Australia.
Previously, AuKing agreed to acquire a 15% shareholding in Orion after incurring $1.5m (A$2.41m) in project-related expenses.
The new agreement allows AuKing to increase its interest to 50% by investing a total of $5m in project funding by 30 June 2027.
The agreement outlines that AuKing will focus on exploration, drilling and resource estimation at the Mt Freda/Golden Mile Project areas.
Upon completion, a joint venture will be established, with AuKing holding a 50% shareholding in Orion.
If AuKing fails to meet the $5m expenditure requirement, its interests in the Cloncurry Project will lapse.
Orion will fulfil the purchase price commitments for the Cloncurry Gold Project using its own resources, with no funds required from AuKing.
There are no additional rights for AuKing to acquire further interests beyond the 50% holding.
AuKing will also address other aspects of Orion’s development programme, including Tick Hill tailings reprocessing and Lorena plant refurbishment.
Orion Resources is also advancing its acquisition of the Cloncurry Gold Project, with financial closure expected in April.
The company has entered an asset sale agreement to acquire the Lorena processing plant and associated facilities approximately 15km east of Cloncurry. The plant is a conventional carbon-in-leach gold processing facility.
The total tenure package covers an area of 447km² in the Cloncurry region. Orion plans to re-establish mining and processing operations at Lorena, with potential tailings treatment from Tick Hill mine operations and mining at the Mt Freda/Golden Mile deposits.
A central gold and copper processing hub is proposed as part of a broader production strategy.
In collaboration with Saudi Arabian company BSMC, AuKing Mining recently secured the Shaib Marqan exploration licence during Saudi Arabia’s sixth round of licensing.
The Shaib Marqan licence area spans 91.8km² and is situated in central Saudi Arabia, roughly 240km south-west of Riyadh.
