Aim-listed Critical Metals has announced a retail offer, through a bookbuild of 23.63-million new ordinary shares of £0.0005 each in the capital of the company at an issue price of £0.02 per new ordinary share, to raise up to £472 597.76. 

The company notes that the issue of the new ordinary shares is conditional inter alia on the company's shareholders passing resolutions to re-organise the company's share capital to reduce the number of shares in issue by a factor of ten, which means that the existing 67.39-million ordinary shares of £0.005 each will, if the resolutions are passed, be consolidated into 6.74-million ordinary shares of  £0.0005 each and 667.16-million deferred shares of £0.0005.

Critical Metals says the deferred shares will not carry any voting rights and will not be listed on the official list. Further details of this share re-organisation are set out in the circular.

“The company is in imminent need of capital to continue to trade while developing the Molulu copper/cobalt project in the Democratic Republic of Congo in which it has a 70% indirect interest,” the company explains. 

The board of the company has published a shareholder circular calling a general meeting of the company's shareholders on July 16 to facilitate an injection of £956 482 in cash.

Critical Metals says it has obtained a commitment from investment firm NIU Invest to subscribe for the whole of this amount £956 482 but NIU has agreed to be scaled back to allow shareholders in the company and holders – other than NIU – of convertible loan notes issued under a convertible loan instrument created by the company on April 9, 2024, in unrestricted jurisdiction to participate in this fundraising by subscribing for up to 23.63-million new ordinary shares at the same price as NIU – being £0.02.

The proceeds of the NIU subscription and the retail offer will be used to fund the running cost of the Molulu project, pay for geological programme and drilling costs at Molulu project, pay historic creditors and pay for the costs of this transaction.

Admission of the new ordinary shares pursuant to the retail offer is expected to take place on August 11.