Ascot Resources (ASX:AZQ) has appointed James McClements, Shahb Richyal and Nathan Featherby as non-executive directors after the recent placement saw Gunvor Group and Resource Capital Fund join the share register.
Ascot is developing its newly-acquired Wonmunna DSO Iron Project in Western Australia’s Pilbara region.
Wonmunna has an early resource of 84.3 million tonnes of iron ore grading 56.5% and is very well positioned near leading iron ore producers and infrastructure.
Recently, the company closed the $10 million capital raising at a premium to the prevailing share price.
Global commodities trader Gunvor Group made its first investment in iron ore and first in Australia by acquiring $5 million worth of Ascot shares priced at $0.25 each while investment fund Resource Capital Funds (RCF) also subscribed for $5 million in shares.
Shares in Ascot are currently trading at $0.15.
McClements co-founded RCF in 1998 and oversees all aspects of RCF as managing partner.
RCF currently manages U$2.8 billion in investments and raised US$2.04 billion for its sixth fund. It has provided financial support to over 100 mining companies involving projects located in 42 countries and relating to 29 different commodities.
Prior to launching RCF, McClements was a natural resources sector banker with N.M. Rothschild in Australia and the U.S. and Standard Chartered Bank.
Richyal is a member of the principal investments and acquisition financing team at Gunvor Group.
He has over 10 years’ professional experience, the majority of which has been covering the natural resources sector in a principal investment, M&A and capital markets advisory capacity.
Prior to joining Gunvor, Mr Richyal held positions with Morgan Stanley (Investment Banking Division), Dresdner Kleinwort (Strategic Advisory & M&A) and PricewaterhouseCoopers.
Featherby is currently the executive chairman of Ochre Group Holdings and has spent most of his working career in stockbroking and merchant banking with a focus on small- to medium-mining and exploration companies.
The company has also made a number of changes to its board.
Paul Kopejtka will continue in the role of executive chairman while managing director Andy Caruso will continue as an executive director responsible for facilitating the development of Wonmunna.
Non-executive director Francis DeSouza has been appointed as executive director corporate.
Wonmunna
Wonmunna is very well positioned in the Pilbara, adjacent to leading iron ore producers and existing infrastructure. The tenement is neatly intersected by the Great Northern Highway providing ready access to Port Hedland.
Geological cross sections suggest the existence and relative accessibility of higher grade product - higher grade intersections (+60% Fe) are evident in all deposits.
Mineralisation occurs in the same ore-body as West Angelas, operated by Rio Tinto Iron Ore.
Its location provides it with multiple transportation solutions, which should provide for likely low capital intensity for the project.
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