Great Western Exploration Limited ASX:GTE) has appointed current non-executive chairman Kevin Somes to the position of executive chairman effective immediately.

Somes has agreed to assume the role as executive chairman with no increase to his non-executive remuneration package of $55,000 per annum plus superannuation.

Other appointments

Jordan Luckett has stepped down as managing director for personal reasons but will continue to provide support in his new role as technical direRead More – Source

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Pure Minerals Ltd (ASX:PM1) has received research coverage from Independent Investment Research (IIR).

The 22-page report goes into detail regarding the proposed Townsville Energy Chemical Hub (TECH) Project in Queensland.

The report notes the building blocks are coming together quickly for the TECH Project with the pre-feasibility study (PFS) completed in December 2019 as well as the recently completed high purity alumina (HPA) scoping study.

Share price at deep discount to project's estimated NPV

Using a share price of 1.9 cents, the company has a market capitalisation of $16.1 million.

While the report does not designate a share price target, it does estimate a net present valuation (NPV) for the proposed TECH Project of between $47 million and $585 million.

The research firm does note the valuation relies on a number of factors including PFS assumptions and project approvals.

The following is an extract from the report:

VALUATION VERY SENSITIVE, BUT PRICE TREND POSITIVE

If we include the deferred consideration shares, Pure Minerals at A$0.019/sh would have a market capitalization of A$16.1M. Our NPV for the NiCo plant ranges from A$47M using the cycle price lows of the last three years to A$585M using cycle price highs over the last three years, and A$241M assuming current spot prices flat in real terms forever. The HPA bolt-on is additional value. These valuations are for the project only, and take no account of the cost of corporate overheads, nor of financing diRead More – Source

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Pure Minerals Ltd (ASX:PM1) has gained a new substantial holder in managing director John Downie.

Downie now holds 40.78 million shares increasing his stake in the company to 6.83%.

High-purity alumina (HPA) scoping study adds value

Pure recently received results for a scoping study evaluating the production of high-purity alumina (HPA) from its Townsville Energy Chemicals Hub (TECH) Project in Queensland.

The scoping study assessed the production of 4N HPA on a standalone basis, using the aluminium hydroxide as a feedstock.

This scoping study followed the December 2019 pre-feasibility study (PFS) on the TECH Project which identified the production of HPA as a key value-add opportunity for the project.

A 25-year operation producing 4,007 tonnes per annum (tpa) of 4N HPARead More – Source

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Brookside Energy Ltd (ASX:BRK) believes it has established proof of concept for its business model of acquiring, upgrading, revaluing, monitising and re-investing its assets in the Anadarko Basin in Oklahoma, USA.

Much of the activity within the Basin is centred on the Sooner Trend Anadarko Canadian and Kingfisher (STACK) and South Central Oklahoma Oil Province (SCOOP) plays, of which the company leases around 2,000 acres.

Brookside Energy managing director David Prentice said: “Investors can rely on us to build value in the asset base (acreage value and cash flow) and use this as a platform for growth.

“We dont bet on the outcome of a single well or speculate with a large acreage position in a high-risk area where the reservoir quality cannot be evaluated from the available data and doesnt support suitable rates of return in the current pricing environment.”

Real estate approach to development

The company considers its private equity (PE) model a real-estate approach to development.

Essentially, Brookside funds acquisitions, establishes reserves, buys and sells acreage while partner Black Mesa Energy identifies acreage and manages acquisitions, supervises drilling and operations (including mitigating risk), rewarded on performance.

Then Drill Co. funds drilling and completion capital for initial well – taking its share of the production revenue.

Prentice said: “The application of this PE model for land, leasing and re-valuation in a publicly traded entity is unique in Australia and provides our shareholders and investors with exposure to a part of the oil and gas business that has a very long history of generating superior returns for investors in the United States.”

The company is confident that the US$1.8 million in acreage sales to date have provided proof of concept for its business model.

The STACK and SCOOP plays in the Anadarko Basin

STACK pilot study and scaling up SCOOP

The company acquired around 400 acres in the STACK Play for US$1.25 million with maiden reserves of 3.45 million barrels of oil equivalent, US$12.5 million net present value at 10% and forecast future net revenues of US$37.75 million.

Brookside intends to grow its lease acreage to 8,000 acres and to date, has generated A$2.5 million from small non-core acreage sales – which will be re-invested in acreage leasing at the highly accretive, and highly sought-after Sycamore-Woodford trend in southern SCOOP Play (SWISH AOI).

Prentice said: “We understand that the best returns for our shareholders come from the acquisition of undeveloped acreage in the right-place at the right-timRead More – Source

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Fertoz Ltd (ASX:FTZ) directors James Chisholm and Stuart Richardson have increased their shareholding in the company by participating in a share purchase plan.

Chisholm acquired 1.125 million shares for $90,000 and Richardson bought 375,000 shares for $30,000.

Quarterly update and 2020 outlook

Fertoz executive chairman Patrick Avery recently stated: “We are pleased to advise that our December quarter was a significant one for the company in securing our future.

“We identified and secured more phosphate rock in Montana that provides us sufficient material to meet expected orders over the next two to three years.

“We found more in our Marten project on both sides of the border, and as shareholders would recall, this is shallow phosphate with much easier logistical and potential mining conditions and much closer to transport than our Wapiti project.

“Our push to dominate the organic phosphate market on the west coast of the USA and the Canadian Prairies continRead More – Source

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What the company owns

Zoetic International plc (LON:ZOE) performed a major shift in direction in 2019.

Formerly known as Highlands Natural Resources, an oil and gas group with wells in Colorado, in March the company got into the CBD business and changed its name in August.

It has established CBD sales on both sides of the Atlantic with 67 US stores now stocking its products.

Its first retail distribution and sales agreement was with Schrader Oils chain of eighteen convenience and gas stores, which also invested £100,000 in the business as part of the deal.

These stores are stocking CBD products under the Chill brand, namely chew pouches and pre-rolled smokes.

How it is doing

The six months ended 30 September recorded revenues of £1.15mln, up from £0.52mln the previous year, and ended the period with £1mln in cash. In November it listed on the OTC in New York.

CBD

In the US, Zoetic has attracted interest from companies such as Mr Checkout, AATAC and New Age Beverages.

Chill chew pouches are its best-selling products.

In the UK it launched CBD gummies in February following targeted media campaigns, appearing on publications such as the Times, the Sunday Telegraph, Easyjet's in-flight magazine, Absolutely London, Spa Elemental, Styletto and Northern Life.

The company is planning to start selling feminised hemp seeds between February and March.

In preparation for that, Zoetic has registered as a seed distributor in five US states and is also developing a bespoke website to advertise seed sales.

Gas production

Zoetic told investors in October that it was in discussions with several parties on the sale of its historic oil & gas assets as it looks to focus solely on CBD.

The East Denver project brings in monthly revenue, while there is US$270,000 outstanding in bonds lodged with state authorities. Of these, US$50,000 are expected imminently.

DT Ultravert

The CBD business was spawned, in a serendipitous way, through Zoetic's ownership of a 75% interest in the economic value of a technology called DT Ultravert, which prevents well bashing and enhances well productivity.

The process involves the injection of nitrogen gas into an existing well at the same time as a new nearby well is fracked.

Zoetic enjoyed some early-stage success in deploying the technology but needed its own nitrogen supply represents one of the largest cost inputs.

As a result, it bought a nitrogen producing asset in Kansas in May 2018, which is also a naturally occurring source of hydrogen.

Given the volume of nitrogen produced at Kansas, the company realised it might create another revenue stream by becoming a supplier in its own right, as well as using nitrogen to improve its own crops.

A pilot project with a Colorado-based organic legal cannabis company surpassed expectations, with the gas mixture increasing plant size, height, root diameter anRead More – Source

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Lithium Australia NL (ASX:LIT) will participate in a $5 million federal government research project to develop fast-charge lithium-ion batteries for use in new generation trams.

LITs subsidiary VSPC will develop advanced cathode materials and work alongside the CSIRO, The University of Queensland and Soluna Australia.

VSPC will partner with battery researchers at CSIROs Clayton site in Victoria to design, manufacture and test fast-charge lithium-ion battery prototypes.

Opportunity to work with leading researchers

LITs managing director Adrian Griffin said: “This is an unparalleled opportunity to combine VSPCs battery-materials technology with some of the worlds leading research.

“The aim is to deliver an Australian product that puts this country at the forefront of battery development … and theres more to it than trams; successful application of what is currently at our fingertips will lead to myriad other fast-charge applications, many of them not yet thought of.”

VSPC executive director Mike Vaisey added: “This project is a tremendous opportunity to bring together Australias technological capabilities – including VSPCs advanced cathode materials, CSIROs battery expertise and UQs analytical abilities – to develop new battery systems using VSPC cathode material.

“Light rail is experiencing a resurgence worldwide as cities modernise, and fast-charge batteries are critical to avoiding the poles and wires Read More – Source

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Paradigm Biopharmaceuticals Ltd (ASX:PAR) has presented its poster presentation for MPS VI, a rare autosomal lysosomal storage disorder, at the World MPS Symposium in Orlando, Florida.

The company presented outcomes from a patient focus group which aimed to identify and validate clinical endpoints thus producing the most clinically relevant endpoints for MPS subjects.

Paradigm chief medical officer Dr Donna Skerrett said: “Improving the lives of MPS patients requires a deep understanding of their medical condition, experiences, needs and priorities of both patient and caregiver.

“The patient-centric research conducted by the Paradigm team provides an opportunity to adopt and use these as a reference point for consistent patient engagement and to develop clinically meaningful endpoints, which is especially important in orphan indications”.

Current treatment includes enzyme replacement therapy (ERT) which acts to reduce non-neurological symptoms and pain, however, many patients continue to report ongoing issues.

Paradigm is focused on repurposing the injectable drug pentosan polysulphate sodium (iPPS) to treat inflammation.

Clarifying patient needs

The objective of the companys research was to engage patients with MPS VI, and their caregivers in the drug development process, to better understand the range of symptoms and the impact on function and activities of daily living.

A focus group was established with nine patients age 4-18 and their caregivers with a series of open-ended and polling questions to gain comprehensive understanding into the specific needs of patients suffering from the orphan disease.

MPS patients found the following activities most challenging:

• 33.3% of patients/caregivers cited mobility and independence as their most challenging;
• Fine motor tasks were reported by 78% as the most or second most challenging; and
• 33.3% of patients/caregivers cited sleep as most or second most challenging.

Patient-centric development

Paradigm chief executive officer Paul Rennie said: “The research into the clinical unmet needs of MPS patients conducted by the Paradigm team and the presentation of the poster at the World MPS Symposium provides the company an important understanding of clinically meaningful end-points that will be incorporated into our clinical trial development program for iPPS in this orphan indication.

“This is Read More – Source

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Alkane Resources Ltd (ASX:ALK) has intersected 689 metres at 0.46 g/t gold, 0.19% copper from 402 metres depth at the Boda Prospect within the Northern Molong Porphyry Project in NSW.

Diamond hole KSDD0005 was testing 200 metres below the 507-metre discovery zone of gold-copper mineralisation drilled in KSDD003.

Most notably, KSDD005 assay results indicate an increase in thickness of significant porphyry gold-copper mineralisation with depth.

The drilling is part of a 5,000-metre diamond core drilling exploration program to test the depth and strike extensions to the significant porphyry gold-copper mineralisation at Boda.

Results are further evidence of a big porphyry system

Alkanes managing director Nic Earner said: “These drill results give us further encouragement that the Boda Prospect is a significant discovRead More – Source

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archTIS Ltd (ASX:AR9) has strengthened its board with the appointment of successful technology entrepreneur Dr Miles Jakeman AM as a non-executive director.

Jakeman brings expert knowledge in information-sharing platforms and solutions having co-founded Australian software success story, Citadel Group Ltd (ASX:CGL), where he served as chief executive officer.

During his time at Citadel Jakeman grew the company from a start-up to 250 employees with a market capitalisation of $400 million.

He also brings to the archTIS board strong industry knowledge and existing networks of key contacts in defence, intelligence and government.

This experience has direct relevance to archTIS as it executes its go-to-market strategy.

“A valuable asset”

archTIS chairman Stephen Smith said: “Miles brings a strong network of contacts and depth of knowledge to the archTIS board, particularly in his proven experience as the former CEO and founder of Citadel.

“Miles is a valuable asset to archTIS board and we look forward to working closely with him in 2020 to grow the company and increase value for our shareholders.”

In January 2020 Jakeman was recognised for his achievements when he was appointed as Member of the Order of Australia (AM) for his significant service to business, national security and to the community.

Bringing industry experience

Jakeman is also chairman of AIM-listed GetBusy Plc (LON:GETB), whos award-winning account software provides customers with secure Read More – Source

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