HNRC CNRC TO ACQUIRE INTEREST IN COPPER MINING COMPANY CHARLESTON, W.Va., Aug. 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Houston Natural Resources Corp (OTC: HNRC) ("HNRC or the Company"), now known as Cunningham Natural Resources Corp ("CNRC"), announced today that it is acquiring a 10% interest in Kharrouba Copper Company, Inc ("KCC" or "Company") with the potential to increase its position over time. Based on the investment being made by HNRC, KCC would have an enterprise value of about US$60 million dollars.
KCC is a Canadian Company, with growing copper mining and processing operations in the Kingdom of Morocco. KCC commenced operations in 2017 and is currently in the expansion of its operations. Over the next 12-15 months, it plans a further expansion and an extensive drilling campaign to expand its reserve and resource base. KCC has also encountered cobalt in a number of its mines and plans to add cobalt exploration as part of its overall exploration program. KCC has a significant land position totaling some 78,826 acres all offering excellent potential for increasing KCC's reserve base substantially. KCC's operations are low cost and expect to generate healthy positive cash flows.
KCC is led by Scott M. Hand, the Executive Chairman of the Company, with over 49 years of experience in the mining industry. Mr. Hand was the former Chairman and CEO of Inco Limited before its sale to Vale for US$19 billion in 2007. Frank Marzoli is President of KCC and was a founder and former director of Royal Nickel Corporation (now Karora Resources Inc.)
Increasing Demand for Copper is in a super cycle. Automakers have been scrambling to secure supplies of key metals like copper that are needed for the production of electric vehicles. Copper has recently been at the forefront of the industry due to its central role in the green energy transition as a key metal and its rapidly dwindling global reserves. Commodity Insights expects the refined and concentrate copper markets to be in deficit in 2027. At a nine-year high in 2022, copper exploration budgets were mostly directed toward mine site exploration and away from generative programs, led by major companies seeking to extend the life and capacity of their producing mines.
A Bill Gates backed mining company is Silicon Valley's newest unicorn, with a recent investment of US$200 million, to dig for copper and lithium using AI. Berkeley, California based KoBold Metals ("KoBold"), which explores for metals such as copper, lithium and cobalt using artificial intelligence. The capital injection values KoBold at more than US$1 billion. Part of the investment will be used to help it develop copper reserves it recently acquired in Zambia. The fundraising round is backed by existing investors including Bill Gates's Breakthrough Energy Ventures, a climate-tech venture-capital firm that invests money on behalf of the likes of Jeff Bezos and Jack Ma. Also involved in the round: venture-capital firm Andreessen Horowitz and BOND, a venture-capital firm co-founded by Mary Meeker. A division of T. Rowe Price that manages client money led the round.
The Company is continuing to look at opportunities in the energy transition sector in addition to developing its existing energy assets.
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