Connected Minerals closes in on Angola critical minerals acquisition

Connected Minerals is on the verge of completing its acquisition of the Bailundo carbonatite project in Angola after securing shareholder approval for the transaction.

The imminent acquisition comes alongside a key regulatory milestone that expands the project’s mineral rights to include niobium, rare earth elements and phosphates.

The ASX-listed explorer said all resolutions were passed at its general meeting on July 28, approving the acquisition of Frontier Group CRM Pty Ltd and an associated $4.5 million capital raising.

The acquisition gives Connected an 80 per cent interest in the Bailundo project in Angola’s Huambo Province, with the company expecting completion of the transaction to occur imminently after all conditions precedent under the binding share sale agreement were either satisfied or in a position to be satisfied or waived.

In another significant step, Angola’s National Mineral Resources Agency (ANRM) has granted Frontier’s application to expand the Bailundo mineral rights to include niobium, rare earth elements (REE) and phosphates, aligning the project’s tenure with the carbonatite-hosted mineralisation targeted by the exploration program.

Connected said it also intends to seek the inclusion of gallium within the project’s mineral rights.

Chief executive officer Stephen Wetherall said the approvals represented an important milestone for the company.

“We are delighted with the strong shareholder support demonstrated for the Transaction and we thank MIREMPET [Angola’s Ministry of Mineral Resources, Petroleum and Gas] and the ANRM for the expedient handling of our application and the ANRM’s subsequent grant to include niobium, rare earth elements and phosphates within the mineral rights,” Wetherall said.

“Following receipt of these key approvals, completion of the transaction is very close and with exploration activities already underway at Bailundo, we look forward to moving quickly and becoming a part of Angola’s growing critical minerals sector.”

Frontier has already commenced exploration activities at Bailundo, with Connected indicating an operational update will be released to the market shortly.

The latest announcement follows Connected’s agreement in May to acquire Frontier Group CRM, securing exposure to the 2054 square kilometre Bailundo project, which hosts a large seven-kilometre-diameter carbonatite complex.

Historical exploration and recent validation sampling have identified high-grade niobium and rare earth mineralisation from surface, including channel samples returning up to 2.1 per cent niobium oxide and up to 7.7 per cent total rare earth oxides, including up to 1.3 per cent neodymium-praseodymium.

Located near Huambo in central Angola, Bailundo also benefits from proximity to the Lobito Corridor, an export route that has attracted significant international investment.

Connected said the acquisition would underpin a systematic exploration program aimed at defining the scale, geometry and continuity of mineralisation as it advances the project within Angola’s emerging critical minerals sector.

The Angolan Government has stepped up its backing of the mining industry and has sought to attract greater international investment.

Angola recently joined the Intergovernmental Forum on Mining, Minerals, Metals and Sustainable Development (IGF), reinforcing its commitment to a responsible, transparent, and sustainable mining industry.

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