Bezant Resources has agreed to accelerate the purchase of the processing plant being upgraded for its Hope & Gorob copper-gold project in Namibia, committing to a US$5 million payment by the end of October as it maintains a target of producing first concentrate by the end of September.
The agreement with CL US Minerals will bring Bezant closer to outright ownership of the former NLZM lead-zinc processing plant, now held under Tsaoxaub Metals, and give the company greater control over a facility it says could require about US$30 million and two years to replicate from scratch.
The plant is being upgraded and repurposed to process both copper sulphide and oxide pre-concentrate from Hope & Gorob, where mine development has been advancing towards first production.
Under the accelerated arrangement, Bezant will pay US$5 million by 31 October 2026, after which the vendor will release the security held under the original August 2025 share purchase agreement.
A further US$4.98 million will remain payable, taking the outstanding consideration covered by the new arrangement to US$9.98 million. The balance will not begin falling due until March 2029 and will be paid through quarterly instalments of US$415,000 until December 2031.
The structure effectively separates the immediate need to secure control of the plant from almost US$5 million in payments pushed several years into the future.
Bezant has also disclosed that an unnamed third party has expressed interest in co-investing towards the accelerated US$5 million payment. The company said arrangements were being finalised and could simplify its financing and security structure. However, it has not disclosed the identity of the prospective investor, the amount it may contribute or the terms of the proposed participation.
The financing is important because Bezant is simultaneously completing construction and commissioning work ahead of its September production target.
Executive chairman Colin Bird said the agreement would consolidate the corporate and financial arrangements surrounding Hope & Gorob and allow the company to secure control of the processing infrastructure earlier than previously envisaged.
“This agreement is a major step forward in the consolidation of the corporate and financial arrangements for the Hope & Gorob mining venture. The objective of ownership will be met sooner rather than later providing the Company with total control and the flexibility to consider further productivity improvements through further upgrades and increased throughput capacity,” Bird said.
“We are delighted with the progress being made and we remain on track to commence concentrate production by the end of September 2026. We will keep shareholders updated as we progress through completion of construction, commissioning and production,” he added.
The decision to accelerate ownership comes as Bezant reassesses the processing plant’s longer-term role following a recent increase in the mineral resource at Hope. The company now estimates that the initial Hope open pit alone could support a 35-year mine life.
That estimate excludes potential extensions of the Hope open pit and underground mineralisation, as well as drill-ready targets along 17 kilometres of strike within the mining licence. It also excludes the existing Gorob and Vendome mineral resources and exploration potential across licences containing more than 80 kilometres of prospective host rock.
The longer mine life is beginning to change the economics of the processing infrastructure. Bezant said its internal estimates and industry feedback indicate that developing a new plant with capacity comparable to the NLZM facility would require approximately US$30 million and about 24 months for regulatory approvals, construction and commissioning.
Securing the existing facility for substantially less than the estimated replacement cost therefore gives Bezant an alternative to building a new plant while leaving room to invest further in upgrades and higher throughput if Hope & Gorob supports larger production over time.
Bezant can also settle some or all of the US$4.98 million deferred consideration ahead of schedule, with early payments attracting a 12.5% annual discount.
CL US Minerals, meanwhile, has a 36-month option to convert up to £2 million of the deferred consideration into Bezant shares at £0.0013145 per share. Any shares issued under that arrangement would be subject to a two-month lock-up.
With the first concentrate still scheduled before the US$5 million accelerated payment becomes due, Bezant’s next test will be whether it can complete construction and commissioning, begin production by the end of September, and finalise the proposed third-party financing before the October payment deadline.
