RNS Hotlist: Bezant, Castillo, Cordel, Fusion, Galantas, Hydrogen Utopia, Lift, Marechale, Northcoders, Sound, SYME, Thor, TM1, Zotefoams

Bezant (BZT), the copper-gold exploration and development company, updated on the Hope and Gorob near-surface drill programme targeting copper - gold mineralisation and provided notice of the submission of both a Mining Licence Application and an Exploration Licence Renewal Application.  The company said the completion of the Scoping Study and submission of the Mining Licence application for the Hope-Gorob project represents a significant project milestone. The Study indicates the potential for the development of a surface and underground copper mine at the Hope and Gorob deposits.

Fusion Antibodies (FAB), specialists in pre-clinical antibody discovery, announced that it has submitted a patent application in respect of the company's bispecific designs for antigen display. The company said it continues to work on next generation antibody discovery, and it sees significant opportunities in this field.

Hydrogen Utopia International (HUI), a company pioneering non-recyclable waste plastics to hydrogen technology, is pleased to announce the appointment of Duncan Snelling as an Engineering Consultant to the Company with immediate effect. The company said the appointment gives HUI access to substantial additional engineering, project development and project management resource which will be hugely helpful in developing HUI facilities and the projects in its pipeline.

Lift Global Ventures (LFT), an investment company in financial media and related technology industries, announced that Zak Mir, a Director, has transferred a holding of 8,333,333 ordinary shares in the Company from Miriad Limited to himself personally for nil consideration.  Following the transfer, the aggregate shareholding of Zak Mir remains unchanged.

Thor Mining (THR) announced that OZ Minerals Limited will provide funding support for technical investigations into In Situ Recovery technology at the EnviroCopper Ltd, Kapunda copper-gold ISR Project, in South Australia.  Thor owns 30% equity in ECL.

SYME (SYME), the fintech business, confirm that the client company has signed the binding commitment to execute the inaugural IM transaction.

Cordel Group (CRDL), the artificial intelligence platform for transport corridor analytics, announced it has been awarded a 5-year contract with Angel Trains to install fully-automated hardware onto in-service passenger trains, delivering AI-powered insights for Intelligent Infrastructure. Cordel's LiDAR and imagery capture technology will be installed on passenger trains operated by Great Western Railways. If only the technology could prevent strikes.

Technology Minerals (TM1), a company focused on creating a sustainable circular economy for battery metals, announced the St Patrick licence has been extended for three years and that field operations are progressing with 164 new samples submitted for analysis at the 100% owned Aramo Copper-Cobalt-Nickel Project in Asturias, NW Spain.

Sound Energy (SOU), the transition energy company, provided an update on the Phase 2 development financing of its Tendrara Production Concession, an update on the company's exploration and appraisal activities and the launch of a farm-out process for the Tendrara Production Concession and the surrounding Greater Tendrara and Anoual exploration permits. The company said it is making good progress on the senior debt facility for the Tendrara project, which is planned to fund the majority of the Phase 2 development costs. In parallel, it has now commenced a farm-out process.

Galantas Gold (GAL) announced that it has entered into an agreement with Canaccord Genuity Corp., and a syndicate of agents including Cormark Securities Inc. and Research Capital Corporation, in connection with a proposed private placement of up to 8,888,890 units of the company at a price of C$0.45 per Unit for aggregate gross proceeds of up to approximately C$4 million.

Castillo Copper (CCZ), a base metal explorer, announced it has finalised targets for the upcoming drilling campaign at the BHA Project's East Zone across four prospects. The company said its strategic intent with the upcoming drilling campaign is to extend known cobalt mineralisation as well as enhance the confidence and grade of the current MRE. Further, with the geology team having undertaken extensive due diligence across the East Zone, it is confident the targets selected for test-drilling should significantly deepen its understanding of the underlying system.

Marechale Capital (MAC), a corporate finance house, announced that it has completed a first close fundraise of equity for the lithium exploration and development company, Weardale Lithium Ltd, at a significantly higher valuation to the successful fund raising last year. Post close, Marechale owns an 8.5% interest in Weardale.

Northcoders (CODE), a provider of training programmes for software coding, announced that it has been successful in securing further funding from the Department for Education Skills Bootcamps Wave 3 bid. This new round of funding provides Northcoders with £4 million worth of scholarships to train individuals on their market-leading bootcamp. The new contract provides the company with revenue visibility into FY23.

Zotefoams (ZTF), a cellular materials technology group, today announces its interim results for the six months ended 30 June 2022. Group revenue was £59.0m, 23% above the prior year comparative (HY 2021: £48.2m). The company said it has delivered robust volume growth across both the HPP and Polyolefin Foam businesses in H1 2022 and was able to report stable gross margins, which has enabled strong first half operating profit growth.