Since our last note at the end of March, KEFI has appointed BCM as its preferred mining contractor and raised £7.6m in equity (supported by Konwave, Phoenix, Premier Miton, RAB and Ruffer, among others) to expedite the launch of the Tulu Kapi project. On site, it has constructed a new access road, a temporary construction camp, security camps and logistics control rooms, as well as drilling water boreholes and completing contractors’ certifiers’ inspections. New host lands have been allocated for all local residents requiring resettlement, and property surveys for compensation for Phase 1 resettlement, for a temporary construction camp, security camps and for a new access road have all been completed. This week, it announced the triggering of compensation payments to the resettling community. As a result, its US$320m financing package is now entering its final stages, with independent certifications targeted for completion this month and definitive agreements next month, followed by drawdown and mobilisation shortly thereafter. With contractual finalisation imminent, KEFI’s shares are at a key inflection point, with the company now targeting first gold in late FY27.

Having required KEFI to work through regulatory overhauls and security threats, its host countries have now taken the brakes off, with the result that KEFI is launching its projects with a serendipitous tailwind of high metal prices. Major banks are signing up for Tulu Kapi in Ethiopia, with board ratification by Africa Finance Corporation following TDB last year. As such, project finance and other preparations are coming together for launch in Q225. In the meantime, KEFI has announced a JV today between its Saudi Arabian vehicle, GMCO, its local conglomerate partner ARTAR and Australian major Hancock. The JV focuses on a 900km² major mineral belt 50km east and parallel to the analogous belt where GMCO has already discovered one of the world’s top 10% VMS deposits. This follows KEFI announcing material mineral resource upgrades at the Hawiah and Al Godeyer VMS deposits and at Jibal Qutman (gold) recently. As such, KEFI’s projects in both Ethiopia and Saudi Arabia are advancing apace.