Aim-listed resources investor Metal Tiger has signed a binding investment agreement to acquire up to 50% of Botswana-focused explorer Kalahari Metals (KML) for $1.6-million.

KML is a privately owned company and holds interests in seven highly prospective exploration licences covering 4 063 km² in the Kalahari copperbelt.

These prospects comprise two 100%-owned exploration licences – situated north-east along strike of the Cupric Canyon Capital (circa 50 km) and the MOD Resources/Metal Tiger joint venture projects (circa 170 km) – and five exploration licences subject to a binding earn-in agreement with Triprop Holdings.

Licences cover the prospective D’Kar and Ngwako Pan formations with favourable structural positions and are associated with major copper deposits in the region.

Available datasets include high-resolution airborne magnetic geophysics survey, soil geochemical sample data and results of 20-hole scout drilling with prospective intersections including 5.1 m at 0.69% copper, and 1.8 m at 1.8% copper and 8.2 g/t gold.

Metal Tiger will appoint two nonexecutive directors to the board of KML.

“The signing of this deal with KML follows three months of substantial corporate and technical due diligence and is a further exciting milestone in Metal Tiger’s continuing involvement in a world-class copper region in Botswana.”

“Metal Tiger has had a long focus on the exploration of the region and through its close partnership with MOD Resources and its involvement with the seminal T3 deposit discovery, and is able to bring exceptional strategic and technical expertise to create an exciting new joint venture with the experienced operational team at KML,” said Metal Tiger CEO Michael McNeilly.

He added that the company looks forward to updating shareholders in the near future with regard to KML’s proposed exploration plan.

Based on initial discussions, the key focus will be to conduct geophysics and soil geochemical surveys to identify high-priority targets for drilling, as well as to start work on the environmental management plans for areas likely to be of interest for drilling in the near term.

The board of Metal Tiger believes in the potential of the Kalahari copperbelt to develop into a world-class economic copper district.