Aim-listed W Resources on Monday announced that it had raised about €1-million from two Spanish investors and said that it would need additional funding over the next two months to maintain the pace at which the La Parilla mine was being developed.

The company placed 185 511 200 shares at 0.5p each to raise £927 556 from family offices of Spanish businesses in the Extremadura region, where La Parrilla is located.

The funding from the Spanish investors would assist in the final phase of the La Parilla commissioning process, which W said had been delayed by more than a quarter, owing to a “failure by allmineral Aufbereitungstechnik of Germany to complete the La Parrilla concentrator plant according to the contracted schedule”.

“It is important to balance the final phase of funding on La Parrilla as we head into the most exciting stage of this project, with first ore to the new concentrator plant starting later this month. Ensuring that commissioning is completed to the highest standards has been the priority and we are pleased to receive support from the Spanish investment community, who invested at a premium to current share price, which takes the company to this next important phase,” said chairperson Michael Masterman.

Further, W added it had received interest from potential debt and Spanish equity providers for additional funding.

A third Spanish investor had indicated interest to invest €2-million on the same terms as the recent placement.

It is also the intention of Masterman and possibly other directors to subscribe for shares, on the same terms, following the issue of the company's half-year results.

La Parrilla is a tungsten and tin mine with a 49-million-tonne resource, grading 998 parts per million (ppm) tungsten trioxide (WO₃) and reserves of 29.8-million tonnes, at a diluted grade of 931 ppm WO₃.

Production started in December and the mine is currently in the ramp-up phase to mine two-million tonnes a year of run of mine to produce about 2 700 t/y of tungsten concentrate and 500 t/y of tin.