THE COMPANY that has been prospecting for precious metals in the Fermanagh countryside has begun raising investment funds for its work here in the county.
Having announced recently that yet more tests had indicated a significantly high concentration of nickel-copper-platinum group elements in the local area, Karelian Diamond Resources PLC this week announced it had raised a total of £328,747 at 1.5p per share for its prospecting in Fermanagh.
It was news that was noted with interest on the stock market, with the Irish company also announcing it was investing in its diamond exploration in Finland.
Karelian said it would use the funds raised to carry-out follow-up exploration in the Fermanagh area.
Prof Richard Conroy, chairman of Karelian and largest shareholder, said things were looking positive for their operations here in the area.
“This fundraising comes at an exciting time for the company,” he said. “We have recently announced a very positive independent report on the potential of our nickle-copper-platinum group elements licences, which we look forward to following up immediately.”
Karelian has been carrying out exploration in the county for several years now after previously being granted a licence to prospect in the Coonian and Brookeborough area.
In October 2022 it was granted another two further licences, adding to the one it had already held, and expanding its area of exploration out into the wider Tempo area too.
Having initially been searching for diamonds in the area, all tests quickly indicated the presence of nickel-copper-platinum, metals particularly valuable in the modern age, with Karelian stating it appears there may be as high a concentration of the metals here as at the huge Norilsk min in Russia.
Meanwhile, another company with Prof Conroy at the helm, Conroy Gold, is expected to have its licence for mineral exploration in counties Cavan and Monaghan renewed by the Irish government.
The licence – which only allows the company to explore, not to mine – covers the Cremone, Dartree, Monaghan and Tullygarvey areas.
Prof Conroy, who is an emeritus professor in physiology within the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, is well known in the natural resources industry.
Having established Trans-International Oil, which merged with Aran Energy in 1979, Prof Conroy went on to establish Conroy Petroleum and Natural Resources PLC.
Conroy Petroleum would go on become a founder member of the consortium which discovered the world-famous Pogo gold deposit in Alaska.
The company also acquired Atlantic Resources in 1992, which was later renamed ARCON.
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