29Metals Limited ($29M)

Okay. So we're good to go. Thank you very much. Well, good morning, ladies and gentlemen. My name's Owen Hegarty. I'm a Non-Executive Director of 29M, and I'm the Chair of the Board of Directors. On behalf of my fellow Directors and James and the rest of the management team, I'm delighted to welcome you here to the AGM today, this morning. Today's AGM is being conducted as a hybrid meeting designed to maximize the opportunity for our shareholders to participate. I would ask our company secretary, in a moment, Melinda, to take us through some of the logistics for shareholders participating online. Before we begin, I'd like to acknowledge the First Peoples, and pay respect to their elders past and present, and particularly those communities around Golden Grove in Western Australia, and in and around Capricorn Copper in Queensland. Very important part, having that relationship, very important part of our social license which we have retained, attained, and sustained very well over the years. At 29M, safety is our highest priority, as James will certainly reinforce. For those joining us here in Melbourne, if there is an emergency, the hotel will sound an alarm. Please stay seated unless you are directed via a PA announcement to evacuate. The nearest fire exit for this building is the door located next to the lifts on the left when exiting the meeting. Go left when exiting the meeting. Please follow the exit signs. If we are asked to evacuate, please follow the hotel's evacuation response team staff instructions, and make your way to Parliament House, which is the nominated muster point. For those joining online, in the event of evacuation, the AGM will be immediately adjourned. Please monitor the ASX announcements platform to see when it will be back up and live and running again. Joining me at the front of today's room is James Palmer, our CEO. Nick Cernotta, who is currently the Deputy Chair, actually, and Director, and up for election today, and in fact is the incoming Chair. Nick's going to have something to say a bit later. Fiona Robertson is here, and Fiona is the Chair of the Audit, Governance and Risk Committee. Thank you, Fiona, for joining us. I should say also that Nick is the Chair of the Technical Oversight Committee, so the TOC, which was a recent set up in and around and post the seismicity type events, so helping James out in that regard. Also, we have Martin at the end of the line. End of the line is Martin Alciaturi, Martin is the Chair of the Remuneration and Nominations Committee. Any particular difficult questions on Nom and Rem should go to Martin. Thank you, Martin, for joining. Also on the line, people who weren't able to come today, Directors who were not able to come today, Ashish Gupta, Creagh O'Connor, and Jacqui McGill. Jackie is the Chair of our Sustainability Committee. Welcome to all of those people. That's the team. Also in attendance, of course we have Melinda here as the Company Secretary and sort of in charge of the run sheet today. Also, we have Peter Herbert, our CFO, down here. Peter. Ed Cooney, our COO, is here too. We also have Adrianna Waugh is here. Hello, Adrianna. I think Grace is here too, right? We've got a few staff here today. Thank you very much for coming and joining with us. Also, Matt Honey is down here too, Matt from Ernst and Young. Thank you, Matt, and your colleagues here for that. I'm advised that there's a quorum present, and therefore I can declare the meeting open. I thank you for all of that. The agenda for today will commence with a brief outline of the voting and other procedures for the meeting. After that, there will be the Chair's address before introducing you to our Chair. As part of that, introduce the new Chair, Nick Cernotta, will have a bit of a go. Then, of course, the main event will be James Palmer, our CEO, giving a presentation on the good things that are really going on in the company right now. After James' address, we will move on to the formal business of the meeting where there will be an opportunity for shareholders to ask questions at each item. Each item of business, plenty of opportunity to ask questions about that particular item. At the end of all of that, there'll be opportunities for general questions. The representatives of our external auditor, Ernst and Young, is available, Matt, to respond to questions regarding the conduct of the audit and the financial statements and the auditor's opinion. Following completion of the formal business, and as time permits, there'll be an opportunity for shareholders to ask general questions regarding the company's business, past, present, and future, and everything involved with James' presentation. The detail of the formal items of business are set out in the notice of meeting for this AGM, which was released to the ASX announcements platform and sent to shareholders on the 20th of April, and is taken as read. Copies of James' and my address have been released to the ASX announcement platforms earlier today, and are available on our website. Following completion of the AGM, for those able to be here with us in person today, please join the board and management team for refreshments. I will now ask Melinda to explain the procedures for today's AGM. Melinda.

Thank you, Owen. Good morning, everybody. As Owen mentioned, today's AGM is a hybrid meeting whereby 29Metals shareholders are participating by attending in person or via the online platform. Shareholders and proxy holders joining via the online platform, AGM telephone line, and in person, may ask questions, written and oral, at the meeting and submit votes. I'll explain in more detail on this shortly. In terms of possible technical issues, for those joining via the online platform and telephone line, if you experience any technical difficulties during the AGM, please dial the number shown on screen for assistance. This number is also provided on 29Metals' dedicated AGM page, on our website, and in the online meeting guide. In terms of voting on each of the resolutions at this AGM will be conducted by a poll, with the results of the poll to be released to the ASX and made available on our website as soon as possible after the meeting. As we move through each of the resolutions today, valid proxies received for and against each resolution will be displayed on your screen for those participating in the meeting online, and on the large screen at the front of the room for those of you here today. The proxy figures shown are as at the closing time for receipt of proxies, which was 10:30 A.M. Melbourne time on Tuesday the 19th of May. The Chair will vote all directed proxies in accordance with directions provided by shareholders. As set out in the notice of meeting, the Chair will vote all open proxies in favor of all resolutions. This includes proxy votes held by the Chair, which will be voted in favor of Resolution 1 being the remuneration-related resolution, unless specifically directed otherwise in the proxy. In order to provide shareholders with enough time to vote, the chair will shortly open voting for all resolutions, at which time voting on each of the resolutions will commence. For shareholders and proxy holders joining online, you may enter your votes for each resolution by selecting the Get a Voting Card icon at the bottom of your screen at any time after the Chair opens voting, until the Chair declares voting to have closed. Shareholders and proxy holders joining online are able to edit votes up until the Chair closes voting. Please ensure that you click Submit to ensure your votes are counted before disconnecting from the AGM page. For those joining in person, you will have received an attendance card at registration. Attendees entitled to vote at this AGM will have received a yellow attendance card. Your voting instructions should be completed on the back of the yellow card. Please complete your voting instructions, as these will be collected at the end of the AGM when requested by the Chair. If you need assistance with your card, please see the registration desk staff located outside the entry to this room. There will be an opportunity for all shareholders to ask questions relating to each item of formal business and, if time permits, more general questions regarding the company. In order to maximize the opportunity for all shareholders to participate in the meeting, questions will generally be addressed in the following order. That being written questions submitted by shareholders prior to the meeting, then that will be followed by questions via telephone or the online platform for shareholders participating remotely, and then lastly, questions from shareholders here in the room. For those attending in person, when invited by the Chair of the meeting to ask a question, would you please raise your yellow or blue attendance card and a roaming microphone will make its way to you via Marina, so that those joining online can also benefit from hearing your question. Please hand the microphone back to Marina after you have asked your question. Those joining online may submit written questions at any stage during the AGM by selecting the Ask a Question icon at the bottom of your screen. If you have a question already prepared, we do encourage you to please submit it now so that as many questions as possible can be answered during the meeting. We will address questions at the appropriate time during the meeting. Please note that questions may be moderated, and if multiple questions are received on the same topic, they may be combined for efficiency. For shareholders participating online who wish to ask a question verbally, you will need your unique PIN provided by our share registry. This can be obtained using the telephone number shown on the screen. Once you have your PIN, please dial into the dedicated AGM shareholder telephone line, also shown on the screen. [Operator Instructions] Finally, a reminder to all shareholders speaking at the meeting or via the telephone line, this AGM and the webcast is being recorded, and a copy will be made publicly available on the company's website. Thank you. Owen?

Thank you, Melinda. Very crisp and very clear to everybody. Thank you for that. I now refer you to the important information shown on the slide regarding the use of forward-looking statements, non-IFRS financial information, and mineral resources and ore reserves estimates. Important information. Very easy to read there for sure. Good morning once again. It's a privilege to be here, as I stand before you as the Chair of 29Metals, and to reflect on the past year. A year that has continued to test us, also one where we made meaningful progress on our growth initiatives. As I stand here for my sixth and final AGM as Chair, I'm struck by one thing in particular. Our vision for 29Metals remains unchanged from the first time we did this in 2021. The board and executive team vision is perfectly clear: to build 29Metals into a leading metals producer, developer, and explorer, and a successful one, and to capitalize on the favorable long-term dynamics for copper and other base and precious metals. We've got that right in terms of copper and other base and precious metals. Absolutely, definitely. On the supply side, quality ore bodies are becoming harder to find and lower grade, and more complex to mine, and in more faraway places, as well, whereas our ore bodies are right here. At the same time, demand for copper continues to strengthen as the world electrifies through EVs, of course, and renewable energy. The energy transition, the growth of AI infrastructure is just growing phenomenally. The need for copper is only increasing, and we have plenty of it and there's more. This is not a short-term trend, it's very structural, and we've been talking about it for some time. We've got that right as well. The world is going to need a lot more of it. Against that backdrop, 29Metals is uniquely positioned. We hold two large, long-life copper assets right here in Australia with over 2 million tonnes of contained copper in mineral resources, with a street value of $40 billion or something of that sort of nature, and significant geological upside still to be realized. Our focus is simple and disciplined: to deliver safe production and to allocate capital prudently so we can realize long-term value for our shareholders and stakeholders generally. 2025 was not without its challenges. Most notably, restricted access to Golden Grove's highest grade ore source, Xantho Extended, due to seismic activity impacted operations during the year. James is going to talk a little bit more to that. Despite this, we continued to make solid progress across the business. We advanced key growth initiatives, including the Gossan Valley project, and the critical work required to support successful and sustainable restart at Capricorn. That's something, again, that James will give a bit more detail on. Very important work going on in all of those areas. Xantho Extended, getting that up to its drumbeat. Gossan Valley, getting to that ore and opening up that ore body and giving another opening there. Getting that work done at Capricorn Copper to build that into a significant and substantial long-term sustainable business there in Queensland. Our safety performance also improved year-on-year, reflecting the team's continued focus on keeping our people safe. From a financial and operational perspective, Golden Grove reported an EBITDA of $178 million for the year, up 76% on the prior year. copper production at Golden Grove was 22,000 tonnes, within guidance despite the disruptions at Xantho. At a group level, EBITDA increased to $176 million, up 200%. Revenue increased to $567 million, and cost of sales improved by 14% to $482 million. A good strong performance on the financial side under the circumstances. Taken together, these results demonstrated a business that is resilient, disciplined, and continuing to perform even in the face of operational challenges. That's exactly the culture, the mantra, and the way in which James and the rest of the executive leadership team have led the business over the past year or so. Our portfolio provides shareholders with exposure to high-quality copper inventory complemented by zinc and other metals. Good byproducts there. Zinc is having a bit of a run at the moment there, at $1.60 or thereabouts, and we do have a lot of it. We're probably one of Australia's biggest zinc producers. Of course, gold and silver. You would've noticed that gold's having a good run, too, at the moment. Silver, a splendid metal we need to find and produce more of, silver. All of which have got very positive long-term fundamentals. We've got the metals right. This combination offers leverage to copper, obviously, and the benefits of a multi-commodity diversification. Even lead, I think, gets a small run there at this time, James. I would like to acknowledge the efforts of our CEO. I've done that, James Palmer, and the executive leadership team in terms of the way in which they've gone through those challenges. It hasn't been simple, hasn't been easy. Nothing in our industry is. If it was, somebody else would be doing it. James, well done with all of that. Over the past year, they have led the business through a period of significant challenge while continuing to position the company for future growth. That's what it's all about. They have done so with resilience, discipline, and a strong sense of purpose. Very good karma and culture to have there, James. Absolutely. Across the organization, our people have remained committed to our team's values, putting safety first and operating with transparency, excellence, accountability, and mutual respect. These are not just words. They are every day across our operations. We live and breathe those values and that culture. In this culture and the capability of our people, that gives me confidence that 29M has the ability to navigate the adversity that we've had and realize the full value of the assets. That's what's coming next. To the team across Australia, many of whom I've had the privilege of working with over a long period of time, personally, thank you for your dedication, which is what actually defines this company. James will elaborate a bit on that. The way in which the team responded on site to the Xantho Extended one or two issues there in terms of continuing to fill the mill with other copper sources was absolutely outstanding performance. To our shareholders, we recognize that trust is earned through transparency, performance mainly, but transparency through delivery and through consistently meeting our commitments. We're very happy to be held to account for all of those things. Ultimately, got to be reflected in that ever-growing share price. In terms of the transition now, not the energy transition, the transition of the Chair here. It's been a great privilege to serve on the board as Chair since the IPO. Goodness me, 2022. What? '21, actually. I would like to thank my fellow board members over this time for their counsel and their support. Today, it is my intention to step down as the Chair, excuse me, of 29M, and Nick succeeding me as Independent Chair of the Board pending the shareholders vote on Nick's election to the board, effective from immediately following the AGM. I will now hand over to Nick to say a few brief words. Thank you.

Thanks, Owen. Good morning, everyone. Let me start by expressing my gratitude to those of you who voted in favor of my election to the board. I'm humbled by the faith that the board have put in me, and subject to that resolution being carried at this AGM, I will be honored to succeed Owen and take on the role of Chair of the 29Metals Board. I take seriously the trust placed in me and in my independence by you, our shareholders, which allows me to challenge constructively so that decisions are made in the best long-term interest of our shareholders. Having joined the board just over six months ago, my impressions of the potential to deliver long-term shareholder wealth has only strengthened, and I'm excited by this company, its unique assets, and the thematics of copper. I'm also pleased to have the opportunity to work closely with James and his very committed executive team. I look forward to working with the full board, a group with deep and diverse experience and skills, where the sum of the parts will provide for strong oversight and governance, and that together with the incumbent leadership, will continue to shape the 29Metals culture that sets us apart from our peers. What do I bring to the table? I'm currently in my ninth year as an Independent Non-Executive Director across a portfolio of very accomplished ASX listed companies. I chair and participate in various boards, subcommittees, giving me a deep appreciation and exposure to best practices in corporate governance, business and corporate strategy and risk management, social and environmental stewardship, organizational culture, and operational execution. That exposure brings informed, practiced, and new perspectives to the 29Metals strategic board discussions. Golden Grove and Capricorn Copper are both high quality and very well-endowed assets, as has already been mentioned. Not without their unique challenges, but none of which are insurmountable. I've been to both sites now. I was at Capricorn Copper only two weeks ago, and I look forward to offering my strategic and operational experience to maximize the opportunity for long-term wealth creation, deliver to expectations and, with that, exceptional returns to our investors and stakeholders. Owen, thank you very much for your outstanding leadership since the IPO in 2021. I look forward to working in the best interests of this company and building on the trajectory you and the board have already established. Working with all our stakeholders, especially our shareholders, as we realize the significant potential of the 29Metals portfolio in the years ahead. Thank you, and back over to you, Owen.

Okay. Thanks, Nick. I should say that I have worked with Nick before in another ASX-listed company that I think roughly, approximately when Nick and I joined, it had a market cap in the 100s. When we left it had a market cap in the tens of billions. No small measure of mine success has 1,000 fathers. Of course, as we all know, mothers and fathers. I can assure you that Nick Cernotta's contribution to that was very, very strong. Terrific operator. Knows the business. Great background experience and so on. Particularly good background in underground mining and facing multiple challenges. It'll be really, really good to have. Really, really good already to have him at the board and terrific for James and the rest of the operating team to bounce things off as well. Well done, Nick. Look forward to your leadership of the board. Thank you, Nick. Wish you every success there. Finally, to our shareholders, of course. Without your support, cooperation, and encouragement, we are nothing. Thank you for your ongoing support for all of that. We look forward to delivering all of those things, getting the drumbeat right at the projects, at the operations, and ultimately into that share price. James. Thank you. I now invite CEO, James Palmer to address the meeting. Thank you, James.

Thanks, Owen, and welcome, Nick. Yes, good morning, everyone. Thank you very much for joining us today. The 29Metals investment thesis remains strong. At its core, underpinned by two large, long-life copper assets, Golden Grove and Capricorn Copper, both with significant resource scale and geological upside. Together, they do provide a clear pathway to building a substantial copper production business. Our ambition is to progress this business towards 80,000 tonne per annum copper equivalent producer, and the optionality to grow that over time. Throughout 2025, as Owen mentioned, we did continue to strengthen the foundations of the business. We advanced key priorities in safety. We progressed the development of Gossan Valley. We had the optionality to really continue that work at Capricorn Copper. Very, very pleased with the critical works that we'd been progressing there. At the same time, we did face real challenges, notably the seismic activity at Golden Grove. It certainly tested our operations and tested our people. It certainly was a demanding year, but it reinforced what matters most, safety. Safety first is not just a value, it's how we operate. It's the first thing that I think about every morning. It's the first thing that our supervisors reinforce in every meeting, and it's the first thing we expect all of our people to bring to every task. Throughout the year, as the team, the site teams, as Owen said, responded to the seismic events at Xantho Extended, the safety of our people remained an absolute priority. That was supported at a practical level by exclusion zones, rigorous risk assessments, and disciplined planning for a safe return to mining. We ended the year with zero lost time injuries. During the year, achieved our lowest-ever total recordable injury frequency since 2021, the inception of 29Metals. That's something that the whole team, right through to the front line, should be really, really proud of. At Capricorn Copper, a successful wet season, a very successful wet season, now concluded. Since the suspension of operations, the team have reduced surface water levels by more than 2 gigaliters. This has been achieved against a backdrop of one of the wettest periods on record in Northern Australia. The '25, '26 wet season was the seventh wettest since 1900. Strong testament to the team's capability and the site's preparedness to manage water in challenging conditions. Water is no longer an impediment to a restart at Capricorn Copper. This is a significant milestone and a really important step forward. With water no longer being the constraint, the focus has shifted firmly to the next critical step, approval of a long-term tailings storage facility. This remains the key pathway to a safe and sustainable restart of operations, and we're progressing a definitive feasibility study to ensure that we can move quickly once approvals are in place. Importantly, we have a low capital intensity pathway to reestablish 30,000 tonnes of copper production per annum at Capricorn Copper. At Golden Grove, we are nearing the end of a significant investment phase to unlock the higher grade ore sources that we have. From the end of 2026, we'll see capital expenditures start to reduce production increase as we ramp up mining from Xantho Extended, from Oizon, and from Gossan Valley. In 2025, as Owen mentioned, Golden Grove delivered EBITDA of $178 million, up 76% on the prior year, and copper production was 22,000 tonnes, in line with guidance despite the operational interruptions at Xantho. We also made strong progress at Gossan Valley. The first blast of the portal was completed ahead of schedule, and we're on track for first ore by the end of 2026. At the same time, we commissioned a new tailings storage facility at Golden Grove, providing long-term capacity and lowering the life of mine costs. Before the disruption at Xantho Extended, we were guiding to over 50,000 tonnes per annum of copper equivalent production. As Xantho returns, we expect to return to that level. Meanwhile, our exploration activities continue to deliver some outstanding results. The '25 drill program contributed to 10% increase in the ore reserve tonnes, 17% increase in mineral resources tonnes, extending mine life and reinforcing the significant potential upside of the asset. We had particular success in resource extension drilling with wide high grade intercepts beyond the existing resource boundaries, we're very excited by that. As we bring together the recovery at Xantho Extended, the development of Gossan Valley, and the integration of these new ore sources, you can see how the full potential of Golden Grove begins to come together from 2027 and beyond. The focus and priority areas for us remain clear. We're executing our plan, unlocking the embedded value in the 29Metals portfolio, and in doing so, never compromising on safety, health, and the wellbeing of our people. We continue to build a culture from top to bottom that is respectful, transparent, and accountable, where every person understands the role that they play in our success. I'm proud to lead a team that lives by our values. We work together to overcome challenges, and we deliver. To our shareholders and stakeholders, thank you for your continued support. I look forward to speaking with more of you today and over the coming year. We've got the right people, the right plan, and we're ready to deliver. Thank you. Back to you, Owen.

Good man, James. Well done there. Got all of those things poised now ready to deliver, we'll looking forward to that and all looking forward to working with you to be able to do that. Terrific assets. I should say, the point about that tailings storage facility at Golden Grove is not lost. To have that infrastructure fully permitted and operating for the next 20-something years, is a very significant advantage these days in increasing regulation and trying to get things done. We're doing the same painstakingly going through that detailed technical process to detailed technical and environmental process at Capricorn to get the same result. That sets you up basically for the next 20, 30 years. Terrific work that's going in there. That will pay dividends absolutely for sure. Thank you for that. We will now move to the formal business of the AGM. As Melinda mentioned earlier, and set out in the notice of meeting, voting on each of the resolutions at this AGM will be conducted by a poll. I will open the polls shortly. The first item of business is the receipt and consideration of the 31st of December 2025 financial report for the company and the reports of the directors and the auditor. No vote is required on this item of business. 29Metals financial statements for the year ended 31st of December '25 were released to the ASX announcements platform on the 26th of February '26 and were included in 29Metals 2025 annual report. A copy of the '25 annual report has been made available on the company website, and was sent to those shareholders who requested a copy. I will take 29Metals financial statements for the year ended 31 December as having been received by the meeting, and invite questions regarding the financial statements for the year ended 31st of December 2025. I note that no written questions were received for the auditor prior to the meeting. Melinda, have any questions been received online?

No question have been received online, Chair.

No? Thanks, Melinda.

Via the phone. We'll check the phone.

Any questions being received via the phone -- on the phone?

There are no phone questions.

No questions?

No questions?

Okay. I'll now open to questions in the room. If you have a question, please raise your yellow or blue card when I call on you to ask your question. Please state your name. And if you are a representative of a shareholder, who you represent. Any questions in the room on the financials? I think all clear. Off the hook there. Good. Thank you very much for that. I believe there's no further questions there on that item. So we'll move to the resolutions being put to the meeting. And I now formally declare the polls open. A reminder, to those joining online, please record your votes using the icon at the bottom of your screen. For those joining in person, please record your vote on the back of your yellow card as we move through the resolutions. I will give you advanced warning before I move to close voting at the end of the AGM. [Voting]

We will now move to resolution 1, the adoption of the 2025 remuneration report, which is shown on the screen. The rem report was included in the directors' report for the year ended 31st of December. A copy of which is included in the '25 annual report. The rem report outlines 29Metals approach to remuneration, including remuneration for key management personnel. Please note that the vote on this resolution is advisory only and is not binding. However, any discussion on this resolution and the outcome of the advisory vote will be taken into consideration by the Board. As set out in the notice of meeting, voting exclusion applies to this resolution and in the interest of good corporate governance, the directors have abstained from making a recommendation regarding this resolution. Proxies and direct votes received are shown on the screen. Melinda, have we received any written questions online?

We've received no questioning questions online, Owen.

Are there any questions from the shareholders to make via the phone?

Chair, no phone questions.

We will now move to shareholders in the room.

Excuse me. Are there any shareholders in the room would like to ask questions about the rem report? I think we're okay there or clear. So thank you very much. We will now move to resolution 2a, the reelection Creagh O'Connor as a director. The resolution seeks shareholder approval for Creagh's reelection as a director. Creagh has been a direct company since 2023 and his background and extensive background and qualifications are included in the notice of meeting on our website and in the '25 annual report. Proxies and direct votes received are set out on the screen. The directors, with Creagh abstaining, unanimously recommend that shareholders vote in favor of this resolution. Melinda, have we received any written questions online?

We have not received any written questions online, Owen. Thank you.

Are there any questions via the phone?

Chair, there are no phone questions.

Are there any questions from shareholders in the room on this resolution? No? I think we're all clear there to Melinda. Thank you. We will now move to resolution 2b, the election of Nick Cernotta as a director. This resolution seeks shareholder approval for Nick's election as a director. Nick has been a director of the company since October '25, and his background, extensive background and qualifications are included in the notice of meeting, and he's addressed the meeting already and on our website and in the '25 annual report. Proxies and direct votes were received as set out on the screen. The directors with Nick abstaining, unanimously recommend that shareholders vote in favor of this resolution. Melinda, have we received any written questions online?

No written questions online.

Are there any questions via the phone?

Chair, there are no phone questions.

Thank you very much done by the phone. Are there any questions from shareholders in the room? No. I think we're off the hook there. So thank you for that. We will now move on to the final resolution to see the election of Ashish Gupta as a Director. The resolution seeks shareholder approval for Ashish election as a director. Ashish has been the Director of the company since June '25, and his background, extensive background and qualifications are included in the notice of meeting on our website and in 2025 annual report. Proxies and votes received are set out on the screen. The directors with us is abstaining unanimously recommend that shareholders vote in favor of this resolution. I will now invite questions on the item. Melinda have we received any written questions online?

No written questions online, Owen.

Are there any questions shareholders wish to ask via the phone.

There are no phone questions.

Are there any questions from shareholders in the room, on this particular resolution. And we're in good shape there, too. So thank you very much. No questions there. So general questions now we're up to. Ladies and gentlemen, that brings us to the end of the formal business of the meeting per se. We do have some time now for general questions not related to the formal business per se. Before I open up to questions, a reminder, to shareholders and proxyholders in the room to complete your voting on the back of the yellow attendance card. For shareholders and proxyholders participating online, please complete your voting and remember to press submit before you disconnect from the meeting. After dealing with any general questions, I will declare the poll closed for the resolutions at this meeting. With that, I'll now invite shareholders to raise any general questions not specifically related to the formal business. For those joining online, please ensure you submit your questions now. [Operator Instructions] Let's start with questions received prior to the meeting, which I'll ask Melinda to read out.

Owen, there's been no questions received prior to the meeting.

All right. Well, thank you for that.

And I should add just preempt your question. We haven't received any questions online today in relation to this...

Nor in advance. Okay. A couple more minutes. Any final questions that might be being typed out and being tapped out there at home for us any final. Whilst we wait, are there any question shareholders wish to ask via the phone?

Chair, there are no questions.

None. Thank you very much for that. And finally, are there any further questions, comments from shareholders in the room?

[indiscernible].

Thank you. David?

With your indulgence, I couldn't get through the registration process today, but my super fund does own 1.9 million shares, so I'd like to sort of make a bit of a comment. One of my observations as we move into the world of the Internet and so on, I've watched other companies, as well as delivering very concise and accurate quarterly reports, there's more online participation. You guys are doing webinars. I think there could be a bit more come through in terms of specialist areas. For example, geology. If you look at the maps are excellent as we've got them from both the Western Australian property and the Queensland property. That's all there is. We really don't know what the perspective's further down. I think until there's a little more said about the potential at near mine site, I note that with Capricorn Copper, the company says we have five very good-looking prospects within our ground on the Mount Isa Inlier. We can take that with faith, but it'd be nice to have a little bit of perspective advanced to shareholders on that. I think that's going to be another part of the value of the company as we go forward. As I note, reading some of the major brokers' recommendations and what they think, Capricorn Copper seems to get 0 because no one's going to value it until you prove you can do it. Yet, I think most of us here seem to think that has a lot of value. I think there's a possibility maybe for some less formal presentations to the market as per ASX and we'll have the company develop its own video approach to the market, and those videos will be lodged on your website. Maybe a chief geologist, maybe something. Doesn't necessarily have to be an executive-type presentation. I think that adds and puts color on the company, I don't think any analyst or anything prepared to do it at the moment, given where we are. That's just a suggestion for modern media.

David, thank you very much for that. I know that Christian has been talking quite a lot about that. Just a couple of things on that. Absolutely 100% right. We've a fantastic upside potential above and beyond the sort of current JORC code reserves and resources, and so on. You're right, need to be pointed out. I mean, some of the companies these days, particularly with copper and particularly with gold, of course, a particular discovery or a hit or a strike or one drill hole. The next minute the market caps go through the roof. You've actually got a lot of people looking to invest in those things. Whereas a bit reluctant, as you say, with us sometimes because, "Oh, well, no, they're under a bit of a cloud until they do this and that." We would have many, many times the sort of potential. That some of those people have got, and their market caps, you can't jump over them, and they haven't even got to a resource base type of thing. That's, it's been a bit of a conundrum for us in terms of being able to get that out there. Anyway, the I'd make, I think it's a very, very good point and agree 100%. We're looking at that sort of stuff all the time. While we've been talking, James is getting, he's thinking of the right answer there for that question and comment. James.

I'm very happy to respond. Thanks, David.

I suggest you start meeting in Sydney. I was at a company meeting in Sydney a couple of days ago, the MD was seen at one of the corporate promotional fixtures. It was in Adelaide. There was a mining conference in Adelaide. I said, "Gee, you came out well in the video there and the way you" He said, "I hate doing those bloody videos." I said, "Well, don't stop, please." Because after he made an observation about the company, I think they were selling for $0.15 and they rapidly went to $0.25 as the value of a deposit that they had became more appreciated. It was just that informal, low-key but informal interview that was able to translate into something that was quite meaningful.

Yes, great. No, certainly point well made. You mentioned particularly there with Capricorn Copper, we're kicking off drilling again, we haven't done any drilling for a couple of years, we haven't had anything to crawl about too loudly. Lucas has kicked off, the head geo, kicked off that program, I will have some more data to talk about, also, as you said, potentially just a bit more on video or otherwise showing what we've actually got there because it is very prospective. Yes, once we've got some holes, we definitely will be announcing those as well.

All within eyes then from [indiscernible].

100%.

Actually quite a big suite. Apart from in and around the existing ore bodies, terrific potential. We've really got a very.

1,800 sq km.

One of the biggest packages in Australia.

Yes.

Very good. Thank you, David, for that. Any other questions, queries, comments? [ Peter Halstead ], thank you very much.

Thank you, Chair. James, the seismic events that we've suffered from, having just spent a bit of time reading about seismic because I thought seismic was earthquakes, it's not. It opens up the question as to why we've suffered the seismic. Reading some geo books recently, it kind of opens the question as to whether our mine plan is correct or not correct and whether we kind of didn't understand the geology that we were going into within those deeper stopes. Initially I thought the idea was that it was going to be fairly shallow rather than super deep, and then we weren't going to suffer from any sort of seismic or, I guess, falling. I'm pleased to hear that you've done the work and that we're actually sorting it out, which is hugely gratifying to hear that there are no shortcuts going on, which I think is a great testament to the company's character. Can you just give us a little bit more color around that? The second thing is, one of the things that I think people are worried about is the availability of sulfur to the SX-EW operations, meaning like Bloody Owen. Therefore questioning the ability of the company to actually process the ore that we are actually getting out of the ground. If you could just deal with those. Then maybe a little bit more to David's question around we've lived in hope of Capricorn and there was certainly a lot of hope at the IPO for Capricorn and valuation. I totally agree with David, it's been written off which I think is naive, but never mind. When we can expect some news on the mining side and the drilling side in particular to give us a bit more color around, I'm sure what exists in the ground there.

Okay. Happy to. Well, I'll deal with the sulfur question first. I think from ours, and you've seen some external theses. We're not dependent on sulfur for our processing, there's lots of other things in the supply chain. Sulfur, whereas for the big SX-EW and particularly Chile, et cetera, exposure, that's just going to put upward pressure on prices for copper. As far as we're concerned, it's not an issue from our reagents. Actually we're on the positive side of that one. Your first question was on seismicity. Yes, very happy with the work the team have done. Obviously, it led to some very challenging decisions. We will end up in a much better position because we're now going to be going around the areas that have got the seismicity that we do now understand very well. We'll be dealing with that risk issue by bypassing those sections that have got the particularly reactive seismicity because of some of the structures. Understanding the geology much better. We've got a plan to go forward on that. You mentioned there the shallow aspect which might have been Gossan Valley, where we're not having any seismicity in Gossan Valley. It's just the deepest extremity of the mine with Xantho Extended and got a really good plan going forward on that. Yes, like you, happy we've done the work and therefore able to go forward on that plan. The last one was on Capricorn. Yes, as I said, Lucas and the team literally getting boots on the ground over the coming month. They will start to actually get some exploration going and then we'll have some results that we'll announce as soon as we're able to, as well as taking on some of David's points there on how else can we get some of that, what I think will be really good information out to shareholders. The last time we did drill a couple of years ago, that was the Woolly target area. We know that we've got lots of potential just in that area as well as the 1,800 sq km aspect. Yes, we're excited. As soon as we can announce something, we certainly will be. Thanks, Peter.

Terrific. Thank you, James. Well done. Any further questions? Thank you.

Thank you. Matt's my name. I'm interested in a little bit more color on debt profile and the capital requirements for reopening of Capricorn Copper and the seismic works at Golden Grove.

Okay. Yes, certainly with that, I pointed to challenging decisions that we made on Xantho, which does then defer the cash. Hence why we've been speaking on, we've got $238 million of liquidity. That was taken into consideration in the solution to go forward for Xantho and Golden Grove between now and the end of 2026. For Capricorn Copper, that's where we pointed to having a look at strategic options to be able to fund Capricorn Copper. Two separate issues. We are liking what we're seeing externally, seeing some of the streaming royalties, minority sales, because we've got the copper endowment in the ground. We're liking some of the comps that are there. We're exploring all those potential options. On debt. Our debt doesn't mature until 2028. We've got plenty of time to have a look at anything on a debt perspective. Peter, anything you'd add, or?

No, I think you captured the main point, James. We'll explore those options over this next period as we complete.

Thanks, Peter. Maybe only thing to add is, those work streams that James referred to have been done in parallel to the work on the definitive feasibility study, which we'll have at the end of the year. You bring those things together, you have a strong understanding of the project and what we need to deliver, and then also work up the strategic options to fund that in parallel. Thanks, Matt.

Thanks, Peter. There are some actually quite good recent examples of external people taking minority positions, streaming royalties and so on projects and that have definitive feasibility study restarts, new start type of thing, and very, very good ones, all the way up to the Rio Tinto's Winu project. It's a copper project in Western Australia, where Sumitomo came in and bought 30%, or I think it was about 30%, so a minority position. Effectively paid for the whole development of that. That was a very good deal for Rio Tinto. Even the mighty Rio Tinto are doing it. Also, speaking of the mighties, BHP has in fact done a stream on one of its operations in South America. Again, taking advantage of the streamers and the capital availability that's going into those particular streamers. Franco-Nevada being sort of big guys, there's Triple Flags and various other people there have good access to capital and relatively inexpensive capital at this point in time. BHP took advantage of that as another financing tool. As James says, they're the things that are available, ATM, we are looking at them.

Am I right to conclude then that the probability of a cap raise to fund those projects is low?

We're not looking at a cap raise. Yes, the strategic options that we flagged were the streaming royalty minority to bring forward that investment for Capricorn Copper. Original and plan A will still be cash flows from Golden Grove, but obviously some of those have been deferred, so it'll be the decision when the definitive feasibility study's ready. Do you pull the trigger on that now or wait? We think there's a lot of value to be had in bringing that forward. That's why we're looking at those strategic options.

Good. Yes, Peter?

Nick, congratulations and a very warm welcome to the company. Just given your experience and your background, I'm just curious as to a fresh set of eyes on what we have. I think we've all got cataracts on our eyes at the moment as far as this company goes, excluding David. I'm hugely encouraged to see you be prepared to step up. I'm sure all the other shareholders will be very, very happy to see you move into the role and indeed join the board. I just wanted to know what you've seen in the company, and what gives you hope and optimism about what we have. We all think we know what we've got. The market's telling us something else and has told us something else for a number of years now. I just wanted to sort of see the company through your eyes, I guess. Because I'm, as I said, I've got cataracts on mine. Thank you.

Thanks. Thanks, Peter. The first thing I see, I'm blinded by the endowment of copper that we hold, that's a stark differentiator. When I did my DD on joining the board, I'm absolutely a believer in the thematics of copper and what's coming still that we can enjoy. Second thing is look at the assets that we've got. Where's that endowment held? Golden Grove, of course, has been around for decades. It's a great resource, I think there's a lot more to be found there yet. I think even though we've got a great endowment, we're going to add to it. You say, "Well, what's the next challenge that we need to be able to deliver?" It's execution of the work. I'm comfortable because my background is underground mining, I'm not concerned about seismicity. It's all manageable. It requires clever thinking and clever people and modeling, and it's a journey. Just takes a little bit of time. Seismicity, without taking it down into deeper education, requires modeling and recalibration of the modeling. As you go along, you'll learn more information, you just top that up, and that enables you to then predict really what might happen down the track. Which then makes it a lot easier to plan and a lot easier to deliver against expectations. The second thing, sort of the last thing, is actually the people. Do you have the people that are actually able to do the work? I'm comfortable that's absolutely within our realms, and we've got people that can do that job. Yes. Look at the successes that have been achieved already at Capricorn Copper. Let's just get the water down there, and I believe that asset, when it was operational, was a cash cow for us. We were generating money, and that was at a lot lower copper price, by the way. I could just see upside, and I don't have cataracts.

Yes, thanks, Brad. Any further questions, queries, comments from around the grounds? I think we're under control, Melinda. In that case, we are now near the close of the AGM, at which time I will declare the polls closed, including the close of the online voting system. For those joining online, please ensure that you have clicked the submit button on each of the resolutions. For those joining in person, representatives of the share registry will now come to collect your yellow attendance cards. We'll get those. There's one. Thank you very much. Yes, well done. Thank you. We've got them all. That's a poll. Thank you to the share register and the representative for collecting the voting cards. I now declare the polls closed, and as mentioned, the results of the AGM will be announced to the ASX as soon as the votes have been counted and verified. With that, I will now bring the AGM to a close. Thank you again to our shareholders joining online and in person for your time, questions, and your continued engagement, support, encouragement, and cooperation. Thank you very much. Please join the board and management team for refreshments at this time. Thank you very much to everybody. Go the Mighty Bombers.