The stock soared to a 52-week high of C$0.69 in the early hours of trading, and by 11:25 a.m. ET, it retreated slightly at C$0.68 apiece, still up 36% for the session. Its market capitalization was around C$40 million ($29m).
“We very much appreciate the continued support from Richard Warke and the Lundin family, and we are delighted to welcome Eric Sprott as a new strategic investor in Highlander,” stated Highlander’s CEO David Fincham in a news release.
The financing follows a C$3 million investment from Augusta and the Lundin family in October 2023. At the time, Highlander offered units of the company at C$0.10 each, and subsequently consolidated its shares on a 2:1 basis.
That investment, which was Lundin’s first in Highlander, was used for the company’s La Estrella project in central Peru. The project has a near-surface exploration target hosting 15 to 35 million tonnes averaging between 50-60 g/t silver and 0.4-0.6 g/t gold, containing 25-60 million oz. of silver and 200,000-700,000 oz. of gold.
The new C$9.2 million investment will go towards the San Luis gold-silver project that Highlander recently acquired from SSR Mining for $42 million. This project, also in central Peru, has a historical measured and indicated mineral resource of 348,000 oz. of gold grading 22.4 g/t and 9 million oz. of silver grading 578.1 g/t.