Aim-listed phosphate developer Kropz has made a quarterly drawdown request on its new equity facility with major shareholder African Rainbow Capital (ARC) Fund.

The company has two equity facilities, with the first comprising an amount of $40-million and the second comprising up to $5-million.

The company has initiated the fifth drawdown under the first facility, for $7-million, which will be settled by Kropz issuing almost 90-million new ordinary shares at a price of 6.75p apiece to ARC, on March 10.

Additionally, Kropz has now made an initial drawdown request of $2-million under the second equity facility, which will be settled by the issue of almost 35-million new ordinary shares at an issue price of 4.20 apiece to ARC, also on March 10. 

Following the issue of the new shares, ARC Fund will have a shareholding of 78.2% in Kropz.

The company expects to draw down again on both equity facilities on or about June 10 and quarterly thereafter.

Kropz is applying the proceeds toward continuing work steams on its Elandsfontein and Hinda projects, in South Africa and Congo-Brazzaville, respectively.

In February, Kropz appointed engineering and construction firm Hatch Africa to complete an updated feasibility study on Hinda, which will target a phased approach in line with the terms of the mining investment agreement, with initial production of one-million tonnes a year of phosphate rock being exported from the existing port facility at Pointe-Noire, which is 50 km from Hinda.

A second-phase production ramp-up will also be evaluated with export from a new port site, located north of Pointe-Noire.

Meanwhile, Kropz plans to start production at the long-awaited Elandsfontein project in the fourth quarter of 2021. The project can deliver one-million tonnes a year of phosphate rock concentrate at steady state, with an initial mine life of about 14 years.