TORONTO, CANADA, September 18, 2023 – Black Iron Inc. (“Black Iron” or the “Company”) (TSX: BKI) recently received feedback that Ukraine’s Ministry of Economy is currently reviewing the Company’s investment support agreement (“Investment Agreement”) and is generally supportive. The next steps are to receive written comments on the proposed Investment Agreement from the Ministry of Economy and finalizing the text in a binding document to be sent to Ukraine’s Cabinet of Ministers for approval and signature. In addition to VAT and import duty incentives, Black Iron believes the Investment Agreement will facilitate the required surface rights acquisition.
Ukraine recently appointed a new Minister of Defence, Mr. Rustem Umerov, who previously was responsible for Ukraine’s State Property Fund. In his role as Head of the State Property Fund, Mr. Umerov managed the sale of government-owned assets to private investors. Prior to taking on this role, he founded and worked as an investment banker at ASTEM, so has good hands-on experience working with the international investment community.
There is growing interest to pursue Ukraine’s reconstruction in a more environmentally friendly manner, including via the production and use of green steel. Black Iron is ideally suited to produce the high purity iron ore required to make green steel, which is called “direct iron” as this product needs to contain a very high iron content and low silica plus alumina levels. The majority of the existing iron ore mines in Ukraine have very high levels of silica, which would require substantial investment in new processing equipment to reduce the silica to acceptable levels and thereby increase the iron content.
As of writing, Black Iron’s Ukraine based team located in the city of Kryvyi Rih are all safe and in good health.
About Black Iron
Black Iron is an iron ore exploration and development company, advancing its 100% owned Shymanivske Iron Ore Project located in Kryviy Rih, Ukraine. Full mineral resource details and projected project economics can be found in the NI 43-101 technical report entitled “(Amended) Preliminary Economic Assessment of the Re-scoped Shymanivske Iron Ore Deposit” published in March 2020 with an effective date of November 21, 2017 under the Company’s profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. The Project is surrounded by five other operating mines, including Metinvest’s YuGOK and ArcelorMittal’s iron ore complex. Please visit the Company’s website at www.blackiron.com for more information
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Black Iron Inc.
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Forward-Looking Information
This shareholder update contains forward-looking information. Forward-looking information is based on what management believes to be reasonable assumptions, opinions and estimates of the date such statements are made based on information available to them at that time. Forward-looking information may include, but is not limited to, statements with respect to the terms of Investment Agreement, the review, approval and execution of the Investment Agreement, , reconstruction of Ukraine discussions with the Ukraine government and the Company’s future plans. Generally, forward looking information can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as “plans”, “expects” or “does not expect”, “is expected”, “budget”, “scheduled”, “estimates”, “forecasts”, “intends”, “anticipates” or “does not anticipate”, or “believes”, or variations of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results “may”, “could”, “would”, “might” or “will be taken”, “occur” or “be achieved”. Forward-looking information is subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information, including but not limited to: the war in Ukraine; general business, economic, competitive, geopolitical and social uncertainties; the actual results of current exploration activities; other risks of the mining industry and the risks described in the annual information form of the Company. Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that such information will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward looking information. The Company does not undertake to update any forward-looking information, except in accordance with applicable securities laws. The Company notes that mineral resources are not mineral reserves and do not have demonstrated economic viability.