Episode Details

Interview with Darren Bowden, CEO of Metals Exploration

Our previous interview: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/posts/metals-exploration-lsemtl-advances-nicaragua-build-as-philippine-copper-gold-optionality-emerges-10936

Recording date: 28th September 2026

Metals Exploration plc (AIM:MTL) is an AIM-listed gold producer with operations in the Philippines and a new mine under construction in Nicaragua. Its investment case rests on a transition now under way. Runruno, the company's Philippine gold mine, is nearing the end of its life but is generating enough cash to fund La India, a larger, longer-life gold project in Nicaragua's section of the Central American gold belt.

CEO Darren Bowden said Runruno had recovered from a weak first half of 2026. Ore contamination from historical small-scale mining in the upper levels is now behind the operation, and the plant is back in sulphide ore. He expects free cash flow of US$10-12 million per month through the end of the year. The company held £25.8 million (about US$34.5 million) in cash after fully drawing its US$27.0 million equipment loan. With about US$40 million of La India spending left, Bowden expects to hold roughly US$30 million at start-up. Runruno's remaining rehabilitation liability is about US$4 million, and its process plant is expected to be moved to a new operation.

La India is on track for first gold in December 2026. The CIL tanks, structural steel and both mills are in place, and piping and electrical work are the main outstanding items. Commissioning is expected to take four to six weeks. The company aims to hold 400,000-500,000 tonnes of stockpiled ore by year-end, equal to about five months of feed. Low-grade ore will be processed first so that high-grade material is not lost while recoveries are optimised. The 2027 target is about 100,000 oz.

The mine plan differs materially from the 2022 feasibility study inherited through the Condor Gold acquisition. That study assumed an 800,000-tonne-per-year plant and open-pit ore only. Metals Exploration is building a 1.4 million-tonne-per-year plant and adding underground mining at 4-5 g/t gold, compared with about 2.5 g/t from the open pits. Production is expected to reach around 120,000 oz in the year after 2027 and 140,000-150,000 oz once underground mining begins in 2029-2030. Bowden said this broader plan was possible because the company did not need a bank-grade study to secure funding.

Execution risk is managed through an owner-operator model. The company owns its mining fleet and runs procurement, engineering and construction in-house. Its team includes former colleagues of Bowden, among them a former B2Gold projects executive who brought about 35 staff.

Exploration offers further upside. At La Grecia, 50 km from La India, a maiden 2,450 m programme returned 1.30 m at 36.5 g/t gold, including 0.7 m at 67.4 g/t. Remaining assays are due in October, with follow-up drilling in Q1 2027. In the Philippines, the company is pursuing the Batong Buhay copper-gold porphyry, where drilling awaits completion of community engagement.

Key risks include commissioning refurbished equipment, Nicaraguan jurisdictional exposure and the cash-flow gap as Runruno winds down. Catalysts include first gold in December, formal 2027 guidance and La Grecia assays.

Learn more: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/companies/metals-exploration-plc

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