Askari Metals (ASX:AS2) enters 2026 debt free as Nejo drilling plan takes shape

Askari Metals has opened 2026 with a simplified corporate position, confirming the full repayment of its Convertible Note Facility with Lawson Mining Pty Ltd and the remaining balance of its Series B Redeemable Notes.

The outcome is a debt free balance sheet and a clean capital structure, which the company says removes any dilution or security overhang on its securities, and leaves it funded to execute a near term exploration strategy across Ethiopia and Namibia.

Highlights

• Convertible Note Facility with Lawson Mining Pty Ltd repaid in full, along with the outstanding Series B Redeemable Notes, leaving Askari debt free with no debt or security overhang

• With meaningful cash on hand, the company states it is fully funded to execute its near term exploration strategy across the Nejo Gold and Copper Project in Ethiopia and the Uis Tin Tantalum Lithium Project in Namibia

• Nejo drilling planned as a phased program totalling more than 20,000m over time, with an initial campaign of up to 5,000m targeting near surface, high grade gold mineralisation

• Nejo drilling focus on the Guji, Komto 1 and Komto 2 targets, which collectively define an approximately 9km mineralised trend, described as a roughly 9km NE SW mineralised corridor that remains open along strike, and sits parallel to the Tulu Kapi Trend

• Uis exploration to recommence along a high grade tin and tantalum corridor directly along strike of the operating Uis Tin Mine, with planned programs including sampling, trenching and RC drilling across priority pegmatite targets

With the balance sheet reset, Askari’s 2026 work program is framed around 2 assets with distinct commodity exposures, led by Nejo as the flagship growth asset, where a preliminary drill design has been completed ahead of the company’s maiden drilling campaign at the advanced stage project.

The initial drilling will target the Guji, Komto 1 and Komto 2 areas, where historical drilling and trenching returned strong, shallow gold intersections that were never systematically followed up, and where the company plans to validate and expand known zones of mineralisation.

The company has also outlined how the Nejo program will be used to test beyond gold, with drilling and follow up exploration expected to assess other metals including copper, antimony and silver.

The stated design of the upcoming drilling campaign is to confirm and extend historical high grade mineralisation, define the geometry and continuity of mineralised zones, and advance the project toward a maiden JORC (2012) Mineral Resource Estimate, supported by concurrent trenching, geophysics, mapping and sampling across the broader approximately 1,200km² district scale landholding.

Management has presented the corporate update as a turning point, with Executive Director Gino D’Anna noting,

“repayment of all our corporate debt marks an important inflection point for Askari. We now have a clean capital structure, a strong balance sheet and the financial flexibility to execute on our growth strategy without an overhang on our securities.”

The broader project context provided by the company places Nejo on the Arabian Nubian Shield, described as an advanced stage, brownfields high grade gold and copper project within a district land holding of approximately 1,200km² surrounding the 1.7Moz Tulu Kapi Gold Mine and along strike of the 3.4Moz Kurmuk Mine.

In Namibia, Askari plans to recommence exploration at Uis, described as providing leveraged exposure to high grade tin and tantalum mineralisation with additional lithium and rubidium upside, and strategically located directly on strike with the operating Uis Tin Mine within the same geological setting.

Planned Uis programs include soil and stream sediment sampling at EPL 7626, trenching across known pegmatite targets at EPL 8535, and planned RC drilling at the OP pegmatite target within EPL 7345.

The company has also said results from previous trenching programs have been received and are being compiled for release, which it has linked to near term news flow as activity ramps up.

In the current market for exploration capital, a debt free structure paired with a defined drilling schedule and multiple field programs offers a clear framework for the year ahead, with Askari’s next steps tied directly to execution at Nejo and the recommencement of work at Uis.

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