Battery anode Company Talga Group Ltd ('Talga' or 'the Company') (ASX: TLG) is pleased to announce the launch of a fully underwritten institutional placement of new fully paid ordinary shares ('New Shares') to raise A$25 million (before costs) ('Placement') and a non-underwritten Share Purchase Plan to eligible shareholders to raise up to A$10 million1 ('SPP').
Use of Proceeds
The A$25 million gross proceeds from the Placement will be applied towards: building the Electric Vehicle Anode (EVA) pilot plant (A$22 million) and general working capital including transaction costs and supporting the ongoing project development (A$3 million).
Any SPP proceeds will be used for additional working capital and to support the future development of Vittangi.
Talga Managing Director, Mark Thompson commented: 'The proceeds from the raising will be used towards constructing and operating our EVA pilot plant in 2021 as a key step to finalise the EV customer validation processes currently underway.
The EV revolution is here today and Talga is ideally positioned to build a new low-cost, large-scale graphite anode supply chain outside of Asia to serve the European and North American markets. Our recently announced Niska scoping study confirms the scalability of our project and supports a 450% increase to our current European anode production plans, taking our planned total anode production to meet approximately 100GWh of annual Li-ion battery capacity in 2025-26.
The unique properties of our Vittangi graphite deposit result in materially higher anode yields. This, in combination with access to low-cost 100% renewable power and proximity to our end customers, means that Talga will be able to deliver a graphite anode with a fraction of the emissions footprint compared to incumbent synthetic products.'
Details of the Placement
Talga is undertaking a Placement of New Shares to eligible institutional and professional investors to raise A$25 million. New Shares under the Placement will be issued at A$1.450 per New Share ('Placement Price'), representing a 17.8% discount to Talga's last traded price of A$1.765 and a 17.3% to the 30-day volume weighted average price (VWAP) of A$1.754. The Placement will result in the issue of 17,241,380 New Shares, representing approximately 6.5% of Talga's existing fully paid ordinary shares on issue.
The Placement is being conducted today, Tuesday, 15 December 2020, and Talga's shares will remain in trading halt pending completion of the Placement. The Placement is within Talga's existing placement capacity under ASX Listing Rule 7.1 and accordingly no shareholder approval is required in connection with the Placement. The Placement is being managed and underwritten by Morgan Stanley Australia Securities Limited.
Details of the Share Purchase Plan
Following the completion of the Placement, Talga will offer all eligible shareholders in Australia and New Zealand the opportunity to participate in the non-underwritten SPP to raise up to A$10 million2. Eligible shareholders may apply for up to A$30,000 of New Shares under the SPP. The record date for the SPP is 5:00pm (Perth time) on Monday, 14 December 2020. The SPP offer period is anticipated to be open from Monday, 21 December 2020 to Friday, January 15, 2021, subject to Talga's discretion to amend these dates by making an ASX announcement. Under the SPP, Talga shares will be offered at the same issue price as the Placement of A$1.450.
The Talga Board has determined to cap the SPP at A$10 million. As the SPP is not underwritten, the SPP may raise more or less than this amount. If the SPP raises more than A$10 million, Talga may decide in its absolute discretion to accept applications (in whole or in part) that result in the SPP raising more than A$10 million. If Talga decides to conduct any scale back of applications, for example because the aggregate amount applied for under the SPP exceeds Talga's requirements, the scale back will be applied to the extent and in the manner Talga sees fit, which may include taking into account a number of factors such as the size of an applicant's shareholding at the record date, the extent to which the applicant has sold or purchased shares since the record date, whether the applicant has multiple registered holdings, the date on which the application was made and the total applications received from eligible shareholders.
Further information regarding the SPP (including terms and conditions of the SPP) will be provided to eligible shareholders in the SPP offer booklet, which will be provided following the completion of the Placement. Eligible shareholders wishing to acquire New Shares under the SPP will need to apply in accordance with the instructions in the SPP booklet. Participation in the SPP is optional.
General
New Shares issued under the Placement and SPP will rank equally with existing fully paid Talga shares on issue. Under the ASX listing rules, Talga Directors are not entitled to participate in the Placement, but can participate in the SPP if they are eligible shareholders.
Further details on the Placement and SPP are set out in the investor presentation released by Talga to ASX on Tuesday, 15 December 2020. The investor presentation contains important information including key risks and foreign selling restrictions with respect to the Placement.
Contact:
Mark Thompson
Tel: +61 (0) 8 9481 6667
About Talga
Talga Group Ltd (ASX:TLG) is building a European battery anode and graphene additives supply chain, to offer advanced materials critical to its customers' innovation and the shift towards a more sustainable world. Vertical integration, including ownership of several high-grade Swedish graphite projects, provides security of supply and creates long-lasting value for stakeholders.
TALGA GROUP LTD 
