Cobar copper hunter Mount Hope Mining (ASX: MHM) has been inaugurated to the ASX today, successfully raising $5 million in its initial public offering (IPO).
The Central West NSW mining district of Cobar is one of the oldest in NSW, with small-scale operations having kicked off in the 1870s, producing over 3 million tonnes (Mt) of copper metal and more than 2Moz of gold over the years.
CEO Fergus Kiley and his team are pinning hopes on a namesake parcel of tenure in the prolific Cobar mining belt - a region which has seen a flurry of activity of late, with majors changing hands across mining operations, leaving a swathe of greenfields exploration opportunities for copper, gold and more recently, antimony finds.
Notable action includes dual-listed American miner Metals Acquisition (ASX: MAC), which bought Cobar's prolific CSA copper mine for US$1.1 billion last year, giving the region a rejuvenated focus.
The explorer is looking to dig into an underexplored landholding in the south of the mining region where major copper discoveries and promising deposits of gold, silver, copper and critical minerals have been proven up.
Mount Hope is initially focusing on five high-priority targets based on recent geological data and surveying tech results that have never been utilised at the tenure.
Its initiation to the bourse floated shares at 20 cents today and closed down 10% by market close.