Ajax Resources (AQSE:AJAX) - Drilling Historic Argentine Copper Projects

Interview with Ippolito Ingo Cattaneo, CEO of Ajax ResourcesRecording date: 9th January 2026Ajax Resources plc, a London-listed natural resources investment company with a £6 million market capitalisation, has positioned itself as an opportunistic acquirer of undervalued South American mining projects. With £2.5 million in cash and a portfolio spanning Argentina and Brazil, the company is executing a strategy centred on acquiring technically advanced assets at significant discounts to their historical expenditure.CEO and largest shareholder Ippolito Ingo Cattaneo, who owns 18.38% of the company, explained the investment thesis: "The goal is to focus on assets that have a high historical expenditure. We acquire projects that have a latent value which simply hasn't been realised and opportunistically acquire them from companies that may have undergone board changes, strategy changes or are simply not performing."The company's flagship Eureka copper-gold project in Jujuy Province, Argentina, exemplifies this approach. Despite 400 years of artisanal mining history, the project has never been drill-tested with modern methods. Ajax acquired all 12 licenses from Bezant Resources for just £170,000—a fraction of the $8 million paid in 2010. Equipment is currently being mobilised for a 1,500-meter initial drilling program, with a maiden JORC-compliant resource estimate targeted for mid-2026.The recent acquisition of the Pereira Velho gold project from Appian Capital Advisor provides strategic validation. Appian, a major private equity group specialising in mining investments, accepted predominantly equity consideration and will become a significant shareholder—an unusual arrangement that endorses Ajax's capabilities. The project sits 20 kilometers from the Serrote mine, which Appian sold in May 2025 for $420 million after acquiring it for $30 million in 2018.Ajax's board-driven structure, with directors predominantly compensated in equity rather than cash, aligns management incentives with shareholder value creation. The company has raised approximately £3.6 million across three funding rounds since 2022, with the board consistently contributing significant capital. Cattaneo's ambitious target is clear: transform Ajax from its current £6 million valuation to a £100 million market capitalisation through disciplined execution and near-term production, leveraging Argentina's political transformation under President Milei and favorable copper market fundamentals.Sign up for Crux Investor: https://cruxinvestor.com