Turkish gold miner Ariana Resources set to list on the ASX next Monday to continue push into Zimbabwe

A London-listed company run from Perth with mines in Turkey is joining the ASX to woo investors with appetite for an African gold safari.

Ariana Resources is scheduled for a September 15 debut on the Australian bourse after raising more than $10 million. The company operates two gold mines in Turkey and has been profitable since 2016, with its eye now on untapped riches in Zimbabwe.

The funds Ariana has raised to operate on a second stock market are earmarked for the early-stage Dokwe project, which is Zimbabwe’s largest undeveloped gold project.

Ariana’s unique portfolio, London listing and ASX aspirations heavily reflect the journey of its Perth-based boss — Kerim Sener.

“I’m half Turkish, and actually one of the reasons why we took a company into Turkey originally in 2004 because there was a natural advantage there for us — I speak Turkish fluently and was born there,” Mr Sener told The West Australian.

“Turkey had gone through the process of updating its mining law, we knew that that was coming, so we timed our entry into the country quite well.

“Since then Turkey’s gone from producing zero gold to being the largest gold producer in Europe.”

Ariana’s growth ambitions now lie in another country, on another continent, where Mr Sener started his career as a geologist.

“After having grown up and studied in the UK, I then started my career in Zimbabwe in the late 1990s. That was an interesting time for Zimbabwe, because by 2000 because the country unfortunately took itself on a trajectory that basically led it away from the broader global investment community.

“The mining industry still sort of hummed along in the background, but from a global investment perspective, it was essentially off the radar for the best part of two decades.”

That has now changed, according to Mr Sener, who was speaking to The West from the Africa Down Under mining conference in Perth’s CBD.

“Zimbabwe is well and truly open for business now on the mining front — the Zimbabwean contingent of politicians at ADU I think was the biggest among all the countries,” he said.

Mr Sener said the mining investment dynamic between Australia and Africa was a big reason why Ariana, which currently has a market capitalisation of about $75 million, pursued an ASX listing.

“There’s a lot of understanding of mining projects, whether they’re here in Australia or whether they’re in Africa. There’s a huge advantage there for us to be listed on the ASX as we go about developing the Dokwe asset ultimately into production.”

Ariana’s share price has been flat over the past year, while the majority of gold stocks have surged during this period. Mr Sener pinned the weak performance on London markets not “fully appreciating the opportunities” in Turkey and Zimbabwe.

“ASX-listed mining companies tend to achieve a better valuation and that’s down to the investor understanding of opportunities in different jurisdictions.”

“We believe that there’s a greater level of understanding for these sorts of mining projects, particularly for gold, and unfortunately in the London markets that sort of appetite to some degree fall away.

“I think that sort of reflects on our share price at the end of the day.”