Ventnor Resources Ltd (ASX:VRX) has entered into an option agreement which could lead to the sale of its Biranup project in the northern part of the prospective Fraser Range in WA.

An exclusive 3-month option agreement has been secured with Metalicity Ltd (ASX:MCT) to acquire a 40% interest.

READ: Metalicity secures options within preferred terrain for its nickel-copper strategy

Metalicity will pay Ventnor a $20,000 option fee to secure the three-month option and, if exercised, the purchase price for a 40% interest in the project is $500,000 payable in cash or MCT shares.

Ventnor’s shares were up 13% to an intra-day high of 17.5 cents, approaching the 12-month high of 18 cents reached recently.

READ: Ventnor Resources leads ASX gainers with shares up nearly 30% amid ongoing silica sands strategy

If the agreement proceeds, the parties will enter into a farm-in arrangement, whereby Metalicity may earn a further 20% by spending $1 million and another 20% by spending an additional $1 million.

Following this, the parties would form a joint venture to fund the project on a pro-rata basis or the company’s interest to dilute to a net smelter royalty.

READ: Ventnor Resources reveals substantial maiden silica resource at Arrowsmith North

Biranup is prospective for copper-nickel and covers 393 square kilometres in the Biranup zone to the north of the Fraser Range, within 20 kilometres of the Tropicana gold deposit.

It was previously the subject of primarily gold exploration with numerous magmatic nickel-copper and VMS-type copper targets identified which remain untested with modern systematic exploration.

This arrangement forms part of Ventnor’s new strategy, which focuses on silica sands projects.