Corcel PLC shares rose 10% on Friday morning following news the firm has sold a 20% interest in its Mt. Weld Rare Earth Element project to Extraction Srl for A$1mln.

Extraction, a private Italian company, is a shareholder in Corcel with an interest of 9.61% and is controlled by Antoine Karam, who is expected to join the Corcel board following regulatory checks. Riversgold Ltd, which had pre-emption rights over the sale, has waived its rights.

Following the transaction, Corcel will hold an 80% interest in the project, and Extraction will become a party to the joint venture agreement. Use of the proceeds of the sale is being considered by the board of Corcel.

In a statement, James Parsons, Corcel's chairman, commented: "I am delighted to announce this partial de-risking of our Mt Weld asset ahead of drilling results at the project. The company will now focus on its first transaction following its recent pivot to oil and gas."

Around 9.00am, Corcel shares were 10.8% higher at 0.36p.