International investor interest in the Pilbara gold rush shows no sign of waning with renowned billionaire investor Eric Sprott backing Kairos Minerals to the tune of $5 million.

Kairos (ASX:KAI) has received commitments to raise $7 million — of which $5 million has been subscribed by Mr Sprott through his investment vehicle Sprott Capital Partners in Canada.

Investors were stoked with the news, pushing Kairos shares as much as 27 per cent to a high of 7.1c before they cooled to 6.5c in Wednesday lunchtime trade.

Mr Sprott, who is now a cornerstone investor of Kairos with around 12.4 per cent, is no stranger to the recent Pilbara gold rush.

Sprott Capital Partners assisted Artemis Resources in raising $12 million for its joint venture with Novo Resources in the Pilbara.

Artemis and Novo kick-started Pilbara gold fever earlier this year with the discovery of watermelon-seed shaped gold nuggets at the Purdy’s Reward deposit.

Mr Sprott is also chairman of Canadian mid-tier gold miner Kirkland Lake Gold which earlier this month invested $5 million in De Grey Mining following the discovery of gold nuggets at its Loudens Patch prospect.

Kairos shares have tripled in three months. Source: Investing.com

Prior to this, Kirkland poured $56 million into Novo, taking an 18.2 per cent slice of the Novo pie.

The raising, along with expected proceeds from option conversions, will boost Kairos cash balance to over $10 million – allowing it to aggressively progress its exploration programs.

The priority will be targeting conglomerate-hosted gold potential of its 1158 sq km of tenure in the Pilbara.

Funds will also go towards its Mt York gold-lithium project where drilling is targeting extensions to the existing 258,000-ounce mineral resource.

Kairos will also conduct follow-up drilling at the Roe Hills project, 120km east of Kalgoorlie.

Earlier this year, drilling at Roe Hills returned significant results along strike from the Lake Roe / Bombora discovery being drilled out by Breaker Resources.

“Kairos is in the fortunate position of having both an extensive and high-quality ground position which is highly prospective for conglomerate-hosted gold and an established 258,000oz JORC compliant resource base at a project in Mt York with an extensive mining history,” Kairos Executive Chairman Terry Topping said.

“Our strong position in the Pilbara, plus our highly prospective Roe Hills project adjacent to Breaker Resources’ emerging discovery, gives us the ability to capitalise on some exceptional growth opportunities in the Australian gold sector.”

Following the placement, Kairos will have 731 million shares on issue with a market capitalisation of $40.2 million at the 5.5c placement price.

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