While Perth-based Aspire said it welcomed the continued interest from Noble, it has also received confirmation from the Mongolian vendors of its Ovoot coking coal project that they do not intend to sell additional shares at this time.

The shares sold account for 10% of the vendors’ holding, Aspire said.

Aspire shares closed up 12c or 16% yesterday to 87c, with Noble’s transaction conservatively costing more than $10 million.

Aspire has only drilled about 10% of its wholly owned Ovoot project in the Ovoot Basin of northern Mongolia, about 60 kilometres from the Russian border.

Recent coal quality analysis further confirmed that the project hosts coking coal, with no thermal coal fraction found out of 126 samples so far.

A rig is undertaking infill drilling to establish a “direct ship ore” operating open pit.

Another rig will drill possible resource extension targets by the end of this month.

The Ovoot project hosts 330.7 million tonnes of resources, including 93.3Mt in the measured category.