The big news this weekend is the release of a historic milestone for Malawi’s mining sector as the government, through the Ministry of Mining and the Ministry of Finance, has signed Mining Development Agreements (MDA) with Mkango Resources (AIM/TSX-V: MKA) for the initiation of Rare Earth mining at Songwe Hill in Phalombe.
Regarding the Songwe Project, it is expected to create over 1,200 jobs during the two-year construction period and 500 jobs annually during its 18-year mine life, along with numerous indirect jobs. The anticipated annual revenue from this project is $120.6 million in royalties, dividends, and other taxes.
Alexander Lemon, Director of Mkango/Lancaster Exploration, expressed his gratitude, calling this development a game-changer for Malawi.
Rome Resources Plc (AIM: RMR) announced the completion of its acquisition of Rome Resources Ltd (“Rome Resources”) (“Completion”) and the admission of its enlarged share capital to trading on AIM effective from 8.00 a.m. on 26 July 2024 (“Admission”) under the Company’s new name “Rome Resources Plc”, which has now become effective, and the TIDM code “RMR”.
Allenby Capital Limited (“Allenby Capital”) is acting as Nominated Adviser and Joint Broker to the Company alongside Oak Securities (a trading name of Merlin Partners LLP) who are acting as Joint Broker to the Company.
Tharisa PLC (LSE: THS, JSE: THA, OTC: TIHRF) has entered into a long-term Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) to secure renewable energy for its Tharisa Mine in the Bushveld Complex, South Africa. The 15-year agreement with Etana will supply 44% of the mine’s electricity from wind and solar farms in the Western Cape and Northern Cape, utilizing existing grid infrastructure.
Anglo American PLC (LSE: AAL) reported a significant loss after a US$1.6 billion write-down of its Woodsmith fertilizer project in Yorkshire. The company had previously announced plans to slow the development of the polyhalite mine and reassess its investment strategy following an unsuccessful bid from BHP.
Phoenix Copper Ltd (AIM: PXC, OTCQX: PXCLF) has extended its option on the Redcastle Cobalt Property, with the main exploration expenditure commitments now due in 2026 and 2028, respectively.
As part of this extension, Electra is required to invest US$1.5 million in exploration or other works by May 21, 2026, and an additional US$1.5 million by May 21, 2028.
First Class Metals (LON: FCM) has upgraded the Dead Otter Trend within its North Hemlo property in Ontario, Canada, to a high-priority target following a detailed technical review that identified a discontinuous 3.7-kilometer-long gold trend.
CEO Mark Sale emphasized the decision to proceed with diamond drilling to confirm and extend the identified gold trend, transitioning from initial stripping and sampling efforts. The upcoming field program, expected to take about four weeks, will focus on additional stripping, channel sampling, and planning drill locations, with results anticipated for review by October.
Bradda Head Lithium Ltd (AIM: BHL, OTC: BHLIF, TSX-V: BHLI) celebrated its aggressive exploration program following a recent US$3 million milestone payment for achieving a 2.5 million tonne resource at its Basin project in Arizona.
Chairman Ian Stalker stated, “Bradda Head maintained the company’s aggressive exploration philosophy by drilling 2,353 meters at the Basin project.”
Sovereign Metals Ltd (ASX: SVM, OTC: SVMLF, AIM: SVML) has successfully completed its dry mining trial at the Kasiya Rutile-Graphite Project in Malawi as part of its ongoing Pilot Mining and Land Rehabilitation Program.
This program utilizes innovative mining techniques and sustainable practices to optimize resource extraction while accelerating land rehabilitation efforts.
Metals One (AIM: MET1), which is advancing strategic minerals projects in Finland and Norway, announced that the Company’s Råna Project (nickel, copper, cobalt) partner and operator, Kingsrose Mining Limited (ASX: KRM) has entered into a service agreement with Arctic Drilling AS, for the commencement of helicopter supported core drilling at the Rånbogen prospect on the Råna Project in August 2024
Ecora Resources PLC (LSE: ECOR, TSX: ECOR, OTCQX: ECRAF) exceeded expectations in its second-quarter performance, primarily due to a robust contribution from its Kestrel royalty in Australia.
Second-quarter income surged 63% to US$31.8 million, driven by higher-than-anticipated volumes from the Kestrel area, while the remainder of the portfolio met performance expectations.
Tungsten West PLC (AIM: TUN, OTC: TNGWF) has raised £2.975 million through an addition (Tranche E) to its existing 2023 Convertible Loan Notes (CLNs) and Tranche D Convertible Loan Notes.
Tranche E will be issued under substantially the same terms as Tranches A, B, C, and D of the CLNs, with a maturity date of January 31, 2025.
Mkango Resources Ltd. (AIM/TSX-V: MKA) provide an update on the commissioning of the short-loop rare earth magnet recycling and manufacturing plant at Tyseley Energy Park in Birmingham, UK. HyProMag limited (“HyProMag”) is the main industrial partner for the project and the exclusive HPMS licencee. HyProMag is 100% owned by Maginito Limited (“Maginito”), which is 79.4% owned by Mkango and 20.6% owned by CoTec Holdings (“CoTec”).
Start-up of commercial operations is expected in Q1 2025, subject to the remaining equipment being delivered and infrastructure being installed by the contractors on schedule, as well as completion of the permitting process. The majority of equipment will initially be owned by the University of Birmingham and utilised by HyProMag as the main industrial partner for the project and exclusive HPMS licencee. HyProMag has ordered additional equipment to debottleneck certain parts of the process and is evaluating further ways to optimise and debottleneck the flow sheet
European Green Transition PLC (AIM: EGT) CEO Aiden Lavelle and CFO Jack Kelly take Share Talk Zak Mir through the latest developments at the Limni copper project in Cyprus.
Here is the list of questions:
- You announced an option for a Copper Tailings Recycling project in Cyprus back in April and I see you had results out today on this; Aiden, can you please tell us more
- Jack, it was mentioned that there is potential for a solar energy project there also – tell me more about that.
- Aiden, the Olserum Rare Earth Project in Sweden, which is 100% owned by the company, has announced a raft of positive results over the last few months. How are things progressing there?
- What’s next up for the Olserum Rare Earths project? It was mentioned that drilling is expected to start in H2?
- Jack, I found the recently announced Altan Peatland Carbon Credit Project very interesting– how do you see that working?
- How do you see the Carbon Credit Project fitting in with EGT’s strategy of ‘developing a portfolio of green economy assets’?
Bluebird Merchant (LON: BMV) announced that Executive Director Aidan Bishop provided a live presentation via Investor Meet on Thursday 26 Jul 2024 at 09:00 BST relating to the Company’s recently announced Farm-out of its Kochang Gold and Silver Mine (‘Kochang’) in South Korea.
The Company recently announced a US$2 million investment with a local partner, providing Bluebird with a free carry to bring the historic Kochang mine back into production and organically grow the production profile. Bluebird now has c.US$9 million committed to develop its three high-grade gold mines in South Korea and the Philippines, which have an estimated cumulative 1.8m oz Au, against a current market cap of £10m.
Blencowe Resources PLC (LSE: BRES) has raised approximately £1.9 million at 5p per share through a combination of a fundraising campaign and suppliers accepting payment in shares.
Blencowe stated that the net proceeds will be utilized for the Definitive Feasibility Study (DFS) for the Orom-Cross graphite project in Uganda, alongside grant funding from the US Government’s Development Finance Corporation (DFC).
Chaarat Gold Holdings Ltd (AIM: CGH) experienced a further 10% drop in its share price, announcing a current cash balance of US$400,000, which will sustain operations until at least August 16, 2024, when it is expected to delist from AIM.
Asset Match has been appointed to facilitate secondary trading of its shares, pending shareholder approval of its delisting from AIM.
Kavango Resources (LON: KAV), the Southern Africa-focused metals exploration company, announced the successful completion of drilling the first high-priority target at the Karakubis Copper Project in Botswana’s Kalahari Copper Belt.
Field analysis of drill cores taken from this target confirms the presence of a copper-silver mineralising system at Karakubis, as well as further indicators of structural trap sites. KAV said it started drilling at Karakubis to confirm the presence of a copper-silver mineralising system. Results from its first target have surpassed its expectations. This validates the geological model and confirms the potential to discover a large-scale copper/silver deposit.
