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20 March
CuFe Limited
Investor Insight
CuFe Limited’s multi-commodity exposure offers a compelling diversified investment opportunity into high-growth markets.
Overview
CuFe Limited (ASX:CUF) is a multi-commodity exploration and development company with interest in a number of projects situated throughout mature mining jurisdictions in Western Australia and the Northern Territory. The company's value proposition is predicated on its high-grade mature copper/gold project at Tennant Creek as well as its exposure to iron ore, gold and niobium. Its exploration portfolio includes mature copper targets at Tennant Creek and greenfield exploration ground near WA1's recent niobium discovery.
CuFe’s Tennant Creek project hosts a mineral resource estimate of 10.35 million tons (Mt) at 1.5 percent copper and 0.9 grams per ton (g/t) gold for 159 kt copper and 302 koz gold. CuFe currently owns a 55 percent interest in over 240 kilometres of the highly-prospective tenure in the Northern Territory.
CuFe's near-term plan for the mine involves a staged cutback of the Orlando open pit to gain access to an ore supply for fast start options.
CuFe is also evaluating the Yarram project, as its proximity to the Darwin port gives it the potential for low OPEX.
CuFe is led by a highly experienced management team adept at identifying opportunities, making discoveries, evaluating and developing projects and maintaining operations. The team is led by executive director Mark Hancock, who has 25 years experience in resource projects across a variety of commodities in senior finance, commercial and marketing roles.
Company Highlights
- CuFe Limited is an ASX-listed , copper, gold, iron ore and niobium exploration and development company with a multi-commodity portfolio of assets.
- The company's assets are situated in mature mining regions in Western Australia and the Northern Territory, with access to extensive pre-existing infrastructure.
- CuFe's projects are highly prospective for copper (Tennant Creek, Bryah Basin), iron ore (Yarram / Camp Creek / Robertson Range), gold (North Dam, Tambourah, Nullagine) and niobium (West Arunta).
- Two of these projects have existing JORC resources, being Tennant Creek (55 percent CuFe owned) and Yarram (50 percent CuFe owned).
- The company is led by a proven and experienced in-house team with expertise in identification, discovery, evaluation, deployment and operations.
Key Projects
Copper
Tennant Creek
CuFe’s Tennant Creek project is located in the highly prospective Gecko-Goanna copper-gold corridor of the Northern Territory. A mature project comprising three high-grade copper and gold mineral resources, it contains a combined JORC 2012 mineral resource of 10.35 MT at 1.53 percent copper and 0.9 g/t gold for 159 kt copper and 302 koz gold. Highly-prospective for further resource growth from resource extensions and new discoveries, Tennant Creek is also located near grid power, a gas pipeline, the Stuart highway and the rail line to Darwin.
The area where Tennant Creek is hosted is a re-emerging mineral field with recent neighbouring exploration success from companies such as Emmerson Resources (ASX:ERM) and Tennant Minerals (ASX:TMS). Near-mine targets include the potential to extend resources and open enrichment within the Orlando and Gecko structural corridors. Emmerson Resources, CuFe and Tennant Minerals formed a strategic alliance to collaborate on copper, gold and critical metals development opportunities in the Tennant Creek Region of the Northern Territory. This alliance aims to assess the development options including the viability of a single multi-user processing facility in the high- grade region.
The current focus for Tennant Creek is to identify and drill high-potential exploration targets with a view to growing the resource base while considering a staged cutback of the existing Orlando open pit to gain access to an ore supply for a fast start option.
Bryah Basin JV projects
Through wholly owned subsidiary Jackson Minerals, CuFe has a 20 percent interest in roughly 800 square kilometres of highly-prospective tenements proximal to the former Sandfire Resources' (ASX:SFR) Doolgunna project and Degrussa copper gold mine, as well as several other prominent gold and copper prospects. Collectively known as the Bryah Basin JV projects, the tenements are currently subject to joint ventures and farm-ins with several companies. The most prominent of these is the Morck Well project, which is under an exploration licence with Auris Minerals (ASX:AUR) alongside the Forrest project.
The Morck Well project tenements cover an area of 600 square kilometres in the highly-prospective region, which has also been recognized to have high iron ore potential and this now comprises the company’s Robertson Range iron ore project
Gold
North Dam
The North Dam project is roughly 50 kilometres south-southeast of the township of Coolgardie and in close proximity to the Wattle Dam, Spargos Reward and Lady Allison gold deposits
To date, work on the project has focused on lithium and rare earth potential but the focus of future exploration will be gold.
Tambourah
The 100 percent owned Tambourah Tenure is a prospective exploration with known gold occurrences. Located roughly 90 kilometres south of the Pilgangoora and Wodgina lithium complexes, and 175 kilometres south of Port Hedland, the project was historically explored for gold and contains known gold occurrences within alluvial material and reef systems. Current work on the project to date has involved geological mapping and rock chip sampling.
Niobium
West Arunta
The 100 percent owned West Arunta project consists of four tenements located in the highly-prospective region of the same name. The tenure is known to be prospective for carbonatite-hosted niobium and rare earth element mineralization and has IOCG potential. Spanning roughly 250 square kilometres, it is located approximately 70 kilometres north of several prominent recent discoveries by WA1 and ENC.
CuFe has recently completed native title arrangements to commence work in the ground and this is expected to occur during the 2025 field work season for the region (April to November). In the meantime Southern Geoscience Consulting has undertaken a geophysical review of publicly available airborne magnetic data for the tenements including re-processing of said data and 3D unconstrained inversion modeling. Analysis of the total magnetic imagery revealed three anomalous areas across the package, resulting in nine target anomalies for further investigation and exploration.
Iron
Yarram
The Yarram iron ore project is a mature development opportunity with the potential for low-cost production. CuFe currently holds a 50 percent interest in the project, which includes operatorship. Partially located on an existing mining lease on freehold land, Yarram has a high-grade DSO resource of 5.6 MT at +60 percent iron as well as a low-grade component of 7.1 Mt with the potential for beneficiation.
Situated 110 kilometres from Darwin Port and adjacent to underutilised mining infrastructure, Yarram also features favourable ore body geometry, with existing infrastructure and services contributing to its low capex and opex.
An initial diamond drilling program provided HG core from two deposits within the project.
Physical and thermal metallurgical testing confirms the generation of a lump product with roughly 41 percent yield, elevated gangue levels in the very fine fractions and acceptable thermal and materials handling properties, making it suitable as a blast furnace lump burden feed.
CuFe has also undertaken geotechnical testwork on the diamond drill core to provide parameters for pit optimizations and designs. Final pit shells and a high-level mine schedule have been developed for use in regulatory approvals.
The company has recently been granted a further tenement south of Yarram, known as Camp Creek which is prospective for iron ore and field work is planned for the current year.
Management Team
Tony Sage - Executive Chairman
Tony Sage is an entrepreneur with over 36 years of experience in corporate advisory services, funds management and capital raising, predominantly within the resource sector. He is based in Western Australia and has continued to be involved in managing and financing listed mining and exploration companies with a diverse commodity base.
Sage has developed global operational experience within Europe, North and South America, Africa, Oceania, Asia and the Middle East. He is currently non-executive chairman of ASX-listed Cyclone Metals Limited (ASX:CLE) and Executive Chairman of European Lithium (ASX:EUR) and NASDAQ listed Critical Metals Corp (NAS:CRML).
Mark Hancock - Executive Director
Mark Hancock has over 30 years’ experience in key financial, commercial and marketing roles across a variety of industries with a strong focus on natural resources. During his 13 years at Atlas Iron Ltd, Hancock served in numerous roles including CCO, CFO, executive director and company secretary. He has also served as a director on a number of ASX listed entities and is currently a director of Centaurus Metals Ltd and Strandline Resources Ltd.
Hancock holds a Bachelor of Business (B.Bus) degree, is a Chartered Accountant (CA) and is a Fellow of the Financial Services Institute of Australia (F FIN).
David Palmer - Non-executive Director
David Palmer is a geologist and company director with more than 38 years’ experience in the global exploration industry, the majority of his career has been with Rio Tinto Exploration focused on copper/gold, base metals, industrial minerals, uranium, iron ore, diamonds throughout Australia and the Asia/Pacific.
Amongst other senior positions, Palmer led the business development, mineral title and indigenous engagement functions and was part of the management team that discovered the world-class Winu Cu-Au deposit. He holds a Bachelor of Science (First Class Honours) from the University of Newcastle.
Scott Meacock - Non-executive Director
Scott Meacock has a wealth of experience as external counsel acting in, and advising on, complex corporate and commercial law transactions and disputes for clients in a wide range of industry sectors including natural resources and financial services.
Meacock currently serves as the chief executive officer and general counsel of the Gold Valley Group. He holds a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) degree and a Bachelor of Commerce (BComm) degree from the University of Western Australia.
Matthew Ramsden - GM Development
Matthew Ramsden is an experienced geologist and project developer commencing his career in Tasmania before stints in the Pilbara with Rio Tinto and Atlas Iron, where he played a key role in the development and ramp-up of six iron ore mines.
He joined CuFe in 2021 to commence the JWD iron ore mine and now has oversight over the company’s exploration and development projects.
Ramsden is a member of the Australasian Institute of Geoscientists.
Siobhán Sweeney - Geology Manager
Siobhán Sweeney brings over 13 years’ geology experience to the CuFe team, from greenfields exploration to resource development with a strong focus on target generation and development of iron ore projects. During her eight years at Atlas Iron, Sweeney was instrumental in developing critical iron ore projects in the Pilbara such as Miralga Creek and Corunna Downs. Her background in managing complex and challenging exploration programs has been key to delivering successful projects.
Since joining CuFe in July 2021, Sweeney has been tasked with developing and implementing mine geology processes during the start-up phase of the JWD mine. Most recently she has delivered a successful exploration drill campaign to further define the Yarram iron ore deposit.
Sweeney is a member of the Australian Institute of Geoscientists and holds a Bachelor of Science degree (hons) in geology from the National University of Ireland Galway.
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Multi-commodity exploration and development assets in Western Australia and Northern Territory with a focus on copper, gold, iron ore and niobium.
11 June
Change of Director's Interest Notice (T Sage)
30 January
Orlando Copper / Gold Mineral Resource Doubles
19 June
Extensions and New Zones of High Grade Tin at Bygoo North
Caspin Resources Limited (Caspin or the Company) (ASX: CPN) is pleased to present drill results from a second phase of RC drilling, following the Company’s very successful maiden drilling campaign at its 100% owned Bygoo Tin Project in New South Wales. The Company completed a further 4 holes for 558m, complementing the original 12 holes from the maiden program.
HIGHLIGHTS
- Scale of Bygoo Tin Project continues to grow with the discovery of new zones of tin mineralisation during the Company’s second RC drilling campaign
- Very broad zone of tin mineralisation at the Stewart’s Lode extended along strike with:
- 118m @ 0.32% Sn from 44m in BRC015 (unconstrained internal dilution); including
- 29m @ 0.53% Sn from 44m, including 8m @ 1.17% Sn from 45m
- 12m @ 0.45% Sn from 116m; and
- 28m @ 0.52% Sn from 146m
- Caspin’s maiden drilling at the Smith’s Lode returns further high-grade tin with:
- 16m @ 0.68% Sn from 49m (BRC013); including
- 5m @ 1.73% Sn & 1.45% Cu from 53m;
- Drilling identifies a further new zone of mineralisation named ‘Radius’, between Dumbrell’s and Smith’s, with:
- 16m @ 0.48% Sn from 124m (BRC016); including
- 2m @ 2.05% Sn & 0.37% Cu from 128m
- Wide zones and high-grade tin mineralisation now drilled over +1,000m of granite contact zone with large gaps in drilling and open along strike.
- High resolution aerial magnetic survey covering ~800km2 to commence shortly
Caspin’s Managing Director, Mr Greg Miles, commented “These results are an exciting epilogue to our maiden drilling program at the Bygoo Project. We are delighted with intersecting 16m @ 0.68% Sn in our first drill hole at Smith’s, including a high-grade zone of 5m @ 1.73% Sn, coupled with 1.45% Cu, the highest-grade copper result by Caspin to date. Another 100m-plus intersection of tin mineralisation at Stewart’s also confirms continuity of ‘bulk’ mineralisation, at very shallow depths. And finally, a new zone of tin mineralisation at ‘Radius’ result demonstrates verifies Caspin’s geological model and growing understanding of key controls to tin mineralisation.
“Most importantly, we now recognise the tin mineralisation potential over greater than 1,000m of shallow granite contact strike at Bygoo North. Drilling is quickly demonstrating that Bygoo North has excellent potential to grow into a tin project with substantial scale. Drilling will continue to target new zones of tin mineralisation and extensions of known areas of shallow tin mineralisation along strike.”
Since acquiring the project, the Company has invested considerable time to understand the geology and controls on mineralisation at Bygoo North. Using the previous exploration data as a base and steadily importing other legacy data such as drilling from the 1970s, the Company is developing a new geological model for the prospect. The Ardlethan Granite contact can now be traced over 1,000m at the prospect, with greisen-style mineralisation developed variably along its entirety (Figure 1).
Figure 1. Location plan of mineralisation and relationship to granite contact at Bygoo North, with significant intercepts. The prospective granite horizon represents the potential for greisen mineralisation on the granite contact to approximately 100m below surface.
These latest results provide further evidence that mineralisation is constrained only by drilling. There are obvious additional drill targets for further exploration. A planned high-resolution aerial magnetic survey, commencing in the following weeks, will further assist refinement of the geological model and hence the targeting process, particularly the several kilometres of untested granite contact to the north and south.
Click here for the full ASX Release
This article includes content from Caspin Resources, licensed for the purpose of publishing on Investing News Australia. This article does not constitute financial product advice. It is your responsibility to perform proper due diligence before acting upon any information provided here. Please refer to our full disclaimer here.
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18 June
Nine Mile Metals Maintains Nine Mile Brook Project Option with Third Anniversary Payment
NINE MILE METALS LTD (CSE: NINE) (OTCQB: VMSXF) (FSE: KQ9) (the "Company" or "Nine Mile") announces that it has proceeded with its third anniversary payment under its option to Purchase the remaining 50% of the Nine Mile Brook Project, dated November 28th, 2021, (the "Option Agreement") with Fiddlehead Mining Corp. ("Fiddlehead"). On January 17th, 2025, the Company received an extension from Fiddlehead until March 28th, 2025. To maintain the Option, the Company was required to pay $50,000 cash payment and complete $150,000 work in expenditures by the anniversary date. The company has successfully negotiated the cash payment and issued 3,333,333 common shares as payment, at a deemed price of $0.015. In addition, Fiddlehead has agreed to add the annual $150,000 minimum work expenditure commitment to the 4th year requirements.
This successfully allows Nine Mile Metals to keep the Option Agreement in Good Standing and pursue its priority exploration of the Flagship Nine Mile Brook VMS Project and its goal to discover additional High Grade VMS Len's.
The Nine Mile Brook Project consists of 50.02 square kms over 229 mining claims, 10kms west of the World-Famous Brunswick #12 Mine. Below is a summary of the 2022 Drill Program Certified Assay Results, previously announced, displaying the exceptional grades of the Nine Mile Brook Lens. (see Table 1 below)
Table 1: Nine Mile Brook VMS Lens Drill Program Certified Assay Results
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Drill Certified Assays:
(Sample #683512) 18.30 % Cu, 0.40 % Pb, 0.17 % Zn, 119 g/t Ag, 0.84 g/t Au)
(Sample #683542) 15.42% Cu, 2.45% Pb, 2.03% Zn, 173 g/t Ag, 1.05 g/t Au)
(Sample #683534) 16.85% Cu, 0.98% Pb, 0.57% Zn, 125 g/t Ag, 1.13 g/t Au)
"The team is looking forward to returning to Nine Mile Brook in Fall of 2025. With abundant geophysical targets already defined, drill hole selection involves the integration of our extensive datasets including the UAV magnetics, I.P. and Borehole electromagnetics (BHEM) and previous drill hole data, into a 3D model to best leverage the information. The Bathurst Mining Camp is structurally complex and having less than 1% outcrop, the team is committed to following the science and in particular, the advanced geophysics to guide us to success," stated Gary Lohman, VPX & Director.
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About Nine Mile Metals Ltd.:
Nine Mile Metals Ltd. is a Canadian public mineral exploration company focused on Critical Minerals Exploration (CME) VMS (Cu, Pb, Zn, Ag and Au) exploration in the world-famous Bathurst Mining Camp, New Brunswick, Canada. The Company's primary business objective is to explore its four VMS Projects: Nine Mile Brook VMS; California Lake VMS; Canoe Landing Lake (East-West) VMS and the Wedge VMS Projects. The Company is focused on Critical Minerals Exploration (CME), positioning for the boom in EV and green technologies requiring Copper, Silver, Lead and Zinc with a hedge with Gold.
ON BEHALF OF NINE MILE METALS LTD.
"Patrick J. Cruickshank, MBA"
Chief Executive Officer and Director
info@ninemilemetals.com
"Jonathan Holmes"
Director
jonathan@ninemilemetals.com
The disclosure of technical information in this news release has been prepared in accordance with Canadian regulatory requirements as set out in National Instrument 43-101 — Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ("NI 43-101") and reviewed and approved by Gary Lohman, B.Sc., P. Geo., VP Exploration and Director who acts as the Company's Qualified Person and is not independent of the Company.
Forward-Looking Information:
This press release may include forward-looking information within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation, concerning the business of Nine Mile. Forward-looking information is based on certain key expectations and assumptions made by the management of Nine Mile. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by the use of words such as "will," "may," "would," "expect," "intend," "plan," "seek, "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "predict," "potential," "continue," "likely," "could" and variations of these terms and similar expressions, or the negative of these terms or similar expressions. Although Nine Mile believes that the expectations and assumptions on which such forward-looking information is based are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on the forward-looking information because Nine Mile can give no assurance that they will prove to be correct.
The Canadian Securities Exchange (CSE) has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or the accuracy of the contents of this release.
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17 June
Two Year Magnetite DSO Offtake Non Binding MoU Signed, Advancing Strategy for Near-Term Production and Early Cashflow
Vanadium Resources Limited (ASX: VR8; DAX: TR3) (the “Company”) is pleased to announce that its subsidiary, Vanadium Resources (Pty) Limited (“VanRes”) has signed an MoU with China Precious Asia Limited (“CPAL”) in relation to a magnetite ore supply agreement from its world-class Steelpoortdrift Vanadium Project (the “Steelpoortdrift” or the “Project”) in South Africa.
HIGHLIGHTS
- A Non Binding agreement has been reached between China Precious Asia Limited (“CPAL”) and VR8’s subsidiary, Vanadium Resources (Pty) Limited (“VanRes”) for the supply of vanadium-rich magnetite Direct Shipping Ore (“DSO”) from VR8’s world- class Steelpoortdrift Vanadium Project (“Steelpoortdrift”).
- VR8 is advancing this opportunity to unlock early revenues and operating cashflows in support of its staged development and funding strategy for Steelpoortdrift.
- The initiative has been made possible due to the suite of valuable minerals within the Steelpoortdrift orebody and VanRes holding a fully permitted Mining Right over the Steelpoortdrift 365KT farm.
- Under the terms of the Memorandum of Understanding (“MoU”), VanRes would supply CPAL with an average of 100,000 metric tons of magnetite ore per month.
- The arrangement positions VR8 to become a near-term producer by monetising its substantial JORC resource base (+180 years), while retaining full flexibility to scale into full development as vanadium market conditions improve.
- Founded in 2012, CPAL is a metals and minerals trader and processor of magnetite- bearing ore, targeting Asian steel markets. CPAL’s focus on vanadium-rich magnetite ore aligns with China’s broader push to secure primary sources of vanadium.
- As part of its ongoing strategic equity and offtake process, VR8 also continues to assess additional near-term, value-accretive opportunities, such as profit share agreements with existing operations, that complement the development of Steelpoortdrift and are not mutually exclusive to DSO operations.
Commenting on the MoU with CPAL, Mr. Jurie Wessels, Executive Chairman of VR8 said:
“We are very pleased to have signed this MoU with a quality partner like CPAL for the supply of magnetite ore. Through our ongoing strategic equity and offtake process, it became increasingly apparent that there is a compelling opportunity to potentially transition the Company toward near-term production, even at this low point in the vanadium market cycle. This has been made possible by our advanced permitting status and the suite of valuable minerals within Steelpoortdrift’s ore, which contains not only vanadium credits but also iron-rich magnetite.
Based on the Company’s internal assessments and the volumes proposed under the MoU, we anticipate that a DSO operation at Steelpoortdrift has the potential to generate material positive operating cashflows for VR8 and its shareholders. While the MoU is non-binding, the level of engagement and interest from CPAL gives me confidence that a binding and value-accretive commercial agreement can be reached.
We believe focusing on the generation of early cashflow is the ideal response to the current realities of both the Vanadium and wider commodity markets. Our strategy enables us to unlock near-term value, minimise shareholder dilution and allow time for a clearer pathway to full-scale development to emerge. Our goal is to maximise shareholder exposure to our world-class resource and the underlying long-term growth of the Vanadium market.
I look forward to keeping shareholders updated as we look to transition the MoU with CPAL into a commercial agreement.”
Click here for the full ASX Release
This article includes content from Vanadium Resources Limited, licensed for the purpose of publishing on Investing News Australia. This article does not constitute financial product advice. It is your responsibility to perform proper due diligence before acting upon any information provided here. Please refer to our full disclaimer here.
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17 June
Lake Hope HPA Pre-Feasibility Study and Maiden Ore Reserve
Impact Minerals Limited (ASX:IPT) is pleased to announce the positive results of a Preliminary Feasibility Study (PFS) for the Company’s Lake Hope High Purity Alumina (HPA) Project, located 500 km southeast of Perth in the Tier 1 mining jurisdiction of Western Australia. The PFS results align with those of the Scoping Study on the project released to the ASX on November 9th 2023.
- Very strong economic metrics and low-cost production: NPV10 A$1.165 billion (with no by-product revenue)
- Capex A$259 million
Opex US$5,860 per tonne excluding by-product credit - Potential Opex of <US$4,500 with by-product credit
- Maiden Probable and Proved Ore Reserve of: 1.7 Mt at 26% Al2O3 for 450,000 tonnes of contained Al2O3.
- Election to proceed to an 80% interest in Playa One Pty Ltd providing Impact with 80% ownership in the Lake Hope resource and intellectual property.
- Definitive Feasibility Study to commence with construction of pilot plant and investigation into the integration of Lake Hope with the HiPurA process.
The PFS highlights the project's exceptionally strong economics and outlines a pathway for Lake Hope to become a global supplier of low-cost, low-carbon HPA, benefiting both the local Ngadju Aboriginal Native title holders and the broader community. The robust economics stem from the unique characteristics of the Lake Hope deposit, which facilitate cost-effective mining and processing.
The PFS confirms that, to the best of Impact's knowledge based on published data, the Lake Hope project could be among the lowest-cost producers of HPA globally, potentially by a significant margin of at least 30%.
Given these strong fundamentals, Impact will issue 120 million shares, escrowed for 12 months, to exercise its option to acquire an 80% interest in Playa One Pty Ltd, which owns the Lake Hope assets and intellectual property, including two patents for metallurgical processes (ASX Release March 21st 2023).
Work will now commence on a Definitive Feasibility Study (DFS), which will include the construction of a pilot plant to produce HPA samples at scale for discussions on offtake agreements. The pilot plant project, currently underway, will be part-funded by the recent federal government grant awarded to Impact Minerals in collaboration with CPC Engineering and Edith Cowan University (ASX Release October 22nd 2024).
In addition, as part of these studies, Impact will focus on the potential integration of the Lake Hope ore and its associated metallurgical processes with the assets and intellectual property related to the HiPurA process, which were recently acquired through Impact’s 50% share in Alluminous Pty Ltd (ASX Release April 23rd 2025).
As the acquisition occurred near the end of the PFS, the study only pertains to Lake Hope as a stand-alone project and does not consider integration with HiPurA. Impact believes the HiPurA acquisition will accelerate the Company’s entry into the HPA market by several years, potentially enhancing the economics of the combined projects.
Lake Hope PFS Summary
Impact Minerals’ Managing Director, Dr Mike Jones, said, “The Lake Hope PFS clearly demonstrates that Impact Minerals is now on the cusp of delivering a significant, low-cost and highly scalable HPA project. In just over two short years since acquiring the rights to the project, we have proven that Lake Hope’s unique natural feedstock, combined with a straight-forward flowsheet, offers one of the most capital-efficient and environmentally responsible pathways to high-purity alumina production globally. The Project’s strong margins, minimal carbon footprint, and ability to deliver 4N product without critical reagents or complex processing provides us with a clear competitive advantage as the HPA market enters a phase of rapid growth.”
“Importantly, the PFS positions Lake Hope to potentially be the upstream foundation of our vertically integrated HPA business. Through our recent acquisition of a 50% interest in Alluminous Pty Ltd and the HiPurA® downstream processing technology we are now accelerating plans to seamlessly integrate Lake Hope feedstock with HiPurA’s potentially modular HPA production capacity. This unique model offers Impact the flexibility to scale production in line with market demand and customer qualification, while minimising capital intensity and de-risking the path to early revenues.”
“With the PFS now complete, our next steps are clear: we will advance the detailed engineering required to bring Lake Hope into production, which will revolve around our exciting federal government co-funded membrane research project now underway in conjunction with Edith Cowan University and CPC Engineering. We believe very significant improvements to our flow sheet will emerge from that work. We will also progress approvals and initiate off-take discussions. At the same time, we will help fund and rapidly develop the HiPurA® modular production pathway to establish near-term capacity and position Impact as a differentiated, vertically integrated supplier of high-purity alumina to the global market. The opportunities in front of us are significant and today marks a major milestone in what is shaping up to be an exciting future for Impact Minerals and our shareholders.”
Click here for the full ASX Release
This article includes content from Impact Minerals, licensed for the purpose of publishing on Investing News Australia. This article does not constitute financial product advice. It is your responsibility to perform proper due diligence before acting upon any information provided here. Please refer to our full disclaimer here.
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16 June
Building a Significant Resource in Queensland’s Coal Heartland
Yari Minerals Limited (ASX:YAR) is pleased to present the Shareholder Investor Presentation for June 2025.
Click here for the full ASX Release
This article includes content from Yari Minerals Limited, licensed for the purpose of publishing on Investing News Australia. This article does not constitute financial product advice. It is your responsibility to perform proper due diligence before acting upon any information provided here. Please refer to our full disclaimer here.
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16 June
MAC: Canada Must Accelerate Investment to Unlock Mining Sector Growth
Canada’s resource sector is an integral part of the national economy, contributing billions to the country’s GDP.
The nation has also established a global reputation as one of the world's top mining jurisdictions. This classification is attributed to its abundant resources, well-trained and high-tech workforce and political stability.
When it comes to mining in Canada, most people think of BC's gold and copper mines, Ontario’s nickel and zinc industry or Québec’s world-class gold-producing region of Abitibi — but it goes far beyond that.
Over 200 mines are in operation across Canada, producing more than 60 minerals and metals, including potash and uranium in Saskatchewan, diamonds in the Northwest Territories and cobalt, nickel and zinc in Manitoba.
These resources are used in myriad applications, including construction, automotive and green technologies.
In May, the Mining Association of Canada (MAC) released its Mining Story 2025 report, which outlines the current state of the mining industry in Canada, including its challenges and successes.
Canadian mining by the numbers
Nearly three-quarters of a million people are employed as a result of the Canadian mining sector, including 430,000 working directly with mining companies. According to the MAC, the mining sector contributed C$59.7 billion to the Canadian economy in 2023, representing a 36 percent increase over the preceding decade.
While these contributions are important on a national scale, they become even more significant on a provincial level, where local and regional economies directly benefit as workers support businesses in their communities.
Ontario led the way in 2023, producing C$15.7 billion worth of metals and minerals, followed by Québec with C$11.3 billion and BC with C$5.1 billion. However, the MAC report also outlines how important the resource sector is to Canada’s smaller provinces and territories. In 2023, the mining industry was responsible for 13 percent of the Yukon’s GDP, 22 percent of the Northwest Territories’ GDP and an impressive 43 percent of Nunavut’s GDP.
When it comes to the value added to Canada's GDP, extraction contributed C$54.8 billion in 2023, with the MAC noting it is a larger contributor than non-residential construction and chemical manufacturing.
These figures are further bolstered by an additional C$21 billion from primary manufacturing, including smelting, refinement and the production of cement, concrete and glass.
There's also C$32.4 billion from downstream manufacturing, which comprises secondary metal products like pipes, wire and foundry products, as well as tertiary products such as cutlery, tools and hardware.
The MAC states that contributions from mining, quarrying and oil and gas extraction accounted for 5.1 percent of Canada’s GDP in 2023, which is within the 4.9 to 5.3 percent range seen since 2012.
Challenges and opportunities for Canadian mining
Looking ahead, the association sees both opportunities and challenges for Canada’s resource sector.
From a broad perspective, economic growth is essential for Canada to continue improving its living standards.
While the mining sector has been critical to driving Canada's GDP since the 1980s, investment in the industry stalled following the 2008 financial crisis. With a growing focus on the energy transition and the mass adoption of green technologies, even more pressure will be placed on the resource sector in the coming years.
However, geopolitical turmoil and fragile supply chains underscore the need for domestic production, as well as increased investment in not only mining projects, but also the infrastructure to support them.
Both industry and government seem to recognize the challenges, but what are the solutions?
The Canadian government has already established several programs designed to spur investment in the resource sector, or at least drive infrastructure projects that benefit new projects.
Among them is the Critical Minerals Infrastructure Fund. It will provide up to C$1.5 billion over seven years for clean energy and transportation infrastructure. Outlined in the report are three projects that will enable mining companies to access sites more efficiently and secure energy supplies for more remote locations.
These include an access road to undeveloped copper, gold and silver deposits in Northwest BC, as well as road and electrical grid connections for lithium mines in Ontario.
Another program touched on by the MAC is the Clean Technology Manufacturing Investment Tax Credit. It was established to stimulate investment and accelerate Canadian critical mineral production, processing and recycling.
However, the program wasn’t without its flaws. Initially, the framework required that 90 percent of a project’s production come from one of six priority minerals, but as the MAC notes, copper is usually not found in those concentrations. In fact, only one advanced project or mining operation met this threshold.
The government amended the threshold to 50 percent in its 2024 fall economic update, which the MAC says should ensure copper projects benefit from the program as intended.
Canada's mining industry needs more support
Although existing programs have been a good start, the MAC believes that more can be done to support Canada's mining industry at a critical time. When it comes to driving investment, the association suggests Canada look to Australia for ideas on how to create a more competitive income tax framework focused on research and development.
The MAC does note that while there has been reluctance by the government to favor a particular industry in the past, it has come to recognize how critical minerals touch nearly every aspect of the Canadian economy.
The association also highlights the need for a greater government contributions, rather than relying solely on private sector investment. It points south of the border, where the US has made significant strategic commitments to improve critical mineral value chains. The report's other suggestions include the introduction of venture capital and tailored financial instruments designed to focus on access to financing for mine production and smaller companies.
These could be targeted at critical stages of development, like feasibility studies.
Perhaps most importantly, the MAC addresses the need to reduce project friction, noting that long project timelines can impact investment and lead to the suspension or closure of projects and operations.
While the MAC states that there has been some movement in reducing red tape, there is still a greater need to accelerate project permitting, reduce duplicate studies and improve intergovernmental coordination.
Canada must boost mining self-reliance
What's ahead for Canada's mining sector? Its path remains uncertain.
Adjusting legal frameworks requires time, and although there has been a solid start through tax incentives, the MAC largely regards these as a foundation to build upon. It also acknowledges that the government has been receptive to dialogue with the industry as securing critical minerals emerges as an issue of national security.
The association’s report envisions a future where greater reliance is placed on domestic production and the establishment of internal frameworks to enhance the self-reliance of the Canadian mining industry.
This outcome could also indicate increased opportunities for investors.
Don't forget to follow us @INN_Resource for real-time updates!
Securities Disclosure: I, Dean Belder, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
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