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Centaurus Metals (ASX Code: CTM, OTCQX: CTTZF), is pleased to advise that resource growth and development drilling at its 100%-owned Jaguar Nickel Sulphide Project in the Carajás Mineral Province of northern Brazil continues to deliver outstanding results. The latest results are expected to underpin further growth in the Mineral Resource while also continuing to de-risk the Project with positive in-fill drilling results.
- Strong, high-grade results received from step-out drilling at the Onça Preta (OP) and Jaguar South (JS) deposits, with new assays including:
- 42.7m at 0.98% Ni from 511.7m; including 4.1m at 2.42% Ni from 542.9m in JAG-DD-22-462 (OP)
- 9.0m at 2.21% Ni from 599.0m in JAG-DD-22-460 (JS)
- 24.4m at 0.82% Ni from 507.6m; including 4.2m at 1.58% Ni from 517.4m in JAG-DD-22-507 (OP)
- 21.6m at 0.79% Ni from 511.4m in JAG-DD-22-464 (OP)
- 11.0m at 1.43% Ni from 574.0m; including 3.0m at 2.49% Ni from 582.0m in JAG-DD-22-487 (JS)
- 10.7m at 1.40% Ni from 478.0m; including 3.1m at 2.14% Ni from 478.0m in JAG-DD-22-515 (JS)
- 7.5m at 1.78% Ni from 460.0m; including 5.5m at 2.19% Ni from 460.8m in JAG-DD-22-515 (JS)
- 12.4m at 0.96% Ni from 605.4m; including 5.0m at 1.51% Ni from 607.6m in JAG-DD-22-462 (OP)
- 8.5m at 1.40% Ni from 557.3m in JAG-DD-22-462 (OP)
- Visuals and assay results from deeper drilling at Jaguar South confirm the continuity of high-grade mineralisation at depth, with excellent potential for further growth below the current Resource.
- Further significant results received from completed in-pit in-fill drilling across all deposits, demonstrating the continuity of the mineralisation within the current Mineral Resource model. New assay results include:
- 10.0m at 2.28% Ni from 105.0m; including 3.2m at 5.25% Ni from 109.9m in JAG-DD-22-404 (JC)
- 18.6m at 1.23% Ni from 246.0m; including 8.0m at 1.90% Ni from 251.0m in JAG-DD-22-486 (JS)
- 22.5m at 0.97% Ni from 207.0m; including 5.7m at 2.42% Ni from 217.8m in JAG-DD-22-486 (JS)
- 10.8m at 1.94% Ni from 145.1m; including 4.1m at 2.78% Ni from 145.1m in JAG-DD-22-501 (JNE)
- 24.0m at 0.98% Ni from 329.0m in JAG-DD-22-512 (JNE)
- 21.0m at 0.87% Ni from 22.0m in JAG-DD-22-536 (JNE)
- 30.0m at 0.67% Ni from 250.0m in JAG-DD-22-491 (JNE)
- 11.0m at 1.65% Ni from 121.0m in JAG-DD-22-404 (JC)
- 13.0m at 1.18% Ni from 187.0m in JAG-DD-22-539 (JN)
- 21.5m at 0.66% Ni from 35.0m; including 4.1m at 1.66% Ni from 41.2m in JAG-DD-22-510 (JS)
- The Jaguar November 2022 Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE), comprising 108.0Mt @ 0.87% Ni for 938,500 tonnes of contained nickel, is one of the largest nickel sulphide resources held by an ASX-listed company and the largest outside of the majors. A further MRE update is planned later this year.
Centaurus’ Managing Director, Mr Darren Gordon, said that the outstanding results received from resource growth and development drilling were consistent with the Company’s two-pronged strategy of continuing to grow and upgrade the Resource in parallel with key de-risking steps associated with in-fill drilling and the completion of the ongoing Definitive Feasibility.
“In November 2022 we updated our MRE to 108.0Mt @ 0.87% Ni for 938,500 tonnes of contained nickel, confirming Jaguar as one of the largest undeveloped nickel sulphide deposits globally. That Resource is already in the hands of the mining engineers and will underpin the DFS that will focus on a long-life project delivering +20,000tpa of nickel- in-sulphate for the rapidly growing global battery-EV industry.
“The development drilling that we are progressing continues to build confidence in the Resource in and around these open pits, and will also go a long way to continuing to de-risk the project beyond the DFS. At the same time, we will continue to grow the project in a systematic manner through targeted step-out and extensional drilling that is expected to push the resource beyond 1 million tonnes of contained nickel metal in 2023.
“Importantly, the recent deep drilling results from the Jaguar South and Onca Preta Deposits are well below the MRE limits and previous Scoping Study stope optimisations.
“Jaguar is shaping up as a Tier-1 supplier of nickel-in-sulphide and it is clear to us that the demand for nickel sulphate is growing rapidly as auto-makers increasingly focus on where they are going to source their nickel from and what the emissions footprint looks like for the nickel that is essential to their accelerating EV roll-out.”
Resource Growth – Step-out Drilling
The diamond rigs at Jaguar are now targeting resource growth by undertaking both step-out drilling and extensional drilling across all deposits, but with an initial focus on the high-grade Onça Preta and Jaguar South Deposits. These rigs will also continue to undertake important drilling for geotechnical, metallurgical and structural interpretation purposes.
The Company is in the process of optimising its contractor drill fleet, removing underperforming rigs and reducing the total number of rigs on site to six diamond rigs and one Reverse Circulation (RC) rig.
The May 2021 Jaguar Scoping Study demonstrated that both the Jaguar South and Onça Preta Deposits can sustain quality underground operations with the study stope optimisations bottoming out on the base of the January 2021 MRE.
The continual extension of the high-grade mineralisation, as demonstrated by recent drill results, both down-dip and now along strike at both deposits bodes well for continued resource growth and in turn future underground operations.
Jaguar South
The Jaguar South Deposit is the largest deposit at the Jaguar Project, hosting an MRE of 34.6Mt at 0.92% Ni for more than 316kt of contained nickel. The base of the November 2022 MRE continues to be constrained by the depth of drilling and ongoing step-out drilling continues to confirm that the mineralisation remains open at depth and along the +800m strike length of the deposit in both directions (see Figure 2 and Figure 3).
The deepest hole that the Company has completed to date on the Project, JAG-DD-22-4451 on section 478300mE, reached a final depth of 771m depth. Importantly, this hole successfully intersected a 10m thick zone of semi- massive and massive nickel sulphide mineralisation from 612m depth within a broader 20m intersection.
The intersection is 100m down-dip from the previously deepest hole on section JAG-DD-22-223 (16.4m at 1.34% Ni). Refer to Figure 1, Figure 11 and Table 2 for photos of the core and visual estimates of hole JAG-DD-22-445.
Figure 1 – The Jaguar South Deposit: Core photo from drill-hole JAG-DD-22-445; 612.7m to 622.2m down-hole: Stringer, semi-massive and massive sulphides (dark metallic bronze) mineralisation with dacite host rock.
Drill-hole JAG-DD-22-487, the second deepest hole completed on the Project, was collared 90m to the east of JAG- DD-22-445 on section 478390mE and intersected 11.0m at 1.43 % Ni from 574.0m including 3.0m at 2.49% Ni amongst other intersections (Figure 2).
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This article includes content from Centurus Metals, 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.
CTM:AU
Nickel Price 2024 Year-End Review
Nickel price in Q4
Nickel reached its 2024 peak of US$21,615 per metric ton on May 20, but was back below the US$16,000 mark by the end of July. Following some volatility in August and September, the price of nickel gained momentum at the end of Q3, reaching US$18,221 on October 2.
However, the increased prices were not to last, and nickel spent much of the final quarter in a downward trend.
By the end of October, the price had fallen to US$15,732 before climbing back to US$16,607 on November 7.
Since then, the nickel market has seen some volatility but has continued its downward trend. On December 19, it slumped to its 2024 low of US$15,090. However, it saw some small gains, ending the year at US$15,300 on December 31.
Nickel price, Q4 2024.
Chart via Trading Economics.
Nickel’s weak prices are largely due to high output from Indonesia and low demand, particularly from Asian markets, as China’s recovery has failed to gain traction.
As a result, on December 19, it was reported that Indonesia is considering implementing cuts to mining quotas to boost prices. The move would see the country cut output by nearly half, from 272 million metric tons of ore produced in 2024 to 150 million metric tons in 2025.
Additionally, Indonesia is looking to tighten environmental regulation compliance for miners in the new year and could introduce increased volatility into metals markets, including nickel. The move comes not long after it signed several new agreements in November with Chinese companies that would see billions invested in nickel operations in Indonesia.
Indonesia had previously worked to distance itself from China’s partnerships as it sought to improve relations with the United States and be included under the US Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).
The new agreements emerged shortly after Donald Trump won the US presidential election on November 7. Trump’s return to the Oval Office is unlikely to bode well for Indonesian officials seeking to secure a trade deal with the United States. However, a loosening of rules in the IRA might create new inroads for Indonesian nickel producers.
How did nickel perform for the rest of the year?
Nickel price in Q1
The story since the start of the year has been high output from Indonesian operations.
Low prices saw some nickel producers, including First Quantum Minerals (TSX:FM,OTC Pink:FQVLF) and Australia’s Wyloo Metals, cut production. However, New Caledonia was most affected. The country is more dependent on the nickel sector, with industry giants like Glencore (LSE:GLEN,OTC Pink:GLCNF), Eramet (EPA:ERA) and raw materials trader Trafigura owning significant stakes in nickel producers in the country.
Ultimately, cuts there led to a 200 million euro bailout package from the French government, which exacerbated tensions over New Caledonia's independence from France. Opponents of the agreement argued it risks the territory's sovereignty and that the mining companies aren’t contributing enough to bail out the mines, which employ thousands.
Nickel price in Q2
The second quarter was defined by a surge in nickel prices.
Positive momentum began to work its way into the market at the end of Q1, as Indonesia experienced delays in approving mining output quotas and speculation grew that Russian nickel could be sanctioned by the US and UK.
On April 12, news broke that Washington and London had banned US and UK metal exchanges from admitting new aluminum, copper and nickel from Russia. Taking immediate effect, the prohibitions also halted the import of those metals causing the price to soar to a year-to-date high of US$21,615 on May 20.
At the time Joe Mazumdar, editor of Exploration Insights, suggested this move would have little impact on the sector.
“That nickel is still going to make it into the market, it’s just going to go to a different exchange, probably Shanghai … So I could still see that nickel moving and getting consumed in the global market — it’s just not coming to the west,” he explained to the Investing News Network in an interview.
Ultimately, by the end of the quarter, the price was trending toward US$17,000.
Nickel price in Q3
Nickel saw a strong end to the third quarter with the price rising above the US$18,000 mark.
Nickel found pricing support in September as the Chinese government introduced a raft of stimulus measures intended to boost economic growth in the country. Among the measures were a 0.5 percent interest rate cut on existing mortgages and a reduction in the downpayment required to purchase a home to 15 percent from 25 percent.
The announcement came alongside cuts at Chinese smelters as they were forced to deal with a shortage in feeder supply due to more delays to Indonesia’s permitting and quota system.
Investor takeaway
The nickel market is expected to remain oversupplied for some time.
With China’s economy on a slow path to recovery, demand will remain weak. Meanwhile, supply will likely hinge on if Indonesia chooses to make significant cuts to supply output.
While demand for nickel in electric vehicle batteries is expected to be up 27 percent year-on-year in 2024, producers have also been looking to alternatives that don’t require as much nickel. Additionally, more consumers are looking to plug-in hybrid vehicles with smaller batteries that require less nickel.
Even with the increased demand from the battery sector, nickel is primarily used in stainless steel products, which are still dominated by the Chinese manufacturing and real estate sectors.
Perhaps the most significant factors to consider are political. A new administration in the United States and a shift in the IRA's approach to sourcing critical metals like nickel could alter the landscape for nickel producers in 2025.
Don’t forget to follow us @INN_Resource for real-time news updates.
Securities Disclosure: I, Dean Belder, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
Editorial Disclosure: The Investing News Network does not guarantee the accuracy or thoroughness of the information reported in the interviews it conducts. The opinions expressed in these interviews do not reflect the opinions of the Investing News Network and do not constitute investment advice. All readers are encouraged to perform their own due diligence.
Accelerated Non-Renounceable Entitlement Offer Results
Under the Entitlement Offer, eligible shareholders were invited to subscribe for one (1) New Share for every four (4) existing Shares held at an offer price of $0.03 per share.
The Company has now closed the retail component of the Entitlement Offer with applications totalling 2,767,788 shares including additional acceptances to be issued at $0.03 on top of the 18,650,023 shares issued under the institutional component of the Entitlement Offer on 15 November 2024. In accordance with the timetable, the New Shares will be issued on or before 4 December 2024.
The retail component of the Entitlement Offer is partially underwritten by Nanjia Capital Limited “(Nanjia”) for the amount of approximately $1.09m. Accordingly, Nanjia will now subscribe for 36,349,900 New Shares in accordance with the underwriting arrangements summarised in section 7.4(b) of the Prospectus and the Company expects to finalise this process within the next week.
Shortfall Share Placement
A total of 74,946,591 New Shares were not taken up under the Entitlement Offer by eligible securityholders or issued to Nanjia as underwriter (“Shortfall Shares’”) The directors will work with the lead manager to the Entitlement Offer and the major shareholders to place the shortfall within three (3) months of the closing date, subject to requirements of the ASX Listing Rules and Corporations Act 20021 (Cth) continuing to be met. Please refer to the Prospectus dated 4 November 2024 for further details on the issue of the shortfall.
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This article includes content from Blackstone 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.
