
Bismuth prices have tripled in recent weeks, gold prices are at an all-time high, and the Congo has placed a moratorium on the export of cobalt to support higher prices
Fortune Minerals Limited (TSX: FT) (OTCQB: FTMDF) (“Fortune” or the “Company”) (www.fortuneminerals.com) is pleased to announce that it has secured an additional extension to the option to purchase the JFSL Field Services ULC (“JFSL”) brownfield site in Lamont County, Alberta (see news releases, dated January 24, 2022, July 14, 2022, and October 3, 2022). Fortune plans to construct a hydrometallurgical refinery at this site for its vertically integrated NICO cobalt-gold-bismuth-copper critical minerals project (“NICO Project”). The JFSL facility is a former steel fabrication plant located on 76.78 acres of lands in Alberta’s Industrial Heartland northeast of Edmonton and has 42,000 square feet of serviced shops and buildings adjacent to the Canadian National Railway. The JFSL site is also close to services, sources of reagents, and a commutable pool of engineers and skilled chemical plant workers to materially reduce capital and operating costs for the planned NICO Project development.
Pursuant to the option agreement, Fortune can acquire the JFSL site and facilities for C$5.5 million. The term of the option can be extended for up to six months by Fortune paying JFSL C$15,000 per month. JFSL’s has the right to solicit competing offers for the facility, subject to Fortune’s right to complete its purchase on the agreed terms by the end of the month for any extension period and/or Fortune’s right of first refusal to match the competing offer.
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The NICO refinery would process metal concentrates from the planned NICO cobalt-gold-bismuth-copper mine and concentrator in the Northwest Territories (“NWT”) enabling Fortune to become a vertically integrated producer of cobalt sulphate needed to make the cathodes of lithium-ion batteries used in electric vehicles, portable electronics and stationary storage cells. The refinery would also produce bismuth ingots and oxide, an ‘Eco-metal’ used in the automotive and pharmaceutical industries and with growing demand as an environmentally safe and non-toxic replacement for lead in free-machining steels and aluminum, brasses and solders used in potable drinking water sources and electronics, ceramic glazes, radiation shielding, glass, ammunition, and fishing weights, and environmentally safe plugs to decommission oil and gas wells. The Mineral Reserves for the NICO deposit also contain more than one million ounces of gold, and copper as a minor by-product. The vertically integrated NICO Project is an advanced development stage critical minerals development asset that has already received environmental assessment approval and the major mine permits for the facilities in the NWT. The project has also been assessed in positive Feasibility and Front-End Engineering and Design (“FEED”) studies that will be updated to reflect the new refinery site and recent project optimizations.
For more detailed information about the NICO Mineral Reserves and certain technical information in this news release, please refer to the Technical Report on the NICO Project, entitled "Technical Report on the Feasibility Study for the NICO-Gold-Cobalt-Bismuth-Copper Project, Northwest Territories, Canada", dated April 2, 2014 and prepared by Micon International Limited which has been filed on SEDAR and is available under the Company's profile at www.sedar.com. The disclosure of scientific and technical information contained in this news release has been approved by Robin Goad, M.Sc., P.Geo., President and Chief Executive Officer of Fortune, who is a "Qualified Person" under National Instrument 43-101.
About Fortune Minerals:
Fortune is a Canadian mining company focused on developing the NICO cobalt-gold-bismuth-copper critical minerals project in the NWT and Alberta. Fortune also owns the satellite Sue-Dianne copper-silver-gold deposit located 25 km north of the NICO Deposit and is a potential future source of incremental mill feed to extend the life of the NICO mill and concentrator.
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This press release contains forward-looking information and forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. This forward-looking information includes statements with respect to, among other things, the exercise by the Company of its option to purchase of the JFSL site, the successful construction and completion of the proposed hydrometallurgical refinery at the JFSL site, and the Company’s plans to develop the NICO Project, including the successful the development and construction of the planned NICO cobalt-gold-bismuth-copper mine and concentrator. Forward-looking information is based on the opinions and estimates of management as well as certain assumptions at the date the information is given (including, in respect of the forward-looking information contained in this press release, assumptions regarding: the successful completion of the Company’s due diligence investigations on the JFSL site, the Company’s ability to secure the necessary financing to fund the exercise of the option and complete the purchase of the JFSL site, the Company’s ability to complete construction of a NICO Project refinery; the Company’s ability to arrange the necessary financing to continue operations and develop the NICO Project; the receipt of all necessary regulatory approvals for the construction and operation of the NICO Project, including the planned NICO cobalt-gold-bismuth-copper mine and concentrator and the timing thereof; growth in the demand for cobalt; the time required to construct the NICO Project; and the economic environment in which the Company will operate in the future, including the price of gold, cobalt and other by-product metals, anticipated costs and the volumes of metals to be produced at the NICO Project). However, such forward-looking information is subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking information. These factors include the risks that the COVID-19 pandemic or global geopolitical situations may interfere with the Company’s ability to continue development of the NICO Project, the Company may not be able to complete the purchase of the JFSL site and secure a site for the construction of a refinery, the Company may not be able to finance and develop NICO on favourable terms or at all, uncertainties with respect to the receipt or timing of required permits, approvals and agreements for the development of the NICO Project, including the related hydrometallurgical refinery, the construction of the NICO Project may take longer than anticipated, the Company may not be able to secure offtake agreements for the metals to be produced at the NICO Project, the Sue-Dianne Property may not be developed to the point where it can provide mill feed to the NICO Project, the inherent risks involved in the exploration and development of mineral properties and in the mining industry in general, the market for products that use cobalt or bismuth may not grow to the extent anticipated, the future supply of cobalt and bismuth may not be as limited as anticipated, the risk of decreases in the market prices of cobalt, bismuth and other metals to be produced by the NICO Project, discrepancies between actual and estimated Mineral Resources or between actual and estimated metallurgical recoveries, uncertainties associated with estimating Mineral Resources and Reserves and the risk that even if such Mineral Resources prove accurate the risk that such Mineral Resources may not be converted into Mineral Reserves once economic conditions are applied, the Company’s production of cobalt, bismuth and other metals may be less than anticipated and other operational and development risks, market risks and regulatory risks. Readers are cautioned to not place undue reliance on forward-looking information because it is possible that predictions, forecasts, projections and other forms of forward-looking information will not be achieved by the Company. The forward-looking information contained herein is made as of the date hereof and the Company assumes no responsibility to update or revise it to reflect new events or circumstances, except as required by law.
Fortune Minerals Limited
Troy Nazarewicz
Investor Relations Manager
info@fortuneminerals.com
Tel: (519) 858-8188
www.fortuneminerals.com
The NICO project’s receipt of substantial government funding to date and Fortune Minerals’ strong relations with the Indigenous and local communities in the Northwest Territories create a compelling case for investors considering a battery metals play with significant gold reserves.
Cobalt is an often-overlooked critical mineral in the transition to clean energy, required to make the cathodes of many lithium-ion batteries used in electric vehicles (EVs), stationary storage cells and consumer electronics. Cobalt is also used in superalloys for the aerospace industry, cemented carbides, cutting tools, permanent magnets, surgical implants, catalysts, pigments and agricultural products.
The global cobalt market is expected to reach a volume of almost 306,000 metric tons by 2028. Cobalt outlook in the long-term is expected to double by 2030 with the EV segment accounting for 89 percent of growth, energy storage at 3 percent and superalloys at 2 percent.
Fortune Minerals (TSX:FT,OTCQB:FTMDF) is a Canadian mining company developing its wholly owned, vertically integrated NICO primary cobalt project in Canada to produce cobalt chemicals for the rapidly expanding lithium-ion battery industry. The NICO mineral reserves also contain 1.1 million ounces (Moz) of gold, 12 percent of global bismuth reserves, and copper as a minor by-product. NICO comprises a proposed mine and mill in the Northwest Territories that will produce bulk concentrates that will be shipped to a planned refinery in Alberta. The concentrates from the mine will then be processed into energy and eco-metals for the growing clean energy economy.
NICO is a primary cobalt deposit, but the mineral reserves also contain 1.1 Moz of gold as a countercyclical and highly liquid co-product that can be easily converted to cash. The gold contained in the NICO deposit stands out among other cobalt projects, where the metal is produced primarily as a by-product of copper or nickel.
NICO is also the largest known deposit of bismuth in the world with about 12 percent of global reserves – even though it represents only about 10 percent of the company’s projected revenue from operations at recent metal prices.
The cobalt, bismuth and copper contained in the NICO deposit are all classified as critical minerals by Canada, as they have essential use in new technologies, cannot be easily substituted with other minerals, and because supply chains may be threatened by geopolitical issues.
The mineral reserves for the NICO deposit were estimated in compliance with NI-43-101 and total 33.1 million tonnes (Mt), containing 82.3 million lbs (37,341 tonnes) of cobalt, 1.1 Moz of gold, 102.1 million lbs (46,325 tonnes) of bismuth and 27.2 million lbs (12,296 tonnes) of copper to support a 20-year mine life at a mill throughput rate of 4,650 metric tons of ore per day.
Sums of the combined reserves may not exactly equal sums of the underground and open pit reserves due to rounding errors.
The mineral reserves are based on 327 drill holes plus surface trenches and underground test mining verifying the deposit grades, geometry and mining conditions. Both of Fortune Minerals’ deposits are open for potential expansion, extending the deposits with additional drilling or identifying new zones or deposits.
The Government of Canada is providing funding of up to $714,500 for the planned cobalt sulphate process pilot and other metallurgical test work at the NICO project. Additionally, the Government of Alberta, through the Alberta Innovates, has also approved additional funding contributions of up to $172,670 toward the budgeted program costs under its Clean Resources Continuous Intake Program. The funds will be used to support a mini-pilot at SGS Canada to confirm certain process design criteria and improvements to the NICO project metallurgical processes.
Fortune Minerals also received an C$8.74 million grant from the United States Department of Defense to expand the domestic capacity and production of cobalt for the battery and high strength alloy supply chains. The company recently secured a total of C$17 million in financial support from the Canadian and US governments to advance the NICO project.
The company’s other assets include the Sue-Dianne deposit, which has near-surface, copper-silver-gold deposits that can feed into the NICO mill.
The NICO cobalt-gold-bismuth-copper deposit is an IOCG or Olympic Dam-type mineral deposit situated on 5,140 hectares of mining leases, located 160 kilometers northwest of the City of Yellowknife and 50 kilometers north of Whati in Canada's Northwest Territories.
Fortune Minerals has spent more than C$135 million preparing technical, environmental and social studies to support the development of the NICO cobalt-gold-bismuth-copper project. Environmental assessment approval and the major mine permits have been received for the planned facilities in the Northwest Territories. The project is expected to be a reliable North American producer of critical minerals with supply chain transparency and custody control of ethically produced metals from ores through to the production of value-added metals and chemicals.
Fortune Minerals entered into a new option agreement with JFSL Field Services ULC to purchase the brownfield industrial site in Lamont County, Alberta where it plans to construct its hydrometallurgical facility (Alberta Facility). The Alberta Facility would process metal concentrates from Fortune's planned NICO cobalt-gold-bismuth-copper mine and concentrator in the Northwest Territories. It will also provide a reliable domestic supply of critical minerals for the energy transition and other new technologies.
Alberta Hydrometallurgical Facility Site
The Alberta Facility will produce cobalt sulphate for the North American lithium-ion battery industry, bismuth ingots (12 percent of global reserves) and copper cement - with more than one million ounces of in-situ gold as a countercyclical and highly liquid co-product. Fortune also has a process collaboration with Rio Tinto examining the feasibility of processing materials produced from Kennecott Smelter wastes in Utah at the Alberta Facility to increase cobalt and bismuth production.
Fortune Minerals is advancing the NICO Project toward a construction decision with US and Canadian government financial support from critical minerals supply chain security programs. The company has retained Worley Canada Services to conduct additional engineering and lead the preparation of an updated Feasibility Study for the NICO. Worley will further assist the company in processing the permits for the brownfield site to host the proposed hydrometallurgical facility.
Sue-Dianne Copper Deposit
The Sue-Dianne copper-silver-gold deposit located near the NICO deposit belongs to IOCG class of deposits with world-class global analogues and is a potential future source of incremental mill feed to extend the life of the NICO mill and concentrator.
Mahendra Naik is a chartered accountant and was one of the founding directors and key executives who started IAMGOLD Corporation, a TSX and NYSE-listed gold mining company. As chief financial officer from 1990 to 1999, he was involved in the negotiations of the Sadiola and Yatela mine joint ventures with Anglo American, and the US$400 million project debt financing for the development of the mines. In addition, he was involved in more than $150 million in equity financings including the IPO for IAMGOLD. Naik is currently the chief executive officer of FinSec Services., a private business advisory company and a director and member of the audit and compensation committees for IAMGOLD. In addition, Naik is a director and member of audit, compensation and risk/control committees of FirstGlobalData Limited, Goldmoney Network Limited and Jameson Bank.
Robin Goad is a professional geologist with 30 years of experience in the mining and exploration industries. Before founding Fortune in 1988, Goad worked for large companies, including Noranda and Teck, as a consultant in the resource industry. Goad is a director of the NWT and Nunavut Chamber of Mines and has served as president and director of other TSX-listed mineral exploration and development companies.
Patricia Penney is a chartered accountant with 20 years of accounting and audit experience. Before Fortune, she was a senior manager with Caceis Canada., an alternative fund administrator.
Richard Schryer is an aquatic scientist with more than 25 years of experience in mine permitting, environmental assessments, environmental studies and monitoring. Schryer also worked with Golder Associates.
Alex Mezei is an independent metallurgical consultant with 40 years of international process engineering experience, providing general and specialized services in metallurgical process flowsheet testing, design, development, derisking and implementation. Mezei has been involved in process economics assessment for several projects. Specific technical expertise includes hydrometallurgy, liquid-solid separation, rheology, and mineral processing. Projects and commodities include extraction of cobalt, lithium, nickel, graphite, manganese, as well as base, rare and precious metals. In addition, Mezei provides specialized expertise in recycling, oil sands and carbon capture projects. Mezei is a Qualified Person for the purposes of National Instrument 43-101.
David Knight is a partner with WeirFoulds LLP. David is widely recognized for his more than 30 years of experience. He specializes in securities law, including public and private financings, mergers and acquisitions, stock exchange listings and regulatory compliance and acts for investment dealers and issuers. Knight is a member of the Law Society of Upper Canada.
Troy D. Nazarewicz has 30 years of experience in the capital markets as a portfolio manager with MacDougall, MacDougall & MacTier and in his investor relations role at Fortune. He also worked as a business development manager with a design and marketing firm.
Battery-grade cobalt for the electric transition with gold co-production
Bismuth prices have tripled in recent weeks, gold prices are at an all-time high, and the Congo has placed a moratorium on the export of cobalt to support higher prices
Fortune Minerals Limited (TSX: FT) (OTCQB: FTMDF) (" Fortune " or the " Company ") ( www.fortuneminerals.com ) is pleased to comment on the recent commodity price activity for the metals contained in its vertically integrated NICO cobalt-gold-bismuth-copper critical minerals project (" NICO Project ") in Canada. The NICO Project is a development stage asset comprised of a planned open pit and underground mine and concentrator in the Northwest Territories (" NWT ") and a dedicated hydrometallurgical recovery plant in Lamont County, Alberta (" Hydrometallurgical Facility "). The Hydrometallurgical Facility will process concentrates from the mine, and other feed sources, to produce value-added metals and chemicals for the energy transition, new technologies and defense. Development of the NICO Project would provide a reliable North American supply of cobalt sulphate, gold doré, bismuth ingots, and copper cement enhancing domestic supply chains for three critical minerals and a highly liquid and countercyclical gold co-product to mitigate metal price volatility.
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The Mineral Reserves for the NICO Deposit are 33.1 million metric tonnes containing 1.1 million ounces of gold, 82.3 million pounds of cobalt, 102.1 million pounds of bismuth (12% of global reserves) and 27.2 million pounds of copper to support a 20-year planned mine life. The Company also owns the Sue-Dianne satellite copper deposit, located 25 km north of the NICO Deposit.
Gold price approaching US$3,000 per ounce
Recent geopolitical issues and trade disputes are inflationary, resulting in higher demand for safe haven assets like gold. Gold has been trading at historic all-time high prices of more than US$2,900 per ounce, providing a highly liquid co-product to help insulate project economics from critical mineral price volatility.
Bismuth price up more than 300% to a 17-year high
The projected revenues from the NICO Project have historically been primarily from cobalt and gold but NICO is also the largest deposit of bismuth in the world with 12% of global reserves. The bismuth price has more than tripled over the past few weeks and is currently trading at prices of more than US$20 per pound. Bismuth is identified on the Canadian and U.S. Government Critical Minerals Lists having unique physical and chemical properties used in important industrial, environmental and defense applications but with supply chains that are vulnerable to disruption. China controls approximately 90% of refined bismuth supply, which threatens national security from geographic concentration of production and policy risks. Notably, Bismuth is one of five critical minerals that China recently imposed export restrictions on due to ongoing trade disputes with the U.S. China's bismuth exports to the U.S. are assessed with a 25% tariff.
Bismuth is consumed in the automotive industry for glass and steel coatings, paint and brake pads. It is also used to make low melting temperature and dimensionally stable alloys, fire depressant systems, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals. Bismuth consumption is increasing as an environmentally safe and non-toxic replacement for lead in brass, solder, free machining steel and aluminum, glass, radiation shielding, ceramic glazes and ammunition. Bismuth-tin alloy is used to make environmentally safe plugs to properly seal and decommission oil and gas wells. Bismuth is also used to make manganese-bismuth magnets, semi-conductors, coolants and components used in some nuclear reactor designs, rocket propellants, and alloys used to align jet engine and power turbine blades.
Cobalt export moratorium in the Democratic Republic of Congo
On February 22, 2025, the Democratic Republic of Congo (" DRC ") announced that it is suspending cobalt exports for four months to rein in oversupply on the international market. The government is also preparing other measures to help balance the market and encourage domestic processing. The DRC produces about three-quarters of the world's cobalt mine supply, approximately 60% of which is controlled by Chinese State-Owned Enterprises (" SOE's "), which also control 80% of global refined cobalt and 90% of cobalt chemical supply. Overproduction and predatory pricing have pushed cobalt to all-time inflation adjusted low prices near US$10 per pound, down from US$40 per pound in 2022, and causing some western producers to suspend operations. Western governments have therefore been calling for price control actions such as floor or two-tier pricing structures, tariffs, and/or bans on government purchases of cobalt products from foreign entities of concern. The DRC measures are expected to support higher cobalt prices and help restore economic fundamentals to the market.
Cobalt is primarily used to make lithium-ion batteries to store energy for electric-vehicles, portable electronics and stationary storage cells. Cobalt is also used in superalloys for the aerospace industry, cutting tools, cemented carbides, magnets, catalysts and pigments.
NICO Project
NICO is a polymetallic IOCG-type deposit with four payable metals, reducing exposure to the price of any individual metal and help insulate the project from price manipulation. As a vertically integrated development, the NICO Project is also not beholden to third-party owned downstream process plants. Development of the NICO Project would provide a vertically integrated domestic supply of three critical minerals with supply chain transparency and custody control over the contained metals from ores through to the production of value-added products and help mitigate security of supply issues from foreign entities of concern.
PDAC 2025
Fortune is participating at the 2025 annual Prospectors and Developers Association Convention (" PDAC ") being held at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre between March 2 and March 5, 2025. Please visit the Company's booth #2837 in the Investor Exchange to meet with management and discuss the Company's progress and outlook.
President and CEO, Robin Goad, will present the NICO Project at the Canada Investment Forum hosted by Natural Resources Canada, Invest in Canada, and Global Affairs Canada on Monday March 3 rd . Mr. Goad is also participating in a panel discussion hosted by the U.S. Department of Commerce for their " Critical Minerals to Market: Strengthening North American Critical Minerals Supply Chains " in an off-site closed-door session.
For more detailed information about the NICO Mineral Reserves and certain technical information in this news release, please refer to the Technical Report on the NICO Project, entitled "Technical Report on the Feasibility Study for the NICO-Gold-Cobalt-Bismuth-Copper Project, Northwest Territories, Canada", dated April 2, 2014 and prepared by Micon International Limited which has been filed on SEDAR and is available under the Company's profile at www.sedarplus.ca .
The disclosure of scientific and technical information contained in this news release have been approved by Robin Goad, M.Sc., P.Geo., President and Chief Executive Officer of Fortune and Alex Mezei, M.Sc., P.Eng. Fortune's Chief Metallurgist, who are "Qualified Persons" under National Instrument 43-101.
About Fortune Minerals
Fortune is a Canadian mining company focused on developing the NICO cobalt-gold-bismuth-copper project in the Northwest Territories and Alberta. Fortune also owns the satellite Sue-Dianne copper-silver-gold deposit located 25 km north of the NICO deposit and is a potential future source of incremental mill feed to extend the life of the NICO concentrator.
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This press release contains forward-looking information and forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. This forward-looking information includes statements with respect to, among other things, the exercise of the option by the Company and the purchase of the JFSL site in order to construct the proposed Hydrometallurgical Facility at the JFSL site, the potential for expansion of the NICO Deposit and the Company's plans to develop the NICO Project. Forward-looking information is based on the opinions and estimates of management as well as certain assumptions at the date the information is given (including, in respect of the forward-looking information contained in this press release, assumptions regarding: the successful completion of the Company's due diligence investigations on the JFSL site, the Company's ability to secure the necessary financing to fund the exercise of the option and complete the purchase of the JFSL site, the Company's ability to complete construction of a NICO Project Hydrometallurgical Facility; the Company's ability to arrange the necessary financing to continue operations and develop the NICO Project; the receipt of all necessary regulatory approvals for the construction and operation of the NICO Project and the related Hydrometallurgical Facility and the timing thereof; growth in the demand for cobalt; the time required to construct the NICO Project; and the economic environment in which the Company will operate in the future, including the price of gold, cobalt, bismuth, and other by-products, anticipated costs and the volumes of metals to be produced at the NICO Project). However, such forward-looking information is subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking information. These factors include the risks that the Company may not be able to complete the purchase of the JFSL site and secure a site for the construction of a Hydrometallurgical Facility, the Company may not be able to finance and develop NICO on favourable terms or at all, uncertainties with respect to the receipt or timing of required permits, approvals and agreements for the development of the NICO Project, including the related Hydrometallurgical Facility, the construction of the NICO Project may take longer than anticipated, the Company may not be able to secure offtake agreements for the metals to be produced at the NICO Project, the Sue-Dianne Property may not be developed to the point where it can provide mill feed to the NICO Project, the inherent risks involved in the exploration and development of mineral properties and in the mining industry in general, the market for products that use cobalt or bismuth may not grow to the extent anticipated, the future supply of cobalt and bismuth may not be as limited as anticipated, the risk of decreases in the market prices of cobalt, bismuth and other metals to be produced by the NICO Project, discrepancies between actual and estimated Mineral Resources or between actual and estimated metallurgical recoveries, uncertainties associated with estimating Mineral Resources and Reserves and the risk that even if such Mineral Resources prove accurate the risk that such Mineral Resources may not be converted into Mineral Reserves once economic conditions are applied, the Company's production of cobalt, bismuth and other metals may be less than anticipated and other operational and development risks, market risks and regulatory risks. Readers are cautioned to not place undue reliance on forward-looking information because it is possible that predictions, forecasts, projections and other forms of forward-looking information will not be achieved by the Company. The forward-looking information contained herein is made as of the date hereof and the Company assumes no responsibility to update or revise it to reflect new events or circumstances, except as required by law.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250227526183/en/
For further information please contact:
Fortune Minerals Limited
Troy Nazarewicz
Investor Relations Manager
info@fortuneminerals.com
Tel: (519) 858-8188
www.fortuneminerals.com
News Provided by Business Wire via QuoteMedia
The Company is advancing the NICO Project toward a construction decision with U.S. & Canadian Government financial support from critical minerals supply chain security programs
Fortune Minerals Limited (TSX: FT) (OTCQB: FTMDF) (" Fortune " or the " Company ") ( www.fortuneminerals.com ) is pleased to provide an update of ongoing work on the vertically integrated NICO cobalt-gold-bismuth-copper critical minerals project in Canada (" NICO Project "). The NICO Project is comprised of a planned mine and concentrator in the Northwest Territories (" NWT ") and a hydrometallurgical processing facility in Lamont County, Alberta where concentrates from the mine, and other feed sources, will be processed to value-added products needed for the energy transition, new technologies and defense. Fortune has been awarded ~C$17 million of non-dilutive contribution funding from the U.S. Department of Defense (" DoD "), Natural Resources Canada (" NRCan "), and Alberta Innovates to help finance the work needed to bring the NICO Project to a project finance and construction decision (see news releases dated, December 5, 2023, and May 16, 2024). Development of the NICO Project would provide a reliable North American supply of cobalt sulphate, gold doré, bismuth ingots, and copper precipitate enhancing domestic supply chains for three metals identified on the Canadian and U.S. Government critical minerals lists and a highly liquid and countercyclical gold co-product to mitigate metal price volatility.
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Highlights
Feasibility Study Update
Fortune retained Worley Canada Services Ltd. (" Worley ") to lead the engineering for an updated Feasibility Study assessing the economics of the NICO Project at current costs and commodity prices. Worley is also assisting Fortune with permitting for the brownfield site in Lamont County, Alberta where the Company plans to construct its hydrometallurgical facility. The NICO Project was previously assessed in a positive Feasibility Study by Micon International Limited (" Micon ") in 2014 but is now out of date. Micon, P&E Mining Consultants Inc. (" P&E ") and WSP Golder, who participated in the 2014 study, are also engaged to assist Worley with preparation of the updated study and NI 43-101 Technical Report. The Feasibility Study is being supported with funding from the U.S. DoD and NRCan's Global Partnerships Initiative (" GPI ") contribution funding.
The updated Feasibility Study will incorporate a number of improvements to the NICO Project identified by Fortune and Worley to deliver a more financially robust development. These include: the superior brownfield Alberta hydrometallurgical facility site with existing buildings; the new Tlicho Highway to Whati, NWT; a new geological block model with more constrained ore zone boundaries to reduce modelling dilution and better differentiate high-grade resource blocks for earlier processing; a new mine plan and production schedule with a stockpiling strategy to accelerate the processing of higher margin ores and reduce near-surface waste rock stripping; better equipment choices; and process optimizations from recent test work.
Worley has completed value enhancement studies improving the grinding and comminution, and flotation circuits for the planned concentrator in the NWT. A High-Pressure Grinding Rolls (" HPGR ") and vertical mills will replace parts of the previously designed circuit and ball mill with an anticipated ~C$7 million reduction in capital costs and ~C$1.3 million reduction in annual operating costs from a smaller plant footprint utilizing more energy efficient equipment. HPGR variability tests are in progress at SGS Canada Inc. (" SGS ") in Lakefield, Ontario to provide additional data for the detailed design.
Worley has also reviewed the Company's historical flotation test work and piloting information and has identified opportunities using Jameson flotation cells to recover additional fine, 5- to 20-micron sized gold and bismuth particles contained in NICO deposit ores. Jameson cell tests were completed at SGS at a finer (minus 44-micron) grind size and the Company is pleased to report that these tests have confirmed an improvement in gold, bismuth and cobalt recoveries for the concentrator. A carbon column is also being designed into the secondary flotation circuit to capture the ~5% of contained gold that previously would have been dissolved and lost in the process water during bismuth and cobalt separation. Fortune is also investigating other options to reduce potential gold losses during the processing of high-grade, gold-rich ores.
Worley has also completed a minor realignment of the NICO access road design to reduce construction costs and has also completed the process flow diagrams, piping and instrumentation diagrams, and mass balance for the NWT concentrator. As part of the ongoing Feasibility Study improvements, Worley is also working on updated concentrator and hydrometallurgical facility designs to advance the vertically integrated development.
Test Work Update
Fortune collected between 15 and 16 metric tonnes of ores from its earlier test mining stockpiles at the NICO mine site and shipped this material to SGS for metallurgical test work and piloting. The test work is being financially supported with contribution funding from NRCan's GPI and a $715,000 award in 2023 from the Critical Minerals Research Development and Demonstration (" CMRDD "), with additional financial support coming from Alberta Innovates' Clean Resources Continuous Intake Program and the U.S. DoD. Phase 2 of the program, consisting of crushing, grinding and bulk and secondary flotation was successfully completed in Q3, 2024, producing gold-bearing cobalt and bismuth concentrates for hydrometallurgical testing.
The Phase 3 hydrometallurgical work is in progress and the results achieved to date are exceeding the Company's expectations. Ferric chloride leaching of bismuth concentrate followed by cementation and purification test work achieved 97% bismuth recoveries, producing a cement grading up to 95% bismuth, and averaging about 0.2% iron as the main impurity. The data was used to support the bismuth circuit process design criteria on the basis of a 66% reduction of the leaching residence time, from three hours to one hour. Overall, the design criteria are predictive of a significant material reduction in the size, capital and operating costs for the bismuth circuit for the hydrometallurgical plant. The results are also predictive of about a 2% higher bismuth recovery than initially estimated for the bismuth leaching and cementation circuits. Fortune has retained XPS Industry Relevant Solutions to conduct the smelting and refining parts of the bismuth test work and complete the design of the bismuth pyrometallurgical circuit.
A preliminary pressure oxidation (" POX ") test on the cobalt concentrate was recently completed, but more comprehensive cobalt processing tests will be carried out in the first quarter of 2025. The cobalt test work will also include a value enhancement optimization of sequential gypsum precipitation to validate the production of a gypsum by-product from the autoclave effluent. If successful, a saleable gypsum by-product would provide a material improvement to the hydrometallurgical facility overall revenues and reduce waste disposal costs for the process residue.
Rio Tinto Process Collaboration
Fortune has a process collaboration agreement with Rio Tinto investigating the feasibility of recovering additional cobalt and bismuth at the Alberta hydrometallurgical facility by processing precipitates produced from Kennecott smelter wastes in Utah. Rio Tinto successfully generated a high-grade bismuth oxychloride intermediate from its Utah process streams and shipped samples of this material to SGS for testing using Fortune's process criteria as well as blending with NICO bismuth concentrates. Leaching and cementation tests carried out on the Rio Tinto material blended with NICO bismuth concentrate were very successful, validating no material change in bismuth recoveries or metallurgical performance relative to treating unblended NICO bismuth concentrate. The feasibility of processing Rio Tinto material at the Alberta Hydrometallurgical facility has therefore been confirmed and additional work is planned by both companies to advance the collaboration. These blending validation studies are financially supported by NRCan's GPI contribution funding and the U.S. DoD.
About the NICO Project
Fortune has expended approximately C$140 million to advance the NICO Project from an in-house mineral discovery to a near construction-ready development. The Company has secured the environmental assessment approval and the major mine permits for the facilities in the NWT and the municipal planning approvals for the Alberta hydrometallurgical facility. Additional permitting is required at both sites and is in progress with partial funding support from the U.S. DoD.
The NICO deposit and planned mine is situated in Tlicho Territory, approximately 160 km northwest of the City of Yellowknife and 50 km north of the community of Whati where the new Tlicho Highway currently terminates. A spur road from Whati is planned as part of the development to enable trucking concentrates to the railhead at Enterprise, NWT for delivery to Alberta and downstream processing.
The NICO deposit contains open pit and underground Proven and Probable Mineral Reserves totaling 33.1 million tonnes containing 1.11 million ounces of gold, 82.3 million pounds of cobalt, 102.1 million pounds of bismuth, and 27.2 million pounds of copper to support a ~20-year mine life. Fortune also owns the Sue-Dianne satellite copper deposit located 25 km north of the NICO deposit and is a potential future source of incremental mill feed for the Company's planned concentrator. NICO and Sue-Dianne are iron oxide copper-gold (" IOCG ")-type mineral deposits with world class global analogues that support the exploration potential of the area and Fortune's properties.
Ores from the NICO deposit will be mined primarily by open pit methods with a low waste to ore strip ratio. Portions of the higher-grade Mineral Reserves would be mined by underground open stoping methods to accelerate cash flows during early years of the mine life using the existing ramp and underground workings for access and ore haulage.
NICO ores will be processed in a concentrator constructed at the mine site with a 4,650 metric tonnes per day mill throughput rate and a low (4%) mass pull during bulk flotation that captures the recoverable metals in only 180 tonnes of bulk concentrate per day. A very efficient secondary flotation process separates the ore minerals into gold-bearing cobalt and bismuth concentrates for low-cost transportation by truck and rail to Alberta.
The hydrometallurgical facility is planned to be constructed in Lamont County in Alberta's Industrial Heartland, approximately 50 km northeast of Edmonton. Cobalt concentrate will be processed by POX in an autoclave to dissolve the contained metals, followed by sequential neutralization, copper cementation, and solvent extraction purification and crystallization of cobalt sulphate heptahydrate. The bismuth concentrate will be processed by ferric chloride leaching, followed by cementation, and smelting to 99.995% bismuth ingots. Gold will be recovered by leaching the combined autoclave residue, followed by carbon elution and smelting to doré bars.
Development of the NICO Project would provide a reliable, vertically integrated domestic supply of cobalt, gold, bismuth and copper with supply chain transparency and custody control of the metals from ores through to the production of value-added products. Fortune's cobalt production is targeting the lithium-ion rechargeable battery industry for use in electric vehicles, portable electronics and stationary energy storage cells. The NICO deposit contains 12% of global bismuth reserves and the ingots produced by Fortune will be marketed for automotive glass and steel coatings, low melting temperature and dimensionally stable alloys, and an environmentally safe and non-toxic replacement for lead in brass, solder, steel, aluminum and galvanizing alloys, paint, radiation shielding, ceramic glazes, ammunition and fishing weights. New applications also include environmentally safe plugs to properly seal decommissioned oil and gas wells, magnets for EV powertrains, and alloys used in the nuclear and defense industries. Notably, gold, bismuth and copper prices have all been increasing and compensate for the short-term weakness in the cobalt price.
For more detailed information about the NICO Mineral Reserves and certain technical information in this news release, please refer to the Technical Report on the NICO Project, entitled "Technical Report on the Feasibility Study for the NICO-Gold-Cobalt-Bismuth-Copper Project, Northwest Territories, Canada", dated April 2, 2014 and prepared by Micon International Limited which has been filed on SEDAR and is available under the Company's profile at www.sedar.com .
The disclosure of scientific and technical information contained in this news release have been approved by Robin Goad, M.Sc., P.Geo., President and Chief Executive Officer of Fortune and Alex Mezei, M.Sc., P.Eng. Fortune's Chief Metallurgist, who are "Qualified Persons" under National Instrument 43-101.
About Fortune Minerals
Fortune is a Canadian mining company focused on developing the NICO cobalt-gold-bismuth-copper project in the Northwest Territories and Alberta. Fortune also owns the satellite Sue-Dianne copper-silver-gold deposit located 25 km north of the NICO deposit and is a potential future source of incremental mill feed to extend the life of the NICO concentrator.
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This press release contains forward-looking information and forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. This forward-looking information includes statements with respect to, among other things, the exercise of the option by the Company and the purchase of the JFSL site, the construction of the proposed Hydrometallurgical Facility at the JFSL site, the potential for expansion of the NICO Deposit and the Company's plans to develop the NICO Project. Forward-looking information is based on the opinions and estimates of management as well as certain assumptions at the date the information is given (including, in respect of the forward-looking information contained in this press release, assumptions regarding: the successful completion of the Company's due diligence investigations on the JFSL site, the Company's ability to secure the necessary financing to fund the exercise of the option and complete the purchase of the JFSL site, the Company's ability to complete construction of a NICO Project Hydrometallurgical Facility; the Company's ability to arrange the necessary financing to continue operations and develop the NICO Project; the receipt of all necessary regulatory approvals for the construction and operation of the NICO Project and the related Hydrometallurgical Facility and the timing thereof; growth in the demand for cobalt; the time required to construct the NICO Project; and the economic environment in which the Company will operate in the future, including the price of gold, cobalt and other by-product metals, anticipated costs and the volumes of metals to be produced at the NICO Project). However, such forward-looking information is subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking information. These factors include the risks that the 2021 drill program may not result in a meaningful expansion of the NICO Deposit, the Company may not be able to complete the purchase of the JFSL site and secure a site for the construction of a Hydrometallurgical Facility, the Company may not be able to finance and develop NICO on favourable terms or at all, uncertainties with respect to the receipt or timing of required permits, approvals and agreements for the development of the NICO Project, including the related Hydrometallurgical Facility, the construction of the NICO Project may take longer than anticipated, the Company may not be able to secure offtake agreements for the metals to be produced at the NICO Project, the Sue-Dianne Property may not be developed to the point where it can provide mill feed to the NICO Project, the inherent risks involved in the exploration and development of mineral properties and in the mining industry in general, the market for products that use cobalt or bismuth may not grow to the extent anticipated, the future supply of cobalt and bismuth may not be as limited as anticipated, the risk of decreases in the market prices of cobalt, bismuth and other metals to be produced by the NICO Project, discrepancies between actual and estimated Mineral Resources or between actual and estimated metallurgical recoveries, uncertainties associated with estimating Mineral Resources and Reserves and the risk that even if such Mineral Resources prove accurate the risk that such Mineral Resources may not be converted into Mineral Reserves once economic conditions are applied, the Company's production of cobalt, bismuth and other metals may be less than anticipated and other operational and development risks, market risks and regulatory risks. Readers are cautioned to not place undue reliance on forward-looking information because it is possible that predictions, forecasts, projections and other forms of forward-looking information will not be achieved by the Company. The forward-looking information contained herein is made as of the date hereof and the Company assumes no responsibility to update or revise it to reflect new events or circumstances, except as required by law.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250108515555/en/
Fortune Minerals Limited
Troy Nazarewicz
Investor Relations Manager
info@fortuneminerals.com
Tel: (519) 858-8188
www.fortuneminerals.com
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Proceeds to provide working capital & pre-fund government supported work programs
NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION TO U.S. NEWS WIRE SERVICES OR DISSEMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES
Fortune Minerals Limited (TSX: FT) (OTCQB: FTMDF) (" Fortune " or the " Company ") ( www.fortuneminerals.com ) is pleased to announce that it has drawn down an additional C$1,575,000 (the " Second Convertible Security ") from its convertible security funding agreement with Lind Global Fund II, LP, managed by The Lind Partners (together, " Lind ") (see news release dated May 22, 2024). The proceeds from this Second Convertible Security drawdown will be used for general working capital purposes and to pre-fund some of the government supported work on the vertically integrated NICO Cobalt-Gold-Bismuth-Copper Critical Minerals Project (" NICO Project ") (see news releases dated, May 16, 2024, and December 5, 2023). Development of the NICO Project would provide a reliable North American supply of cobalt sulphate, gold doré, bismuth ingots, and copper cement enhancing domestic supply chains for three Critical Minerals with a highly liquid and countercyclical gold co-product to mitigate metal price volatility.
The Second Convertible Security has a two-year term, a face value of C$1,890,000 and is secured by a lien against the Company's assets. Lind will be entitled to incrementally convert the face value amount of the Second Convertible Security over a 24-month period, subject to certain limits, at a conversion price equal to 85% of the five-day trailing volume weighted average price of Fortune's shares (" VWAP ") prior to the date of conversion. Commencing 60 days after the shares issuable under this convertible security become free trading, Fortune has the right to repurchase the Second Convertible Security, subject to Lind's option to convert up to one third of the face value into Fortune common shares prior to such repurchase at a conversion price equal to 85% of the 5-day VWAP. Lind will also receive a closing fee of C$60,000 and 16,338,174 common share purchase warrants at an exercise price of $0.0609 per common share for 60 months from the date of issuance after closing.
This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or solicitation of an offer to buy nor shall there be any sale of any of the securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful. The securities will not be and have not been registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933 and may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or applicable exemption from the registration requirements.
About The Lind Partners:
The Lind Partners manages institutional funds that are leaders in providing growth capital to small- and mid-cap companies publicly traded in the US, Canada, Australia and the UK. Lind's multi-strategy funds make direct investments ranging from US$1 to US$30 million, invest in syndicated equity placements and selectively buy on market. Having completed more than 200 direct investments totaling over US$2 billion in transaction value, Lind's funds have been flexible and supportive capital partners to investee companies since 2011.
About Fortune Minerals:
Fortune is a Canadian mining company focused on developing the NICO cobalt-gold-bismuth-copper critical minerals project in Canada's Northwest Territories and Alberta. Fortune also owns the satellite Sue-Dianne copper-silver-gold deposit located 25 km north of the NICO Deposit and is a potential future source of incremental mill feed to extend the life of the NICO mill and concentrator.
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This press release contains forward-looking information and forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. This forward-looking information includes statements with respect to, among other things, additional drawdowns under the convertible security funding agreement, use of the second drawdown under the convertible security funding agreement, and the Company's plans to develop the NICO Project. Forward-looking information is based on the opinions and estimates of management as well as certain assumptions at the date the information is given (including, in respect of the forward-looking information contained in this press release, assumptions regarding: final approval by the TSX in respect of the convertible security funding agreement and related matters; the Company's ability to complete construction of a NICO Project refinery; the Company's ability to arrange the necessary financing to continue operations and develop the NICO Project; the receipt of all necessary regulatory approvals for the construction and operation of the NICO Project, including the planned NICO cobalt-gold-bismuth-copper mine and concentrator and the timing thereof; growth in the demand for cobalt; the time required to construct the NICO Project; and the economic environment in which the Company will operate in the future, including the price of gold, cobalt and other by-product metals, anticipated costs and the volumes of metals to be produced at the NICO Project). However, such forward-looking information is subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking information. These factors include the risks that the TSX may not provide final approval in respect of the convertible security funding agreement and related matters, that global geopolitical situations may interfere with the Company's ability to continue development of the NICO Project, the Company may not be able to finance and develop NICO on favourable terms or at all, uncertainties with respect to the receipt or timing of required permits, approvals and agreements for the development of the NICO Project, including the related hydrometallurgical refinery, the construction of the NICO Project may take longer than anticipated, the Company may not be able to secure offtake agreements for the metals to be produced at the NICO Project, the Sue-Dianne Property may not be developed to the point where it can provide mill feed to the NICO Project, the inherent risks involved in the exploration and development of mineral properties and in the mining industry in general, the market for products that use cobalt or bismuth may not grow to the extent anticipated, the future supply of cobalt and bismuth may not be as limited as anticipated, the risk of decreases in the market prices of cobalt, bismuth and other metals to be produced by the NICO Project, discrepancies between actual and estimated Mineral Resources or between actual and estimated metallurgical recoveries, uncertainties associated with estimating Mineral Resources and Reserves and the risk that even if such Mineral Resources prove accurate the risk that such Mineral Resources may not be converted into Mineral Reserves once economic conditions are applied, the Company's production of cobalt, bismuth and other metals may be less than anticipated and other operational and development risks, market risks and regulatory risks. Readers are cautioned to not place undue reliance on forward-looking information because it is possible that predictions, forecasts, projections, and other forms of forward-looking information will not be achieved by the Company. The forward-looking information contained herein is made as of the date hereof and the Company assumes no responsibility to update or revise it to reflect new events or circumstances, except as required by law.
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For further information please contact:
Fortune Minerals Limited
Troy Nazarewicz
Investor Relations Manager
info@fortuneminerals.com
Tel: (519) 858-8188
www.fortuneminerals.com
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NICO Project development advancing with U.S. and Canadian Government financial support
Fortune Minerals Limited (TSX: FT) (OTCQB: FTMDF) (" Fortune " or the " Company ") ( www.fortuneminerals.com ) is pleased to announce that it has retained Worley Canada Services Ltd. (" Worley ") to conduct additional engineering and lead the preparation of an updated Feasibility Study for the NICO Cobalt-Gold-Bismuth-Copper Project in Canada (" NICO Project "). The NICO Project is an advanced Critical Minerals development comprised of a planned mine and concentrator in the Northwest Territories (" NWT ") and a hydrometallurgical recovery plant in Lamont County, Alberta (" Hydrometallurgical Facility ") where concentrates from the mine, and other feed sources, will be processed to value-added products for the energy transition and new technologies. Worley has also been retained to assist with permitting for the Hydrometallurgical Facility, which is planned to be constructed at a brownfield site held under a purchase option arrangement from JFSL Field Services LLC (" JFSL ") (see news release dated, August 19, 2024). Development of the vertically integrated NICO Project would provide a reliable North American supply of cobalt sulphate, gold doré, bismuth ingots, and copper cement produced with supply chain transparency, Canadian Environmental-Social-Governance (" ESG" ) standards, and compliance with the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act (" IRA ").
Fortune was recently awarded ~C$17 million of non-dilutive grants and contribution funding from the U.S. Department of Defense (" DoD "), Natural Resources Canada (" NRCan ") and Alberta Innovates to help finance the work needed to advance the NICO Project to a project finance and construction decision (see news releases dated, May 16, 2024, and December 5, 2023). The funds are supporting metallurgical test work at SGS Canada Inc. (" SGS ") to validate recent process optimizations and flow sheet modifications, update the Feasibility and Front-End Engineering and Design studies for the planned development, permit the Hydrometallurgical Facility, and secure the remaining authorizations, management plans, and satisfy the environmental assessment measures and water license conditions required to construct and operate the NICO mine and concentrator.
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The NICO Project was assessed in a positive Feasibility Study in 2014 by Micon International Limited (" Micon ") but is now out of date. Micon, and P&E Mining Consultants Inc. (" P&E ") who also contributed to the 2014 study, will assist Worley with preparation of the NI 43-101 Technical Report, and the updated Mineral Reserve estimates and Mine Plan for the new Feasibility Study, respectively. Worley's discipline experts have reviewed historical technical data for the NICO Project and have visited the NWT and Alberta sites. The updated Feasibility Study will assess the NICO Project economics at current costs, commodity prices, and currency exchange rates, while also incorporating recent improvements and project optimizations that include:
About the NICO Project
The NICO Project is a vertically integrated Critical Minerals asset that Fortune has expended more than C$138 million to advance from an in-house mineral discovery to a near shovel-ready development. The economics for the project were previously assessed in a positive Feasibility Study, and the Company has secured environmental assessment approval and the major mine permits for the facilities in the NWT.
The NICO Deposit is situated in Tlicho Territory, approximately 160 km northwest of the City of Yellowknife and 50 km north of the community of Whati where the new Tlicho Highway currently terminates. The deposit contains open pit and underground Proven and Probable Mineral Reserves totaling 33.1 million tonnes containing 1.11 million ounces of gold, 82.3 million pounds of cobalt, 102.1 million pounds of bismuth, and 27.2 million pounds of copper that are sufficient to support an approximate 20-year mine life. NICO and the Company's nearby Sue-Dianne copper deposit are IOCG-type mineral deposits with world class global analogues, including the ‘super giant' Olympic Dam Deposit in South Australia. IOCG-type deposits are typically very large copper-gold deposits but are notably also enriched in important technology metals.
The NICO Deposit is planned to be mined primarily by conventional truck and shovel open pit methods with a low waste to ore strip ratio. A portion of the higher-grade Mineral Reserves are planned to be mined by underground open stoping methods to accelerate cash flows during early years of the mine life using the existing ramp and underground workings from previous test mining for access and ore haulage.
Ores from the mine will be processed by crushing, grinding and bulk flotation methods with a low (~4%) mass pull that reduces 4,650 tonnes of daily mill throughput to approximately 180 tonnes of bulk concentrate containing the recoverable metals. The bulk concentrate will be subjected to re-grinding and secondary flotation to produce gold-bearing cobalt and bismuth concentrates for low-cost transportation by truck and rail to Alberta and downstream processing to value-added products.
The Hydrometallurgical Facility is planned to be constructed in Lamont County in Alberta's Industrial Heartland, approximately 30 km north of Edmonton, where the municipal planning approvals are already in place for heavy industry. The cobalt concentrate will be processed in an autoclave using pressure-oxidation to dissolve the metals, followed by sequential neutralization, copper cementation, and solvent extraction purification and crystallization of cobalt sulphate heptahydrate. The bismuth concentrate will be processed by ferric chloride leaching, followed by cementation, and smelting to pour pure ingots. Gold will be recovered by leaching the autoclave residue, followed by carbon elution and smelting to doré bars. Test work is underway at SGS to determine if a saleable gypsum by-product can also be produced during sequential neutralization of the autoclave effluent to increase revenues and reduce the amount of waste that would need to be trucked to an offsite disposal facility.
NICO Commodities
NICO is a polymetallic deposit containing three Critical Minerals (cobalt, bismuth and copper) and more than one million ounces of in-situ gold as a highly liquid and countercyclical co-product to mitigate Critical Mineral price volatility.
Cobalt is a particularly important Critical Mineral due to its expanding consumption in the cathodes of lithium-ion rechargeable batteries used in electric vehicles, portable electronics and stationary storage cells. Cobalt is also used in aerospace superalloys, cutting tools, magnets, catalysts and pigments. There are concerns with the current sources of supply for cobalt because of the geographic concentration of mine production in the politically unstable and ESG-challenged Democratic Republic of the Congo (77% of mine supply) and geopolitical risks associated with China's ownership of most of these mines, 80% of the world's refinery production, and 90% of cobalt chemical supply.
Bismuth is another Critical Mineral with a supply chain controlled by China (~80% of the world production). Bismuth has unique physical and chemical properties leveraged to make automotive glass and steel coatings, paints and pigments, and brake pads. It is also used in low melting temperature and dimensionally stable alloys, fire depressants, and pharmaceuticals. Bismuth consumption is increasing as an environmentally safe and non-toxic replacement for lead in brass, solders, free machining steel and aluminum, galvanizing alloys, glass, ceramic glazes, radiation shielding, ammunition, and fishing weights. Bismuth-tin alloy is used to make environmentally safe plugs to properly seal decommissioned oil and gas wells to prevent greenhouse gas leakage, blowouts and groundwater contamination. Manganese-bismuth magnets are also being commercialized as a potential replacement for Rare Earth Elements in the magnets used in electric vehicle powertrain motors.
Fortune will be pleased to provide periodic updates on the progress of its various metallurgical, engineering and permitting programs.
For more detailed information about the NICO Mineral Reserves and certain technical information in this news release, please refer to the Technical Report on the NICO Project, entitled "Technical Report on the Feasibility Study for the NICO-Gold-Cobalt-Bismuth-Copper Project, Northwest Territories, Canada", dated April 2, 2014 and prepared by Micon International Limited which has been filed on SEDAR and is available under the Company's profile at www.sedar.com .
The disclosure of scientific and technical information contained in this news release have been approved by Robin Goad, M.Sc., P.Geo., President and Chief Executive Officer of Fortune and Alex Mezei, M.Sc., P.Eng. Fortune's Chief Metallurgist, who are "Qualified Persons" under National Instrument 43-101.
About Worley Group
Worley is an international engineering, construction management and environmental services company listed for trading on the Australian Stock Exchange.
About Fortune Minerals:
Fortune is a Canadian mining company focused on developing the NICO Cobalt-Gold-Bismuth-Copper Project in the NWT and Alberta. Fortune also owns the satellite Sue-Dianne Copper-Silver-Gold Deposit located 25 km north of the NICO Deposit and a potential future source of incremental mill feed to extend the life of the NICO concentrator.
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This press release contains forward-looking information and forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. This forward-looking information includes statements with respect to, among other things, the exercise of the option by the Company and the purchase of the JFSL site, the construction of the proposed Hydrometallurgical Facility at the JFSL site, the potential for expansion of the NICO Deposit and the Company's plans to develop the NICO Project. Forward-looking information is based on the opinions and estimates of management as well as certain assumptions at the date the information is given (including, in respect of the forward-looking information contained in this press release, assumptions regarding: the successful completion of the Company's due diligence investigations on the JFSL site, the Company's ability to secure the necessary financing to fund the exercise of the option and complete the purchase of the JFSL site, the Company's ability to complete construction of a NICO Project Hydrometallurgical Facility; the Company's ability to arrange the necessary financing to continue operations and develop the NICO Project; the receipt of all necessary regulatory approvals for the construction and operation of the NICO Project and the related Hydrometallurgical Facility and the timing thereof; growth in the demand for cobalt; the time required to construct the NICO Project; and the economic environment in which the Company will operate in the future, including the price of gold, cobalt and other by-product metals, anticipated costs and the volumes of metals to be produced at the NICO Project). However, such forward-looking information is subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking information. These factors include the risks that the 2021 drill program may not result in a meaningful expansion of the NICO Deposit, the Company may not be able to complete the purchase of the JFSL site and secure a site for the construction of a Hydrometallurgical Facility, the Company may not be able to finance and develop NICO on favourable terms or at all, uncertainties with respect to the receipt or timing of required permits, approvals and agreements for the development of the NICO Project, including the related Hydrometallurgical Facility, the construction of the NICO Project may take longer than anticipated, the Company may not be able to secure offtake agreements for the metals to be produced at the NICO Project, the Sue-Dianne Property may not be developed to the point where it can provide mill feed to the NICO Project, the inherent risks involved in the exploration and development of mineral properties and in the mining industry in general, the market for products that use cobalt or bismuth may not grow to the extent anticipated, the future supply of cobalt and bismuth may not be as limited as anticipated, the risk of decreases in the market prices of cobalt, bismuth and other metals to be produced by the NICO Project, discrepancies between actual and estimated Mineral Resources or between actual and estimated metallurgical recoveries, uncertainties associated with estimating Mineral Resources and Reserves and the risk that even if such Mineral Resources prove accurate the risk that such Mineral Resources may not be converted into Mineral Reserves once economic conditions are applied, the Company's production of cobalt, bismuth and other metals may be less than anticipated and other operational and development risks, market risks and regulatory risks. Readers are cautioned to not place undue reliance on forward-looking information because it is possible that predictions, forecasts, projections and other forms of forward-looking information will not be achieved by the Company. The forward-looking information contained herein is made as of the date hereof and the Company assumes no responsibility to update or revise it to reflect new events or circumstances, except as required by law.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20241007214068/en/
For further information please contact:
Fortune Minerals Limited
Troy Nazarewicz
Investor Relations Manager
info@fortuneminerals.com
Tel: (519) 858-8188
www.fortuneminerals.com
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Alex Mezei retained as Chief Metallurgist to supervise test work and process engineering
Fortune Minerals Limited (TSX: FT) (OTCQB: FTMDF) (" Fortune " or the " Company ") ( www.fortuneminerals.com ) is pleased to announce that it has entered into a new option agreement with JFSL Field Services ULC (" JFSL ") to purchase the brownfield industrial site in Lamont County, Alberta where it plans to construct its hydrometallurgical refinery (" Alberta Refinery "). The Alberta Refinery would process metal concentrates from Fortune's planned NICO cobalt-gold-bismuth-copper mine and concentrator in the Northwest Territories (" NWT ") (collectively, the " NICO Project ") and provide a reliable domestic supply of Critical Minerals for the energy transition and other new technologies. The Alberta Refinery will produce cobalt sulphate for the North American lithium-ion battery industry, bismuth ingots (12% of global reserves) and copper cement - with more than one million ounces of in-situ gold as a countercyclical and highly liquid co-product. Fortune also has a process collaboration with Rio Tinto examining the feasibility of processing materials produced from Kennecott Smelter wastes in Utah at the Alberta Refinery to increase cobalt and bismuth production.
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Pursuant to the new option agreement, Fortune can acquire the Lamont County site from JFSL for C$6,000,000 prior to the end of November 2025, provided it makes monthly option payments of C$100,000. The monthly option payments and the C$1,437,500 previously paid by Fortune to JFSL, are deductible from the purchase price. JFSL will be entitled to list the Lamont County property for sale during the option period, subject to Fortune's 90-day right of first refusal to match any third-party offer. JFSL will also be entitled to continue using the Lamont County property and facilities for the eighteen months following a sale to Fortune.
JFSL is a subsidiary of Worley Group (" Worley "), an international engineering, construction management and environmental services company listed for trading on the Australian Stock Exchange. Worley will be the preferred contractor for environmental, engineering, procurement, fabrication and construction work for the Alberta Refinery.
The JFSL site is comprised of 76.78 acres of lands adjacent to the Canadian National Railway in Alberta's Industrial Heartland, an association of five municipalities northeast of Edmonton with planning approvals and tax incentives designed to attract heavy industry. The JFSL site is a former steel fabrication plant with more than 42,000 square feet of serviced shops and buildings situated near the services, sources of reagents, and commutable skilled worker pool already in place for the Alberta petrochemicals industry. These are expected to materially reduce capital and operating costs for the Alberta Refinery during construction and operations.
Fortune is also pleased to announce that Alex Mezei, M.Sc. P.Eng., has joined the Company as Chief Metallurgist. Mr Mezei will supervise the test work and process and design engineering for the NICO Project, which the Company is advancing with the recently announced government contribution funding totalling approximately C$17 million (see news releases dated May 16, 2024 and December 5, 2023). Mr. Mezei is a Chemical Engineer with a more than forty years of diverse experience in international process engineering, test and pilot work, and economic assessments for a broad range of commodities around the world. This includes 22 years at SGS Mineral Services (" SGS ") in Lakefield, Ontario where he was Director, Engineering Technology Services, Metallurgical Operations, and Senior Metallurgist and notably, where he supervised the hydrometallurgical work for the NICO Project. Prior to SGS, Alex worked for Asea Brown Boveri as an instrumentation engineer, as a process research scientist at the Institute for Technological Engineering for Inorganic Chemistry and Nonferrous Metals in Romania, and as a production engineer at the Phoenix Metallurgical-Chemical Plant in Baia-Mare, Romania. Since retiring from SGS in 2016, Alex has worked as an Independent Consulting Metallurgist and Director of Metallurgy for Planetary Technologies.
For more detailed information about the NICO Mineral Reserves and certain technical information in this news release, please refer to the Technical Report on the NICO Project, entitled "Technical Report on the Feasibility Study for the NICO-Gold-Cobalt-Bismuth-Copper Project, Northwest Territories, Canada", dated April 2, 2014 and prepared by Micon International Limited which has been filed on SEDAR and is available under the Company's profile at www.sedar.com .
The disclosure of scientific and technical information contained in this news release has been approved by Robin Goad, M.Sc., P.Geo., President and Chief Executive Officer of Fortune, who is a "Qualified Person" under National Instrument 43-101.
About Fortune Minerals:
Fortune is a Canadian mining company focused on developing the NICO Cobalt-Gold-Bismuth-Copper Project in the NWT and Alberta. Fortune also owns the satellite Sue-Dianne Copper-Silver-Gold Deposit located 25 km north of the NICO Deposit and is a potential future source of incremental mill feed to extend the life of the NICO mill and concentrator.
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This press release contains forward-looking information and forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. This forward-looking information includes statements with respect to, among other things, the exercise of the option by the Company and the purchase of the JFSL site, the construction of the proposed hydrometallurgical refinery at the JFSL site, the potential for expansion of the NICO Deposit and the Company's plans to develop the NICO Project. Forward-looking information is based on the opinions and estimates of management as well as certain assumptions at the date the information is given (including, in respect of the forward-looking information contained in this press release, assumptions regarding: the successful completion of the Company's due diligence investigations on the JFSL site, the Company's ability to secure the necessary financing to fund the exercise of the option and complete the purchase of the JFSL site, the Company's ability to complete construction of a NICO Project refinery; the Company's ability to arrange the necessary financing to continue operations and develop the NICO Project; the receipt of all necessary regulatory approvals for the construction and operation of the NICO Project and the related hydrometallurgical refinery and the timing thereof; growth in the demand for cobalt; the time required to construct the NICO Project; and the economic environment in which the Company will operate in the future, including the price of gold, cobalt and other by-product metals, anticipated costs and the volumes of metals to be produced at the NICO Project). However, such forward-looking information is subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking information. These factors include the risks that the 2021 drill program may not result in a meaningful expansion of the NICO Deposit, the Company may not be able to complete the purchase of the JFSL site and secure a site for the construction of a refinery, the Company may not be able to finance and develop NICO on favourable terms or at all, uncertainties with respect to the receipt or timing of required permits, approvals and agreements for the development of the NICO Project, including the related hydrometallurgical refinery, the construction of the NICO Project may take longer than anticipated, the Company may not be able to secure offtake agreements for the metals to be produced at the NICO Project, the Sue-Dianne Property may not be developed to the point where it can provide mill feed to the NICO Project, the inherent risks involved in the exploration and development of mineral properties and in the mining industry in general, the market for products that use cobalt or bismuth may not grow to the extent anticipated, the future supply of cobalt and bismuth may not be as limited as anticipated, the risk of decreases in the market prices of cobalt, bismuth and other metals to be produced by the NICO Project, discrepancies between actual and estimated Mineral Resources or between actual and estimated metallurgical recoveries, uncertainties associated with estimating Mineral Resources and Reserves and the risk that even if such Mineral Resources prove accurate the risk that such Mineral Resources may not be converted into Mineral Reserves once economic conditions are applied, the Company's production of cobalt, bismuth and other metals may be less than anticipated and other operational and development risks, market risks and regulatory risks. Readers are cautioned to not place undue reliance on forward-looking information because it is possible that predictions, forecasts, projections and other forms of forward-looking information will not be achieved by the Company. The forward-looking information contained herein is made as of the date hereof and the Company assumes no responsibility to update or revise it to reflect new events or circumstances, except as required by law.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240819194865/en/
For further information please contact:
Fortune Minerals Limited
Troy Nazarewicz
Investor Relations Manager
info@fortuneminerals.com
Tel: (519) 858-8188
www.fortuneminerals.com
News Provided by Business Wire via QuoteMedia
After spending much of the last two years trending downwards, the cobalt price is spiking in 2025.
About 75 percent of global cobalt output comes from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). While electric vehicle (EV) demand has remained positive, cobalt oversupply has weighed on markets and hurt efforts to build supply chains outside of the DRC.
However, the country banned exports of cobalt in February in an effort to increase the metal's falling price. By mid-March, cobalt had spiked to US$36,170 per tonne, up more than 65 percent from its record-low price of US$21,550 hit in late January.
Increasing electric vehicle (EV) and lithium-ion battery demand is expected to be supportive for key battery raw materials in the coming years. This means that as demand for EVs increases, so too will demand for cobalt — and, as one of the top four cobalt-producing countries in the world, Australia finds itself in a position to capitalise on this demand.
Though it is only responsible for less than 2 percent of the world’s cobalt production, Australia holds about 15.5 percent of global reserves. Moreover, while the DRC’s labour and mining practices have often been labeled unethical and unsustainable, Australian miners are focused on safer, more environmentally friendly practices.
For investors looking to get exposure to the Australian cobalt market, these ASX cobalt stocks may be a good place to start.
Read on for a look at the biggest cobalt stocks on the ASX by market cap. All market cap and share price data was obtained on April 9, 2025, using TradingView's stock screener.
Market cap: AU$75.88 million
Share price: AU$0.365
Ardea Resources' primary focus is developing its wholly owned Kalgoorlie nickel project, which the company says “hosts the largest nickel-cobalt resource in the developed world.”
Located in Western Australia, the project includes the Goongarrie Hub deposit.
A 2023 prefeasibility study shows that the Goongarrie Hub has an ore reserve of 194.1 million tonnes at 0.05 percent cobalt and 0.7 percent nickel, resulting in 99,000 tonnes of contained cobalt and 1.36 million tonnes of contained nickel.
The study indicates that this resource would support an open-pit mining operation with a 40 year mine life and annual output of 2,000 tonnes of cobalt and 30,000 tonnes of nickel.
Ardea is now working on a definitive feasibility study (DFS) with funding from its strategic partners, Sumitomo Metal Mining Co. (TSE:5713) and Mitsubishi (TSE:8058).
The DFS is slated for completion in the second half of 2025.
Market cap: AU$21.97 million
Share price: AU$0.052
Cobalt Blue Holdings focuses solely on cobalt and is enthusiastic about the metal’s ethical and environmental potential within the renewable energy market. The company owns the New South Wales-based Broken Hill project, a cobalt asset that it says adheres to Australian labour and sustainability standards. It is also planning the Kwinana cobalt-nickel refinery.
In November 2023, Cobalt Blue released the results of its cobalt-nickel refinery study. During Stage 1, the proposed refinery will process third-party feedstock and will have a capacity of 3,000 tonnes of cobalt sulphate per year, along with 1,000 tonnes of nickel sulphate annually. Stage 2 will have the option to include potential feedstock from Broken Hill. The study projects stable margins throughout potential cobalt price fluctuations.
The company's potential partner for the refinery is Iwatani (TSE:8088), a battery minerals trader. According to Cobalt Blue, if everything goes through as planned, the refinery will be constructed on Iwatani's property in Western Australia's Kwinana industrial area.
Cobalt Blue provided an update on the refinery in late March 2025, reporting that 80 percent of the detailed plant engineering is completed and the refinery is advancing through the final stages to support a final investment decision. The two companies executed a pre-final investment decision consortium deed on April 11, and stated a decision is expected by December 31.
Market cap: AU$18.92 million
Share price: AU$0.071
Coda Minerals is advancing its Elizabeth Creek copper-cobalt-silver project located in the Olympic Copper Province of South Australia.
Coda completed an updated scoping study on the project in December 2024, which demonstrated robust economics with a 16 year mine life and the potential for annual production of about 26,700 tonnes of copper and 1,300 tonnes of cobalt at steady state production levels.
The mine plan includes three open-pit mines, one underground mine and a hydrometallurgical processing plant. During Phase 1 of planned production, Coda is looking to produce copper-cobalt concentrate over a one year period to generate cash-flow.
Once in Phase 2, the hydrometallurgical plant is intended to produce higher value saleable end-products such as copper cathode and battery-grade cobalt sulphate.
In March 2025, Coda announced the completion of a four-hole drill program on Elizabeth Creek's Emmie East copper-cobalt prospect located immediately east and to the south-east of the underground Emmie Bluff deposit. While assays are still pending as of April 9, Coda believes results have the potential to identify an extension of Emmie Bluff.
Market cap: AU$10.43 million
Share price: AU$0.145
Norway-focused Kuniko is targeting three metals key for the EV industry: cobalt, nickel and copper.
The majority of its assets are in Norway, including its Skuterud cobalt project, Undal-Nyberget copper project and Ringerike battery metals project. Ringerike hosts the past-producing Ertelien nickel-copper-cobalt target.
In 2023, Kuniko received an investment of AU$7.8 million by Stellantis (NYSE:STLA), which acquired a 19.99 percent interest in Kuniko and secured a 35 percent offtake for future production of nickel and cobalt sulphate from Kuniko's Norwegian projects for nine years.
Kuniko undertook a second phase expansion drill program over the summer of 2024 at Ertelien. “Our aim is to demonstrate progress towards developing a Voisey Bay style resource as a potential new source of critical battery metals for European industries,” Kuniko CEO Antony Beckmand stated.
In December 2024, the company released an updated resource estimate for Ertelien that included the results from that program.
The new resource totals 40 million tonnes at an average grade of 0.25 percent nickel equivalent, made up of 22 million tonnes of indicated resources at 0.26 percent nickel equivalent and 18 million tonnes of inferred resources at 0.25 percent.
Overall, the deposit contains 5,600 tonnes of cobalt, 71,000 tonnes of nickel and 49,000 tonnes of copper.
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Securities Disclosure: I, Melissa Pistilli, currently hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
Cobalt metal prices fell to a nine year low in February after another year of oversupply, but rebounded sharply after the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) instituted a four month export pause for the critical metal.
After starting the year at US$24,495 per metric ton, cobalt ended the three month period at US$34,040.40, a strong 39 percent increase from January’s value. The price spread between cobalt’s first quarter low of US$21,467.70 on January 29 and its Q1 high of US$36,262 on March 17 is even more impressive at 69 percent.
The drop to US$21,467.70 marked the battery metal's lowest level since February 2016.
Cobalt's Q1 price activity comes after a persistent glut in the market prevented prices from gaining in 2024, and this oversupply continued to weigh the market down for the first 45 days of 2025.
A February 22 announcement that DRC would curtail cobalt shipments until the end of June provided much-needed tailwinds for prices, propelling them to highs last seen in 2023. Now sitting at the US$33,660.80 level, questions abound about what will happen to cobalt prices and the supply landscape during the rest of the year.
Cobalt supply has ballooned over the last five years, with annual mine supply of the critical metal growing from 140,000 metric tons in 2020 to 290,000 metric tons in 2024. This 107 percent increase has far outpaced rising demand from the electric vehicle (EV) sector and other end-use segments, leading to a massive oversupply.
In mid-February, Rob Searle, battery raw materials analyst at Fastmarkets, wrote that while sector participants were waiting to see whether demand would pick up after the Lunar New Year, his firm wasn't overly optimistic on prices.
"At this stage we are not expecting a significant price correction given the oversupplied nature of the market from intermediates to cobalt metal," he explained, adding that cobalt could be due for "another bearish year."
Searle also noted that producer CMOC’s (OTC Pink:CMCLF,SHA:603993) 2025 guidance is pegged at 100,000 to 120,000 metric tons, on par with the 114,000 metric tons it produced in 2024.
Looking at the US, he said while potential tariffs on Canadian cobalt metal could create short-term tightness for "certain Western brands," Fastmarkets wasn't looking for a strong 2025 recovery in standard-grade cobalt metal pricing.
In response to the free-falling cobalt metal price, the DRC — the world’s leading cobalt-producing country by far — enacted a four month cobalt export suspension on February 24. The move quickly added tailwinds to cobalt metal prices, which as mentioned rose to a two year high of US$36,262 on March 17.
“The cobalt market has been quiet and stagnant for some time as production has far outstripped demand in the last 18 months. This was the first sign of life and took nearly all parties by surprise … a cut of supply this large will likely lead to a significant price correction in the coming months,” Searle noted in a March 14 release.
“Post-June, when the ban is supposed to lift, the potential for export quotas going forward could support cobalt hydroxide and metal prices for the remainder of 2025 and into 2026.”
While companies are unable to ship cobalt hydroxide from the DRC, the suspension does not prevent the production and stockpiling of the critical material. Officials plan to review the embargo after three months.
The battery sector remains the largest cobalt end-use segment, representing approximately 70 percent of demand. This includes batteries in EVs, consumer goods and energy storage systems.
Super alloys, tooling and chemicals and catalysts account for the majority of the remaining 30 percent, with a small fraction also being used in magnets, medical implants and additive manufacturing (3D printing).
As Adam Webb, head of battery raw materials at Benchmark Mineral Intelligence, explained at the Toronto-based Benchmark Summit in March, positive forecasts and significant growth in the EV market in 2020 and 2021 led to a widespread demand uptick for battery raw materials, including cobalt.
“That led to markets going into deficit, prices rising, and that incentivized new production to come online,” he said.
“But bringing on a new mine is not like turning on a tap — it takes time. So that new supply that was incentivized eventually came online a couple of years later, at the same time there’s been a slowdown in the growth of that demand, and that's led to all of these markets becoming oversupplied and weighing on prices," Webb added.
Although global EV sales have been lower than projected, the sector has registered widespread growth, setting a sales record in 2024 of 17.1 million EVs sold, representing a 25 percent year-on-year increase.
Regionally, China dominated with 40 percent growth, capped by a historic December that saw 1.3 million EVs sold, the highest monthly volume ever recorded, according to RhoMotion. The US posted a modest 9 percent uptick, fueled by federal tax credits that are now threatened by potential Trump administration rollbacks; meanwhile, Europe lagged with a 3 percent decline as automakers and consumers braced for tougher 2025 emissions standards.
“What is clear is that Government carrots and sticks are working,” Rho Motion data manager Charles Lester said in a January report. He explained that subsidies, incentives and mandates in the UK and North America supported growth.
“Meanwhile the removal of subsidies in Germany had a devastating impact on the whole European market, if the US follows suit, we may see the same there,” Lester added.
While full Q1 data for EV sales is yet to be available, January brought sales of 1.3 million units, an 18 percent year-on-year increase. The steady increase has prompted Rho Motion to forecast full-year sales exceeding 20 million units.
While EV sales continue to rise, cobalt’s future demand outlook is slightly obscured. The opacity is due to its growing substitution, with some battery chemistries using smaller amounts or no cobalt at all.
Although lithium nickel manganese cobalt oxide (NMC) batteries remain the preferred chemistry for EV batteries, lithium iron phosphate (LFP) chemistries have been increasing their market share. Accounting for 6 percent of the battery sector in 2020, LFPs now comprise as much as 34 percent of the market.
Even with low prices making cobalt affordable, the market is fraught with issues that make substitution appealing.
Human rights abuses, including child labor and unsafe work conditions in the DRC, have long plagued the country’s cobalt sector. These ethical concerns have prompted companies to seek more sustainable and humane alternatives.
Concentration of production has also created instability in the cobalt supply chain. The DRC's dominance in cobalt production, accounting for over 60 percent of global supply, exposes manufacturers to geopolitical and supply risks.
To combat these issues, researchers and companies are developing cobalt-free battery technologies, such as lithium-ion batteries using nickel-rich cathodes, which perform comparably to traditional cobalt-based batteries.
“In 2024, the volume of cobalt deployed per vehicle declined by 25 percent year on year,” as per Fastmarkets.
While demand for cobalt will continue due to the expansion of the EV market, these ethical, economic and supply chain concerns are driving the industry toward alternative battery chemistries with reduced or eliminated cobalt content.
In light of these factors, Benchmark’s Webb expects the cobalt sector's compound annual growth rate to be slightly lower than that of other battery raw materials, coming in at 7 percent over the next decade.
“That's simply because cobalt is not used in every single lithium ion battery, whereas lithium — the clue is in the name — it is,” said Webb.
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Securities Disclosure: I, Georgia Williams, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
Dear Valued Shareholders, Partners and Friends. Electric Royalties Ltd. (TSXV:ELEC)(OTCQB:ELECF) ("Electric Royalties" or the "Company") was founded on a simple yet powerful premise: to build a portfolio of royalties on critical metals that are essential to the clean energy transition. In the past five years, we have outperformed our original growth expectations by expanding our portfolio from 11 royalties to 43, and acquired 17 lithium properties that are optioned out with potential to become future cash-flowing royalties.
And yet, despite this ~290% increase in our portfolio size, our stock trades well below its value when we went public. Let me be clear-the value of the Electric Royalties portfolio is not reflected in our market capitalization. The market does not yet recognize this valuation gap.
A Portfolio Packed with Value
Our asset base is diversified across metals critical to the clean energy revolution. To underscore the potential intrinsic value of our portfolio, I would like to recap some of our cornerstone royalties and the progress they have enjoyed since we acquired them.
We acquired a cash flowing 0.75% Gross Revenue Royalty on the producing Punitaqui copper-gold mine in Chile in December 2024. The operator is currently focused on ramping up production to achieve 19 to 23 million pounds of copper annually, and near-mine exploration to extend mine life beyond the current seven years1.
The Battery Hill Manganese Project has seen excellent progress since we acquired our royalty in June 2020. Battery Hill is one of the largest carbonate manganese deposits in North America and has the potential to be a substantial contributor to the supply chain of high-purity manganese for the EV industry2. The project has moved smartly through establishing mineral resources, completing a Preliminary Economic Assessment( PEA) and now has a Pre-Feasibility Study (PFS) underway.
The PEA showcases a base case 47-year mine life with average annual revenues of approximately US$177 million3. Once Battery Hill is in production, Electric Royalties is entitled to 2% of annual revenues from the project arising from our 2% Gross Metal Royalty. We are not the only ones recognizing the potential at Battery Hill, as mining luminary Eric Sprott recently threw his support behind the project, providing funding to the operator, Manganese X, to produce the PFS (which is expected to be completed this year).
The PEA is preliminary in nature; it includes Inferred Mineral Resources that are considered too speculative geologically to have the economic considerations applied to them that would enable them to be categorized as Mineral Reserves, and there is no certainty that the projections in the PEA will be realized.
The Mont Sorcier Iron-Vanadium deposit is a very exciting development project in Canada. This project has attractive economics, in part due to the vanadium content on which Electric Royalties holds a 1% Gross Metal Royalty. Not only has considerable progress been made on the technical front with a funded Feasibility Study underway, but corporately a partnership has been established with Glencore, and there are clear indications of project financing for US$420 million from a UK export-import bank.
The PEA has a mine life of 21 years, a planned annual production rate of five million tonnes, and a US$15 per tonne vanadium credit4.
The PEA is preliminary in nature and includes Mineral Resources that are not Mineral Reserves and do not have demonstrated economic viability. There is no certainty that the projections in the PEA will be realized.
The Bissett Creek Graphite Project, located in Northern Ontario, Canada, is operated by Northern Graphite, one of the very few graphite producers outside of China. Our 1.5% Gross Revenue Royalty was the first royalty financing on an advanced graphite project. Northern Graphite has stated its goal to make Bissett Creek its flagship asset. The PEA calls for production of 33,183 tonnes per year5, and management has recently stated that they aim to ultimately produce up to 100,000 tonnes per year from Bissett Creek6 as part of their battery manufacturing JV intended to be set up in Ontario.
We acquired the 1.5% Net Smelter Royalty on Seymour Lake, located in Northern Ontario, Canada, for consideration of approximately C$1 million, which was paid in Electric Royalties shares in 2021. Since that time, the current operator has raised C$70 million for development activities, an updated mineral resource estimate and the completion of a PEA and is now preparing a Feasibility Study. The project has also benefited from strong federal government support, having received a C$100 million Letter of Intent for project financing with the intent of progressing the project towards becoming the first lithium mine to enter production in Ontario. Due to technical disclosure rules, I'm not able to comment on the project's planned production profile as the operator, Green Technology Metals, is listed on the ASX; however, I encourage people to visit their corporate website for more information.
Zonia is a copper oxide development project located in Arizona - a jurisdiction ranked by the Fraser Institute as seventh best of 86 mining jurisdictions assessed for Investment Attractiveness in 2023. Since we acquired our 0.5% Gross Revenue Royalty in March 2022, a resource update was completed resulting in the resource doubling from around 500 million pounds to close to 1 billion pounds of contained copper in the ground7. As a result, we expect that the upcoming Feasibility Study will have a larger production profile than the PEA. Due to technical disclosure rules, I am no longer able to publicly reference the PEA as it has been superseded by the technical report on the updated mineral resource estimate; however, a feasibility study is currently underway and due out in the near future. In the past few weeks, World Copper received a Letter of Intent for the acquisition of Zonia from World Copper with the intent of fast tracking the project to production.
The Middle Tennessee Zinc Mine (MTM) has been a swing producer of zinc for over 50 years and produced around 2 billion pounds of the metal during that time. Germanium and gallium are both important by-products at MTM and both have become of increasing strategic importance since China's ban on their export in 2024. Due to this renewed importance, and the recent uptick in zinc prices, we believe there is urgent incentive to get the currently idled mine back into production in the USA.
We acquired our 2.5% Net Smelter Royalty on the Graphmada Graphite Mine in Madagascar for shares in 2021. Although this isn't a significant long-term value driver for Electric Royalties due to a cumulative cap on revenues of A$5 million and an expiry date of January 1, 2029, it could have a large impact on immediate cash flows once the operator secures a partner to finance a return to production. Graphmada was previously in production for 18 months and consistently obtained product qualification with offtakers but was shut down due to Covid restrictions in the country. Management of the project is seeking project financing to re-start the mine.
We acquired our 1.5% Gross Revenue Royalty on the Penouta Tin Mine in Spain in 2023. After several quarters of cash flow to Electric Royalties, we were disappointed to learn of the Spanish court's revocation of Strategic Minerals' permit at the end of 2023. This came at a time when Penouta, Europe's only producing tin mine, was steadily ramping up production in an environment of steadily increasing tin prices. The idling of mine operations triggered a voluntary restructuring in November 2024. Management is working towards a positive resolution to the financial restructuring and permitting in the near future. With the recent stoppage of production at Alphamin's operations in the DRC due to regional conflict, tin prices have significantly increased8 and it would be welcome news indeed to have a successful permitting resolution at Penouta.
Sayona Mining raised over A$400 million to develop the North American Lithium Hub (NAL) in Northern Quebec, Canada. NAL is an integrated operation and went into production in March 2023. This is tremendous news for our 0.5% Gross Metal Royalty on part of the Authier lithium deposit, which we acquired in June 2020, in that Authier is a key part of that operation. In the NAL Feasibility Study, it is stated that Authier is planned to supply 1/3 of the feed to the NAL plant. The Authier royalty is the only royalty in our portfolio that doesn't cover the entire property, so exact royalty revenues annually are more difficult to estimate.
Some honorable mentions from the remaining 33 royalties and other assets in the portfolio:
Many of these projects are advancing towards production, with 4 royalties with potential to re-enter or enter production over the next twelve months, and feasibility studies expected on another 5 royalties over the same time period. Over C$700 million has been raised by operators to advance the projects in our royalty portfolio, and all of that positive development costs Electric Royalties nothing, nor will the remaining paths to cash flow on each of our 43 royalties.
Assets Across Secure Jurisdictions
We have carefully built a portfolio of royalties on assets in North America, Europe, and Australia-regions known for their stability, infrastructure, and commitment to responsible resource development. As global markets increasingly prioritize security of supply, particularly for critical minerals, we believe our focus on these stable, mining-friendly jurisdictions positions us ahead of the curve. Our royalties are on rapidly developing assets, with the potential to ensure long-term value for our shareholders.
The Benefits of a Royalty Model vs. Traditional Mining Companies
Unlike traditional mining companies, Electric Royalties carries minimal operational risk. We don't bear the cost of mine construction, permitting, or operational challenges. Our business model allows us to benefit from rising commodity prices, increased production, and mine expansions-all without the need for additional capital outlay from us. This low-risk, high-upside structure makes royalty companies one of the most resilient business models in the resource sector.
A Discussion of Our Valuation
The disconnect between our share price and our view of potential true value is stark. While the market may not yet appreciate what we have built, insiders certainly do. I, along with my extended family, own approximately 18% of the company. Stefan Gleason, a noteworthy investor and business owner in the resource sector, owns approximately 28%, while Globex Mining owns approximately 11%. The majority of the remaining shares are largely held by high-net-worth individuals who recognize the long-term potential of our portfolio. This concentrated, committed shareholder base speaks volumes about the belief in Electric Royalties' future success. However, management believes that the following factors are affecting current share valuation:
These liquidated shares have mostly been acquired by my extended family or Mr. Gleason via open market purchases. Hence Mr. Gleason, my family, and Globex Mining now own roughly 57% of the stock outstanding. We are pleased that the stock consolidation has resulted in supportive, long-term shareholders. Additionally, about 80% of our recent financing was filled by management's president's list - another vote of confidence by people closely following our story.
While we have what we believe to be a well positioned lithium royalty portfolio, we are quite diversified across the other eight clean energy metals and are planning to pursue more copper, tin, and zinc acquisitions in 2025 with a particular focus on copper assets. And while lithium prices are down, they are still double what they were when we made our first investments into our most advanced lithium assets, and copper and tin prices are currently performing well.
Roadmap for 2025: Growth, M&A, and a Transformative Transaction
We have a clear roadmap for the year ahead. Our 2025 plans include pursuing:
We are not sitting idle waiting for recognition. We continue to add value through acquisitions and strategic partnerships, ensuring we hold a dominant position in the clean energy metals space. We remain steadfast in our mission, and we believe that over time, fundamentals will win out.
Immediate Revenue Growth Potential
With the most recent acquisition of a new gross revenue royalty on the producing Punitaqui copper-gold mine in Chile, along with option payment revenues from our optioned lithium properties in Ontario, and advanced royalty payments on Bissett Creek, Electric Royalties has four royalties with the potential to either recommence production or enter production for the first time in 2025 including:
Development Growth Catalysts
A large portion of the value in our portfolio is derived from our near-term development royalty assets. There are exciting developments underway on assets the company acquired two to four years ago that have made significant strides towards being construction ready and ultimately closer to production. This year we are expecting major milestones for:
There are sure to be additional developments across the rest of the portfolio and management intends to find accretive transactions that will enhance the Company's value. The portfolio itself has many positive catalysts coming this year and is strategically positioned in clean energy metals projects that can become domestic sources of supply for North America, Europe and Australia.
Final Thoughts
I'd like to thank the board and team of Electric Royalties for your steadfast support while we navigated our wins and challenges during the past five years. As a CEO who founded the company and is personally invested, it pains me to see our valuation where it is today. We are committed to changing that this year by working hard to unlock the value in our portfolio.
To the shareholders who have been on this journey with us and recognize our value proposition, we thank you for your confidence. We believe our shareholders will ultimately be rewarded as our plans for 2025 and beyond come to fruition and market recognition increases.
Thank you for all your support.
Sincerely,
Brendan Yurik
Founder & CEO
Electric Royalties Ltd.
David Gaunt, P.Geo., a qualified person who is not independent of Electric Royalties, has reviewed and approved the technical information in this release.
About Electric Royalties Ltd.
Electric Royalties is a royalty company established to take advantage of the demand for a wide range of commodities (lithium, vanadium, manganese, tin, graphite, cobalt, nickel, zinc and copper) that will benefit from the drive toward electrification of a variety of consumer products: cars, rechargeable batteries, large scale energy storage, renewable energy generation and other applications.
Electric vehicle sales, battery production capacity and renewable energy generation are slated to increase significantly over the next several years and with it, the demand for these targeted commodities. This creates a unique opportunity to invest in and acquire royalties over the mines and projects that will supply the materials needed to fuel the electric revolution.
Electric Royalties has a growing portfolio of 43 royalties in lithium, vanadium, manganese, tin, graphite, cobalt, nickel, zinc and copper across the world. The Company is focused predominantly on acquiring royalties on advanced stage and operating projects to build a diversified portfolio located in jurisdictions with low geopolitical risk, which offers investors exposure to the clean energy transition via the underlying commodities required to rebuild the global infrastructure over the next several decades toward a decarbonized global economy.
For further information, please contact:
Brendan Yurik
CEO, Electric Royalties Ltd.
Phone: (604) 364‐3540
Email: Brendan.yurik@electricroyalties.com
https://www.electricroyalties.com/
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange), nor any other regulatory body or securities exchange platform, accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Cautionary Statements Regarding Forward-Looking Information and Other Company Information
This letter includes forward-looking information and forward-looking statements (collectively, "forward-looking information") with respect to the Company within the meaning of Canadian securities laws. This letter includes information regarding other companies and projects owned by such other companies in which the Company holds a royalty interest, based on previously disclosed public information disclosed by those companies and the Company is not responsible for the accuracy of that information, and that all information provided herein is subject to this Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Information and Other Company Information.Forward-looking information is typically identified by words such as: believe, expect, anticipate, intend, estimate, postulate and similar expressions, or are those, which, by their nature, refer to future events. This information represents predictions and actual events or results may differ materially. Forward-looking information may relate to the Company's future outlook and anticipated events and may include statements regarding the financial results, future financial position, expected growth of cash flows, business strategy, budgets, projected costs, projected capital expenditures, taxes, plans, objectives, industry trends and growth opportunities of the Company and the projects in which it holds royalty interests.
While management considers these assumptions to be reasonable, based on information available, they may prove to be incorrect. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company or these projects to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. These risks, uncertainties and other factors include, but are not limited to risks associated with general economic conditions; adverse industry events; marketing costs; loss of markets; future legislative and regulatory developments involving the renewable energy industry; inability to access sufficient capital from internal and external sources, and/or inability to access sufficient capital on favourable terms; the mining industry generally, recent market volatility, income tax and regulatory matters; the ability of the Company or the owners of these projects to implement their business strategies including expansion plans; competition; currency and interest rate fluctuations, and the other risks.
The reader is referred to the Company's most recent filings on SEDAR+ as well as other information filed with the OTC Markets for a more complete discussion of all applicable risk factors and their potential effects, copies of which may be accessed through the Company's profile page at sedarplus.ca and at otcmarkets.com.
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Electra Battery Materials (TSXV:ELBM,NASDAQ:ELBM) announced on March 21 that it has received a letter of intent from the Canadian government for C$20 million in proposed funding.
The money would support the construction and commissioning of North America’s first battery-grade cobalt refinery, a critical step toward strengthening the region’s electric vehicle (EV) supply chain.
The refinery, located in Temiskaming Shores, Ontario, is set to produce 6,500 metric tons of cobalt sulfate annually, enabling domestic production of up to 1 million EVs per year. According to Electra, it would be a key step in reducing North America's dependence on China, which currently refines approximately 90 percent of the world’s cobalt.
“We are grateful to be working with the Government of Canada,” said CEO Trent Mell. “Today’s announcement underscores their commitment to advancing North American energy security and critical mineral independence.”
Mell further noted that the company has already secured commitments from major buyers, with LG Energy Solution (KRX:373220) set to purchase up to 80 percent of the refinery’s future output.
“Buyer interest for the remainder far exceeds our capacity,” he added.
Anita Anand likewise emphasized the strategic importance of domestic mineral processing.
“Canada has everything it takes to be a leading force in critical minerals processing, manufacturing, and recycling. Critical minerals are essential to power a low-carbon economy,” said Canada’s minister of innovation, science and industry.
With necessary permits in place, infrastructure largely developed and advanced negotiations with the government ongoing, Electra aims to finalize discussions quickly and resume construction.
The non-binding letter of intent, which was agreed to on January 27, signals the government’s intent to work toward a final agreement, but does not yet guarantee funding. If finalized, the investment would accelerate construction and commissioning of the refinery, which is projected to have the lowest carbon footprint of any facility of its kind worldwide.
Beyond cobalt refining, Electra is exploring expansion into other battery materials.
In 2023, the company successfully operated a battery recycling demonstration plant at its Temiskaming Shores complex, recovering lithium, nickel, cobalt and other critical minerals from spent batteries.
This year, Electra commenced a feasibility study for a battery recycling refinery adjacent to its cobalt refinery. It is considering a second cobalt sulfate facility in Bécancour, Québec, as well as a North American nickel sulfate plant.
“Our Temiskaming Shores refinery complex is the first step in Electra’s vision,” noted Mell.
“We are building the right assets at the right time and are extremely well-positioned to leverage the refinery complex to grow along with the EV and battery markets," emphasizing the need for secure sources of battery materials.
Electra’s refinery will be one of the few cobalt suppliers outside of China that is free from Foreign Entity of Concern involvement, reinforcing supply chain resilience for North American automakers.
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Securities Disclosure: I, Giann Liguid, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
Cobalt prices have been in a steady state of decline for much of the past few years as the market has remained constrained by excess supply and eroding demand.
The sluggish market conditions were attributed to reduced demand from the battery sector and oversupply of material. As a result, prices remained under pressure, with limited signs of improvement expected in the near term.
Cobalt prices continued to face many headwinds at the beginning of 2025. The multi-year supply glut and the growing transition to cobalt-free electric vehicle battery chemistries pulled the value of the battery metal down to US$21,550 per metric ton on February 10, a low not seen for more than a decade.
However, the world's leading cobalt producing country, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) placed a four-month ban on cobalt exports on February 22 in an effort to boost prices. As the DRC is responsible for more than 70 percent of global cobalt production, this of course sent prices for the battery metal soaring to a yearly high of US$36,170 per metric ton as of March 17.
“Market views on the ban were mixed, with some participants expecting prices to continue increasing owing to tighter cobalt supply. But others were less concerned, noting that there was abundant cobalt material outside of the DRC,” a March report from Argus Media states.
As the DRC banned cobalt exports, not cobalt production, the country's production is currently being stockpiled. However, on March 14, the country announced it would implement quotas on stockpiles and production to avoid prices falling once the ban is lifted.
These tough market conditions in recent years have been reflected in the performance of cobalt exploration and mining companies. However, despite the challenges, a number of companies with more diversified metals portfolios that still offer exposure to cobalt have been able to make gains in the current market.
Below is a look at the five top cobalt stocks on the TSX and TSXV by share price performance so far this year. All year-to-date and share price information was obtained on March 17, 2025, using TradingView’s stock screener, and all companies listed had market caps above C$5 million at that time. Read on to learn more about their activities.
Year-to-date gain: 216.67 percent
Market cap: C$60.34 million
Share price: C$0.285
Leading Edge Materials is developing a portfolio of critical materials projects in the European Union to supply materials for advanced technologies such as lithium-ion batteries and permanent magnets for EVs and wind power generation. The company's projects include its wholly owned Woxna graphite mine and the Norra Kärr heavy rare earth elements project in Sweden, and the 51 percent owned Bihor Sud nickel-cobalt exploration alliance in Romania.
After starting the year at C$0.09, shares of Leading Edge Materials reached a year-to-date high of C$0.30 on February 27.
Much of that stellar gain can be attributed to the spotlight placed on Europe's need to secure domestic supplies of graphite and rare earth materials, which are critical to the region's clean technology and defense industries. In mid-February, Leading Edge Materials notified the market that it is updating a 2022 study that evaluated processing plant upgrades study at its "production-ready" Woxna graphite mine to support project financing discussions.
Earlier that month, Leading Edge announced it expects a decision by the end of March 2025 on the application for Strategic Project status for its Norra Kärr rare earths project. The company plans to initiate work on a pre-feasibility study at Norra Kärr in Q2 2025 with the purpose of evaluating the business case for a rapid development plan for the project.
As for Leading Edge's cobalt asset, the Bihor Sud nickel-cobalt project is a brownfield early-stage exploration project at which field work over the past year has identified strong potential for the discovery of a significant polymetallic deposit. The company says its goal at the project is "to define a large-scale, mineable mineral resource."
As of February 2025, exploration work planned for 2025 at Bihor Sud includes mapping and sampling of cobalt-nickel and zinc-lead-silver mineralized zones detected visually and by hand-held XRF, as well as drilling to target polymetallic mineralization.
Year-to-date gain: 50 percent
Market cap: C$8.98 million
Share price: C$0.075
Battery Mineral Resources is mainly focused on becoming a mid-tier copper producer. The company commenced mine and mill operations in May of 2024 at its Punitaqui mining complex in Chile. The mine is a historic copper-gold-silver producer. Its portfolio also includes cobalt assets in Ontario, Canada, and Idaho, US, along with one lithium asset Nevada, US, and two graphite assets in South Korea.
Shares in Battery Mineral Resources nearly tripled in the first few weeks of 2025 to hit a year-to-date high of C$0.14 on January 14. That same day, the company shared positive drill core assay results from its 2024 underground exploration and in-fill drill program at the Punitaqui copper mine.
The company's Ontario cobalt exploration properties are located in a region known for historic cobalt and silver production in the 20th century, and its Idaho-based cobalt properties are located in the historic Blackbird cobalt-copper mine district, adjacent to Jervois Global's (TSXV:JRV) Ram deposit. No work is currently underway on these properties.
Year-to-date gain: 31.6 percent
Market cap: C$48.11 billion
Share price: C$108.56
Wheaton Precious Metals is one of the largest gold and silver royalty and streaming companies. It has investments in 18 operating mines and 28 development projects across four continents, including a cobalt streaming agreement for Vale's (NYSE:VALE) Voisey’s Bay nickel mine in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada.
The company reported its Q4 2024 and full-year 2024 financial performance on March 13. The report highlighted record revenues of US$381 million for Q4 and US$1.285 billion for the full year of 2024.
The company states in the financial report that 2 percent of its Q4 revenue was attributed to its Voisey’s Bay cobalt stream. Wheaton also reported an impairment charge of US$109 million at December 31, 2024, in relation to the carrying value of its Voisey’s Bay agreement “due to a significant and sustained decline in market cobalt prices.”
Shares in Wheaton hit a year-to-date high of C$108.56 on March 17 as the price of gold broke above US$3,000 per ounce and reached record highs.
Year-to-date gain: 8.45 percent
Market cap: C$67.85 million
Share price: C$0.77
Nickel 28 Capital is a battery-metals royalty company with a portfolio of 11 nickel and cobalt royalties on development and exploration projects across Canada, Australia and Papua New Guinea. The company’s largest asset is its 8.56 percent interest in the producing Ramu nickel-cobalt mine in Papua New Guinea.
Nickel 28 Capital’s share price reached a year-to-date high of C$0.86 on February 6, following the release of its Q4 and full-year 2024 operating performance for the Ramu nickel-cobalt mine. Highlights of the report included Q4 and full year 2024 sales of contained cobalt in mixed hydroxide precipitate totaling 488 metric tons and 2,793 metric tons, respectively.
Year-to-date gain: 6.38 percent
Market cap: C$80.19 million
Share price: C$0.25
FPX Nickel is currently advancing its Decar nickel district in British Columbia, Canada. The property comprises four key targets, with the Baptiste deposit being the primary focus, alongside the Van target. The company also has three other nickel projects in BC and one in the Yukon, Canada. While nickel extraction is its main focus, it plans to produce cobalt as a by-product from future mining operations at the Baptiste site.
FPX Nickel had a series of positive news releases in the first few months of 2025. In mid-January, FPX announced the positive results of a third-party economic impact study on the Baptiste nickel project based on its 2023 pre-feasibility study.
"The Baptiste Project has tremendous potential, and we are excited to see what the future holds. Together, we are creating opportunities, collaborating with First Nations to the benefit of all, and advancing projects that could be the critical minerals mines of tomorrow," stated Jagrup Brar, British Columbia’s Minister for Mining and Critical Minerals, in the press release.
On February 18, FPX Nickel shared its planned activities for 2025 at Baptiste as it prepares for the environmental assessment process, which the company hopes to enter in the second half of the year. The following week, FPX released results from a positive scoping study for the development of a refinery aimed at producing battery-grade nickel sulphate, along with cobalt, copper and ammonium sulphate by-products.
Shares of FPX spiked to a year-to-date high of C$0.28 on March 7.
Cobalt is a silver-gray metal that is often produced as a by-product of nickel and copper mining. It does not occur as a separate metal anywhere in the world, and must be produced by reductive smelting, or from the metallic ore cobaltite, which is made of cobalt, sulfur and arsenic.
Historically, cobalt oxides were used to impart a blue pigment to glass, porcelain and paints, hence the still-used cobalt blue paint. The metal is also used to produce superalloys, as cobalt imparts qualities such as corrosion and wear resistance, which are useful in applications such as airplanes, orthopedics and prosthetics.
Today cobalt is most famously used in the rechargeable lithium-ion batteries that run everything from smartphones to EVs.
The majority of cobalt production comes out of the DRC, which was responsible for producing 220,000 metric tons of the material in 2024. For perspective, the second largest cobalt-producing country, Indonesia, reported output of 28,000 MT the same year; third place Russia produced 8,700 MT of the material.
As the lithium-ion battery and EV supply chains garner global attention, companies are trying to limit their exposure to cobalt produced from the DRC, which is known for human rights abuses and sometimes child labor in its mining industry.
In response to this trend, many countries with cobalt are attempting to create domestic cobalt and EV supply chains in the hope of attracting companies looking to avoid DRC-sourced cobalt. This can be seen in the up-and-coming battery corridor in Ontario, Canada, as well as in the US-based Idaho cobalt belt.
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Securities Disclosure: I, Melissa Pistilli, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
Editorial Disclosure: FPX Nickel is a client of the Investing News Network. This article is not paid-for content.
A royalty company fully diversified in clean energy metals, Electric Royalties (TSXV:ELEC,OTCQB:ELECF) holds 42 total royalties with 18 additional optioned properties that could be converted into future royalties. The company focuses on on properties with near-term production potential in safe jurisdictions (primarily, the US and Canada). Its current royalty portfolio consists of assets that are either in production, advanced stage projects or exploration assets, ensuring cash flow generation and future growth potential.
The recent acquisition of the Punitaqui Copper Mine royalty provides immediate exposure to production, while assets like Authier Lithium and Battery Hill Manganese are expected to enter production in the near term.
The Punitaqui copper mine is permitted for 100,000 tonnes per month of processing capacity, with regional exploration potential that could further extend its operational life and increase production.
This Electric Royalties profile is part of a paid investor education campaign.*
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