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Impact Minerals Limited (ASX:IPT) is pleased to announce the positive results of a Scoping Study based on realistic production and capital expenditure estimates for the company’s Lake Hope High Purity Alumina (HPA) Project, located 500 km southeast of Perth in the Tier 1 jurisdiction of Western Australia.
SCOPING STUDY HIGHLIGHTS
The Lake Hope project contains a significant alumina (Al2O3) resource, which could become a major global supplier of High Purity Alumina (HPA) because of the unique nature of the deposit that allows very cost-effective mining and processing.
This Scoping Study indicates that, as far as Impact can ascertain from published data, the Lake Hope project could be one of, if not the lowest-cost producer of HPA globally, possibly by a significant margin of up to 50%.
- Potential to become a significant producer of HPA with steady-state production of 10,000 tonnes per annum following a two-year ramp-up.
- Low capital costs compared to peers driven by the unique nature of the clay deposit at Lake Hope.
- Low operating cost and high margins due to the deposit size, zero strip ratio, high- grade mineralisation at surface, no on-site beneficiation required, advantageous kinetics of the metallurgical process and by-product credits.
- Natural ESG benefits include probably considerably reduced CO2 emissions compared to incumbent producers.
- Very favourable market fundamentals with HPA deemed a Critical Mineral in Australia and many other countries.
- Forecast compound annual growth rate of about 20% for the HPA and related products market over the next decade driven by expansion in the battery and LED sectors.
- The study of HPA is based on a conservative commodity price estimate of US$22,000 per tonne compared to recent forecasts of more than US$25,000 per tonne from 2025 onwards.
Impact Minerals’ Managing Director, Dr Mike Jones, said, “This Scoping Study demonstrates the world-class potential of the Lake Hope Project and supports what we first thought was possible when we came across it and the work already done by Roland Gotthard and the Playa One team”.
“If you are playing in the industrial minerals space, at least one of four things has to be true about your mine otherwise you will not make it through the market cycle: the deposit has to be either the biggest, have the highest grade, be the first to market or, preferably, be the lowest cost producer. The unique characteristics of the Lake Hope deposit, both in terms of mining and processing, look like they could possibly deliver HPA at the lowest cost globally by a significant margin”.
“Even though we are only at the Scoping Study stage, with all its inherent uncertainties, the financial model demonstrates the world-class economics of the project, which has an NPV of more than A$1 billion, very large operating margins and significant after-tax earnings of A$174 million per year. The ability to deliver sub-US$4,000 per tonne HPA is an extraordinary competitive advantage that Impact will continue to leverage in the current Preliminary Feasibility Study, due for completion in 2024.”
KEY SCOPING STUDY OUTCOMES
SUMMARY OF THE SCOPING STUDY
Impact Minerals Limited (ASX:IPT) is pleased to publish the results of a Scoping Study into a series of development options for the Lake Hope High Purity Alumina (HPA) Project located 500 km east of Perth in the Tier 1 jurisdiction of Western Australia. The Study comprises the results of preliminary metallurgical, engineering and logistical studies into the economic viability of the Lake Hope project.
HPA is now listed as a Critical Mineral in Australia, the US and Europe and is an essential mineral required for the ongoing decarbonisation of the world’s energy market.
The Scoping Study is reported in accordance with the JORC 2012 Code and ASX Listing Rules and with a level of accuracy of +/-30% commensurate with this level of study. The Study justifies the project progressing to a Preliminary Feasibility Study, which is well underway (ASX Release October 18th 2023).
The Study is based on work completed by Playa One Pty Ltd before Impact’s involvement in the project and work completed by Impact since acquiring the right to earn an 80% interest in the project earlier in 2023 (ASX Release March 21st 2023). Impact can earn its 80% interest by completing the PFS.
Click here for the full ASX Release
This article includes content from Impact Minerals, licensed for the purpose of publishing on Investing News Australia. This article does not constitute financial product advice. It is your responsibility to perform proper due diligence before acting upon any information provided here. Please refer to our full disclaimer here.
IPT:AU
Navigating Uncertainty: How Trump's Tariffs Are Affecting the Gold Market
Read on to learn how tariffs have affected the gold market and price so far.
How have tariffs affected the gold price?
The gold price has been on the rise since the beginning of the year. After briefly touching the US$3,500 per ounce level in May, it has pulled back and was trading just under US$3,400 as of Tuesday (August 26).
Gold price, January 1 to August 26, 2025.
Chart via TradingEconomics.
Although some of its increase is attributable to the points mentioned above, a significant portion is owed to a lack of information surrounding US President Donald Trump’s tariff policies.
Initially there was no clarity on what or who was being tariffed, or when the levies would ultimately be implemented, and investors started to move into gold for greater stability and portfolio diversification.
Uncertainty about whether gold would be tariffed also had an effect, prompting traders in the US to import physical gold; this created a price differential between New York futures and the London spot price.
Concerns dissipated as the Trump administration began to nail down tariffs, but were reignited once again when US Customs and Border Patrol posted a ruling on July 31 indicating that the 39 percent tariffs against imports from Switzerland would include 1 kilogram and 100 ounce gold bars.
The news caused spot gold to spike more than 3 percent, from US$3,290 to US$3,398, and sent December futures to an all-time high of US$3,549. Meanwhile, traders halted imports of Swiss bars.
After several days of turmoil, Trump said the ruling was incorrect, and the bars would not be included in the tariff measures being applied to other Swiss imports; the gold price then retreated.
How would gold tariffs have impacted the market?
Gold functions as both a commodity and an essential part of the world’s financial system.
One kilogram and 100 ounce gold bars are used to back futures trading, and regular shipments of the metal are needed to settle contracts once they come due. A 39 percent tariff on gold from Switzerland would have been particularly disruptive, as Swiss refineries account for approximately 70 percent of the world’s gold.
According to the UN Comtrade database, in 2024, Switzerland exported more than 1,400 metric tons of unwrought gold worth more than US$106 billion, representing nearly 30 percent of the country’s total exports. Tariffs would have forced US buyers to pay a significant premium for the precious metal versus buyers in London or Shanghai.
Because gold is often used as a store of value in times of uncertainty, any kind of disruption could have had broader implications for investors looking to add stability to their portfolios.
In an email to the Investing News Network (INN), Lauren Saidel-Baker, CFA, an economist with ITR Economics, explained that gold stands out as a unique investment mechanism:
“There are psychological nuances to gold, which is commonly viewed as a safe store of value during uncertain times and an inflation hedge. Overall, the tariff would have added another facet to the already elevated policy uncertainty."
If the tariffs had remained in place, the US gold price would have had to rise to around US$4,700 per ounce to cover levies, while international prices would have remained closer to the US$3,500 mark.
“Tariffs have already complicated supply chains across industries, and this gold tariff would have been another example of added cost and complexity — but in this case, one with the potential to more directly impact investment activities,” Saidel-Baker went on to explain, emphasizing that US investors would have felt the pinch.
Could gold tariffs happen in the future?
Given Trump's unpredictability, especially when it comes to tariffs, it's possible that gold levies could enter the conversation again. However, by and large experts agree that the matter is closed.
“I think it’s pretty clear at this point that there’s no intention to put tariffs on physical gold imports, and I think that would be very damaging and destructive if they did,” Stefan Gleason, CEO of Money Metals, told INN.
Keith Weiner, founder and CEO of Monetary Metals, offered another perspective, saying that although the gold tariff threat is over, the tumult could have long-term effects on the market.
"Once you've put the scare into everybody, you can't just say, 'Oh, sorry, just kidding.' You can't really do that. And so now we've done damage, and we'll see what happens to that spread over time. We'll see how users of the futures market adapt. There are other markets in the world that would be competing for," he explained.
"This hedging business, you know, maybe it moves to Singapore, maybe it moves to Dubai, maybe it moves to London, and the US loses not only a little more trust, but also a little bit of volume on what had been the biggest — or what is currently the biggest — futures market," Weiner added to INN.
Market participants will be watching closely for future impacts on the yellow metal.
Don't forget to follow us @INN_Resource for real-time updates!
Securities Disclosure: I, Dean Belder, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
Editorial Disclosure: The Investing News Network does not guarantee the accuracy or thoroughness of the information reported in the interviews it conducts. The opinions expressed in these interviews do not reflect the opinions of the Investing News Network and do not constitute investment advice. All readers are encouraged to perform their own due diligence.