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Mining
Nickel is a hot commodity right now (thanks Elon) with BloombergNEF predicting prices will continue to hover around US$18,000/t this year and that the market may slip to a 128,000t deficit around 2024.
It’s no surprise then, that explorer Conico Ltd (ASX:CNJ) is top of the charts this month, up a massive 104% off the back of news it hit sulphide mineralisation in the first hole at its Ryberg project in Greenland.
While it is still early days, the intersection of sulphides in the first hole justifies the company’s aggressive drill program with three rigs operating 24 hours a day to drill a minimum of 5,000m – up to a maximum of 10,000m.
Previous surface sampling at the Miki prospect had returned up to 2.2% copper, 0.8% nickel, 0.1% cobalt, 3.3g/t palladium and 0.2g/t gold and the company is aiming to determine whether a concentration of similar mineralisation exists at depth.
Across the spectrum, it was another stellar month for stocks with an interest in battery metals – 93 of the 124 in our list finished July in the green.
Here’s a table showing how ASX-listed battery metals stocks have been performing.
| Code | Company | Closing Price July 31 | %Mth | %SixMth | %Wk | %Yr | MktCap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CNJ | Conico Ltd | 0.057 | 104 | 73 | 68 | 418 | $ 52,232,921.34 |
| AXE | Archer Materials | 1.5 | 58 | 101 | 10 | 285 | $ 341,559,819.00 |
| ARN | Aldoro Resources | 0.47 | 54 | 114 | 0 | 262 | $ 38,049,968.13 |
| PSC | Prospect Res Ltd | 0.32 | 52 | 88 | -3 | 142 | $ 122,727,531.20 |
| POS | Poseidon Nick Ltd | 0.135 | 52 | 78 | 4 | 350 | $ 379,271,005.02 |
| LPD | Lepidico Ltd | 0.015 | 50 | -48 | -12 | 114 | $ 92,281,236.69 |
| ESS | Essential Metals Ltd | 0.14 | 47 | -7 | 0 | 40 | $ 28,114,422.00 |
| LPI | Lithium Pwr Int Ltd | 0.27 | 46 | -7 | 13 | 46 | $ 81,290,935.53 |
| REE | Rarex Limited | 0.1 | 39 | -13 | 18 | 54 | $ 43,534,320.40 |
| LKE | Lake Resources | 0.465 | 39 | 58 | 13 | 1192 | $ 493,028,957.06 |
| NMT | Neometals Ltd | 0.66 | 38 | 103 | 21 | 340 | $ 361,928,421.36 |
| SYR | Syrah Resources | 1.405 | 36 | 39 | 8 | 313 | $ 699,987,119.57 |
| IXR | Ionic Rare Earths | 0.03 | 30 | -19 | -3 | 200 | $ 101,771,985.42 |
| CZN | Corazon Ltd | 0.045 | 29 | -40 | 15 | -10 | $ 9,137,436.48 |
| LYC | Lynas Rare Earths | 7.34 | 29 | 54 | 14 | 226 | $ 6,613,916,769.86 |
| MLX | Metals X Limited | 0.275 | 28 | 62 | 12 | 235 | $ 249,498,168.43 |
| ORE | Orocobre Limited | 8.25 | 28 | 65 | 7 | 168 | $ 2,840,934,706.50 |
| VUL | Vulcan Energy | 9.8 | 27 | 24 | 8 | 2008 | $ 1,065,839,307.40 |
| GXY | Galaxy Resources | 4.66 | 27 | 73 | 6 | 336 | $ 2,356,420,466.48 |
| S2R | S2 Resources | 0.165 | 27 | -11 | 22 | 27 | $ 51,957,044.54 |
| AVL | Aust Vanadium Ltd | 0.024 | 26 | -17 | 9 | 100 | $ 70,347,811.54 |
| EGR | Ecograf Limited | 0.715 | 25 | 79 | 2 | 983 | $ 321,630,923.19 |
| CTM | Centaurus Metals Ltd | 0.925 | 23 | 15 | 3 | 91 | $ 317,949,373.10 |
| PLS | Pilbara Min Ltd | 1.77 | 22 | 90 | 3 | 414 | $ 5,131,198,423.20 |
| IGO | IGO Limited | 9.31 | 22 | 45 | 5 | 101 | $ 7,050,163,339.03 |
| AGY | Argosy Minerals Ltd | 0.12 | 21 | -29 | -4 | 122 | $ 150,032,604.48 |
| BSX | Blackstone Ltd | 0.43 | 21 | -3 | -5 | 23 | $ 142,687,841.70 |
| PAN | Panoramic Resources | 0.18 | 20 | 9 | 6 | 177 | $ 369,164,520.72 |
| TNG | TNG Limited | 0.072 | 20 | -31 | 7 | -2 | $ 89,963,786.88 |
| NTU | Northern Min Ltd | 0.039 | 18 | -24 | 3 | 77 | $ 188,826,805.67 |
| QPM | Queensland Pacific | 0.165 | 18 | 166 | 10 | 650 | $ 198,304,849.88 |
| HAS | Hastings Tech Met | 0.2 | 18 | -7 | 11 | 54 | $ 347,691,053.20 |
| MIN | Mineral Resources. | 63.01 | 17 | 83 | 2 | 138 | $ 11,892,254,225.82 |
| INR | Ioneer Ltd | 0.41 | 17 | 14 | 0 | 242 | $ 780,720,729.41 |
| HNR | Hannans Ltd | 0.007 | 17 | -13 | 17 | -13 | $ 16,519,840.34 |
| TMT | Technology Metals | 0.35 | 17 | -5 | 9 | 94 | $ 52,562,319.95 |
| AVZ | AVZ Minerals Ltd | 0.185 | 16 | 0 | -8 | 236 | $ 595,053,612.41 |
| PAM | Pan Asia Metals | 0.15 | 15 | -6 | 15 | $ 8,048,796.60 | |
| PEK | Peak Resources | 0.115 | 15 | 15 | -18 | 283 | $ 187,365,200.84 |
| LIT | Lithium Australia NL | 0.115 | 15 | -12 | -2 | 95 | $ 104,870,427.06 |
| CXO | Core Lithium | 0.275 | 15 | -20 | -4 | 525 | $ 322,882,244.85 |
| GL1 | Globallith | 0.28 | 14 | 6 | $ 24,913,250.88 | ||
| MCR | Mincor Resources NL | 1.23 | 14 | 22 | -5 | 62 | $ 531,811,524.39 |
| EUR | European Lithium Ltd | 0.059 | 13 | -13 | -2 | 26 | $ 55,102,200.64 |
| EMH | European Metals Hldg | 1.74 | 13 | 57 | 19 | 480 | $ 226,360,019.10 |
| PNN | PepinNini Minerals | 0.3 | 13 | -31 | 0 | 237 | $ 13,448,602.20 |
| GLN | Galan Lithium Ltd | 1.04 | 13 | 98 | 1 | 643 | $ 255,114,764.32 |
| ASN | Anson Resources Ltd | 0.071 | 13 | -29 | -5 | 255 | $ 63,492,292.58 |
| SBR | Sabre Resources | 0.0045 | 13 | -44 | 0 | 29 | $ 7,573,786.42 |
| WKT | Walkabout Resources | 0.225 | 13 | 50 | 7 | 67 | $ 95,716,513.58 |
| HWK | Hawkstone Mng Ltd | 0.028 | 12 | -42 | 0 | 65 | $ 47,812,135.50 |
| BEM | Blackearth Minerals | 0.105 | 12 | 81 | 0 | 139 | $ 22,570,235.84 |
| AOU | Auroch Minerals Ltd | 0.2 | 11 | -23 | -2 | 217 | $ 58,077,036.20 |
| NIC | Nickel Mines Limited | 1.1 | 11 | -13 | -4 | 89 | $ 2,766,531,956.10 |
| BAR | Barra Resources | 0.02 | 11 | -13 | 0 | -13 | $ 13,552,162.02 |
| BKT | Black Rock Mining | 0.15 | 11 | 3 | 3 | 206 | $ 127,450,869.90 |
| COB | Cobalt Blue Ltd | 0.3 | 11 | -8 | 13 | 140 | $ 82,319,054.10 |
| GME | GME Resources Ltd | 0.052 | 11 | -23 | 6 | 53 | $ 28,957,080.36 |
| BHP | BHP Group Limited | 53.49 | 10 | 23 | 4 | 41 | $ 157,573,591,065.06 |
| SRL | Sunrise | 1.97 | 10 | -19 | 4 | 4 | $ 175,987,572.21 |
| BOA | Boadicea Resources | 0.225 | 10 | -9 | 0 | 19 | $ 17,482,476.38 |
| GAL | Galileo Mining Ltd | 0.3 | 9 | -13 | -5 | -21 | $ 42,930,361.50 |
| STK | Strickland Metals | 0.049 | 9 | 47 | -18 | 59 | $ 38,001,752.68 |
| RNU | Renascor Res Ltd | 0.074 | 9 | 118 | 6 | 363 | $ 139,024,662.25 |
| LTR | Liontown Resources | 0.925 | 9 | 137 | 13 | 640 | $ 1,756,496,597.00 |
| AZS | Azure Minerals | 0.25 | 9 | -49 | 4 | 61 | $ 77,308,930.25 |
| NKL | Nickelxltd | 0.19 | 9 | -3 | $ 10,165,000.00 | ||
| SRI | Sipa Resources Ltd | 0.055 | 8 | -8 | -13 | -41 | $ 9,873,724.47 |
| IPT | Impact Minerals | 0.014 | 8 | -26 | 8 | -33 | $ 28,333,128.87 |
| ARR | American Rare Earths | 0.085 | 8 | -15 | 0 | 286 | $ 29,266,207.71 |
| RFR | Rafaella Resources | 0.095 | 6 | 30 | 2 | 3 | $ 16,325,029.71 |
| RXL | Rox Resources | 0.42 | 5 | -15 | -6 | -53 | $ 66,195,197.88 |
| MOH | Moho Resources | 0.068 | 5 | -15 | 3 | -51 | $ 7,022,727.34 |
| INF | Infinity Lithium | 0.093 | 4 | -51 | -11 | 13 | $ 37,470,123.71 |
| G88 | Golden Mile Res Ltd | 0.052 | 4 | 18 | 6 | -21 | $ 7,280,953.06 |
| PRL | Province Resources | 0.135 | 4 | 543 | 0 | 537 | $ 151,997,824.49 |
| MNS | Magnis Energy Tech | 0.27 | 4 | -13 | -4 | 23 | $ 229,887,327.42 |
| OZL | OZ Minerals | 23.18 | 3 | 24 | 9 | 67 | $ 7,718,255,448.24 |
| VML | Vital Metals Limited | 0.049 | 2 | 9 | -2 | 345 | $ 203,557,421.12 |
| TLG | Talga Group Ltd | 1.355 | 2 | -3 | 3 | 153 | $ 410,876,522.63 |
| SGQ | St George Min Ltd | 0.068 | 1 | -35 | -1 | -28 | $ 40,064,983.72 |
| FFX | Firefinch Ltd | 0.4 | 1 | 129 | -5 | 176 | $ 364,076,346.40 |
| BMM | Balkanminingandmin | 0.42 | 15 | $ 13,650,000.00 | |||
| MLS | Metals Australia | 0.002 | 0 | -20 | 0 | -33 | $ 8,454,376.09 |
| TON | Triton Min Ltd | 0.032 | 0 | -43 | -6 | -42 | $ 36,302,978.14 |
| ALY | Alchemy Resource Ltd | 0.014 | 0 | -18 | -7 | -16 | $ 9,411,408.34 |
| RLC | Reedy Lagoon Corp. | 0.016 | 0 | -20 | -11 | 129 | $ 7,520,418.66 |
| ADV | Ardiden Ltd | 0.008 | 0 | -65 | -11 | -43 | $ 17,194,833.73 |
| GED | Golden Deeps | 0.013 | 0 | 30 | 8 | -7 | $ 10,086,068.72 |
| ATM | Aneka Tambang | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | $ 1,303,649.00 |
| AJM | Altura Mining Ltd | 0.07 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | $ 209,037,029.25 |
| LML | Lincoln Minerals | 0.008 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 33 | $ 4,599,869.49 |
| ARU | Arafura Resource Ltd | 0.125 | 0 | -43 | 0 | 87 | $ 168,299,734.63 |
| AQD | Ausquest Limited | 0.022 | 0 | 16 | 0 | -19 | $ 18,110,176.28 |
| HXG | Hexagon Energy | 0.068 | -1 | -35 | -8 | 5 | $ 30,328,940.24 |
| JRL | Jindalee Resources | 2.45 | -2 | 48 | -2 | 622 | $ 130,839,716.70 |
| CHN | Chalice Mining Ltd | 7.27 | -2 | 85 | 7 | 613 | $ 2,521,653,247.11 |
| GBR | Greatbould Resources | 0.088 | -3 | 104 | 0 | 71 | $ 31,263,851.52 |
| BUX | Buxton Resources Ltd | 0.13 | -4 | 83 | -4 | 69 | $ 17,687,206.16 |
| GW1 | Greenwing Resources | 0.24 | -4 | -20 | 7 | 37 | $ 21,046,884.72 |
| AUZ | Australian Mines Ltd | 0.021 | -5 | -21 | -9 | -14 | $ 83,190,530.85 |
| SLZ | Sultan Resources Ltd | 0.185 | -5 | -5 | -5 | 0 | $ 12,863,861.97 |
| SYA | Sayona Mining Ltd | 0.082 | -6 | 101 | 1 | 955 | $ 457,527,998.43 |
| CLA | Celsius Resource Ltd | 0.032 | -6 | -32 | -3 | 78 | $ 33,511,298.59 |
| ESR | Estrella Res Ltd | 0.044 | -6 | -44 | -2 | 450 | $ 51,129,924.56 |
| TKL | Traka Resources | 0.014 | -7 | -33 | 0 | -50 | $ 8,090,510.95 |
| JRV | Jervois Mining | 0.485 | -7 | 4 | -7 | 127 | $ 389,353,649.55 |
| VMC | Venus Metals Cor Ltd | 0.18 | -8 | -23 | 3 | -31 | $ 27,194,162.94 |
| CWX | Carawine Resources | 0.24 | -8 | 4 | 14 | 23 | $ 26,133,576.48 |
| PGM | Platina Resources | 0.08 | -9 | 48 | 0 | 60 | $ 34,750,587.36 |
| ARL | Ardea Resources Ltd | 0.5 | -9 | -1 | 0 | -4 | $ 69,017,109.50 |
| PUR | Pursuit Minerals | 0.06 | -10 | 82 | -8 | 222 | $ 55,620,834.96 |
| NWC | New World Resources | 0.08 | -11 | 60 | 13 | 158 | $ 125,159,169.44 |
| LEG | Legend Mining | 0.088 | -12 | -27 | -2 | -35 | $ 242,451,943.45 |
| FGR | First Graphene Ltd | 0.245 | -16 | -13 | 2 | 113 | $ 134,333,450.76 |
| VR8 | Vanadium Resources | 0.052 | -19 | 41 | -2 | 136 | $ 21,759,093.46 |
| QXR | Qx Resources Limited | 0.013 | -19 | -35 | 0 | -32 | $ 8,662,710.17 |
| VRC | Volt Resources Ltd | 0.028 | -20 | 47 | -20 | 56 | $ 68,321,444.38 |
| AML | Aeon Metals Ltd. | 0.057 | -21 | -50 | 2 | -63 | $ 43,535,267.63 |
| MRC | Mineral Commodities | 0.155 | -24 | -58 | 3 | -35 | $ 74,491,693.51 |
| DEV | Devex Resources Ltd | 0.275 | -25 | 38 | -7 | 45 | $ 84,654,340.93 |
| PLL | Piedmont Lithium Inc | 0.735 | -28 | 8 | -1 | 666 | $ 422,515,191.00 |
| ADD | Adavale Resource Ltd | 0.059 | -36 | 5 | -23 | 228 | $ 16,922,025.71 |
| MAN | Mandrake Res Ltd | 0.088 | -48 | 11 | -6 | 151 | $ 37,683,722.21 |
Riding the quarterly wave is Archer Materials (ASX:AXE) which jumped 58% off news it’s, um, getting out of the graphite game. Archer’s now focused on semiconductors.
With BloombergNEF forecasting that demand for graphite could rise 37% in 2021 to 446,914, and 297% by the end of the decade, that might seem an odd move.
But while the company has sold its two Eyre Peninsula tenements to ChemX Materials – which is set to list in the coming months – shareholders will retain exposure to any exploration success through Archer’s ChemX shareholding and a tidy 2% net smelter return royalty.
Aldoro Resources (ASX:ARN) rose 54% this month after news it found two additional drill ready targets at its flagship Narndee Igneous Complex (NIC) – which is prospective for nickel-copper-PGE mineralisation.
In July the company announced its plans to expand the footprint of its Windimurra lithium project in Western Australia’s Mt Magnet region with the acquisition of two projects.
It’s a good move. Benchmark Mineral Intelligence forecasts demand to grow seven-fold to 2.3 million tonnes over the 10 years to 2030, with a market deficit growing to around one million tonnes – around three times the 2020 global supply.
Both up 52% this month were Prospect Resources (ASX:PSC) and Poseidon Nickel (ASX:POS).
Prospect increased its ownership in the tier 1 Arcadia lithium project in Zimbabwe by 17% to 87%.
Arcadia has a high grade JORC mineral resource of 43.2 million tonnes at 1.45% lithium oxide and 119 parts per million tantalum pentoxide for 61.5 million tonnes of lithium oxide and 11.3 million pounds of tantalum pentoxide.
An optimised feasibility study is due in Q3 this year, and with offtake partners secured and a pilot plant up and running, it looks to be one of the most advanced ASX-listed lithium plays.
But, proving that nickel is king right now, Poseidon was up with no nickel news out since the start of July, detailing results from drilling at the Golden Swan project.
The best intercept was 2.1m at 13.79% nickel, including 1.3m at 12.07% and 0.8m at 16.5%, and the company reckons it’s on track to deliver a maiden resource in the September quarter.
At a 50% increase this month was Lepidico (ASX:LPD) off a detailed quarterly which highlighted the milestone step of its Phase 1 Karibib project transitioning to the development phase.
The company is pretty confident that key product supply agreements and project funding are on the near horizon – with lithium chemical prices continuing to rise off the back of a strengthening demand outlook and predictions that a supply deficit will emerge later this year.
“This makes for a very positive industry environment as we bring Phase 1 onstream,” the company said.
And Essential Metals (ASX:ESS) was up 47% off news that Black Cat Syndicate Limited has completed stage 1 of the Balagundi gold and base metals project farm-in agreement and has elected to proceed with stage 2 – to earn a 75% interest by spending a further $450,000 within the next three years.
Plus, a 5,000m air-core/hammer drilling program is underway to test for new lithium-bearing pegmatites near ‘Dome North’ lithium deposit at the company’s Pioneer Dome lithium project in WA.
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