Resources Top 5: Chinese suitor sweetens deal for Peak Rare Earths

• A revised scheme offers PEK shareholders 44.3c a share in cash, up from around 36c
• High-grade antimony has been confirmed by Marquee at Mt Clement in WA
• Gladiator is accelerating its push into critical minerals in the US

Your standout small cap resources stocks for Friday, September 5, 2025

Peak Rare Earths (ASX:PEK)

A sweetened takeover offer by Chinese suitor Shenghe Resources for Peak Rare Earths (ASX:PEK) values the Tanzanian critical minerals developer at ~$195 million.

The revised scheme offers shareholders 44.3c a share in cash, which is about a 32% premium to where Peak was trading on September 4.

This improved offer from the Chinese partly state-owned REE producer follows the original deal announced on May 15 in which Shenghe offered ~$150.5m, plus the proceeds of a $7.5m cap raise, to buy out the rest of Peak it doesn’t already own, which valued Peak at roughly 36 cents a share.

The new offer has seen PEK climb 26.87% to 42.5c, a high of almost two years, with more than 14m shares changing hands.

As well as the 32% premium to the closing price on ASX on September 4, the offer represents:

• a ~269% premium to the closing price of Peak shares on ASX on May 9, 2025, the last day on which Peak shares traded before announcement of the original scheme, of 12c per share; and
• a ~23% increase in the minimum cash consideration payable under the original scheme proposal.

Shenghe has confirmed that the consideration payable under the revised scheme is its best and final proposal and that it will not increase the consideration further, subject to no competing proposal emerging.

The Peak Independent Board Committee unanimously recommends that shareholders vote in favour of the scheme, in the absence of a superior proposal and subject to an independent expert concluding, and continuing to conclude, that the scheme is in the best interests of Peak shareholders not associated with Shenghe.

Each member of the Peak Independent Board Committee intends to vote, or cause to be voted, all Peak shares in which they have a relevant interest in favour of the scheme.

US$2.9b market cap company Shenghe is listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange and is an existing PEK shareholder with offtake rights to REE production from the Ngualla project in which PEK holds an 84% interest.

Shenghe is the largest importer of rare earth concentrate into China with its operations spanning rare earth mining, beneficiation, refining, trading and alloy and metals production.

Marquee Resources (ASX:MQR)

Consistently high-grade antimony has been confirmed by Marquee Resources (ASX:MQR) at Mt Clement project in WA, with shares rising 27.3c to 1.4c and more than 70m changing hands.

An initial RC drilling campaign of seven holes for 1,346 metres resulted in every hole hitting antimony mineralisation while adding lead, gold and silver to the mix.

Multiple zones of antimony have been confirmed along with extensions to known mineralisation and drilling also highlighted a new sub-cropping structure that may enhance the project’s scale.

Results include:

• 8m at 1.05% Sb and 2.85% Pb from 137m, including 4m at 1.35% Sb and 3.55% Pb;
• 8m at 1.02% Sb from 81m, including 4m at 1.48% Sb from 81m;
• 9m at 0.88% Sb from 97m, including 4m at 1.41% Sb from 100m;
• 2m at 1.96% Sb from 144m; and
• 3m at 5.33% Pb and 0.46% Sb from 58m, including 1m at 11.7% Pb.

Antimony grades consistently outperform comparably sized ASX-listed peers, validating the project’s unique position as a critical mineral supply opportunity in Australia.

Mt Clement adjoins Black Cat Syndicate’s (ASX:BC8) Eastern Hills JORC deposit, which is quoted as “Australia’s largest undeveloped antimony deposit”.

A maiden JORC-compliant resource estimate (MRE) is due in around two weeks, representing a near-term major milestone.

MQR aims to begin a second phase RC drilling program in the last week of September targeting depth and strike extensions.

“The full suite of results underscores the potential of our Mt Clement (Eastern Hills) project to emerge as one of Australia’s premier antimony projects,” executive chairman Charles Thomas said.

“Every hole drilled confirmed continuity of high-grade Sb mineralisation, with meaningful contributions from lead, silver and gold adding further value.

“Antimony remains our core focus for the rest of 2025 and with global markets finally recognising its critical status, Marquee is advancing Mt Clement at the right time, in the right commodity and now with strong tailwinds behind us for exploration and resource definition at Mt Clement.”

Gladiator Resources (ASX:GLA)

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The acceleration of a push into critical minerals in the US has been welcomed by investors in Gladiator Resources (ASX:GLA) with shares increasing from 0.8c on August 21 to 3.4c, a three-year high and a lift of 41.7% on the previous close.

The latest development late last month saw the company kick off the process to obtain quotation of its shares on the US-based OTC Markets platform.

This is designed to provide enhanced visibility and improved accessibility for North American investors seeking exposure to Gladiator’s portfolio of assets. 

It forms an important part of Gladiator’s broader US REE focus and strategy moving forward.

“Listing on the OTC Markets is a key step in expanding our reach to North American investors and enhancing liquidity for our shareholders. We have observed significant daily volumes being traded with other ASX-Listed US REE companies,” chairman Matthew Boysen said:

“With growing global demand for critical minerals, particularly in the US, we believe this will significantly strengthen Gladiator’s profile in international markets.”

King River Resources (ASX:KRR)

King River Resources (ASX:KRR) was 46.67% at 1.1c after appointing former Spartan Resources (ASX:SPR) senior executive Graham Gadsby as its new managing director starting on October 14.

Gadsby spent seven years at Spartan, where he held senior roles of general manager operations and chief geologist. 

His work was instrumental in the exploration and development of gold projects within Western Australia, leading to the discovery of the significant Never Never and Pepper gold deposits.

He was responsible for applying his hands-on experience and strong leadership to guide the company’s successful turnaround and helping it relist on the ASX after a difficult period, leading to the ultimate merger with Ramelius Resources. 

A seasoned geologist, Gadsby holds a Master of Science in Mining Geology from Camborne School of Mines and a Bachelor of Science in Exploration and Resource Geology from Cardiff University, with King River saying he brings leadership and technical expertise to its next chapter.

Latitude 66 (ASX:LAT)

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Armed by $6m from the sale of its interest in the Greater Duchess copper-gold JV in Northwest Queensland, Latitude 66 (ASX:LAT)  has exploration underway at the recently granted Piastri tenement in the Yalgoo-Singleton greenstone belt of WA.

Piastri, which is 200m from the historic 1.96Moz gold equivalent Ricciardo gold-antimony deposit under acquisition by Capricorn Metals (ASX:CMM) , is prospective for shear hosted Au-Sb.

It is contiguous with Warriedar Resources’ (ASX:WA8) Golden Range project, which hosts a measured, indicated and inferred resource of 2.3Moz AuEq and is under acquisition by Capricorn for an implied equity value of A$188 million.

Lat66 is investigating prospective, structurally parallel zones through field mapping and first-pass soil sampling. 

Historical exploration within the tenement includes 22 RAB drill holes across a ~10km strike extent, leaving large portions of the tenement underexplored.

This article does not constitute financial product advice. You should consider obtaining independent financial advice before making any financial decisions.