Here’s your top ASX small cap resources winners in morning trade Friday, October 30.

 

Yesterday, Fortescue (ASX:FMG) boss Elizabeth Gaines said that demand from the Chinese steel sector – which is driving iron ore’s stunning price performance — had smashed all expectations.

Today, a bunch of small cap iron ore plays are basking in the glow.

‘Green’ hydrogen could be exported from Iron Road’s (ASX:IRD) $250 million Cape Hardy Stage I multi-user, multi-commodity port facility in South Australia.

The iron ore explorer is joint developer of Cape Hardy Stage I project with Macquarie and Eyre Peninsula Co-operative Bulk Handling (EPCBH).

It needs the port in order to get the long-life Central Eyre Iron Project (CEIP) up and running.

The partners are targeting financial close of the project by Q3 2021.

Now the South Aussie government recognises the ideal location of Cape Hardy for potential “small-scale and large-scale green hydrogen export ranging from 60,000 – 250,000 tonnes per annum”, Iron Road says.

Hydrogen is forecast to contribute as much as $1.7 billion and 2,800 jobs to the national economy by 2030.

Iron Road surged 45 per cent in early trade Friday.

 

Yesterday, red hot iron ore project developer Magnetite Mines (ASX:MGT) announced that an unfavourable ‘farm-in’ with Braemar Mining Developments would not proceed.

The farm-in proposal announced in April would’ve allowed BMD to earn up to 70 per cent of the Razorback iron ore project if it sole-funded a pre-feasibility study.

But things have changed. The stock is now up ~550 per cent since the start of April.

“In the last four months the company’s market capitalisation increased substantially and, as announced on 2 October 2020, the company closed a rights issue raising $5.95m, a substantial portion of which is allocated to accelerating pre-feasibility study (PFS) work on the project,” Magnetite says.

 

Harley Grosser’s small cap-focused Capital H Management has picked up a ~5 per cent stake in explorer Gullewa (ASX:GUL).

Gullewa is a low-profile company which holds property investments and shares in other gold explorers, like TSX-listed Central Iron Ore (which has a JV with Red 5 (ASX:RED).

It also has a 1 per cent royalty on a WA gold mine called Deflector, owned by Silver Lake Resources (ASX:SLR).

The minnow received a handy ~$2.4m in royalty payments from Deflector production for FY20, up from ~$1.67m the prior year.

Gullewa – which is up ~290 per cent over the past 12 months – jumped in February after Silver Lake announced some spectacular drilling results which could boost resources and mine life.

 

Up on no news:

Diversified explorer Shree Minerals (ASX:SHH) is aiming to reopen the Nelson Bay River iron ore project in Tasmania in 2021.

The stock is up ~20 per cent in early trade.

Iron ore-gold explorer CZR Resources (ASX:CZR) – formerly Corizon – recently initiated a prefeasibility study on its advanced Robe Mesa iron ore project in the Pilbara “in response to the increased demand and pricing for direct-shipping iron-ore”.

The Robe Mesa PFS is expected to be completed before the end of this year and will deliver “CAPEX, OPEX, a potential mining reserve and provide a pathway, timeline and indicative costing to move the project forward”, the CZR says.