Resources Top 5: Mount Ridley sprints ahead in the gallium race, surging 140pc

• MRD estimates maiden inferred resource of 24,584t of gallium at Mount Ridley 
• JAV reveals copper and gold exploration upside at Coogee
• Core drilling has started at the Specimen Hill Project of WEC in Queensland

Your standout small cap resources stocks for Tuesday, October 28, 2025. 

Mount Ridley Mines (ASX:MRD)

Demand for critical minerals is soaring as the US, EU and other Western markets shore up supply chains independent of China, and Mount Ridley Mines (ASX:MRD) is pushing forward to gain a front-running position in the gallium stakes.

It’s an ideal time for MRD to unveil a significant maiden resource of the critical mineral at its namesake project in southern WA and investors agree, sending shares skyrocketing 180% to a 12-month high of 1.4c before closing 140% higher at 1.2c on volume of 135m.  

The maiden inferred resource of 838.7Mt grading 29.3ppm at a 25ppm cut-off for 24,584t of gallium extending from just 4m to 61m vertically represents a valuable, secondary mineral at the Mt Ridley project, which was originally known for its rare earths mineralisation.

Gallium is hosted in the same clay and saprolitic horizons as the REEs and the potential was firmed up during MRD’s assessment of the broader critical minerals potential of the project, including scandium.

MRD is now investigating potential innovative metallurgical solutions targeting a mixed REE carbonate product with gallium and other critical elements as secondary recoveries.

Discussions are underway with Australian and international research groups and processing specialists to design innovative extraction and purification pathways suitable for clay-hosted critical mineral systems.

Gallium is a soft metal that isn’t typically mined as a primary ore but as a byproduct of bauxite and zinc processing. It is a critical component in semiconductors, optical-electronic devices, solar panels and several military applications.

The gallium market is forecast to grow at a compound annual growth rate of around 25% from about US$1.7bn in 2024 to US$6.5bn by 2030 according to USDA Analytics.

Javelin Minerals (ASX:JAV)

Strong exploration upside has been revealed by Javelin Minerals (ASX:JAV) following a review and reinterpretation of historical data at its Coogee project near the world-class St Ives goldfield, south of Kalgoorlie.

The review was led by JAV’s new GM – Exploration and Resources Mark Cossom and identified large geophysical anomalies correlating with known mineralised alteration zones at Coogee North and Coogee West.

It is supported by shallow historical drilling showing strong gold and gold-copper anomalism.

The project hosts a JORC resource of 3.6Mt at 1.08g/t Au for 127,000oz of gold and 1Mt Cu at 0.41% for 4,122t of copper on a granted mining licence.

JAV says the potential of the anomalies is further highlighted by the presence of magnetite, which is closely associated with gold mineralisation at the project.

While extensive drilling was undertaken on the Coogee resource area, much of the remainder of the tenement has only been subject to limited levels of regional exploration.

“These targets are clearly compelling exploration opportunities, as shown by the strength of the geophysical signatures, the coincident geochemistry and the highly favourable geological settings,” JAV executive chairman Brett Mitchell said.

“Given this strong potential, we are now devising a drilling program aimed at testing these targets at the same time as we seek to grow the existing resources.”

White Energy (ASX:WEC)

Core drilling has started at the 51%-owned Specimen Hill Project of White Energy (ASX:WEC) subsidiary Amerod Resources near Biloela in Central Queensland.

This area is highly prospective for copper and gold deposits with widespread outcrops of copper hosting minerals.

The program is expected to be completed in around six weeks and is targeting a series of IP, magnetic and anomalous geochemical signatures as well as seeking to verify gold and copper results from previous drilling by Amerod’s farm in partner Signature Gold. Seven priority target areas have been identified.

It is expected to substantially increase the geological knowledge of the area and to confirm the types of mineralisation occurrences to guide future exploration.

Focus Minerals (ASX:FML)

Operations at the Three Mile Hill processing plant of Focus Minerals (ASX:FML)  remained stable and efficient in the September quarter with 431,346t processed including 371,054t of company-mined ore and the remainder being toll treatment ore.

A highlight for FML’s Coolgardie gold operations was the record month of company-owned gold poured during August – 8,274oz.

There were 332,517t of ore mined across the CNX, Dreadnought, Alicia open pits and Bonnie Vale Underground.

FML’s own ore achieved an average grade of 1.68g/t with a metallurgical recovery of 94.5%, peaking at 95.3% on high-grade ore.

There were 20,014oz of gold sold at an average price of A$5,288/oz, alongside 2,540oz of silver credits.

ADX Energy (ASX:ADX)

ADX Energy is gearing up for a busy time in Austria in 2026 with plans to resume flow testing of Welchau-1 and start shallow gas drilling.

Planning and contracting of services for the Welchau-1 work is underway after the Upper Austria state administrative court ruled in ADX’s favour in relation to granted environmental clearances.

Upcoming work involves resumption of oil and gas testing in January 2026 over three remaining intervals along with fluid sampling of the Reifling formation that was perforated before operations were suspended.

ADX is also preparing to drill three shallow gas wells that have potential to boost biogenic gas (99% methane) output with low risks.

Drilling and environmental permits are expected to be secured by the end of 2025 with well construction starting in January 2026, enabling shallow gas drilling to start in February.

This article does not constitute financial product advice. You should consider obtaining independent financial advice before making any financial decisions. While Mount Ridley Mines, Javelin Minerals and ADX Energy are Stockhead advertisers, they did not sponsor this article.