MTM is running hot on a scrap processing MoU with US-based Indium Corporation. Pic: Getty Images
Resources Top 5: MTM to make rare gallium, germanium and indium from scrap in MoU
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- MTM Critical Metals takes six-month gain to 68% on gallium processing deal
- Errawarra again runs as investor wait on neighbour Raiden’s lithium results
- Larvotto antimony pump just keeps pumpin’
Your standout small cap resources stocks for Friday, November 29.
MTM CRITICAL METALS (ASX:MTM)
MTM’s pivot from exploration to mineral processing technology has stirred a major turnaround for the $29 million capped junior, sending its shares 68% higher in the past six months.
That’s all been driven by the firm’s flash joule heating technology which it says can be used to process a string of critical metals from scrap sources.
The latest backing for the strategy comes from a strategic partnership with Indium Corporation, a major western supplier of gallium, germanium, indium and other specialty metals.
Gallium and germanium, in particular, have been seeing increasing interest since the announcement last year of export restrictions by China, the world’s largest producer of the metals typically produced as a by-product of aluminium and zinc refining.
The deal will provide access for MTM to “ultra-high value scrap” containing up to 20% indium, 15% gallium and 18% germanium, with tin also a focus of the MoU.
MTM says the partners will address “strategic vulnerabilities” in the US supply chain and reduce reliance on Chinese imports.
“This partnership with MTM aligns with our commitment to enhancing US-based supply chains for critical metals essential to modern technologies. FJH technology offers a novel and sustainable solution to recover these vital elements from waste materials, ensuring reliable access without relying on external sources,” Indium global business unit manager Markus Roas said.
“We are excited to support this collaboration in addressing the strategic needs of our country. At Indium, we believe that secondary raw materials and urban mining will become key pillars for the future, and we are excited to support this collaboration in addressing the strategic needs of our industry.”
MTM is now applying for government grants, holding a letter of support in its hands from Indium to support an application for a US Department of Energy program to secure domestic critical minerals supply.
“We are thrilled to partner with Indium, a global leader in critical technology metals, to secure a US-based supply of metals essential to the defence, semiconductor, and high-tech industries,” MTM CEO Michael Walshe said.
“This collaboration represents a significant milestone for our company, providing strong external validation of our technology.
“Together, we are tackling supply chain vulnerabilities with an innovative approach to efficiently recover critical metals domestically, advancing U.S. efforts towards critical metal independence.”
MTM will hold an investor webinar on December 2 to address Friday’s announcement.
ERRAWARRA RESOURCES (ASX:ERW)
(Up on no news)
Again investors are piling into Errawarra while neighbour Raiden Resources (ASX:RDN) sits in a trading halt, pending the announcement of visual observations from drilling at its Andover South project.
Notably, both explorers boast ground near the now legendary Andover discovery made by Azure Minerals last year.
It saw the ASX junior, 60% owner in a JV with billionaire prospect Mark Creasy, sold for $1.7bn in cash to a consortium including Gina Rinehart’s Hancock Prospecting and Chile’s SQM.
That tells you why, though spodumene prices have crumbled from US$8000/t in late 2022 to US$840/t today, investors are still keenly engaged in a weak lithium market.
Errawarra previously ran hard while Raiden sat in a halt for the first drill results from Andover South.
ERW acknowledged speculative interest around Raiden in a tidy response to an ASX speeding ticket earlier this week.
But it’s had a bit more going on on the corporate front this week, announcing a joint venture with Chalice Mining spin-out Falcon Metals (ASX:FAL) that would see FAL earn up to 70% of its Errabiddy project in WA’s Gascoyne region for $2m of exploration spending.
Falcon is chaired by Mark Bennett, boss of S2 Resources (ASX:S2R), who is famed for making two of WA’s largest mineral discoveries, at the Thunderbox gold mine and Nova nickel-copper mine.
“We are very excited to be partnering with the high-calibre exploration team at Falcon Metals. They bring to the table a wealth of exploration experience and previous success and we are looking forward to the exploration program getting underway,” ERW exec chair Tom Reddicliffe said on Wednesday.
“With the current positive sentiment in the gold sector, now is the perfect time for this partnership. The joint venture of up to $2 million exploration expenditure at Errabiddy, will allow Errawarra to focus on base and precious metals exploration at the Andover South project in the West Pilbara.
“The company is also considering new opportunities focussed on precious metals where we are seeing increasing demand and prices.”
HAMELIN GOLD (ASX:HMG)
Up over 21% today, the Gold Fields-backed explorer is looking for a repeat of Newmont’s 20Moz Callie mine on the WA side of the Tanami Desert.
The disparity between the success of explorers on each side of the divide is extraordinary, with more than 25Moz of gold found in the NT and less than 1Moz identified on the West Australian side.
Much of that is held in a single operation, Black Cat Syndicate’s (ASX:BC8) Coyote mine, which is currently on care and maintenance.
Gold Fields, one of the world’s top miners of the precious metal, boasts a major land position and 15% of Hamelin, which was originally floated to put a specific focus on the gold prospects of West Arunta niobium hunter Encounter Resources (ASX:ENR).
While Encounter announced plans to raise up to $18 million today for drilling near WA1 Resources’ (ASX:WA1) Luni niobium project, both it and HMG presented to investors at AGMs in Perth today.
Peter Bewick-led Hamelin, which has a market cap of ~$10m and $4m in the bank as of September 30, told investors in a presentation a new +2.7Moz discovery by Newmont called Oberon can provide inspiration for what form discoveries on HMG’s package could take.
The project, meanwhile, has also garnered the attention of BHP, which included Hamelin in its Xplor cohort for 2024, an incubator program started to fund juniors via $500,000 grants to carry out innovative research into nickel and copper prospects around the world.
Aircore results at the Jazz prospect are due in December, with 2500m of RC drilling part-funded by a WA Government exploration incentive scheme grant into the South Fremlins prospect, where anomalism was identified in January below shallow holes, anticipated to take place in May.
Hamelin, additionally, boasts ground at five prospects across the Goldfields and Murchison regions of WA.
LARVOTTO RESOURCES (ASX:LRV) and MEGADO MINERALS (ASX:MEG)
(Up on no news)
Larvotto shares have stormed to a near 800% gain this year so far, largely thanks to a supply crunch and Chinese antimony ban that has sent prices of the specialty metal, used in defence and solar panels, to over US$33,000/t.
LRV paid $8m including a $5m environmental bond for the historically troubled Hillgrove mine in New South Wales, acquired from the administrators of Red River Resources.
The project contains an ore reserve of 606,000oz gold equivalent at 6g/t AuEq, based off a pre-feasibility study in August this year, suggesting it could deliver 41,100oz of gold and 5400t of antimony on an annual basis with a post-tax NPV8 of $157m and IRR of 49.6%.
A DFS to be delivered by MACA Interquip Mintrex on a restart of the mine, which has seen around $200m of previously sunk investment, is expected in the March quarter.
READ: Antimony’s a new market darling and its future looks bright
Earlier this month, $6m capped tiddler Megado announced it had picked up an 80% interest in a ‘major European Copper Project’, a phrase stretching the dictionary definition of the word major until it takes on a string-like consistency.
What it does boast is 12 permits in the north of Spain, all under application, over 956km2 in the Navarra and Aragon provinces in the Iberian nation.
Known, in fact, as the Iberian copper project, the rap according to Megado is they contain at least 12 historic copper mines with over 50 copper occurrences established in an exploration program in the 1970s by the Spanish government and Asturiana de Zinc, now a part of Glencore.
“The copper occurrences recorded were copper oxides in sandstones and conglomerates. The project is likely to include multiple targets with the possibility of more than one discrete project. A works program is being developed to establish multiple high priority targets for drilling activities.,” Megado said at the time.
The sale of the project includes the issuing of 175m shares in Megado, with performance rights due to the vendor based on milestones linked to specific resource estimate marks, which expire if not achieved in five years.
Permits are expected to be awarded in the first half of CY2025.
At Stockhead, we tell it like it is. While MTM Critical Metals is a Stockhead advertiser it did not sponsor this article.
