Acacia Mining PLC (LON:ACA) stumbled as the Tanzania Ministry of Energy and Minerals banned exports of gold/copper concentrate following a directive from the country’s President.
The 250-listed miner generated 30% of its revenues from concentrate exports in 2016, but has now halted all exports of copper and gold in this form.
The miner said it was urgently seeking further clarification from the Ministry of Energy and Minerals.
Shares fell 10% to 479.4p.
In the confusion, Shanta Gold PLC (LON:SHG) dipped 5% to 9.5p, even though it does not export any concentrate only gold dore bars from its New Luika mine.
Herencia PLC climbed 98% (LON:HER) as received a further US$50,000 from Lind Partners’ Australian Special pportunity Fund through a secured convertible facility.
A larger funding package is currently being negotiated with Lind and other investors.
Shares in Velocys PLC (LON:VLS) rose 17% to 71.5p as the AIM-quoted company signed a definitive agreement with Japanese fabrication group Morimatsu.
Morimatsu will become Velocys’s preferred supplier of module engineering and fabrication for its gas-to-liquid (GTL) fuel plants.
2pm... Hutchison China Meditech boosted by phase III trial
A positive outcome to its phase III trial of fruquintinib in 416 patients with locally advanced or metastatic colorectal cancer (CRC) in China sent Hutchison China MediTech Limited up by 11% to 2,325p.
The drug is for patients who have failed at least two prior chemotherapies, including fluoropyrimidine, oxaliplatin and irinotecan.
The trial showed a clinically meaningful and a statistically significant increase in overall survival in the intention-to-treat (ITT) population of patients.
A new drug application will now be made to the Chinese authorities.
Frontera Resources PLC (LON:FRR) jumped 14% as the Moldovan government confirmed the hydrocarbon concessions within an area comprising approximately three million acres situated in the southern portion of the country for fifty years.
Frontera's exploration objectives in the country are to undertake extensive technical evaluation related to the onshore Dobrudga Basin in the eastern European country.
Harvest Minerals Ltd’s (LON:HMI) house broker Beaufort Securities fired up the fertiiser group with a bullish update and a price target of 32p or three times current market value.
The core of the valuation is the Arapua licence in Brazil, where this week there was a sizeable upgrade to the resource at its Maximus prospect.
Shares today rose 20% to 13.5p
9.30am...Kodal Minerals buoyed by the lithium wave
Lithium still has the market in its thrall, or at least the small cap end.
A routine statement for Kodal Minerals PLC (LON:KOD) that drilling is set to start at Bougouni in Mali added 24% to its market value.
Trenching has identified four potential new targets, though the shallow drilling programme will focus on Ngoualana, which has been drilled previously, with a maiden resource number the aim for this year said Kodal. Shares rose to 0.27p.
Another ‘wonder product’ specialist. Graphene NanoChem plc (LON:GRPH) was a big gainer on news of a contract in Turkmenistan for its oil well cleaning additive.
It is the first contract for the product in the country with the order worth US$119,000 just for one trial well. Graphene said the unnamed customer has 110 wells in Turkmenistan.
If the trial is successful, negotiations will start for these oil wells to be treated over the next 12-24 months.
Investors did the math (US$13.2mln) and the shares rose 20% to 7.33p valuing Graphene at a shade over £9mln.
TechFinancials PLC (LON:TECH) rose strongly for a second day. The shares were the best performers in London on Thursday rising 30% on receipt of a US$1.53mln dividend from its 51%-owned subsidiary, DragonFinancials.
That’s on top of the US$2.55mln TechFinancials received from its subsidiary at the interim results stage.
Shares rose by a further 8% to 10.22p.
Proactive news headlines
Tekcapital PLC (LON:TEK) announced the third product launch this week from its Belluscura medtech division. This one is a cutting tool used in keyhole surgery. Shares rose 1% to 44p.
Venn Life Sciences Holdings plc (LON:VENN) soared 20% higher after it told investors that it had enjoyed “another year of strong growth” in 2016 and momentum had continued into 2017.
Landore Resources Ltd. (LON:LND) has raised £2mln through a subscription which it will use to finance further drilling and exploration at its BAM East gold project in Ontario, Canada. Shares eased 1% to 2.89p.
Life sciences specialist Abzena plc (LON:ABZA) has published an abstract for its poster presentation at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) annual meeting on 2 April. Shares eased to 36.3p.