The share price says it all: in just three months the value of explorer Beowulf Mining (LON:BEM) has more than doubled in value.
The catalyst for this movement has been a series of bullish updates on iron ore exploration in the remote and inhospitable region of northern Sweden.
Chairman Clive Sinclair-Poulton believes Beowulf is destined to be a “major player in the European iron ore sector”.
The market seems to agree. Again today the stock inched a little higher – it is up 10 per cent after an upbeat appraisal of its Kallak iron ore project.
Today’s news confirmed “extended mineralisation” at Kallak North, which has an estimated resource of 150 million tonnes, with grades above 30 per cent.
However more interesting was the company’s preliminary assessment of Kallak South. 3D modelling revealed it is a “substantially larger” iron body than the northern deposit.
The company said the “Kallaks” may form a combined potential resource of several hundreds of million tonnes of iron ore.
Put together with the 140 million tonnes at Ruoutevare, which is 60-odd kilometres up the road, and one can understand why the chairman and the market are getting quite exited.
Earlier this week the group raised £400,000 via a placing of shares at 5.75p each to continue its aggressive drilling programme.
This will focus on the south now and will begin in the middle of this month. It has agreed a contract with local firm Ludvika Borrteknik, and the results will allow it to establish a JORC-compliant resource estimate.
“Recent advanced interpretations of 3D models of detailed ground magnetic data of the Kallak South deposit indicate the presence of an iron ore deposit significantly larger than that of the Kallak North deposit, which, from results of a recently completed drill programme by Beowulf, is estimated at 150 million tonnes,” the company said in a statement to the stock exchange earlier today.
“(We) anticipate that, once the drill programme at the Kallak South deposit is completed, the two deposits at Kallak may form a combined potential resource of several hundreds of million tonnes.”
In the north, the drilling assay results were encouraging. Many of the drill holes were stopped at depths of 150 metres where there was high grade mineralisation.
“However, the results do prove the presence of a significant high grade iron mineralisation over extended lengths and to great depths at the Kallak North deposit,” the company added.
The assay data show “significant iron grades” in each of the holes within each drill section.
Although detailed interpretation of internal variations within the deposit is currently ongoing, sections of 25% iron ore or greater are present across the entire width of the deposit of up to 300m.
“Higher grade mineralisation of up to 40% iron ore is noted in many holes at significant widths and great depths,” Beowulf said.
"We are encouraged by the assay results at Kallak North and look forward to receiving similar quality results from the recently acquired Kallak South zone,” said Sinclair-Poulton.
“The Kallak North results and those anticipated from Kallak South, along with the 140m tonnes so far recorded at Ruoutevare, allow the company a high level of confidence in our expectations of Beowulf becoming a major player in the European iron ore sector.”
At 2.30pm, the shares were up 0.75p at 7.75p, valuing the company at £12 million. In the past year stock has climbed 180 per cent as the news-flow has grown more positive.
As well as Kallak and Ruoutevare, the company has a half share of the Balleck copper-gold project in northern Sweden as well having uranium, gold and molybdenum assets.