Blackstone Minerals Ltd (ASX:BSX, OTCQX:BLSTF, FRA:B9S) substantial holder Delphi Unternehmensberatung AG and related entities have increased their stake in the nickel sulphide explorer to 17.87% from 16.79%.
This move further demonstrates the strong support from the Wilhelm KT Zours backed German investors for junior resource companies with solid exploration success, strong projects and firm development plans.
The investors increased their substantial status through a series of on-market purchases from May 26 to August 5 and now hold more than 59.3 million shares in Blackstone.
Nickel facility in Vietnam
Blackstone recently welcomed the outcomes of a pre-feasibility study (PFS) for the proposed downstream Ta Khoa Refinery (TKR) in Northern Vietnam that confirms a technically and economically robust hydrometallurgical refining process.
The PFS considers a refinery that can process up to 400,000 tonnes of nickel concentrate per annum over a 10-year life of operation and will require just under US$500 million in upfront project capital to construct.
Ultimately, Blackstone says the PFS demonstrates that a very low capital intensity is required for the TKR to produce Class I nickel at a scale that would make Blackstone a globally significant producer.
More broadly, the ASX-lister believes the PFS indicates the technical and economic strength of its hydrometallurgical refining process, which will upgrade nickel sulphide concentrate to produce battery-grade nickel: cobalt: manganese (NCM) 811 precursor for the lithium-ion battery industry.