SP Angel . Morning View . Tuesday 15 11 22
Weak Chinese data reflects Covid and contracting property market headwinds with outlook remaining bleak
MiFID II exempt information – see disclaimer below
Castillo Copper Ltd (ASX:CCZ, ASX:CCZ) – Rare earth elements potential of the BHA project
Centamin PLC (LSE:CEY, TSX:CEE, OTC:CELTF) – Potential expansion of underground mining capacity at Sukari could support 500,000oz pa production
Leo Lithium Ltd (ASX:LLL) – Port Services agreed for export of spodumene
Rambler Metals and Mining PLC (AIM:RMM, TSX-V:RAB)* suspended – Copper forward sale
Resolute Mining Limited (ASX:RSG, LSE:RSG) – Underwritten placing size increased from A$140m to A$164m
SolGold PLC (LSE:SOLG, TSX:SOLG, OTC:SLGGF)* – Quarterly report describes continuing feasibility work at Cascabel and Porvenir as well as further exploration of the Ecuador project portfolio
Vulcan Energy Resources (ASX:VUL) – Vulcan develops in-house variant of sorbent technology for lithium extraction
Zanaga Iron Ore Co Ltd (AIM:ZIOC, OTC:ZNGGF)* – Shares rise 72% on week
Lithium carbonate prices decline on rumours of Chinese cathode marker production cut
- Chinese lithium carbonate futures dropped 7% on Tuesday following a note by Credit Suisse that detailed rumours of production downgrades by an unnamed Chinese cathode maker.
- This latest news follows a bearish rep[ort from Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) last week that reiterated a forecasted decline in lithium prices on the horizon amid a supply ramp up.
- Goldman forecasts the lithium market will flip from a 84,000t deficit this year to a small surplus in 2023.
- Lithium equities fell across the board, with Core Lithium -15.8%, Alkem -12.4% and Pilbara Minerals -8.7%.
- This news follows reports yesterday that lithium hydroxide refineries in China have been ramping up operating rates this Autumn, with October output jumping 9% on the month and 55% YoY.
- Hydroxide production has been ramping up in China following the easing of power constraints that curtailed refining earlier in the year.
China’s largest rare earth miner falls out with largest refiner over pricing
- Inner Mongolia Baotou Steel Union, the world’s largest, rare earth mining company, is pressing for a significant price increase from its only customer even though the buyer rejected two previous proposals.
- In response, Baotou Steel Union said it will modify its pricing mode to auctioning, in other words selling to the highest bidder.
- The move is expected to force Northern Rare Earth to accept its new pricing.
- Pricing between Baotou and Northern Rare Earth is determined at quarterly meeting between the groups, though at June’s meeting the two bodies could not reach an agreement.
- At the January meeting, Baotou Steel raised its price by 65% and in June increased the price by another 45% - rejected by Northern and put to the market as a result.
- Both firms are owned by steel major Baotou Iron and Steel Group, which has exclusive mining rights to Baiyun Ebo in Inner Mongolia, the world’s largest REE mine.
- The mine is responsible for almost half of the world’s rare earth production.
Dow Jones Industrials -0.63% at 33,537
Nikkei 225 +0.10% at 27,990
HK Hang Seng +3.67% at 18,267
Shanghai Composite +1.64% at 3,134
Economics
China – Relaxation of zero covid to create substantial disruption to economy
- Western manufacturers and orders are transferring elsewhere as ongoing Covid disruption
- Guangzhou has not lockdown despite covid surge while Zhengzhou has less lockdown zones
- Tickets for trains and flights to Beijing are available again.
Economic growth momentum continued to slide in October on Covid related restrictions as well as property market slump putting pressure on Beijing to step up support.
- Retail sales contracted last month while industrial production and investment underperform estimates.
- With the tally of new cases climbing and running at the highest level since the start of the pandemic (~17,300) growth outlook remains bleak.
Guangzhou, the capital of China’s southern manufacturing province of Guangdong, avoided citywide lockdown despite a record 5,124 cases reported yesterday, FT writes.
- The situation is different to the lockdown in Shanghai that was put in place when daily count hit 3,500 cases in late March.
- Authorities are instead imposing Covid restrictions that vary between districts.
- Reports are emerging of people crashing through Covid barriers marching down streets on Monday night in protest to coronavirus restrictive measures.
- Retail Sales (%yoy): -0.5 v 2.5 September and 0.7 est.
- Industrial Production (%yoy): 5.0 v 6.3 September and 5.3 est.
- FAI ex Rural (%YTD): 5.8 v 5.9 September and 5.9 est.
- Property Investment (%YTD): -8.8 v -8.0 September and -8.3 est.
- Residential Property Sales (%YTD): -28.2 v -28.6 September.
China’s October production output hit by anti-pollution measures, lingering effects of summer drought and zero-covid
- China’s October aluminium production fell from record levels in September as hydropower limitations hit output.
- October steel production fell to March 2022 lows, down 2.2% from Jan-October on limited property demand.
- Natural Gas drilling increased to a 7-month high, coal production increased 10% you for the first 10 months – authorities are pushing for increased energy security following last year’s winter-induced energy crisis.
- However, officials noted yesterday that China is struggling to reach its capacity expansion target of 300mt, citing restrictions from environmental regulations.
Japan – The economy unexpectedly reported a contraction in Q3/22 as a depreciation in the national currency inflated the country’s import bill, Bloomberg reports.
- In the wake of rising energy costs exacerbated by the falling yen as well as general inflationary pressures, the government put together an economic stimulus package last month that includes aid to keep a lid on energy prices for households and businesses.
- The cabinet approved an extra budget of JPY 29.1tn (~$207bn) to fund these measures.
- GDP (Annualised, %qoq): -1.2 v 4.6 (revised from 3.5) Q2/22 and 1.2 est.
- Private Consumption (%qoq): 0.3 v 1.2 Q2/22 and 0.3 est.
- Business Spending (%qoq): 1.5 v 2.4 (revised from 2.0) Q2/22 and 2.2 est.
- Net Exports Contribution (pp GDP): -0.7 v 0.2 (revised from 0.1) Q2/22 and -0.3 est.
UK – Wages climbed more than expected in three months to September, albeit, underperforming general inflation suggesting real incomes continued to slide.
- Nevertheless, stronger wage inflation would support further monetary policy tightening.
- The pound is trading up at 1.18 against the US$ this morning.
- Private sector pay climbed at the fastest pace on record outside the pandemic increasing 6.6%yoy.
- The data points to the biggest gap between public sector pay and private companies.
- Employment Change (3M/3M): -52k v -109k August and -25k est.
- Unemployment Rate (3M): 3.6% v 3.5% August and 3.5% est.
- Av Weekly Earnings (3M %yoy): 6.0 v 6.1 (revised from 6.0) August and 5.9 est.
Argentina – Government targets major ramp up in mining exports to $18bn in 2030
- Argentina’s mining secretary announced plans to boost mining exports from $3.8bn in 2022 (forecast) to $18bn in 2030.
- The Ministry is hoping to boost Josemaria’s copper output and support the develop of multiple lithium projects.
- Adam Lundin, Josemaria’s CEO, has called on Argentina to boost infrastructure investment to enable a production ramp up.
Peru – Nation suffers $1bn loss in exports on community protest damage
- A Peruvian mining committee, SNMPE, has suggested that social conflict escalations has cost the country over $1bn in exports.
- The committee’s head accuses national leaders of losing authority and normalizing violence against mining producers.
- Las Bambas has been constantly impacted by road blockades over the past 15 months.
South Africa – Transnet - force majeure – freight rail disruption persists, weighing on coal exports and mining revenues
- A major freight route to the Richards Bay Coal Terminal remains closed following a derailing incident on Nov. 8th.
- Coal exports were already expected to fall 14% this year, on multiple factors including a strike with major rail operator Transnet.
- The SA Mineral Council reports that ‘security on key export corridors must be a priority focus for the police to prevent criminal elements disrupting bulk exports.’
- Richards Bay Coal Terminal, operated in part by Glencore, Thungela and Exxaro rose 8x from Jan-Jul 2022.
Russian metal into LME warehouses stable as buyers continue purchases
- New data from the LME show fears of a surge of Russian-derived metal deliveries were unfounded.
- The LME announced on Friday that it would not ban Russian metal, despite fears of major buyers shunning the metal over international sanction concerns.
- An LME report earlier this month concluded that ‘for the most part, a material portion of the market is still accepting, even relying, on Russian metal.’
- US aluminium producers had been made vocal attempts to pressure the LME to stop accepting Russian metals. (Reuters)
- Fears of supply shortages have eased following the exchange’s decision; however prices have seen support from a weak dollar and optimism over the Chinese property market.
Currencies
US$1.0410/eur vs 1.0326/eur yesterday. Yen 139.44/$ vs 139.55/$. SAr 17.197/$ vs 17.255/$. $1.182/gbp vs $1.179/gbp. 0.675/aud vs 7.036/aud. CNY 7.035/$ vs 7.036/$.
Dollar Index: 106.16 /-3.08% on week
Commodity News
Precious metals:
Gold US$1,780/oz vs US$1,764/oz yesterday - Gold extends gains as traders weigh up Fed officials’ comments
- Gold pressed higher to $1,780/oz following consistent buying after last week’s US CPI reading.
- The move was supported by the dollar’s sustained weakness, settling around 106 on the index vs 113 last week.
- US 10 Year treasury yields have held lower for the time being at 3.857%, supporting further upwards momentum in gold prices.
- Traders continue to look for guidance from the Fed, with the most recent move higher triggered by Fed Vice Chair Brainard stating the central bank may slow the monetary-tightening pace ‘soon.’
- However, Fed member Waller stated there is still a ‘way to go’ before rate hikes are concluded, highlighting the sticky situation Powell et al. find themselves in.
Gold ETFs 94.3moz vs US$94.4moz yesterday
Platinum US$1,031/oz vs US$1,024/oz yesterday
Palladium US$2,059/oz vs US$2,034/oz yesterday
Silver US$22.14/oz vs US$21.74/oz yesterday
Rhodium US$13,550/oz vs US$13,550/oz yesterday
Base metals:
Copper US$ 8,455/t vs US$8,528/t yesterday
Aluminium US$ 2,475/t vs US$2,443/t yesterday
Nickel US$ 29,505/t vs US$26,830/t yesterday - Nickel miner backed by Tesla slashes output on tailings dam leak
- New Caledonia’s Goro nickel mine, funded by Tesla and Trafigura, has announced production cuts on a ‘limited release of salt-laden liquid’ from its tailings dam.
- The leak was triggered by heavy August rains, according to Prony Resources - the operator of the mine.
- Nickel prices rallied 7% this morning following a volatile 15% move yesterday on news of an explosion at an Indonesian nickel plant.
- Yesterday’s move subsequently retreated following the Indonesian project’s owner denying any damage to operations.
- The Goro news follows output cuts from Eramet and Solway.
- Prony Resources expects ‘full capacity again shortly.’
- New Caledonia’s total nickel hydroxide cake production stood at 19,662t of nickel content in the first three quarters of 2022.
Zinc US$ 3,163/t vs US$3,068/t yesterday
Lead US$ 2,197/t vs US$2,145/t yesterday
Tin US$ 22,100/t vs US$21,270/t yesterday
Energy:
Oil US$92.7/bbl vs US$96.1/bbl yesterday
Natural Gas US$6.061/mmbtu vs US$6.128/mmbtu yesterday
Uranium UXC US$50.75/lb vs US$50.75/lb yesterday
Bulk:
Iron ore 62% Fe spot (cfr Tianjin) US$94.4/t vs US$92.8/t - Iron ore edges higher on added optimism over China’s property stimulus package
- Iron ore prices have rallied for 3 consecutive days following a major support package from Beijing.
- Singapore futures rallied another 1.9% to $95/t.
- Steel mills in China recorded an 11% decline yoy in October, weighing on iron ore demand at the same time Australian producers are ramping up shipments.
- Whilst China’s residential property market has seen sales by floor area fall 22.2% between Jan-Sept, floor starts by non-developers increased 30% over the same period. (Rio Tinto)
- Rio also suggest that total new starts in floor space was only slightly negative yoy in the first 9 months of this year, giving some sign of optimism in the sector.
Chinese steel rebar 25mm US$550.0/t vs US$549.4/t
Thermal coal (1st year forward cif ARA) US$208.0/t vs US$208.0/t
Thermal coal swap Australia FOB US$312.0/t vs US$291.5/t
Coking coal swap Australia FOB US$312.0/t vs US$312.0/t
Other:
Cobalt LME 3m US$51,955/t vs US$51,955/t
NdPr Rare Earth Oxide (China) US$91,900/t vs US$92,023/t
Lithium carbonate 99% (China) US$82,297/t vs US$82,643/t
China Spodumene Li2O 5%min CIF US$6,110/t vs US$6,110/t
Ferro-Manganese European Mn78% min US$1,285/t vs US$1,275/t
China Tungsten APT 88.5% FOB US$31.7/kg vs US$31.7/kg
China Graphite Flake -194 FOB US$880/t vs US$880/t
Europe Vanadium Pentoxide 98% 7.5/lb vs US$7.5/lb
Europe Ferro-Vanadium 80% 31.75/kg vs US$31.75/kg
China Ilmenite Concentrate TiO2 US$319/t vs US$319/t
Spot CO2 Emissions EUA Price US$78.2/t vs US$75.8/t
Brazil Potash CFR Granular Spot US$570.0/t vs US$570.0/t
Battery News
Company News
Castillo Copper Ltd (ASX:CCZ, ASX:CCZ) 1.25p, Mkt Cap £17m – Rare earth elements potential of the BHA project
- Castillo Copper reports that drilling has identified what it describes as “significant clay-hosted” rare-earth elements mineralisation at its Fence Gossan and Tors Tank prospects in the BHA East project area in New South Wales.
- Assay results from seven drill holes include:
- An intersection of 20m at an average grade of 1,780ppm (parts per million) TREO (total rare earth oxides) from surface in hole FG-003RC; and
- An intersection of 19m at an average grade of 661ppm TREO from surface in hole FG-002RC; and
- An intersection of 32m at an average grade of 636ppm TREO from 52m depth in hole FG-003RC; and
- An intersection of 28m at an average grade of 614ppm TREO from 4m depth in hole FG-004RC.
- The company says that assay results from hole FG-001RC “are still pending, however, results for FG_002-4RC delineate an initial 800m strike event starting near FG's eastern boundary”.
- Maps included in today’s announcement Significant clay-hosted REE discovery at BHA - 07:00:05 15 Nov 2022 - CCZ News article | London Stock Exchange show drilling in the eastern part if the Fence Gossan prospect and Castillo Copper says that “REE mineralisation … [is] … open in all directions” and that “the Board has ordered the full extent of FG's area (circa 4km long by 1km wide) to be geologically mapped, surface sampled, and auger drilled. The core objective is to extend the known strike event to the west and identify new targets for drill-testing”.
Centamin PLC (LSE:CEY, TSX:CEE, OTC:CELTF) 106.35p, Mkt Cap £1,226m – Potential expansion of underground mining capacity at Sukari could support 500,000oz pa production
- Centamin reports that its underground mining operation at Sukari in Egypt has the potential to increase mining rates by around 31% to 1.5mtpa from the current 1.1mtpa.
- The expansion of underground mining capacity is “a significant step towards delivering on our commitment to consistently produce 500,000 ounces per annum from the Sukari Gold Mine” and the 1.5mtpa rate is “at the upper end of the previously indicated range”.
- The increased gold production reflects the displacement of “lower-grade open pit and stockpile mill feed … [by] … higher-grade underground tonnes”.
- Centamin says that the increased production rate could be achieved at “an estimated US$25-35 million … [of] … additional capital expenditure” with the majority being required for “ventilation upgrades, underground development, additional fleet items (two trucks, one development drill rig and a loader) and potential increases to the paste-fill plant capacity”.
- The company explains that the “next step is to deliver a fully engineered mining schedule by mid-2023, incorporating the upcoming 2022 Sukari mineral resource estimate, scheduled for publication in December 2022. Given lead times for equipment delivery and infrastructure implementation, it is estimated that underground mining rates will gradually ramp up throughout 2024 and reach the increased steady state for 2025”.
Conclusion: The substitution of low grade surface mined and stockpiled material with higher grade mill feed from underground mining has the potential to increase output at the Sukari mine to 500,000oz pa without requiring plant expansion. Current year production guidance for Sukari is in the range 430-460,000oz.
Leo Lithium Ltd (ASX:LLL) – A$0.58c, Mkt cap A$572m – Port Services agreed for export of spodumene
- Leo Lithium reports it has an agreement for port services including unloading, storage and shiploading at the Abidjan Port, a major West African deep-water port.
- Spodumene will be trucked from the Goulamina Lithium project, with initial forecast SC6 production of 506ktpa in Stage 1 expanding to ~830ktpa in Stage 2 over 21.5 years.
- Leo has secured 9,000sqm of storage for a period of ten years with initial assessments indicating capacity for 60,000t of storage, while the port has the means to host handymax sized ships up to 55kt.
- There is no capex required from Leo Lithium as the port will make investments to upgrade the warehouses and make it suitable for Product storage.
- Kodal Minerals* continues to progress its Bougouni Project next door to Goulamina, with a recent update (Sep/22) regarding processing showing that using dense media separation can reduce capital cost and time to first production.
- The DMS plant will run at 1mtpa for initial of four years producing SC5.5 (5.5% Li2O spodumene concentrate) with milling and flotation circuit to be added in later years and funded from internally generated operational cash flows.
- Development timeline is expected to be reduced to 12 months compared to 22 months for a full flotation plant.
- Initial capital outlay is estimated to be cut to $65m compared to $154 for straight to milling/flotation option.
- Key economic parameters for Kodal’s DMS feasibility update (DMSU) include:
- 3.9mt at 1.13% Li2O mining inventory to be processed over 3.9y LOM;
- 1.0mtpa DMS plant processing capacity, down from 2mtpa estimated originally;
- DMS recoveries assumed at 63.5%, a 10pp reduction given no milling/flotation;
- 130ktpa SC5.5 forecast annual production, down from ~240ktpa reflecting lower scale;
- On site unit costs (mining/processing/G&A) estimated at $436/SC, up on $362/SC, reflecting lower economies of scale from smaller mining/throughput rates;
- TCC (on site plus selling costs) estimated at $561/SC, up on $474/SC.
- Post tax NPV7% and IRR are estimated at $420m and 274% using an average spodumene price of $2,080/t FOB (price starts at $2,950 in first year and ends at $1,400/t in the last year).
*SP Angel acts as Financial Advisor and Broker to Kodal Minerals.
Rambler Metals and Mining PLC (AIM:RMM, TSX-V:RAB)* suspended – Copper forward sale
NPV Valuation: Under review
- Rambler Metals reports that it has sold 750 tonnes of copper 12 months forward at a price of US$8,330/t.
- The company says that this “represents a nominal 11% of expected future copper production from the Ming Mine, subject to completion of the 2023 budget”.
- The forward sale represents approximately US$6.25m of revenue and follows the announcement last week of operational initiatives expected to generate monthly cost savings of up to US$1m at its Ming mine in Newfoundland.
Conclusion: The forward sale of around 11% of copper production over the next year secures a price of US$8,330/t and follows the announcement, last week, of cost cutting measures which are expected to deliver monthly cost savings of approximately US$1m.
*SP Angel act as Nomad and Broker to Rambler Metals & Mining. An SP Angel analyst holds shares in Rambler Metals & Mining.
Resolute Mining Limited (ASX:RSG, LSE:RSG) 10.1p, Mkt Cap £131m – Underwritten placing size increased from A$140m to A$164m
- Resolute reports that following strong demand from investors, it has increased the underwritten component of the Equity Raising from A$140m to A$164m.
- A$144m will be used to reduce net debt and $A20m to fund general working capital.
- The company also notes the A$55m cornerstone investment of North American institutional investor Condire.
- The Retail Entitlement Offer of A$105m, of which A$68m is underwritten, is expected to open on 17 November 2022 and close on the 5th December 2022.
SolGold PLC (LSE:SOLG, TSX:SOLG, OTC:SLGGF)* 18.22p, Mkt Cap £442m – Quarterly report describes continuing feasibility work at Cascabel and Porvenir as well as further exploration of the Ecuador project portfolio
- Solgold’s quarterly report for the three months to 30th September 2022 shows a loss of US$8.76m (2021 – loss of US$11.71m) and a closing cash balance of US$11.52m.
- The company explains that, building on the Preliminary Feasibility study, it has now started definitive feasibility studies on the Cascabel project in northern Ecuador, which hosts the 2.6bn tonnes Alpala deposit, and that it also started a Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) for its Porvenir project while also progressing further exploration at Porvenir and the Helipuerto, Chical and Rio Amarillo projects.
- The Porvenir copper-gold porphyry project is situated in southern Ecaudor, around 100km north of the Peruvian border, and includes the Cacharposa project where an initial mineral resource estimate of almost 400m indicated tonees of mineralisation at an average grade of 0.44% copper equivalent was reported in December 2021.
- Further work at Porvenir includes continuing exploration of the Cacharposa porphyry, which “is part of a 1,700m long northerly-trending mineralised corridor, up to 1,000m wide” as well as seven additional targets at Mula Muerta, Eudis, Balmore, Diabolo, Parmal, Bartolo and Merino.
- The Helipuerto prospect in southeastern Ecuador lies “within one of the most prolific portions of the Andean Jurassic Porphyry Belt, which hosts globally significant copper and gold deposits in Ecuador, several of which have been developed into mines, such as the nearby Fruta del Norte and Mirador mines, the Santa Barbara, Panantza and Warintza deposits, and SolGold’s newly discovered Cacharposa deposit at Porvenir”.
- Current work at Helipuerto is concentrating on the Tinkimints copper prospect “including mapping and sampling of the area directly south of Solaris’s Warintza copper-gold porphyry discovery that abuts SolGold’s Helipuerto concessions”.
- At the Chical project, located around 25km NE of Solgold’s Alpala project, mineralisation “is found within a wide area where structures cross NE and NW between the Naranjal Fault (FN) to the north-western end of the concessions and the Toachi Fault (FT) to the southeast”.
- Solgold plans a 5,000m drilling programme at Chical to test targets at Espinosa, Pascal and La Esperanza “when water permits are received”.
- Continuing exploration of the Rio Amarillo prospect, located around 30km southe east of Alpala is concentrating on geological mapping at the Chahuapungo copper gold porphyry target as well as the Sigsa and El Domo (NASDAQ:DOMO) targets.
- Solgold also reiterates the agreement, reached in October, with Cornerstone to consolidate ownership of the Cascabel project in Solgold via an acquisition of the Cornerstone shares it does not already own as well as the US$50m, 0.6% NSR, royalty agreement with Osisko Gold Royalties (TSX:OR) announced in November.
*SP Angel acts as Financial Advisor to SolGold
Vulcan Energy Resources (ASX:VUL) A$7.67, Mkt Cap A$1.1bn – Vulcan develops in-house variant of sorbent technology for lithium extraction
- Vulcan Energy Resources (ASX:VUL) reports it has successfully developed, tested and demonstrated its in-house sorbent technology (VULSORB™).
- Sorbent technology is used by the majors including Albemarle for the extraction of lithium from high-grade brines in the Atacama. Albemarle acquired Sorbent Technologies in 2008 for $22.5m.
- Sorbent materials have been used for many years for gas purification and to help control mercury emissions from coal-fired power stations and work with high-grade lithium brines.
- The sorbent process was developed around 30 years ago, moving into lithium brine extraction for the past 25 years.
- The sorbet acts like a molecular sieve material to adsorb target elements from gasses or liquids and enables lithium to be extracted from high-grade brines.
- The sorbent enables the production of a pure lithium chloride eluate which can be further converted into lithium hydroxide through electrowinning.
- Brines need to be pre-treated to reduce sorbent destruction, to generate the best PH, salinity and heat for optimal lithium recovery.
- Vulcan claims to improved performance and lower water consumption with its it’s proprietary sorbent technology versus other commercially available sorbents as tested by the Company on live brine from it’s geothermal energy plant at Natür3lich Insheim.
- Vulcan also claim the manufacturing process for it’s sorbent material is environmentally benign with many of the reagents recycled and the potential for Vulcan to use its own lithium to make future sorbent once in production.
- Management plan to use their new VULSORB™ technology in their Phase 1 plant with first production due at end-2025 but will continue to test other sorbents for further optionality.
- Vulcan has also claimed to produce a high grade, low-impurity lithium hydroxide (LiOH) from its pilot plant.
- Vulcan will look to test its sorbent technology on other lithium brines particularly renewably-heated brines.
Conclusion: Sorbent technology has been used for around 25 years for the separation of lithium from brines in the Atacama. Vulcan’s claims of success in its separation of lithium from geothermal brines in the Rhine Valley is interesting news and we look forward to further reports on its ongoing viability. While the new VULSORB™ process appears to work at the Natür3lich Insheim site, it may prove challenging to find similar high-grade, saline, lithium brines elsewhere.
Zanaga Iron Ore Co Ltd (AIM:ZIOC, OTC:ZNGGF)* 4.1 pence, Mkt Cap £11.4m – Shares rise 72% on week
(Zanaga Iron Ore hold 44.99% of the Zanaga Iron Ore project in joint venture with Glencore)
- Zanaga Iron Ore shares have leapt another 18% higher today following a strong run last week.
- Speculation suggests Glencore might be looking to consolidate their ownership of the Zanaga iron ore project in the Republic of the Congo.
- Management have been busy investigating a series of scenarios for the production, processing and transport of iron ore from the Zanaga project site.
- The team are looking to collaborate with other mining project developers in the RoC on the transport of supplies and concentrates and the upgrade of local infrastructure, eg the rail line into the interior.
- Management planning for the production of 12mtpa in stage one followed by expansion to 30mtpa in a second stage, indicating the development of a reliable, heavy-duty rail line.
*An SP Angel Analyst has formerly visited the Zanaga Iron Ore project
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*SP Angel are the No1 integrated nomad and broker by number of mining brokerage clients on AIM according to the AIM Advisers Ranking Guide (joint brokerships excluded)
+SP Angel employees may have previously held, or currently hold, shares in the companies mentioned in this note.
Sources of commodity prices
Gold, Platinum, Palladium, Silver - BGNL (Bloomberg Generic Composite rate, London)
Gold ETFs, Steel - Bloomberg
Copper, Aluminium, Nickel, Zinc, Lead, Tin, Cobalt - LME
Oil Brent - ICE
Natural Gas, Uranium, Iron Ore - NYMEX
Thermal Coal - Bloomberg OTC Composite
Coking Coal - SSY
RRE - Steelhome
Lithium Carbonate, Ferro Vanadium, Tungsten, Spodumene, Ferro-Manganese, Graphite - Asian Metal
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SPA research ratings – Based on a time horizon of 12 months: Buy = Expected return of more than 15%, Hold = Expected return between -15% and +15%, Sell = Expected return of less than 15%