Resources Top 6: Vanadium In Vogue, Potash Plays Prep For Phenomenal Prices
VANADIUM RESOURCES (ASX:VR8)
This South Africa based vanadium project developer has scored a $4.6m investment at 10.4c per share – a massive 64% premium to the 30-day average share price (VWAP).
The cash comes from Raubex (JSE:RBX), an international infrastructure development, mining services and materials supply group.
A separate agreement would also see Raubex subsidiary ‘SPH Kundalila’ provide contract mining services to VR8.
With $6.1m in the bank, VR8 is now fully funded through definitive feasibility studies (DFS) and up to Final Investment Decision at the flagship ‘Steelpoortdrift’ vanadium project.
Steelpoortdrift is one of the world’s largest deposits, located within the famous, vanadium-rich Bushveld Complex.
A recent pre-feasibility study indicates the Steelpoortdrift project “is well positioned to become a significant high volume and low-cost producer”.
The 39 million pounds (17,700 tonne) per annum project would cost a relatively low $US200m ($271m) to build.
It has a net present value (post tax) of $US1.2 billion and internal rate of return (post tax) of 45%.
Operational costs are an impressive $US3.08/lb V2O5, the company says.
It is also one of the few vanadium resources globally with a mining right granted, which includes environmental approval.
$40m market cap VR8 is up 200% year-to-date.
SOUTH HARZ POTASH (ASX:SHP)
Fertilizer prices globally are going gangbusters, like everything else right now.
One stock hoping to benefit is German based potash explorer SHP, which has now signed a drilling contract for the first 665m deep confirmatory hole at its ‘Ohmgebirge’ Mining Licence area.
The aim of the drilling is to collect potash core samples to verify drilling by the former East German state in the 1980s.
The confirmation drillholes will allow SHP to upgrade current inferred resources to indicated within the mining licence area, thus allowing the release of a Scoping Study in Q1 CY22.
$61m market cap SHP is up 141% year-to-date.
NOVA MINERALS (ASX:NVA)
The gold explorer just hit 132m at 10.1 g/t gold at the ‘RPM’ deposit, part of the 4.7moz Estelle project in Alaska.
Outrageous numbers. That must be up there as one of the gold hits of the year.
“The RPM deposit is shaping up to be a very large high grade IRGS style gold system that remains wide open, with results from 3 drill holes to be reported in the coming weeks,” CEO Christopher Gerteisen says.
“RPM is now confirmed to be the second significant project development area at Estelle and will be a key component of our ongoing resource development work on our path towards production at the Estelle Gold Project.”
A RPM Maiden Resource is due in Q4 2021.
The 4.7moz Korbel deposit and RPM represent only 2 of 15 known prospects with the wider Estelle Gold Project claims, NVA says.
INFINITY LITHIUM (ASX:INF)
A small battle is won against the local Spanish government, which seems hell-bent on preventing INF’s ‘San Jose’ vertically integrated lithium development being built.
A positive court ruling now means a modified rehabilitation and restoration plan for the project put forward by City Council was outside the law and is “null and void”.
However, the company still needs to win the big one — a potentially catastrophic cancellation of its project permit.
“In additional the decision by the Contentious-Administrative Court in Cáceres relating to restoration works, the company is continuing to contest the cancellation of Investigation Permit Valdeflorez (PIV) through a contentious administrative appeal,” INF says.
“The company strongly disputes the basis of the decision of the cancellation of PIV and retains all legal rights against the Junta of Extremadura.
“The submission of documentation relating to the appeal has been received by Contentious-Administrative Court in Cáceres.”
San Jose´, the second-largest JORC hard rock lithium deposit in the EU, was expected to produce 15,000 tonnes per annum lithium hydroxide over 30 years.
The $54m market cap stock is one of the only lithium stocks to lose ground in 2021, down 17% year to date.
SIREN GOLD (ASX:SNG)
SNG is exploring the rich Reefton gold district on the South Island of New Zealand, an area which has already delivered 2Moz across 84 historical mines.
The company recently released a maiden Exploration Target of 100,000oz-125,000oz at 7-9g/t gold for one target, called ‘Big River’.
The project overlays the historic Big River mine which produced ~136,000 oz of gold at an average recovered grade of ~34g/t between 1880 and 1942.
SNG is up 24% on its October 2020 IPO price of 25c per share.
VALOR RESOURCES (ASX:VAL)
Early stage rock sampling at the Picha project in Peru has thick, high grade copper at the ‘Cobremani’ and ‘Maricate’ targets.
Results include a 35.6m long channel sample averaging 1.3% copper and 22.85g/t silver at Cobremani, as well as several samples up to 13.4% copper at the 1km-long Maricate target area.
Over 150 assay results from the Maricate and ‘Cumbre Coya’ targets are expected in next two weeks. Geophysics and drill planning will kick off once the current field program is complete, VAL says.
This Tolga Kumova favourite also has uranium projects in Canada’s Athabasca Basin.
The $67m market cap stock is up 60% year-to-date.
www.ferroalloynet.com
