Power Metal Resources (POW), the London listed exploration company with a global project portfolio, announced an update from its Molopo Farms Complex Project, the Company is targeting a district-scale nickel and platinum group element discovery in southwestern Botswana. POW said it was pleased to confirm the mobilisation for this important drill programme targeting the highest priority conductor identified to date at the Molopo Farms Complex Project in Botswana. It was very excited to be getting this work underway, which is testament to an immense amount of technical analysis and preparatory work completed by the team.
Comment: It is all coming together for POW at the moment, the 61% share in soaring Golden Metal Resources (GMET), exposure to the soaring uranium price, and of course, Rick Rule on the shareholder register. The shares remain on the wrong side of 1p.
Hummingbird (HUM) announced a Group operational and trading update for the fourth quarter ending 31 December 2023 and provided operation and AISC guidance for FY-2024. HUM said FY-2023 posed significant challenges for Hummingbird as it evolved into a multi-asset, multi-jurisdictional gold company, welcoming Kouroussa into its portfolio and maintained its dedication to responsible mining practices and community engagement. Yanfolila demonstrated its resilience by producing nearly 84 koz of gold at an AISC of US$1,361/oz, meeting its FY-2023 guidance. Additionally, FY-2023 saw the commencement of the Komana East underground mine development. This project is crucial in the future of Yanfolila, and it is focused on delivering commercial production later this year for a full year of production from FY-2025.
Comment: It can be said quite fairly that HUM done rather better than expected in terms of facing up to the challenges of 2023, and in turn the market has been rather less generous in terms of rating the company, especially given record gold prices.
URA Holdings (URAH), the gemstone mining company focused on the imminent production phase of the Gravelotte Emerald Mine, announced the arrival of its optical sorter at the GEM mine in South Africa. This event marks an important step in the mine’s transition to operational status. URAH said it was pleased to announce that the optical sorter has arrived on site at the Gravelotte Mine in South Africa. Its team will now begin to assemble the optical sorter, its conveyor belts systems, bins and other components before commissioning. It believes it is now on track towards achieving first production within the next 2-3months.
Comment: The run up to first production should be a sweet spot for shares of URAH, especially now that the optical sorter has arrived. The market has still not priced the magnitude of what URAH is sitting on.
Mirriad Advertising (MIRI) we can be cynical about awards, however Trusted Partner Network Gold Shield status, is an industry recognition owned by the Motion Picture Association, the American trade association representing the five major film studios of the US and Netflix. It serves as a benchmark for content security standards. The recognition is a critical enabler of MIRI partnerships with the leading entertainment and media companies in the US. This news follows the recent December y/e trading update where it reported, losses and net cash of £6.1m. Also, that agreements are in place to supply its in content advertising technology to partners representing c25% of the total US TV advertising market, up from 8% in Q3 2023 with substantive negotiations ongoing with two further US majors, representing an additional 30% of US TV advertising market.
Comment: The shares are back at 1.75p and a mkt cap of £8.6m and further substantial partnerships seem set to be ‘rewarded’.
Atlantic Lithium (ALL), the African-focused lithium exploration and development company, presented its Quarterly Activities and Cash Flow Report for the period ended 31 December 2023. ALL said the grant of the Mining Lease during the quarter ended 31 December 2023 represents the most significant milestone for the Ewoyaa Lithium Project to-date. Under the terms agreed, the Mining Lease indicates that Ewoyaa remains one of the lowest capital and operating cost hard rock lithium projects globally, with strong commercial viability and exceptional profitability potential.
Comment: With a keen stakebuilder in the stock it can be said that whatever is going on operationally with regard to Ewoyaa ALL appears well underpinned, and hence a re-rate into the 30p’s and beyond seems likely.
Metals One (MET1), which is advancing battery metal projects at brownfield sites in Finland and Norway, announced that shareholders representing in aggregate over 30% of the Company’s issued share capital have agreed to extend their lock-in agreements through to 31 December 2025. MET1 said this is a tremendous endorsement of two key shareholders ahead of maiden drilling results anticipated from the Black Schist Project in Finland. It was grateful for the continuing support of Bluejay and 3 Mile. It looked forward to updating the market on drilling results and forward strategy soon.
Comment: The extended lock-in at MET1 adds to the way the company has been ticking all the boxes since it came to market, not only in terms of project funding and development, but also in terms of keeping the shareholder register tight.
GreenRoc Mining (GROC), a company focused on the development of critical mineral projects in Greenland, announced the successful results of electrochemical battery test work using graphite from its Amitsoq Graphite Project in southern Greenland. GROC said the outcome of this battery test programme is hugely pleasing. This is the first time that graphite material from its Amitsoq Project has been tested for its performance within an assembled lithium ion battery cell. These results demonstrate that uncoated purified spherical graphite from Amitsoq performs very well as the active anode material in a battery cell.
Comment: GROC has so far been in something of a blind spot for investors, at least in terms of its share price. Therefore, it will be looking for news like today to rehabilitate the company, and its perception in the market.
Sovereign Metals (SVML) provided its quarterly report for the period ended 31 December 2023. SVML said it The Company plans to update the market on the progress of further appointments to owner’s team to build on the Company’s execution capabilities; Results of graphite product development, downstream and qualification test work; Regional hand-auger drilling on mineralisation extensions; Progress on the optimisation work streams alongside Rio Tinto via the project Technical Committee.
Comment: The Rio factor here should have, and indeed, in the end will be the deciding factor in terms of getting the SVML share price significantly higher than before Rio arrived. That said, we have decent near term drivers to look forward to here even as the stock remains on the wrong side of 30p.
BSF (BSFA), the Main Market listed industry leading biotech company and owner of pioneering UK-based tissue engineering company 3D Bio-Tissues (3DBT) and corneal tissue replacement company Kerato, announced its audited results for the year ended 30 September 2023. BSFA said the ability to raise sufficient funds and continue with operational and commercial progress has come in a period of increasing uncertainty from the difficult macro-economic environment, inflation and cost pressures. As a young business, it is a testament to the Group for continuing to generate opportunities to bring its products to market.
Comment: While it may be unfair to say that the trail here at BSFA has gone a little cold, for small caps it is all about execution. This is however exciting the proposition here with lab grown pork chops may be.
Coro Energy (CORO), the South East Asian energy company with a natural gas and clean energy portfolio, noted the announcement released by Conrad Asia Energy Ltd, the holder of a 76.5% operated interest in the Duyung Production Sharing Contract (PSC), offshore Indonesia, in which the Group has a 15% interest (Empyrean (EME) has 8.5%.) CORO said that the improved GSA price formula and optimised capital expenditures underpin both the robust economics of the Duyung PSC and the likely attractiveness of the project to debt providers and potential farm in partners. It eagerly awaits the outcome of the farm out process and in the meantime will continue to progress the growth of its renewables portfolio at pace building on its recent progress in both Vietnam and the Philippines.
Comment: Today’s news represents decent read across for both CORO and EME, although it may take something more direct / significant to get punters interested in either stock.
Quantum Exponential Group plc (AQUIS: QBIT), a company focused on investing in quantum technology, announced its unaudited interim results for the six months ending 31 October 2023. QBIT said it was talking to a range of parties who share its vision and recognise the opportunities that quantum science brings to fuel advances in AI, medicines and material science. It is disappointing to say the least that this progress is not reflected in the Company’s share price and it believes strongly that the market is not currently correctly pricing the value of the investments made to date together with the potential of the platform that the Company has created.
Comment: Alas the UK stock market could not correctly price a drinks party in a brewery. Oh yes, and does the way that we have 0.5% stamp duty on stocks and the USA none, one of the things that explain why that market is at record highs day after day, and the FTSE 100 is not?
Destiny Pharma (DEST), a clinical stage biotechnology company focused on the development and commercialisation of novel medicines to prevent and cure life threatening infections, provided a clinical development update on two of its programmes. DEST said the data from this XF-73 Dermal study are highly encouraging. There is a significant unmet need in DFI and serious burn wound infections, and it looks forward to progressing its XF-73 Dermal product into the clinic. Its research across the XF-73 drug platform has demonstrated potency of XF-73 against thousands of different strains across Staphylococcus, including MRSA.
Comment: We have been treated to a pleasing rally in the recent past at DEST, something which prices in the progress that the company is obviously making. To go higher it is all about turning encouraging results into solid clinical reality.
Aterian (ATN), the critical metal-focused exploration and development company, announce the positive results, including 4.01 % copper and 26.9 g/t silver, from recent sampling conducted on the Company’s Azrar Project located in Morocco. ATN said it remains confident that Azrar will continue to deliver positive outcomes for the Company. This project, together with its other key projects at Agdz, Tata and Jebilet Est, has the potential to deliver tremendous value to the Company, its shareholders and other stakeholders.
Comment: Apart from a brief spike for the shares in the summer, ATN has so far not been able to get the message out regarding the opportunity it has in Morocco. It will need to and should step up a gear in order to do this.
GreenX Metals (GRX) presented its Quarterly Activities Report for the period during and subsequent to 31 December 2023. GRX said ARC project is an exploration joint venture between GreenX and Greenfields. GreenX can earn-in up to 80% of ARC by spending A$10 million by October 2026. ARC is targeting large scale copper in multiple settings across a 5,774 km2 Special Exploration Licence in eastern North Greenland. On GRX’s Poland dispute the company said its investment dispute with the Republic of Poland is not unique, with international media widely reporting that the political environment and investment climate in Poland has deteriorated since the change in Government in 2015.
Comment: GRX shares have delivered a pleasing stock market run over the past year, with this all the more pleasing given the way a potential result in Poland would be an added bonus to whatever progress is being made in Greenland.
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