Lithium Prices on a Rebound & Antimony Gaining Spotlight

Lake Resources NL (LKE)

PR Title: Completed a A$2.1M equity financing

Analyst Opinion: Positive – LKE is advancing a large lithium project near Ganfeng Lithium’s (SZSE: 002460) recently commissioned Mariana lithium project in Argentina. After a two-year downturn, lithium prices are turning around, a rebound we forecasted earlier this year. Prices have jumped 17% in the past month to US$9,800/t, though they remain down 18% YoY, and 88% from their late-2022 peak. Current levels are below the break-even point for most new large-scale projects, and we believe a sustained price of at least US$15,000/t is necessary to incentivize development. We expect this rebound to continue as the market moves toward a projected 2026 supply deficit. This deficit will be driven by battery demand from core EV and energy storage markets, as well as from rapidly growing sectors like AI data centers, robotics, and automation.

iMetal Resources Inc. (IMRFF, IMR.V)

PR Title: Announces LOI to acquire an antimony-silver-zinc mining concession in Bosnia and Herzegovina

Analyst Opinion: Positive – This mining concession hosts a historic resource estimate. Management is currently conducting due diligence. Antimony is attracting growing interest among junior resource companies and capital markets due to its vital role in batteries, clean energy, military radar systems, alloys, and semiconductors. On the supply side, China, the dominant producer, has restricted antimony exports, driving prices higher, and sparking a rush to develop antimony projects in North America. IMR’s current portfolio includes two gold projects in Ontario (Gowganda West and Ghost Mountain), and a flake graphite project (Carheil) in Quebec. We will publish a detailed update report shortly.

Fortune Minerals Limited (FT.TO, FTMDF)

PR Title: Reports additional cobalt, gold, and copper results on its NICO cobalt-gold-bismuth-copper project in the NWT and Alberta (QP: Robin Goad, M.Sc., P.Geo., CEO of FT, and Alex Mezei, M.Sc., P.Eng., Chief Metallurgist of FT)

Analyst Opinion: Positive – FT has announced promising process optimization results at its planned Alberta hydrometallurgical facility. The tests indicated potential for higher cobalt, gold, and copper recoveries, as well as streamlined processing, which could reduce OPEX/CAPEX compared to previous estimates. These results will be incorporated into an ongoing updated feasibility study. NICO hosts the world’s largest bismuth deposit, the largest primary cobalt deposit, and 1.1 Moz gold.

Power Metallic Mines Inc. (PNPN.V)

PR Title: Announces preliminary mineralogy results

Analyst Opinion: Positive – Preliminary mineralogical scans from the Lion zone at PNPN’s Nisk project (Quebec) reveal that copper and PGEs are hosted in coarse sulphides such as chalcopyrite and cubanite. This is encouraging as it indicates potential for efficient metal recovery using established processing techniques.