Blue Moon Metals Expands U.S. Critical Minerals Strategy with Tungsten and Antimony Acquisitions
Good morning and welcome back to the Mining Stock Daily morning briefing.
It's Monday, September 14th.
Gold is under pressure this morning, down 1.40% to $4,290 an ounce. Silver is off harder, down 2.15% to $62.89. Copper is also lower, off 1.90% to $6.35 a pound. On the energy side, Brent crude is surging again, up 3.62% to $108.40.
That move in crude is the story behind the move in metals. Brent is up more than fifteen percent this month after the Houthis seized strategic islands near the Bab el-Mandeb and Saudi Arabia shut its East-West pipeline following drone attacks. Ordinarily that is a gold bid. Instead gold is falling, because the oil shock is feeding into an inflation picture that already surprised to the upside. Friday's CPI showed headline inflation accelerating to 0.4% month-over-month with core at 0.3%, and the market now prices an 86% chance the Fed raises rates on Wednesday, up from roughly 59% a week ago. That would be the first hike in more than three years.
Up in Canada, Prime Minister Mark Carney opens the Canada Investment Summit today alongside CPP Investments and PSP Investments, arriving with a sixty-six page pitchbook aimed at attracting one trillion Canadian dollars of investment over five years. Of the 167 opportunities in that book, sixty-three are mining and metals projects. Named projects include LithiumBank's Boardwalk, Critical Elements' Rose lithium-tantalum project, Canagold's New Polaris, FPX Nickel's Baptiste and Surge Copper's Berg.
We will get to the news from the miners and explorers in a moment, but first a mention of today's sponsor:
Today's episode of Mining Stock Daily is brought to you by…Integra Resources.
Integra is a growing precious metals producer in the Great Basin of the Western United States. Integra is focused on demonstrating profitability and operational excellence at its principal operating asset, the Florida Canyon Mine, located in Nevada. In addition, Integra is committed to advancing its flagship development-stage heap leach projects: the past producing DeLamar Project located in southwestern Idaho, and the Nevada North Project located in western Nevada. Learn more about the business and their high industry standards over at integraresources.com
Here’s what you need to know today.
Blue Moon Metals, The Elmet Group and EQ Resources have announced a US$150 to $175 million investment into the Springer Tungsten Complex in Imlay, Nevada, structured as a $50 million tungsten prepayment facility, a $25 million equity subscription into Blue Moon, and a $75 million injection into the ammonium paratungstate plant joint venture that leaves Elmet holding 70%, Blue Moon 20% and EQ Resources 10%, with Blue Moon retaining the mine and mill. The deal is backed by a $450 million U.S. Department of War commitment to Elmet, of which $150 million is earmarked here, and Springer — historically one of the largest tungsten mines in the United States — comes with a 1,200 ton-per-day mill, an APT plant capable of 4,000 tons per year, and a historical, unverified resource of 10.7 million tons at 0.45% tungsten trioxide. Nevada approved bonding requirements last month, the NEPA review is complete, and the mine and mill are expected back in production in the fourth quarter of 2027 with the APT plant restarting in the second half of 2028. Blue Moon Metals trades on the TSX Venture Exchange as MOON and on the Nasdaq as BMM, The Elmet Group trades on the Nasdaq as ELMT, and EQ Resources trades on the ASX as EQR. NEWS RELEASE
Franco-Nevada has announced a second financing package with Minerals 260 for the Bullabulling gold project in Western Australia, committing A$170 million for an additional 1.45% gross royalty and A$30 million as a cornerstone equity investment, for A$200 million on top of the A$220 million package the two put together in February. The transaction lifts Franco-Nevada's total royalty to 3.90% gross, stepping down to 2.75% after six million ounces of production, and expands the area of interest from 2.5 kilometres to 10 kilometres from the historical tenure boundary. Bullabulling sits 65 kilometres from Kalgoorlie and hosts 4.4 million indicated ounces and 1.7 million inferred, with a first stage contemplating 150,000 ounces a year over ten years and first production targeted for the second half of 2028. Franco-Nevada trades on the TSX and the NYSE as FNV, and Minerals 260 trades on the ASX as MI6. NEWS RELEASE
Guardian Metal Resources has reported drilling that supports resource growth at its Pilot Mountain tungsten project in Nevada, led by the newly discovered Tremor Zone, a blind skarn body now confirmed over roughly 200 metres of strike, where hole PM26-088 returned 64.15 metres at 0.20% tungsten trioxide including 14.27 metres at 0.34%. The company also drilled the previously untested Good Hope target for the first time, with hole GH26-01 returning 12.95 metres at 0.79% tungsten trioxide from surface, located just over a kilometre from the existing Desert Scheelite and Garnet resources. Both zones sit outside the recently completed Pre-Feasibility Study, making them additive, and CEO Oliver Friesen said the results reinforce the potential to expand mineralization beyond the resources underpinning that study. Guardian Metal Resources trades on the NYSE American as GMTL, on the London Stock Exchange as GMET, and on the OTCQB as GMTLF. NEWS RELEASE
Hercules Metals has identified evidence for a new porphyry centre at its Hook target, about three kilometres east of the Leviathan copper system near Cambridge, Idaho, where a 1.8-kilometre chargeability anomaly with a 500-metre high-strength core is modelled to begin within roughly 100 metres of surface. Reconnaissance hole HER-26-03 cut intense phyllic alteration and distal skarn mineralization with 5 to 10 percent pyrite, consistent with the halo around Leviathan and consistent with drilling the margin of a system rather than its centre. Assays remain pending, and the company is permitting access roads and pads to test the core of the anomaly directly, with follow-up drilling targeted for 2027. Hercules Metals trades on the TSX Venture Exchange as BIG and on the OTCQB as BADEF. NEWS RELEASE
Talisker Resources has provided a 2026 operational update from the Bralorne Gold Project in British Columbia, reporting 4,884 ounces of gold produced from 19,014 tonnes mined through August 31st at an average mining grade of 7.99 grams per tonne. The company completed 2,265 metres of underground development, advanced the Lower Mustang Decline 329 metres to open three new mining levels, completed 26,730 metres of resource conversion drilling, and has invested $13.4 million in capital infrastructure this year. A PEA is targeted for early in the fourth quarter, the next marine shipment is expected in late October or early November, and the company hosts a webinar later this week. Talisker Resources trades on the TSX as TSK and on the OTCQB as TSKFF. NEWS RELEASE
Institutional Shareholder Services has recommended shareholders of TNR Gold vote for the dissident nominees put forward by Eucalyptus Resources ahead of the company's annual meeting on September 22nd, finding that the largest shareholder "has presented a compelling case for change" and that the board "has a concerning track record of disenfranchising shareholders." ISS flagged a $320,000 cash bonus to CEO and Chair Kirill Klip determined by years of service rather than performance, the appointment of the CEO's son as a director and VP of Corporate Development, and the combined CEO and Chair roles, while recommending shareholders support nominees Sandra Bates and Dušan Petković. Eucalyptus says approximately 43% of shares have already voted for its nominees. TNR Gold trades on the TSX Venture Exchange as TNR and on the OTC market as TRRXF. NEWS RELEASE
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That's it for today everyone. Have a great day. Stay safe.