Matt Birney

Perth-listed Connected IO says it is confident of pushing into Asia with its cutting edge “internet of things” technology after meeting with military and police representatives in Thailand and the Philippines. The wireless tech upstart will work with the emerging Asian nations to develop products such as body cameras, in-vehicle communications and drones for pilot programs this year.

Hammer Metals have added to an already packed drill schedule with a 2,500-metre program at their Millennium Cobalt-Copper-Gold project. The program will be funded by Hammer’s new Canadian joint venture partner and will be completed by the end of the December. Whilst the project appears to be well endowed with Gold and Copper, Hammer are quietly confident of increasing their Cobalt resource.

Pilbara Minerals have received their final environmental approval from the WA Government to build and operate the massive Pilgangoora Lithium project in the Pilbara. The move clears the way for completion of construction and first production by Q2 2018. Pilbara also passed another milestone this week by achieving financial close on their US$100m bond issue, a key component of the project financing.

Auroch Minerals exciting exploration play in search of a copper-zinc giant in Portugal is starting to look interesting. The company’s third hole hit several intervals of copper sulphides, with results improving with depth. The hole will now be deepened after a downhole survey also revealed a potential conductor below the original end of hole depth of 1200 metres.

All the pieces are falling into place at Australia’s first heavy rare earths mine, with 100%-owner Northern Minerals this week reporting progress on many fronts just as global demand surges for its key payable mineral. Mining and stockpiling of ore at the company’s Browns Range project is 50% complete and the site is now ready for the modular processing plant, which is enroute from China.

MGC Pharmaceuticals have strengthened their position as a market leader in the booming medical marijuana market, securing a distribution deal for their products in Central and Eastern Europe. The exclusive agreement was signed with leading pharmaceutical distribution company, Lenis and will see the Perth-listed company’s cannabis-derived products made available in more than 15 countries in the region.

An independent geologist’s report has backed Calima Energy’s comparisons with a highly profitable operation on neighbouring acreage in the Montney Basin, which is one of North America’s hottest liquid rich gas plays. Calima’s ground was found to have even better pay thickness and porosity than neighbouring ground held by Saguaro Resources, which is producing more than 10,000 barrels of oil per day.

Pilbara Minerals look set to become the world’s first Lithium producer with a direct investment by a global carmaker under an innovative equity, offtake and debt financing deal with China's Great Wall Motors. The deal will help underpin the Stage 2 expansion to 5Mtpa and could be the first of similar deals by global carmakers to secure Lithium supply for their rapidly expanding electric vehicle divisions.

Peppermint Innovation’s rollout of its technology platform has taken a big step forward after the company struck a further deal with UCPB, one of the Philippines’ largest banks. Peppermint, who are focused on the commercialisation of their mobile-phone based bill payment technology said they had inked a deal with UCPB to roll out internet payment “gateway services” in the Philippines for the giant lender.

Nzuri Copper have kicked off an ultra-high resolution aeromagnetic survey over their quality Copper-Cobalt targets on the doorstep of Ivanhoe Mines’ giant new discoveries in the Central African Copper belt. The survey will provide a clearer picture of the subsurface and sharpen definition of the kind of markers that were crucial in Ivanhoe’s Kamoa and Kakula discoveries.

ASX listed Sky and Space Global has unveiled the design for its nano-satellites to be used in the company’s potentially revolutionary telecommunications network based on the miniature orbital devices. Known as “The Pearls”, the sun powered next gen nano-satellites, which are small enough to sit in the palm of your hand, will commence roll out from 2018.

Pilbara gold hopeful Calidus Resources has been knocked over in the rush from investors looking to secure stock in their recent placement that management says was “up to 3 times oversubscribed”. In the end, the company rejected millions of dollars worth of bids, taking just $10m from investors, leaving those that missed out with no option other than to buy on market.

Shark Mitigation Systems’ cutting edge “Clever Buoy” shark detecting device will be trialled at a major beach in Southern California ahead of a possible $10 million rollout of the technology across the US state. Clever Buoy is one of the Perth-based company’s two innovative anti-shark solutions and is capable of detecting a shark and relaying its position back to lifeguards on the beach.

ASX listed Sky and Space Global is being courted by major satellite and telco industry players as the company pushes ahead with its game-changing telecommunications network based on nano-satellites. Sky and Space is the first company in history to facilitate a voice call using nano-satellites and wants to roll out up to 200 of the miniature orbital devices by 2020.

The goal of any new tech company is to get to breakeven quickly and then on to profitability. Internet of things upstart Connected IO may be only months away from positive cash flow after posting a record quarter. The company has been rapidly expanding its customer base with its disruptive, machine-to-machine communications and cellular connectivity devices as it blazes a trail in the multi trillion dollar sector

Hammer Metals are set to launch their biggest drill program this year, with more than 3000 metres of RC drilling planned to test a number of the company’s best prospects in the Mt Isa district. Drill activity will be focused on the emerging Kalman West and Hammertime prospects, which are adjacent to Hammer’s flagship Kalman deposit.

ASX listed biotech Company PharmAust has made significant progress in reformulating its promising anti-cancer drug Monepantel to improve its taste and deliver increased dosages of the substance in each pill. Monepantel has already shown pleasing results in initial clinical trials as a cancer treatment in humans and canines, with further tests of the drug planned for 2018.

Northern Minerals’ heavy rare earths project at Browns Range in the East Kimberley is rapidly taking shape, with construction of the process plant in China well advanced and the first modules headed for the site within weeks. Meanwhile, 50% of the ore has already been stockpiled as part of a fast-track development schedule that will see maiden shipments in the first half of 2018.

Calidus Resources have wrapped up control of the highly prospective greenstone belt at their flagship Warrawoona project under an innovative joint venture with neighbouring explorer Novo Resources. The deal will see Calidus earn up to 70% of the rights to any gold discovered in the basement rocks on Novo's tenements and provides a consolidation opportunity for Calidus that has eluded previous operators.

ASX listed Connected IO has secured yet another large purchase order for its cutting-edge next-gen modem like devices that allow everyday “things” and machines to be connected via the internet. The $348,000 purchase order came from California-based Premier Wireless after yet another referral from US Telco giant and Connected IO collaborator Verizon.

There aren’t many exploration projects where you can count on thick intercepts of mineralised sulphides, but Auroch Minerals probably can as it begins drilling for Cobalt, Gold and Copper and the historic Tisova Mine in the Czech Republic. Auroch have kicked off a four-hole diamond drill program at Tisova where waste dump grab samples provided some startling Cobalt and Copper assay grades.

Poseidon Nickel has given Lithium Australia access to a major processing plant at Lake Johnston and accelerated its push into Lithium processing with Lithium Australia's breakthrough Sileach technology. Under an MOU signed this week, the companies will look to jointly explore their tenements and evaluate processing opportunities using technology belonging to both companies.

Newly listed Calima Energy has boosted its acreage in the liquids-rich Montney oil and gas basin in Canada by 27% or 13,700 acres, establishing it is a significant new player in one of Canada’s hottest oil and gas regions. The additional acreage is immediately adjacent to Calima’s existing ground and was the result of some fortuitous bidding at a recent Government auction.

The deal-making skill that helped make Neometals become the first of a new breed of Australian Lithium producers has come to the fore once again. The ASX-listed company has landed a Serbian steel mill as its first licensed customer for the company’s “Neomet” mineral processing technology. The agreement will see Neometals use the deal as a showcase for a planned rollout of the technology worldwide

ASX-listed biotech PharmAust has been granted a core patent in Europe relating to the use of “aminoacetonitrile derivatives” as potent kinase inhibitors for the treatment of cancer. The patent is another positive step for Perth-based company in shoring up its global IP protections. It follows the granting of similar patents in key markets including the US, Australia and China.

Connected IO has unveiled a range of cutting-edge WiFi routers targeted at the multi-trillion dollar "Internet of Things" sector with applications that include digital signage, point of sale, vending machines and security. The ASX junior said despite only launching its new range this week, it had already received significant early demand for the new devices which are targeted at large, enterprise level customers

Fresh from success at the giant Mt Marion Lithium project, Neometals have turned their attention to their other sleeping giant, the world-class Barrambie Titanium-Vanadium project near Cue in W.A. With the Titanium price jumping by 50% recently, Chinese Titanium producers are screaming for feedstock, creating a potential opportunity for Neometals to cash in via a direct shipping operation.

With Stage 1 of the giant Pilgangoora Lithium mine racing ahead, Pilbara Minerals has stepped up work on expansion plans that could make the project the world’s largest Lithium mine. The ASX-listed Lithium developer yesterday announced it had awarded further key contracts, including power generation and was reworking its expansion plans to boost Stage 2 capacity from 4Mtpa to 5Mtpa.

Connected IO’s relationship with US telco giant Verizon continues to deepen, with the ASX-listed tech company locking in another customer referred from Verizon. In-vehicle video system supplier Rosco Vision Systems has committed to integrating Connected IO’s cellular and cloud based device management solutions into its in-vehicle technology used in emergency vehicles, buses, taxis and fleet vehicles.

Calima Energy’s neighbour in Canada’s prolific Montney oil and gas basin has added fuel to the buzz around newly listed Calima by disclosing it expects an internal rate of return of up to 80% on its liquids-rich wells right next door to the ASX junior’s acreage. The news comes as Calima moves to commission a 3D seismic survey and acquire a rich database of wells in the region

Pilbara Minerals are on the verge of cash flow from the massive Pilgangoora Lithium mine after awarding a contract to MACA to commence mining. Lithium prices have soared since Pilbara predicted the mine would make $121m a year and possibly up to $245m a year if they can expand mine throughput from 2mt a year to 4mt a year. The project boasts 156m tonnes grading 1.25% Lithium Oxide.

Peppermint Innovation has inked a deal with a leading Philippines distribution network, paving the way for the possible roll out of the Perth-based company’s mobile payments technology to around 200,000 members. Network members will be able to accept money from their own networks of people who wish to pay their household bills, transfer money to others or even load up some mobile phone air time.