Matt Birney

The owners of low grade, uneconomic Lithium deposits around the world might end up being in the money after all given ASX listed Lithium Australia’s announcement that their much talked about, low cost method of processing Lithium might actually work. The company told the ASX today that a pilot plant trial of their “Sileach” processing technology was a resounding success.

MGC Pharmaceuticals says delivery of its Californian distribution deal for its cannabis-based skincare products is imminent.  In an operations update, the medical cannabis hopeful says it is ramping up cosmetics production at its Slovenian facility and is in advanced discussions on additional distribution agreements as it ramps up its international presence.

Stargroup look set to add the missing link to their burgeoning Automatic Teller Machine business after signing an MOU to buy the ATM machine switching, settlement and processing assets of 45 year old company Indue Limited. The debt funded acquisition which will cost $6.5m, will drop another $1.7m to Starhgroup's growing bottom line.   

Sky and Space Global has taken another step towards the launch of its innovative nano-satellite communications network, firming up its technical offering by gaining approval from the UK Ministry of Defence to use its UHF frequency. The company's share price recently jumped 44% in a singe day as the project looks more and more likely to come to fruition. 

Hammer Metals continues to shake up the Mt Isa exploration scene with a boost to its Kalman resource the latest in a run of exceptional news. The copper equivalent grade at Kalman has jumped from 1.3% to 1.8% following recent successful drilling and Hammer believes the deposit, which is open along strike and down plunge, still has more to offer.

American global electronics magazine EE Times has added a company that was backdoor listed in Perth to its highly anticipated annual list of hot tech start-ups to watch. ASX listed Weebit, that was recently backdoor listed into Radar Iron by Nedlands based corporate advisory firm Armada Capital, has made the EE Times “Silicon 60” list this year.

Blackham Resources has provided some certainty for investors by locking in forward gold sales at near record prices for part of its production from the 100,000+ oz-per annum Matilda gold project. More than 1/3rd of gold sales over the next 18 months are locked away providing Blackham with a solid foundation to launch big expansion plans.

MGC Pharma and The University of Sydney have released a new report on the clinically proven benefits of medicinal cannabis in a bid to increase its acceptance and draw attention to its potential medical benefits. More than 100 studies are currently underway which will provide a base load of clinical evidence for doctors and patients.

Well its official – Lithium mining is very lucrative and the hype surrounding the industry is real and justified. Pilbara Minerals had the market sitting upright with eyes and ears at the ready this week when they released their stunning financial projections for what could be the world’s largest Lithium mine just 100km south of Port Hedland in W.A.

Sky and Space Global has attracted another big name partner as it counts down to the launch of its first nano-satellites in the second quarter of next year. The company has entered an MOU with US$7 billion tech giant Flextronics, just one week after signing with Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic to ferry its nano-satellites into orbit.

The University of Cambridge has begun a second phase of canine trials of PharmAust’s promising anti-cancer drug, taking it a step closer to widespread availability for pet owners. The trial will also provide information on the potential for the Perth-based company’s new drug as a breakthrough cancer treatment for humans.

With a swag of drill results from two exciting projects on two different continents due out over the next few weeks, ASX punters will no doubt be watching Sipa Resources closely with one hand on the buy button. Sipa this week starts a new phase of drilling at Akelikongo, its highly-rated nickel-copper prospect in Uganda. 

ASX listed PharmAust subsidiary Epichem has been elevated to a select group of biotech companies that have achieved ISO 9001:2015, an internationally recognised certification for quality, continual improvement and customer focus. Epichem unertakes biotech research for some of the world's largest pharmaceutical companies in Perth. 

The transformation of Drake Resources into a stock riding the global cyber security boom is reaching its final stages, with a shareholder meeting to approve the reverse takeover of Israeli firm Genome expected in November. Genome are also about to release a mobile version of their unique technology that finds human weeknesses in IT systems. 

Sky and Space Global has announced a deal with Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic to use its LauncherOne spacecraft to deliver a “constellation” of miniature satellites into space. The agreement is a major step forward for the Perth-headquartered company as it rapidly moves ahead with establishing its own global satellite telecommunications network. 

Hammer Metals will shortly produce a maiden copper-cobalt-gold resource estimate at the Millennium prospect in Mt Isa just months after acquiring the project for a song. Hammer has also identified a promising new target on the Millennium leases that boasts small scale historic production with copper grades of 26%. The project is also looking good for Cobalt. 

ASX listed PharmAust has taken the next significant step in the development of its exciting canine cancer drug known as Monepantel or MPL. The company this week announced that it had added two new locations to its Phase 2 trials in Australia, one at the Animal Referral Hospital at Homebush, NSW and the other at Queensland Veterinary Specialists in Brisbane.

In a move that Stargroup has described as financially significant for the rapidly growing financial payments company, Goldfields Money, who have a banking license, will place up to $15m of their excess cash into Stargroup’s 350 ATM machines across the country for at least the next 3 years. The deal is expected to impact Stargroup's bottom line in a meaningful way. 

Sky and Space Global has commenced building its innovative nano-satellites and is on track to launch before June next year after clearing another key test phase.  The company is seeking to create its own global satellite telecommunications network via a constellation of miniature satellites capable of providing voice, text and data services to potentially millions of remote area customers. 

Gold miner Troy Resources were knocked over in the rush by heavyweight institutional investors clambering to get a peice of Troy's $40m capital raise this week. After turning out some stellar near mine drilling results in recent times, Troy have decided to target the low hanging fruit with a $16m exploration and development drive that will focus mostly on near mine exploration. 

It doesn’t happen often but every now and then a tech story comes along that looks like it just might survive the tech bubble and create a real business that makes real money. One such story at least at face value is ASX listed Weebit Nano that was back door listed by Perth connections into Radar Iron earlier this year and is now headquartered in Nedlands. 

The global Lithium industry will be sitting on the edge of their chairs later this month when Pilbara Minerals tells the market just how much money you can make out of the largest reported Lithium resource in the world. The company has flagged the impending release of their highly anticipated definitive feasibility study into the giant Pilgangoora Lithium project in the north of W.A.

Sky and Space Global that was recently backdoor listed on the ASX by Perth connections, has moved a step closer to launching its constellation of telecommunications “nano-satellites” by technically validating the software that will power the space infrastructure. The tests showed the effectiveness of the nano-satellites at sending and receiving signals between hardware devices.

Talk is cheap in the exploration business and whilst most explorers talk about the day they will leap into production, the reality is that day more often than not, never arrives. Not so for Blackham Resources who had an unmistakable vision and strategy for the Matilda Gold project in Wiluna that was executed flawlessly at every turn right up until wet commissioning this week. 

Northern Minerals has won a key approval from the W.A state Government for the development of Australia’s first heavy rare earths mine at Browns Range in the far north. The DMP cleared the project management plan for a Dysprosium pilot plant after Chinese interests recently committed $30 million in equity funding for Northern Minerals to help progress the project.

Interest in the Paterson copper-gold district in the north of W.A continued today with news from Sipa Resources that they had intersected copper-gold mineralization in 15 out of 19 holes during their maiden drilling program at the Obelisk project . The results showed an initial strike length of more than one kilometre, which remains open in all directions.

Stargroup achieved record revenues from their Automatic Teller Machine division in August and total quarterly revenues are on track to outperform last quarter by a whopping 50%. The company said it was expecting total quarterly revenues of $1.8m this quarter compared to $1.2m last quarter as the organic roll out of its ATM machines continues to increase. 

MGC Pharma has moved a step closer to conducting clinical trials of medical cannabis in Australia and Europe after signing a deal to partner with Epilepsy Action Australia. The agreement means MGC will collaborate with Australia’s leading epilepsy association on future trials into how medical cannabis can treat the debilitating condition.

Recent drilling at Troy Resources’ Karouni gold mine in Guyana, South America, has increased the gold resource to more than 1.1 million ounces. In their latest annual statement of resources and ore reserves, Troy revealed a 48,000 ounce increase in ore reserves and an 83,400 ounce boost to inferred resources, adding around AUD$145m to the in-situ value of the resource.

ATM machine operator and EFTPOS supplier Stargroup, has reported a massive leap in its full-year profit following a standout year of growth. The company, which offers ATMs and EFTPOS terminals to retail outlets, on Wednesday reported its first ever net profit after tax for the year ended June 30 of $767,802. The result represents a giant turnaround on last year’s loss of nearly $2.9m 

ASX listed Sky and Space Global say they have validated their technical offering, revealing that their first wholesale customer has secured commerical contracts to sell some of the company's cutting edge nano-satellite bandwidth. The UK-registerd satellite company says the new deals underpin teh company's view that it could generate around US$500 milion per year at full tilt. 

When it rains it pours or so it seems for Rare Earths player Northern Minerals who banked $2.8m from Chinese interests a few weeks ago with another $27m to come. This week the George Bauk led company banked another $1.25m from the sale of their Northern Territory gold leases to Northern Star Resources with another $1.5m potentially still to come.