Bulls N' Bears (Commercial Content)

Antimony is the latest critical metal to send the hearts of ASX punters aflutter, but with new "must-have" metals constantly emerging, investors may be feeling just a little confused by the ever-changing landscape. Bulls N’ Bears takes a look into the rise and rise of the metal also sometimes referred to as stibnite and the companies jumping on the increasingly raucous bandwagon.

GreenTech Metals has intersected thick copper-zinc zones below six shoots during a new 1743m drilling program, indicating significant resource expansion potential at its Whundo project in WA’s Pilbara region. The campaign was designed to drill-test underexplored mineralisation along a 2.1km-long string of targets at Whundo and was followed up by DHEM surveys on selected holes in a bid to identify new copper-zinc mineralised zones.

Javelin Minerals’ reinterpretation of data from its Coogee project in Western Australia’s Goldfields region has thrown up a tantalising exploration theory that it is now primed to test with the drill bit. The company plans to determine if a magnetic anomaly lurking just 300m from an old open pit at the site is a potential repetition of the historic lode.

Aurum Resources has scored extensive gold grabs reading up to 11.46m at 6.67g/t in four diamond drillholes during a second campaign at the BM Target 1 within its Boundiali gold project in Côte d'Ivoire. The program entailed five diamond drillholes for 914.5m and delivered a crop of broad, shallow medium to high-grade gold hits, with responses indicating mineralisation remains open along strike and down-dip.

88 Energy has today reported a significant increase in the oil and gas resources in two of the six key reservoirs at its Phoenix project in northern Alaska following an independent assessment of the operation. The company says respected energy consultant ERCE Australia has verified the 50 per cent resource jump to 378 million equivalent barrels of oil at the project.

Surefire Resources is following up newly-found base metals soil anomalism at its Yidby East gold project in WA’s Mid West region, with renewed exploration set to test for possible Golden Grove-style deposit analogues. The broad-scale anomalous copper-zinc was identified at the company’s Phat Boy target, about 50km from 29Metals’ renowned Golden Grove copper-lead-zinc-gold-silver operation and other nearby volcanogenic-hosted massive sulphide deposits in the same belt.

Metallurgical testwork at Xanadu Mines’ Kharmagtai copper-gold project in Mongolia has highlighted impressive recovery levels of 80 per cent from sulphide feed and a high-grade concentrate with low impurities. The potentially-saleable concentrate shows grades of up to 25 per cent copper and 25 grams per tonne gold from the porphyry deposits at the company’s South Gobi site in the landlocked East Asian country.

The ASX share price of Octava Minerals surged almost 200 per cent today after the company revealed high-grade antimony hits from historic drilling at its Yallalong project, 220km north of Geraldton in Western Australia. The finds include an impressive 3m at 6.83 per cent antimony and 7m at 3.27 per cent at a time when the silvery metal is all the range on global markets.

In this week’s edition of Bulls N’ Bears Big Hits, we examine some notable drill intersections revealed on the ASX, including Solstice Minerals’ solid gold reveal after air-core drilling in WA. We also take a look at drill hits from last week as reported by Peel Mining from its Cobar South projects in NSW, Sun Silver in Nevada and Cauldron Energy in WA’s North West.

Thunderbird Resources is homing in on evidence of uranium mineralisation after drilling significant hydrothermal alteration and detecting radioactivity at its Hidden Bay project in Canada’s prolific Athabasca Basin. The maiden four-hole drilling campaign was designed primarily to test possible basement-hosted uranium targets close to the Athabasca Basin unconformity and the company now believes it may be close to unveiling a uranium mineralising system.

The European Union has delivered ASX-listed Neometals a crucial endorsement for its vanadium recovery project in Finland, co-funding part of the company’s bid to become Europe’s first vanadium producer. The funding deal for the project that refines waste from steelmaking into the valuable vanadium battery metal was executed with Germany’s EU-backed EIT RawMaterials and could be worth up to some AU$42.3 million.

Lycaon Resources' share price has surged 31 per cent to 31.5c on significant trading volume after it secured the crucial heritage clearance that will enable a maiden drilling campaign at its Stansmore niobium-rare earths project in Western Australia’s West Arunta region. The company will use a $180,000 exploration incentive scheme grant from the WA Government to fund the program.

King River Resources has intersected significant geochemical anomalies from recent drilling at its Langrenus and Providence prospects that sit within the company’s Tennant Creek East project in Australia’s Top End. The drill campaign is part of a $2 million spend to follow up geophysical targets generated from last year’s program and encountered anomalous gold, copper, silver, antimony, bismuth and cobalt.

This week’s Bulls N’ Bears Runner of the Week is … Aruma Resources. The exploration company hit high-grade copper-antimony samples at its Fiery Creek project in Queensland, with its share price jumping on massive volume. Also, Petratherm’s stock soared after it discovered titanium-rich heavy mineral sands in South Australia, while other movers-and-shakers this week were Locksley Resources and Enova Mining.

Altech Batteries has inked a letter of intent to supply 30 of its 1MWh Cerenergy GridPack sodium chloride batteries annually to be used at a major German industrial park for energy storage as part of a five-year deal starting in 2027. The agreement has been struck with consultancy firm Zweckverband Industriepark Schwarze Pumpe, which oversees the park in the Lusatia region of south-east Germany.

Horizon Minerals has signed a significant new joint venture deal aimed at developing and mining two open pits at its Phillips Find gold project in Western Australia’s Goldfields region in a bid to cash in on record high prices for the precious yellow metal. The deal with BML Ventures is underpinned by a plan to produce 15,000 ounces of gold from the site.

Novo Resources has joined the global hunt for antimony across its grounds in Western Australia’s Pilbara region on the back of widespread growing interest in the metal after China’s recent decision to implement export bans has reshaped the global supply chain. The company says it has identified two early-stage exploration sites – Sherlock Crossing and Southeast Wyloo – that are showing promising prospects.

Red Metal says its latest step-out drill program has confirmed two huge, parallel magnet rare earths zones at its Sybella project near Mount Isa in Queensland, highlighting the impressive resource potential at the site. The company’s latest assays featured strong shows for all four magnet rare earths –neodymium, praseodymium, dysprosium and terbium – and infill drilling is now a key priority.

Xanadu Mines has launched into maiden field programs at its Sant Tolgoi copper-nickel project in northern Mongolia. The company says detailed mapping and sampling programs are well underway at the site, with early indications of multiple shallow copper-nickel sulphide targets. Management believes it has multiple copper-nickel targets at Sant Tolgoi, with the potential for new district-scale copper discovery.

Galan Lithium has rung the till for AU$25 million from a placement and a rights issue to support the completion of the first phase of lithium production from its Hombre Muerto West project in Argentina in 2025. The capital raise includes a firm commitment for AU$12 million through a placement at 10.5c per share and a non-renounceable entitlement offer aimed at raising an additional AU$13.3 million.

A world-first survey using the effects of lightning strikes to test electrical conductivity in rocks at Estrella Resources’ Carr Boyd project in WA has earned the company a Federal Government grant. The cutting-edge heliborne survey initially conducted by Expert Geophysics in August last year, harnesses traditional electromagnetic pulse data in conjunction with lightning strike pulses triggered by storms constantly raging over the Equator.

ABx Group’s innovative work in exploring, drilling and processing ionic-adsorption clay rare earths deposits in Tasmania last year has been rewarded with a Federal Government rebate of more than $437,000. The timely cash injection comes less than a month after the company’s 83 per cent-owned subsidiary ALCORE received a similarly-sized rebate for its work on a process to recover and recycle waste aluminium fluoride.

Significant copper-antimony assays from Aruma Resources’ Fiery Creek project near Mount Isa in Queensland have sent the company’s share price flying on the back of its biggest-ever intraday trading volumes. A surface sampling program at the project has revealed high-grade copper assays alongside significant grades of up to 1 per cent antimony, which is currently a hot commodity on the ASX.

Empire Energy Group has locked in contractors to start drilling its Carpentaria-5H well next month, with an aim of supplying 25 terajoules a day for 10 years under a new agreement with the NT Government. The company has confirmed it has signed deals with Ensign Australia for drilling services and Halliburton Australia for fracture stimulation at the pilot project that sits 650km south-east of Darwin.

A gravity survey by Sipa Resources at the Barbwire Terrace project it shares with Buru Energy east of Broome in WA has unearthed a big anomaly and telltale structures to boost its chances of a lead-zinc find. Sitting on the southern margins of the Fitzroy Trough, the findings show geological similarities to the Lennard Shelf on the northern side of the trough.

In this week’s edition of Bulls N’ Bears Big Hits, we examine some of the notable drill intersections revealed on the ASX, including WIA Gold’s 4m at 87.43g/t gold from 79m at its Bouaflé project in Côte d’Ivoire. We also take a look at other interesting drill hits by Turaco Gold from its Côte d’Ivoire deposit and PolarX from its copper project in Alaska.

Aurum Resources has cemented a 51 per cent foothold on the BM joint venture within its Boundiali gold project in Côte d'Ivoire after completing more than 8000m of diamond drilling at the West African site. The company can now secure up to 80 per cent of the BM operation it shares with Minex West Africa by hitting further exploration milestones.

ChemX Materials has received a $250,000 boost to help drive the commissioning of its high-purity alumina pilot plant in WA and plans to use the first part of its expected Federal Government research and development (R&D) rebate as security for the funding. A further $191,000 is also due in the coming weeks as the company ramps up the commissioning of its high-tech development.

This week’s Bulls N’ Bears Runner of the Week is … Golden Deeps. The exploration company struck high-grade copper-zinc at its Havilah project in NSW. Osmond Resources’ shares also bounded higher after the Melbourne-based company acquired a rare earths and heavy minerals project in Spain, while other movers-and-shakers this week were Energy Metals and Killi Resources.

Kalgoorlie Gold Mining has completed follow-up air-core drilling on thick gold intercepts from its Pinjin project in Western Australia’s Goldfields region as part of a mission to expand its promising Wessex target, just 650m south-west of Hawthorn Resources’ Anglo-Saxon pit. In a further extension to its latest campaign, the company also put 25 holes into its Kirgella Gift North and Providence West zones.

The race is still on for companies trying to crack the exploration code within Western Australia’s rugged Albany-Fraser Orogen in the ongoing mission to reproduce the area’s renowned – and only – Nova-Bollinger nickel-copper find. Despite some firms claiming to have defined the geological silver bullet they believed would shoot them to fame, the search for the elusive prize continues.

Surefire Resources’ soil sampling at its Yidby East gold project in Western Australia’s Mid West region has identified anomalous base metals similar to of the nearby Golden Grove style of volcanogenic-hosted massive sulphide (VHMS) deposit. The company’s Phat Boy target sits about 50km south/south-east of 29Metals’ world-famous Golden Grove and other nearby VHMS deposits in the same belt.