Public Company News

Reedy Lagoon shareholders will be eyeing recent developments in the feted lithium brine project region of south-western Nevada in the US, after a neighbour announced anomalous lithium and boron results in shallow aquifers only a short distance north of the company’s Columbus Salt Marsh project. The discovery is only 20km from Global Geoscience’s Rhyolite Ridge lithium-boron project that boasts 460 million tonnes.

Phylogica has successfully delivered the Cre enzyme used in biological research into lung, liver and kidney cells during in vivo experiments, proving the ability of its original cell penetrating peptide to deliver intracellular drug cargos. The company is now preparing to test its current lead CPP that is about twice as effective as the original CPP in the same animal model.

Calidus Resources is enjoying success with its resource drill out program at the Warrawoona gold project in the Pilbara. Assay results from the high grade Copenhagen prospect have extended the mineralisation down plunge, returning results of up to 10m @ 5.38g/t gold from 63m. Drilling at Klondyke East has defined gold mineralisation over 600m of strike, returning 12m @ 2.15g/t gold and 8m @ 1.92g/t from surface.

Middle Island Resources has confirmed grade increases of between 155% and 213% from ore sorting test work at its Two Mile Hill underground gold deposit near Sandstone. The ore sorting results are a precursor to an updated mineral resource estimate which is expected this year. The sorting process uses a combination of colour and X-ray sensors to increase the ore grade by rejecting more than 50% of the waste.

Babylon Pump & Power’s strategy of adding broader maintenance works to its suite of pump rental services has led to it securing another $1m worth of contracts with work to start immediately. The company said customer engagement continues to be encouraging with a growing pipeline of diesel engine maintenance, pumping solutions and power generation work.

In vivo experiments have shown that Phylogica’s cell penetrating peptide vaccine can trigger the immune system in mice to create defensive CD8+ T-cells at much higher levels than the current best in class product, CPP TAT. The CD8+ T-cells were also able to recognise and kill the target cells which expressed the triggering antigen with a high degree of efficiency.

Northern Minerals processing plant for the Browns Range heavy rare earths project in the Kimberley region was officially opened last week. The company will now commence commercial production of heavy rare earth carbonate for export. The project is 100% owned by the Northern Minerals who has a dominant tenement position in the Browns Range region that still has significant exploration upside potential.

Peppermint Innovation has signed a partnership agreement with leading Philippines non-bank remittance payout provider, Direct Agent 5 that provides a windo of opportunity into the Filipino remittance market that is worth more than USD$1bn. Peppermint will tap Direct Agent 5’s extensive network in the Philippines, which covers more than 1000 locations, to payout remittances for its customers.

Altech Chemicals has reported that German engineering contractor SMS group has completed site works ahead of construction of its large HPA plant in Johor State, in southern Malaysia. When fully operational, the plant will produce up to 4,500 tonnes of HPA annually, with the product being used in high tech applications such as LED lighting, separators in lithium-ion batteries and advanced mobile phone technology.

CVCheck has posted record revenues of $3.4m for the fourth quarter of the 2018 financial year, up 25% from the previous corresponding quarter, whilst full year revenues were up 20% to $12.5m. This was due to 36% growth in the corporate and SME segments and a surge in New Zealand Children’s Worker Safety Checks.

Venus Metals has reached an agreement under which lithium company Lepidico can earn up to 80% of the lithium rights at the Youanmi project by completing a full Feasibility Study leading to a Decision to Mine. Venus will receive $170,000 in cash and Lepidico shares for a 12 month exploration option and a further $350,000 in cash and scrip on signing a joint venture deal.

Spectrum Rare Earths has reported success from its first underground diamond drill hole at the Washington gold project in northern California. Visible gold with base metal sulphides were identified from drill core intersecting the prized Dean vein, with assays pending. The short drilling campaign is part of a wider due diligence process at the decommissioned mine, where the company has secured a 3-month exclusive option.