Public Company News

Medicinal cannabis player, MGC Pharmaceuticals, has unveiled a new medicinal cannabis-based line for Australian and New Zealand markets to be called “Mercury Pharma” with its first product, Mercury Pharma 100, a prescription-only 100mg/mL cannabidiol product. The company has received purchase orders for over 2,000 product units already, which will see revenues of around $270,000 realised.

Horizon Minerals' Boorara gold project east of Kalgoorlie is nearing its moment of truth as the aspiring developer aims to commence production on three ‘starter' pits later this year. A major grade control drilling program has recently been completed that will underpin an updated suite of mine optimisations and designs at the project. The geological model to follow from the drilling will provide a significant amount of confidence and potential grade upside.

Lithium Australia, through one of its wholly-owned subsidiaries, VSPC, has signed a potentially lucrative agreement with major Chinese chemical manufacturer, Beijing Saideli Technology, that will see the Perth based company progress the commercialisation of its battery cathode technology. The plan is to hit the downstream lithium-ion supply chain, collaborating on an international scale to commercialise VSPC's cathode technology.

Ardiden Limited has more than doubled the size of its Canadian exploration play by sweeping up a swathe of new claims, forming a contiguous ground package over a very prospective greenstone belt that historically produced some three million ounces of gold. The claims, known as the New Patricia gold prospect, now gives the ASX-listed explorer a dominant ground position spanning over 90 kilometres across the Pickle Lake gold camp.

Alterra has appointed John McGlue to its advisory board as it gears up to enter the potentially lucrative agricultural sector with an initial focus on the avocado market. McGlue brings over 30 years of experience in corporate communications and financial markets to Alterra and he is the founder and Principal of corporate advisory firm, Castle Gates Australia. Alterra provides a co-investment model as a potential vehicle for farmers to diversify their conventional bank funding models.

Africa-focused lithium developer, AVZ Minerals appears on track to deliver its definitive feasibility study in the first few months of 2020 at its massive Manono lithium and tin project in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Phase two metallurgical test work continues to deliver encouraging results in support of the ongoing DFS. Testing previously generated a spodumene concentrate that exceeds 6% lithium oxide and the company says that phase two met results are lining up well.

Metallurgist and mining executive, Marc Ducler, has taken the helm at Anglo Australian Resources whilst experienced mining lawman, Leigh Warnick, has been appointed Chairman. John Jones, Peter Stern and David Varcoe will remain on the board as part of a pre-Xmas peace deal that saw the warring parties place their batton's back in their knapsacks and appoint the largely independent team of Ducler and Warnick to spearhead the company.

It's raining gold for Rox Resources and Venus Metals at their Youanmi South project after the partners made a spectacular 14m drill intersection going an ounce to the tonne gold from just 1m deep. The new drill hit also included 5m grading 77.03g/t gold and 3m grading an exceptional 123.66g/t gold. Youanmi has been the gift that keeps on giving this year for multiple parties.

The Davyhurst gold project has gifted Ora Banda Mining a grab bag of impressive drill results for Xmas with the first being a stunning 19-metre intersection grading 24.5 grams per tonne gold from 63 metres downhole. The new intersection includes a 6.4-metre zone grading well over 2 ounces to the tonne at 71.6 g/t. Davyhurst looks well set to ride again under a reconstituted Ora Banda Mining.

Lithium Australia and partner, Envirostream Australia, look like getting into cashflow after shipping their first batch of recycled lithium, cobalt, nickel and graphite that was extracted from old lithium-ion batteries that otherwise would have been sent to landfill. Lithium Australia know owns 84% of Envirostream and is aiming to get to 90 per cent in time.

Hammer Metals has ploughed in 123 first-pass aircore holes at its Bronzewing South gold project and the company appears to have hit on what looks to be something quite interesting. Hammer recently reported composited sample assays from across Target 1 and it has since split the samples down to one-metre intervals. Best numbers include 14 metres at 1.80 g/t gold from 12 metres including 3 metres at 5.57 g/t.

Troy Resources has re-stocked its financial armoury with a placement raising $4 million and an $11 million loan facility supporting the restart of operations at its Karouni gold mine that went onto care and maintenance in October after a fatality on site. Since then, exploration has outlined a new style of mineralisation near the Hicks 1 pit with an impressive 17m hit grading 5 ounces to the tonne gold.