Industrial Minerals Reports $882K Cash and Positive Testwork at Pippingarra Project

Strategic Progress in APAC Markets

Industrial Minerals Ltd (ASX – IND) has reported a productive quarter ending June 2025, marked by advancing strategic partnership discussions across the Asia-Pacific region. The company is leveraging its Pippingarra Project’s substantial resource base of high purity quartz, feldspar, and mica to engage with established industrial mineral processors and distributors. These partnerships aim to capitalize on existing processing infrastructure and customer networks, offering a capital-efficient route to market.

Attendance at the Ceramics China 2025 trade fair in Guangzhou proved pivotal, enabling direct engagement with manufacturers and distributors across China and broader APAC markets. This exposure has generated significant interest in IND’s diversified mineral offerings, particularly for ceramics and industrial applications.

Technical Validation and Product Development

On the technical front, IND has reported encouraging results from its beneficiation and ore-sorting testwork programs. Independent audits confirmed that the processing methods align with industry standards, and the ore-sorting trials demonstrated promising yields and elemental purity. Notably, the ability to isolate feldspar and mica as co-products alongside high purity quartz enhances the overall resource utilization and project economics.

Further testwork on feldspar and mica samples is underway at the Imerys Ceramics Laboratory in Thailand, focusing on their suitability for specialized ceramic applications. This co-product development is a strategic move to broaden the commercial appeal of the Pippingarra deposit beyond quartz alone.

Market Engagement and Customer Validation

IND has initiated a customer evaluation program, preparing categorised ore-sorted mineral samples for dispatch to potential customers. This approach allows end-users to independently validate product quality and suitability, providing valuable market feedback. The company is also expanding its market assessment beyond China to include Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan, reflecting a comprehensive regional strategy.

Operationally, the 80-tonne bulk sample has cleared customs in China, with alternative sample preparation pathways secured to mitigate earlier processing delays. The company is poised to commence advanced ore-sorting trials, systematically separating mineral products to meet diverse customer specifications.

Financial Position and Outlook

Financially, Industrial Minerals maintains a stable position with $882,000 in cash as of June 30, 2025, and exploration expenditure of $74,000 for the quarter. The company’s strategy to minimize capital outlay through partnerships and value-adding collaborations supports a sustainable pathway to production and market entry.

Managing Director Jeff Sweet expressed confidence in the project’s commercial potential, highlighting the positive technical validation and strong market reception. The focus now is on converting interest into formal agreements to accelerate development.