Latest Operating Costs News

Kingsgate Consolidated has increased Nueva Esperanza’s Ore Reserves by 31% for silver and 37% for gold, extending the assumed reserve life beyond 12 years. The gains are largely driven by higher price assumptions and lower royalties rather than new drilling.

A multimillion-dollar, multiyear NIH grant will fund an expanded access program for Neurizon’s investigational NUZ-001, potentially giving up to 200 US patients access to the therapy for as long as 96 weeks. The program is designed to add long-term safety, survival and biomarker data alongside the pivotal HEALEY ALS trial.

Bannerman Energy has launched a fully underwritten A$124 million placement that it expects will fund its share of the Etango uranium project through construction and ramp-up. The raising follows confirmation that CNOL’s strategic investment and joint venture conditions have been satisfied or waived.

Way2VAT has secured binding commitments for a A$2.109 million placement, giving the fintech capital to fund the next RBC acquisition payment and its e-invoicing expansion. The raise comes at a 29% discount and carries potential further dilution through free-attaching options.

Sovereign Metals says a simple add-on circuit at its Malawi project could generate US$722 million of pre-tax value from monazite by-product recovery. The opportunity is commercially striking, but remains a preliminary scoping result dependent on further testwork, approvals, funding and customer qualification.

Encore Minerals has approved development of the Windarra Tailings Project, triggering a $400,000 payment to Maritana Minerals and preserving the company’s exposure to future gold production through royalties. Encore will carry the project’s development and operating costs, although key execution milestones remain ahead.

Sunrise Energy Metals has put its Syerston scandium project on a stronger financial footing, ending FY2026 with A$115.4 million in cash and a conditional US$400 million debt commitment. The project still faces a decisive sequence of tests: final investment approval, binding offtake agreements, financing conditions and construction execution.

Brazilian Rare Earths has commissioned its Stage I beneficiation pilot plant in Bahia and produced its first rare earth mineral concentrate. Partners will contribute R$6.4 million, or about A$1.7 million, towards the next hydrometallurgical stage planned for commissioning in Q2 2027.

Element 25 has signed a binding AU$50 million NAIF facility agreement for its Butcherbird Expansion Project, replacing an earlier funding commitment with a contractual financing framework. The money is not yet available: financial close, first drawdown and other conditions precedent remain outstanding.

Select Harvests expects a near-record FY26 almond crop and stronger pool pricing, but wet-weather harvesting has pushed operational costs to A$13.9 million. Net debt is forecast below A$65 million at year-end, leaving the key earnings impact for the full-year results.

Core Lithium has produced its first spodumene concentrate from the recommissioned Finniss processing plant, reaching its September-quarter target within six months of the restart decision. The plant is not yet at steady-state production, with optimisation continuing ahead of a targeted first shipment in the December quarter.

Elevra Lithium is positioning its Québec operations for a near-doubling in spodumene concentrate capacity, while guiding to modest production growth and sharply higher capital spending in FY27. The three-stage North American Lithium expansion is targeting 373,000 tonnes per year for an estimated US$271 million.