The Critical Minerals Institute (CMI), an international organization for professionals and companies involved in the critical minerals sector, is pleased to publish the first of the monthly CMI Virtual Summit Series — InvestorIntel Hosts Battle of the ESG Titans: Does ESG Work or Matter In Critical Minerals Mining? 

The CMI virtual summit, which was held on December 14^th, featured ESG and critical minerals expert Melissa “Mel” Sanderson head to head with critical minerals expert and Hallgarten & Co Analyst Christopher Ecclestone. The theme of the debate was whether ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) principles work or should be applied to the mining sector. Moderated by CMI Board member Peter Clausi, the majority of viewers responded favorably to Mel’s position and deemed her to be the people’s choice winner.

Mel starts this debate by saying that ESG implementation is not only important but essential for the resource industry to minimize risk and attract investment capital, she concludes with “Getting ESG right isn’t easy, but it sure is worth doing right.” Moderated by CMI Director Peter Clausi, this debate “…even took on the third rail of ESG, which is anthropomorphic climate change.”

On the other side, Christopher starts with how ESG is just “old wine in new bottles”, and exits with “For the emperors with no clothes of the US asset management industry, ESG is the figleaf of last resort.”

To access this full debate, click here

For more information on the Critical Minerals Institute, contact Christine Segram at [email protected] or +1 416 792 8228 for more information.

In this InvestorIntel interview, host Tracy Weslosky interviews Hallgarten & Company’s Principal and Mining Strategist Christopher Ecclestone about the impact of existing markets conditions on the critical minerals sector. Starting with an overview of existing market conditions and the impact of rising inflation and interest rates, Christopher says that the “current basement prices” in mining offer investors temptations they simply cannot ignore.

Tracy presses Christopher on these specific opportunities and requests examples of both his favorite critical minerals and companies investors may enjoy researching. Offering a top 3 hit list of critical minerals and offering 3 companies to review that have these resources, Christopher reinforces the theme that existing market conditions offer opportunities for those who are knowledgeable in this sector.

To access the full InvestorIntel interview, click here

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Disclaimer:  This interview, which was produced by InvestorIntel Corp., (IIC), does not contain, nor does it purport to contain, a summary of all the material information concerning the “Company” being interviewed. IIC offers no representations or warranties that any of the information contained in this interview is accurate or complete.

This presentation may contain “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking statements are based on the opinions and assumptions of the management of the Company as of the date made. They are inherently susceptible to uncertainty and other factors that could cause actual events/results to differ materially from these forward-looking statements. Additional risks and uncertainties, including those that the Company does not know about now or that it currently deems immaterial, may also adversely affect the Company’s business or any investment therein.

Any projections given are principally intended for use as objectives and are not intended, and should not be taken, as assurances that the projected results will be obtained by the Company. The assumptions used may not prove to be accurate and a potential decline in the Company’s financial condition or results of operations may negatively impact the value of its securities. Prospective investors are urged to review the Company’s profile on Sedar.com and to carry out independent investigations in order to determine their interest in investing in the Company.

If you have any questions surrounding the content of this interview, please contact us at +1 416 792 8228 and/or email us direct at [email protected].

In this InvestorIntel interview, host Tracy Weslosky interviews Hallgarten & Company’s Principal and Mining Strategist Christopher Ecclestone about his recent Initiation Research Report on Auxico Resources Canada Inc. (CSE: AUAG) that he published on November 9, 2022. Titled Amassing Critical Mass in Strategic Metals Christopher stresses how Auxico has emerged as “a real player in the monazite market”.

Over the course of this interview, Christopher comments on some of the positive highlights contained in this research report, which includes the following examples:

• + Auxico Resources is morphing from a rank-and-file explorer into a specialty metals trader and developer diversified across metals and continents
• + Through an accord with an unlisted sister corporation (Central America Nickel), the company has access to Rare Earth Elements (REE) and other critical metals for sale into global markets
• + Rare Earth prices have held firm at levels substantially above the average levels of the last ten years

He then goes on to provide an update on Auxico’s portfolio of monazite rich deposits that include an “eye-popping collection of metals” such as rare earths, titanium, hafnium and zircon.

To access the full InvestorIntel interview, click here

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About Auxico Resources Canada Inc.

Auxico Resources Canada Inc. (“Auxico”) is a Canadian company that was founded in 2014 and based in Montreal, trading on the Canadian Stock Exchange (CSE) under symbol AUAG. Auxico is engaged in the acquisition, exploration and development of mineral properties in Colombia, Brazil, Mexico, Bolivia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

To learn more about Auxico Resources Canada Inc., click here

Disclaimer: Auxico Resources Canada Inc. is an advertorial member of InvestorIntel Corp.

This interview, which was produced by InvestorIntel Corp., (IIC), does not contain, nor does it purport to contain, a summary of all the material information concerning the “Company” being interviewed. IIC offers no representations or warranties that any of the information contained in this interview is accurate or complete.

This presentation may contain “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking statements are based on the opinions and assumptions of the management of the Company as of the date made. They are inherently susceptible to uncertainty and other factors that could cause actual events/results to differ materially from these forward-looking statements. Additional risks and uncertainties, including those that the Company does not know about now or that it currently deems immaterial, may also adversely affect the Company’s business or any investment therein.

Any projections given are principally intended for use as objectives and are not intended, and should not be taken, as assurances that the projected results will be obtained by the Company. The assumptions used may not prove to be accurate and a potential decline in the Company’s financial condition or results of operations may negatively impact the value of its securities. Prospective investors are urged to review the Company’s profile on Sedar.com and to carry out independent investigations in order to determine their interest in investing in the Company.

If you have any questions surrounding the content of this interview, please contact us at +1 416 792 8228 and/or email us direct at [email protected].

Molten Metals Corp. (CSE: MOLT) is a relative newcomer to the world of antimony (Sb) and tin (Sn). Formed by Christopher Ecclestone in 2021 to look at near term production of lesser-known battery material antimony, the focus of the company is to look at previously operating mines to develop non-Chinese sources of material.

Molten Metals’ first target was the historic West Gore antimony/gold mine in Nova Scotia, Canada, that produced antimony and gold from the 1880s to 1917. From 1915 to 1917 operations were expanded, and over 35,000 tons of ore were milled yielding 7,761 tons of concentrate at 46% antimony. The total amount of gold obtained from the deposit up to 1917 was 6,861 oz. According to reports, high grade material (46% Sb) was shipped to England but lower grade material was kept on site, which would be readily available with no mining cost. The mine site is located one hour by road north of the provincial capital, Halifax.

Molten Metals’ second move was to incorporate a company in Slovakia, Slovak Antimony Corporation. Slovakia was the key source of antimony for the Soviet Union. They have purchased a processing plant in July in Eastern Slovakia. It is planned to process material from the tailings from their Tienesgrund project. Samples from this project show antimony levels of 39.4% and 9.69 g/t of Au.

I am a strong believer in looking at ex-producing mines or mine tailings as new sources of raw material. Typically, they have infrastructure and possibly tailings that were processed using old technology which can be economically recovered with today’s improved processes.

The largest applications for metallic antimony are in alloys with lead and tin, which have improved properties for solders, bullets, and plain bearings. It improves the rigidity of lead-alloy plates in lead–acid batteries. Antimony trioxide is a prominent additive for halogen-containing flame retardants. Antimony is used as a dopant in semiconductor devices. It is increasingly important as an essential element in high-capacity molten metal batteries. Antimony production in 2016 was 130,000 tonnes with China producing 100,000 tonnes. A recent report from the USGS shows that total global production of antimony fell to 110,000 tonnes in 2021, and Chinese production dropped to 60,000 tonnes, with Russia in second at 25,000 tonnes and Tajikistan at 13,000 tonnes. Some of the reduction in China was due to COVID production problems and China’s focus on environmental issues. As a result, antimony prices rose from an average of $2.67 per pound versus $6.65 per pound in October of last year.

A growing fear is that China can use rare earths as a weapon against the USA by throttling back or even banning rare earth exports to the USA. However, I believe there would be a more direct and immediate impact on American industry if China curtails shipments other key minerals like antimony, which would result in problems for the manufacturing of bullets and electronics plus lead-acid batteries. The USA buys components and assemblies with rare earths in them but not much of key rare earth oxides/carbonates. However, antimony goes directly into manufacturing companies like East Penn, which is the world’s largest lead-acid battery producer. It is not hard to imagine the consequences of a sudden reduction in bullet manufacturing and batteries for new vehicles.

On the corporate side, Molten Metals recently announced additions to their advisory board. An impressive group has been assembled including Donald Sadoway, an inventor of the liquid metal battery for large scale stationary storage and Professor Emeritus in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (“MIT”). Also on the board is Anthony Balmmeis who is active in both private and public companies and David Henderson who is very familiar with opaque markets and critical materials over his 35-year career. The fourth member is Alon Davidov, an Angel investor in several companies in the construction-tech, FMCG, natural resources and media industries.

There is much to applaud in Molten Metals’ enlightened approach to pursuing opportunities in some of the less-followed elements. I am sure there are other opportunities out there in tailings and old mines which traditionally have been shunned by the markets just waiting to be recognized for their potential.

In this InvestorIntel interview, host Tracy Weslosky talks to Molten Metals Corp.‘s (CSE: MOLT) Executive Director & CEO Christopher Ecclestone about the importance of antimony as a critical mineral and breaking China’s grip on its mining and processing.

In the interview, which can also be viewed in full on the InvestorIntel YouTube channel (click here to access InvestorChannel.com), Christopher tells Tracy that “China still dominates the processing of the metal and until recent years also dominated the production of the metal from mines. Their production has been going down from mines, but they’ve still got a pretty strong grip on the processing, and they like to think that they have a grip on on the pricing as well.” He goes on to say that Molten Metals’ goal is to “release that death-like grip on the antimony market and hopefully become the largest non-Chinese producer of antimony maybe in five years from now.”

Christopher also talks about the resurgence of molten salt batteries as a mass electricity storage device and its commercialization potential.

To access the full InvestorIntel interview, click here

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About Molten Metals Corp.

Molten Metals is developing Antimony & Antimony-Gold mine projects. Antimony is a critical element with many industrial applications, including ammunition and fire retardants. The upcoming potential new usage is in the mass- storage devices – molten-salt batteries.

To know more about Molten Metals Corp., click here

Disclaimer:  Molten Metals Corp. is an advertorial member of InvestorIntel Corp.

This interview, which was produced by InvestorIntel Corp., (IIC), does not contain, nor does it purport to contain, a summary of all the material information concerning the “Company” being interviewed. IIC offers no representations or warranties that any of the information contained in this interview is accurate or complete.

This presentation may contain “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking statements are based on the opinions and assumptions of the management of the Company as of the date made. They are inherently susceptible to uncertainty and other factors that could cause actual events/results to differ materially from these forward-looking statements. Additional risks and uncertainties, including those that the Company does not know about now or that it currently deems immaterial, may also adversely affect the Company’s business or any investment therein.

Any projections given are principally intended for use as objectives and are not intended, and should not be taken, as assurances that the projected results will be obtained by the Company. The assumptions used may not prove to be accurate and a potential decline in the Company’s financial condition or results of operations may negatively impact the value of its securities. Prospective investors are urged to review the Company’s profile on Sedar.com and to carry out independent investigations in order to determine their interest in investing in the Company.

If you have any questions surrounding the content of this interview, please contact us at +1 416 792 8228 and/or email us direct at [email protected].

In this InvestorIntel interview, host Tracy Weslosky talks to Molten Metals Corp.‘s (CSE: MOLT) Executive Director & CEO Christopher Ecclestone about the newly-listed antimony and antimony-gold company.

In the interview, which can also be viewed in full on the InvestorIntel YouTube channel (click here to access InvestorChannel.com), Christopher tells Tracy that Molten is “totally dedicated to production. We’re not interested in fooling around, we’re not interested in spending enormous number of years and amounts of money on exploration – we just want to get to production because the prices are up and we want to harvest those prices.”

Christopher also tells InvestorIntel that Molten Metals, with only 17 million shares issued, planned a fairly quiet entry into the market to preserve their first mover advantage in this niche but important critical mineral market. “At the moment we are the only non-Chinese listed miner dedicated to antimony,” he says, which has many industrial and military applications. With prices again on the rise, Christopher says, “it’s a pretty good moment to be in antimony.”

To access the full InvestorIntel interview, click here

Don’t miss other InvestorIntel interviews. Subscribe to the InvestorIntel YouTube channel by clicking here.

About Molten Metals Corp.

Molten Metals is developing Antimony & Antimony-Gold mine projects. Antimony is a critical element with many industrial applications, including ammunition and fire retardants. The upcoming potential new usage is in the mass- storage devices – molten-salt batteries.

To know more about Molten Metals Corp., click here

Disclaimer:  Molten Metals Corp. is an advertorial member of InvestorIntel Corp.

This interview, which was produced by InvestorIntel Corp., (IIC), does not contain, nor does it purport to contain, a summary of all the material information concerning the “Company” being interviewed. IIC offers no representations or warranties that any of the information contained in this interview is accurate or complete.

This presentation may contain “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking statements are based on the opinions and assumptions of the management of the Company as of the date made. They are inherently susceptible to uncertainty and other factors that could cause actual events/results to differ materially from these forward-looking statements. Additional risks and uncertainties, including those that the Company does not know about now or that it currently deems immaterial, may also adversely affect the Company’s business or any investment therein.

Any projections given are principally intended for use as objectives and are not intended, and should not be taken, as assurances that the projected results will be obtained by the Company. The assumptions used may not prove to be accurate and a potential decline in the Company’s financial condition or results of operations may negatively impact the value of its securities. Prospective investors are urged to review the Company’s profile on Sedar.com and to carry out independent investigations in order to determine their interest in investing in the Company.

If you have any questions surrounding the content of this interview, please contact us at +1 416 792 8228 and/or email us direct at [email protected].

Lynas Rare Earths Ltd.‘s (ASX: LYC) August 3 announcement that it will invest an additional $500 million to rewrite its own already aggressive growth plan is risky, sure, but then, when it comes to rare earths, what isn’t? Managing Director Amanda Lacaze appears to be reading the demand-pull market for Lynas’ main products, neodymium (Nd) and praseodymium (Pr), as further accelerating, despite some hits to the “green” economy from the war in Ukraine. There are sound reasons supporting such a view, including the commitments by EU auto manufacturers to cease all gasoline production by 2025 and recent (surprising) political developments in the US, especially passage of the CHIPS Act (supporting redevelopment of a US-based semiconductor industry) and the current Inflation Reduction Act (also known as Build Back Better in disguise) likely to be approved this week by the House of Representatives and signed quickly by President Biden.

Lynas is particularly well-positioned to benefit from this latest legislation as it already has two agreements with the US Department of Defense for construction of two separation plants: a $30 million light rare earths plant (deal signed in January 2022) and also in June a $120 million deal for a heavy RE plant. This in addition to Japan’s ongoing demand, a not insignificant factor as Lynas self-identifies as controlling 80% of that market.

So, if all looks positive on the demand, where are the risks? Well, unvarnished success will require the split-second timing of a juggler. Expanding output at Mt. Weld should be a green light: the deposit and its characteristics are well known and should present few obstacles to an experienced team (with the usual caveats about the weather which these days can be a real Devil).

But, there is a problem with Malaysia. Despite winning an unprecedented two EcoVadis awards, political and public concerns about radioactive materials led the Malaysian government to refuse to extend Lynas’ cracking and leaching permits. (ESG Comment: this goes to show how history haunts even companies who had nothing to do with previous problems, and how hard it can be to gain and retain trust.)

Lynas announced in February of this year that it has received Ministerial approval for its Kalgoorlie rare earth processing facility, clearing the way for construction to begin. This new facility will strip and store the radioactive elements (uranium and thorium) and then ship the “clean” material to Malaysia for final processing. Thus the timing issue. If the processing plant can be constructed in record time with no unexpected issues, it could dovetail nicely with the increased output from the mine. Otherwise, lower through-put or possibly storage of mined materials could be necessary, providing a cost hit. And even if the timing is impeccable, there will be some increased product cost due to shipping to and processing at Kalgoorlie and then onwards to Malaysia.

Nonetheless, kudos to Lynas for a bold move, going for market share in a booming market with positive political signals and economic momentum. As Christopher Ecclestone said to InvestorIntel: “Lynas just goes to show that it is a doer when so many others are just talkers in the Rare Earth space.”

In this video, InvestorIntel panelists rare earths experts Jack Lifton, Tracy Weslosky and Christopher Ecclestone express their skepticism at a report released yesterday that alleges a co-ordinated social media campaign out of China targeted the Australian rare earths mining company, Lynas Rare Earths Ltd. (ASX: LYC), with tweets and Facebook posts criticizing its alleged environmental record and calling for protests of its planned rare earths processing facility in Texas.

While the story has been picked up by mainstream and industry media, a deeper dive makes it look increasingly unlikely that this “campaign” was, as claimed, part of a Chinese effort to undermine foreign attempts to develop a rare earths processing capability outside of China and maintain China’s current dominance. While China makes a good James Bond villain in western politics and the popular press, a look at the evidence doesn’t necessarily point in their direction as the main movers in this case. For people familiar with online campaigns, this one attributed to China’s influence campaign known as DRAGONBRIDGE seems particularly weak and unfocused. The campaign and its associated hashtags never trended on Twitter, which is unfortunately all too easy to do with modern botfarms and technology.

Some tweets came out of China or were posted in Chinese, but that doesn’t a conspiracy make. A look at the tweets indicates some of them came from newly-created, zero-follower accounts, which is not the way to get something trending. China has much greater cyberwarfare capabilities than shown in this example. If anything, it is more reminiscent of anti-mining environmental activist campaigns that are a part of life for many mining companies. These can be co-ordinated by small but dedicated groups of activists unhappy with a company’s environmental or human rights records, real or perceived. In order to rise above the noise of social media, they often use multiple accounts and contacts with other groups to look larger than they are to increase their influence. The brief online campaign against Lynas – especially tweets from Malaysia where Lynas has a rare earths plant – looks far more like that than it does a co-ordinated attack by the Chinese cybersecurity forces.

Could the Chinese government have paid brief attention and contributed a few gratuitous kicks to a social media campaign that gave Lynas a poke? Possibly. We know that for years Russia has waged a disruptive social media war in the US and other western countries simply to make trouble, often working both sides of an issue to cause instability. The media has breathlessly connected the dots between China and the recent announcement that the US Department of Defense is increasing funding of Lynas’s rare earths facility in Texas. It is hard to believe that the Chinese cyberwarfare establishment thinks that they can undo $120 million in strategic funding by the DoD with a few tweets.

The Mandiant report also says that in June Chinese DRAGONBRIDGE social media accounts began targeting two other rare earths companies – the Canadian rare earths mining company Appia Rare Earths & Uranium Corp. (CSE: API | OTCQB: APAAF) a company well known to InvestorIntel, and the American rare earths supplier USA Rare Earth LLC. One has to wonder about the thinking behind choosing these targets if this is a co-ordinated campaign. Attacking them is hardly going to ensure Chinese dominance in the rare earths space, which makes the whole Chinese conspiracy theory fall apart.

“Cui bono?” – Who benefits? That was the question Roman judge Lucius Cassius asked in difficult cases. The benefit to China is negligible to non-existent. The West will continue to search for domestic rare earths and develop processing facilities. Will some company, analyst or investor group benefit from an attempt at bad press or stock slippage? Or is it a social media campaign by a handful unhappy activists groups that jump on an anti-mining bandwagon that ultimately goes nowhere, even with a couple of half-hearted contributions from China?

And unless you think that I am naïve, I worked on Chinese projects with Chinese partners for over a decade. China has – to say the least – a unique way of doing business. We have seen them attempt to exert influence to gain economic advantage around the world, however I have seen Connecticut hedge funds do the same and worse. But these kinds of campaigns out of China – like the brutal one to release Meng Wanzhou, the CFO for Chinese telecom giant Huawei, that included taking Canadian hostages in addition to a social media campaign – are waged skillfully and with a purpose. It is hard to see any of that skill or purpose in this case.

In a recent InvestorIntel interview, Tracy Weslosky interviews Hallgarten & Company’s Principal and Mining Strategist Christopher Ecclestone about the impact of the Ukrainian invasion on the resource sector. In a follow-up to a previous interview, Christopher starts with: “Everyone thought it would be over shortly, and in fact, it’s dragged on — and so that means that the implications have very much changed now.”

With commentary on sanctions, Russia being paid in rubles for oil and gas, Christopher takes on the impact to the global nickel, platinum, and palladium markets. Further discussions on Russia and Kazakhstan being our dominant suppliers of uranium, he provides a compelling argument on how other companies and countries may be a ‘leaky door’ for Russians sidestepping the intended impact of economic sanctions.

The full interview, which may also be viewed on the InvestorIntel YouTube channel (click here to subscribe), may be accessed if you click here.

About Hallgarten & Company

Hallgarten & Company was founded in 2003 by the former partners of a well-known economic think-tank. Their output encompasses top-down and bottom-up research from a Classical Economic (Austrian School) perspective. Over the years, the team has successfully picked trends using macroeconomic underpinnings to guide investors through the treacherous waters of the markets. It was only natural, in light of the focus of Classical Economics upon the “real value” of monetary assets that the firm’s strengths should ultimately have become evident in resources sectors and projections of commodity trends.

Hallgarten & Company has advised and managed portfolios of offshore and onshore hedge funds.

Hallgarten also provides consultancy services on Latin American economic, politics and corporate matters including the production of bespoke research.

Hallgarten research is now available on Bloomberg and FactSet.

To learn more about Hallgarten & Company, click here

In a recent InvestorIntel interview, Tracy Weslosky spoke with Christopher Ecclestone, Principal and Mining Strategist at Hallgarten & Company about the impact of the Russian invasion of Ukraine on the resource market.

In this InvestorIntel interview, which may also be viewed on YouTube (click here to subscribe to the InvestorIntel Channel), Christopher Ecclestone pointed out that Russia produces a lot of minerals and metals, but that it is a key producer of critical metals like nickel, cobalt, platinum and palladium. Explaining how Russia is currently being cut off from global markets, he went on to highlight the disruptions in platinum and palladium supply given that Russia is among the largest producers of those metals. Christopher went on to discuss the impact of the European conflict on the rare earths sector and on the Canadian resource companies with Russian investment.

To watch the full interview, click here.

About Hallgarten & Company

Hallgarten & Company was founded in 2003 by the former partners of a well-known economic think-tank. Their output encompasses top-down and bottom-up research from a Classical Economic (Austrian School) perspective. Over the years, the team has successfully picked trends using macroeconomic underpinnings to guide investors through the treacherous waters of the markets. It was only natural, in light of the focus of Classical Economics upon the “real value” of monetary assets that the firm’s strengths should ultimately have become evident in resources sectors and projections of commodity trends.

Hallgarten & Company has advised and managed portfolios of offshore and onshore hedge funds.

Hallgarten also provides consultancy services on Latin American economic, politics and corporate matters including the production of bespoke research.

Hallgarten research is now available on Bloomberg and FactSet.

To learn more about Hallgarten & Company, click here