Market Open(ed) Issue #5

ISSUE #5

THE LITHIUM SECTOR HEADS UPSTREAM

CONTENT

01 02

THE LIZARD KING

The Lizard King throws his unwanted two cents on a week that most in the financial sector would rather forget!

LITHIUM CAPITAL FLOWS UPSTREAM

ibra Lithium, a Canadian company that is privately funded, offers fresh insights on how to manage the ever-increasing demand for lithium.

03 OPEN(ED) BRIEFS

espite a challenging week, Balkan Mining, Kingsland Minerals, and Zinc of Ireland have successfully shared some positive news.

THE LIZARD KING

failure to lift the ceiling, causing trouble for Aussie miners. Those poor defenceless miners at BHP and Rio Tinto have suffered declines of 1.6% to $42.15 and $105.40, respectively, and spare a thought for our Fortescue Metals losing 3.2% to $19.

It also pains this lizard to report that the Fed fallout has reached my beloved gold miners, and lithium producers have also seen losses, with Newcrest down 1.9% and Pilbara falling 1.3%. The only upside has been that the Big Four banks have also lost ground, with CBA, ANZ, Westpac, and NAB all experiencing declines.

Small Gains

The only artificial intelligence this reptile was ever aware of has been courtesy of this nation’s politicians recently! It is astounding to hear that this so-called AI handled lifting Wall Street from its debt ceiling doldrums. But, alas, the world is on the slippery slope to Judgment Day, and the machines will be coming for all of us! But as Janet was Yellen’, the US could run out of cash, the Machines (Nvidia) made the first move on world domination, lighting a fire under the jittery folks at Wall Street with its monster earning forecast, sending its share price rocketing 27 per cent. More serious matters, the audit of the mint has been extended due to concerns from the Lizard King about Goobleschmakkas running the establishment. Austrac has blamed it on “poor record keeping,” but I believe it to be incompetence. I am eagerly anticipating the final report. In the meantime, the mint’s employees will continue to face scrutiny.

The ASX has had a rough week, experienced its fourth straight day of losses, and hit its lowest point in two months. This decline has been driven by those Fed nitwits’

It is almost refreshing to hear positive signs for the Aussie building industry, with cement producer Adbri jumping 21.9% to a six-month high of $1.95 at its annual general meeting in Sydney, where the boys are hoping the brickies will be out again in force very soon. Let us hope Goldman Sachs staying bullish on commodities is words of wisdom rather than mumblings of a raving lunatic! Our enthusiastic friends at GS reckon significant rises in store for raw material, and although it has not happened overnight – it will happen (Pantene). The boys and girls at GS are so confident that they have called for another significant rally! What is even more astounding is that fact that made this brave assertion while the nitwits at the Fed were still pacing around bristling their whiskers!

“The world is on a slippery slope to Judgment Day, and the Machines will be coming for all of us!”

LITHIUM capital flows upstream

An investment imbalance could break the EV supply chain, but Canadian lithium explorer and developer Koby Kushner sees capital starting to flow upstream.

JACK DUGGAN

Koby Kushner, chief executive of Ontario’s privately funded Libra Lithium, predicts that the EV supply chain could be at risk

due to an investment imbalance. However, he also sees an increase in capital flowing upstream. Experts are forecasting a surge in demand for lithium, with increasing prices signalling a potential wave of mergers and acquisitions like the boom in the West Australian resources industry caused by iron ore.

Liontown Resources, led by Tim Goyder, has reported that Australian lithium is becoming increasingly valuable – Citigroup has predicted a 40 per cent price surge. At the same time, Morgan Stanley has said that the markets are at a turning point.

Many powerful entities, beyond significant corporations, are interested in lithium assets. Despite calls for governments to invest in downstream processing capabilities, Koby Kushner, a passionate advocate for the sector’s development, believes that more capital needs to be placed upstream – in the raw material.

According to the former Red Cloud analyst, who used to work as a mining engineer, the capital has historically been invested on the wrong side of the supply chain.

“Capital came pouring in, starting with EV plants, battery plants, and chemical plants, while investment into upstream raw materials came last,” Kushner says.

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Briefs

The Fed was poo-pooing what should have been an excellent week for small-cap stock, but still, some great news was coming out. Here are some stories which we rate a mention in dispatches this week.

Balkan light up historic lithium

In 1957, several notable events occurred, including the production of the first frisbee by Wham-O, the debut of the TV show Leave It to Beaver, and the Ontario Lithium Corporation making significant discoveries. Now, after fifty years, Balkan Mining and Minerals have confirmed those findings through channel sampling, revealing an impressive average grade of 1.49% Li2O. Since then, we have discovered more uses for lithium, and BMM aims to explore its discovery located near one of Canada’s leading projects.

Kingsland get value they deserve

The stock price of Kingsland has doubled over the past month due to a graphite discovery announcement. The company has uncovered a large exploration target and conducted a maiden drill campaign which yielded an impressive early result of 150 meters of graphitic schist at Leliyn. Although some of us are accustomed to discarding graphite in frustration after a bad golf shot, the market is highly interested in this valuable mineral.

Zinc of Ireland emerges in Esperance

Zinc of Ireland has established a strong presence near the coastal town of Esperance in Western Australia, which is indisputably one of the most promising rare earth provinces in the country. ZOI’s acquisition is both inexpensive and accessible for exploration. The surrounding projects have consistently yielded impressive results, and the Cascade Project, which has been fully acquired, boasts easily accessible drill targets with extensive untapped mineralization beneath the surface.

As the demand for lithium increases, he suggests that early adopters may take innovative measures to address the supply chain’s structural imbalance. “Investors at the highest levels are beginning to realise that a lithium chemical converter can be operational in just two years.

“We focus on developing projects in the early stages instead of waiting to finance and build a lithium mine, which can take more than 10 years. We’re happy that big companies and governments are investing in early-stage development, especially as we begin our lithium exploration programs in Canada.”

One of the most apparent signs that this realisation is becoming widespread is the recent influx of investments from automakers, such as General Motors, who recently secured a $650 million deal to ensure a stable supply, but production still needs to catch up.

“We are seeing from ground zero, a shortage of reserves, non-availability of talent and equipment, and permitting delays impacting the supply chain.”

Kushner is optimistic about the company’s strategy, supporters, and property ownership in the developing region that will eventually become a vital part of North America’s electric vehicle supply chain.

“Libra Lithium is a brand-new grassroots explorer, and the fact that we’re already gaining interest from

parties both upstream and downstream is indicative that the world is starting to recognise the need for new lithium discoveries in tier-1 jurisdictions,” he says.

“The possibility of a lithium shortage is a significant concern for auto manufacturers and global powers alike.

“They recognise that any interruption in the supply chain could have substantial consequences, not just for their companies and economy but also for national security.”

We are seeing from ground zero, a shortage of reserves, non-availability of talent and equipment, and permitting delays impacting the supply chain

Libra Lithium CEO Koby Kushna

The Flanders North & South Project isnear Georgia Lake in Ontario, Canada.

Koby Kushner has seen a lot of changes in the Canadian mining industry since his days as a mining engineer working for Barrick Gold less than a decade earlier.