While it’s common in the universe of micro-cap mining stocks for long-term value propositions to be built on hopes and prayers, every so often investors are presented with a clear sector leader with ample growth yet to be priced in.
This Friday’s edition of Weekly Market Movers makes cases for two such stocks, whose flagship mining projects are nothing less than essential assets when it comes to supply chains for tungsten, molybdenum, copper and gold.
Almonty Industries
Our first micro-cap mining stock tracking globally relevant assets is Almonty Industries, market capitalization C$307.89 million, which specializes in the mining, processing and shipping of tungsten, a critical material to the semi-conductor, battery and 5G industries currently trading at about US$340 per MTU. Almonty’s project portfolio includes:
- The Los Santos mine in western Spain, acquired in 2011 and currently on care and maintenance, featuring proven and probable reserves of 3,767 kt grading 0.13 per cent tungsten oxide (WO3) and measured and indicated resources of 3,767 kt grading 0.13 per cent WO3.
- The producing Panasqueira mine in Portugal, acquired in 2016, featuring proven and probable reserves of 3,056 kt grading 0.21 per cent WO3, measured and indicated resources of 11,855 kt at 0.23 per cent WO3 and inferred resources of 10,631 kt at 0.24 per cent WO3.
- The Sangdong tungsten mine in Gangwon Province, South Korea, acquired in 2015 and currently under construction, featuring 7,896 kt at 0.45 per cent WO3 proven and probable, 8,029 kt at 0.51 per cent WO3 measured and indicated, and 50,686 kt at 0.43 per cent WO3 inferred.
- The pre-feasibility-stage Valtreixal tin/tungsten project in northwestern Spain, acquired between 2013-2016, featuring 2,577 kt at 0.35 per cent WO3 proven and probable, 2,833 kt at 0.36 per cent WO3 equivalent measured and indicated, and 16,755 kt at 0.18 per cent WO3 equivalent inferred.
Almonty is targeting tungsten production in 2027 equivalent to 43 per cent of supply outside of market leader China and 7 per cent of global supply, offering investors a clear, multi-decade runway for cash flow growth and scaling efficiencies.
As if that weren’t enough, the company also holds the Sangdong molybdenum project, which is scheduled to reach production in 2026, beginning an approximately 60-year life of mine, having recently secured an offtake agreement with SeAH Group, the largest molybdenum processor in South Korea and the second-largest molybdenum oxide smelter in the world. Global reserves for molybdenum, a critical component of steel production, are in starkly short supply, according to Almonty’s December 2024 investor presentation.
Investors have been growing increasingly optimistic about the company’s role in the global tungsten and molybdenum markets, bidding up Almonty stock (TSX:AII) by 118.87 per cent since 2020 in anticipation of near-term production increases catalyzing shareholder value. Shares last traded at C$1.16.
Lewis Black, Almonty’s president and chief executive officer (CEO), spoke with Lyndsay Malchuk about opportunities in tungsten and how the company is positioning itself to capitalize. Watch the interview here.
Western Copper and Gold
Our second micro-cap mining stock to watch is Western Copper and Gold, market capitalization C$289.65 million, which is developing its Yukon-based Casino project, Canada’s premier copper-gold mine and one of the largest in the world, housing:
- 14.8 million ounces of gold and 7.6 billion pounds of copper measured and indicated.
- 6.3 million ounces of gold and 3.1 billion pounds of copper inferred.
Representing a combined over US$100 billion in commodities in the ground, Casino yielded a 2022 feasibility study delineating a net present value (8 per cent) of C$2.33 billion, including C$10 billion in cash flow over a 27-year life of mine. These figures, based on US$3.60 per pound of copper, US$1,700 per ounce of gold and a low strip ratio of 0.43:1, are notably enhanced by prices as of January 31.
With copper demand expected to grow by 70 per cent by 2050 (slide 6), the price of gold reaching an all-time-high driven by Trump’s tariff threats, and investments by Rio Tinto and Mitsubishi significantly de-risking the stock for retail investors, the thesis behind opening a position and awaiting a construction decision is as high-conviction as it gets for a development-stage miner.
Western Copper and Gold stock (TSX:WRN) is down by 0.67 per cent year-over-year but has added 66.29 per cent since 2020. Shares last traded at C$1.48.
Sandeep Singh, Western Copper and Gold’s president and CEO, spoke with Lyndsay Malchuk about what investors can expect from the company in 2025. Watch the interview here.
Join the discussion: Find out what everybody’s saying about these micro-cap mining stocks on the Almonty Industries Inc. and Western Copper and Gold Corp. Bullboards and check out Stockhouse’s stock forums and message boards.
This is sponsored content issued on behalf of Almonty Industries Inc. and Western Copper and Gold Corp., please see full disclaimer here.
(Top photo of core samples from the Casino copper and gold project: Western Copper and Gold)