Guy on Rocks: The monster of a project brewing at Iron Bear
This week on Guy on Rocks, host Guy Le Page dissects the major iron ore project brewing under Cyclone Metals in north Quebec.
Tune in to hear more.
While Cyclone Metals did not collaborate on this video, it is a Stockhead advertiser at the time of publishing.
The views, information, or opinions expressed in this video are solely those of the author and do not represent the views of Stockhead.
Stockhead has not provided, endorsed or otherwise assumed responsibility for any financial product advice contained in this article. Viewers should obtain independent advice based on their own circumstances before making any financial decisions.
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News.com.au
4 hours ago
- News.com.au
Cry? Argentina's laughing as companies flock to join its mining industry
Argentinean President Javier Milei's investment-friendly policies are helping draw mining companies This is combined with the lure of rich, yet underexplored ground across the country Minerals such as lithium, copper and gold are some of the big drawcards for explorers and miners alike Argentina is increasingly being seen as an attractive destination for resources investment, standing out even amongst the other well-endowed jurisdictions of South America. Regardless of how one might view maverick President Javier Milei, who swept to power in a landslide victory in December 2023, credit must go where credit is due. His economic reforms have certainly contributed to the creation of a more dynamic and business-friendly environment in the country. This includes the introduction of policies such as the Large Investment Incentive Regime (RIGI) that offers tax, customs, and exchange rate benefits for investments of more than US$200 million. One key beneficiary of this policy is Rio Tinto's US$2.5bn Rincon project in the Rincón Salt Flat, Salta, which will include a processing plant capable of producing up to 60,000tpa of battery-grade lithium carbonate. Other miners and explorers are taking note. 'Argentina is really positioning itself as a top-tier mining destination and this is something that largely wasn't there ten years ago,' Pursuit Minerals (ASX:PUR) managing director Aaron Revelle told Stockhead. 'The Milei government has really opened up the country, and they started that with the oil and gas sector. They've now really moved that into mining.' He also pointed to the 30-year Fiscal Stability Guarantee under the Mining Investment Act that covers exploration through to project maturity and really enhances the long-term investment security as another positive factor. 'There's also growing global governance and transparency standards,' Revelle added. 'Argentina now enjoys the strong support of the IMF, which is another key reason why it's such an attractive mining destination. 'Milei's very well received despite his eccentric nature across a lot of governments, especially in Latin America. 'He's showing that Argentina is tired of the old Peronist rule. People want jobs, they want lower taxes, they want lower costs of living, and I think his policies are really giving him a good standing there.' Rich mineral bounty Argentina's transformation isn't all thanks to Milei though. It has been one of the top three performers in the region since 2018 and has regularly outperformed both Chile and Bolivia, the other two prongs of the famous Lithium Triangle, thanks to having the most attractive tax code. This has contributed to the 77.1% increase in exploration expenditures between 2021 and 2023 to US$427m. It also owes a large part of this growth to its vast strategic mineral resouces. 'Argentina holds the third largest lithium reserves globally as part of the famed lithium triangle alongside Chile and Bolivia,' Revelle added. 'You look at the emergence of copper, you know, which is becoming a juggernaut there. Taca Taca in the Salta province, but also the Filo del Sol project up in San Juan. 'Then looking at other commodities – gold. (In) Santa Cruz, you've got Cerro Negro, a famed tier-1 Newmont deposit.' More importantly for junior explorers such as Pursuit, Argentina remains largely underexplored. Challenger Gold (ASX:CEL) managing director Kris Knauer agrees, telling Stockhead that Argentina doesn't just have attractive geology. It is also very immature compared to jurisdictions like Chile or Ecuador. Argentina also benefits from a high-quality, skilled mining workforce that's readily available. That's on top of significant infrastructure, with well-established road, rail and ports across its mining regions as well as stable access to electricity and water. Revelle points out that the individual provinces control mining rights. The Federal Government's key role is its courting of direct foreign investment. 'There are several major provinces that are constantly flying the flag, with their governors regularly attending PDAC to attract investment,' he added. This combination of business friendly policies, mineral riches and available infrastructure has led major miners such BHP, Lundin, Ganfeng and Eramet to make significant investments in the country. ASX players Given all the advantages, there's certainly no shortage of ASX-listed companies operating in Argentina. Pursuit is focused on its Rio Grande Sur lithium project that has a resource of 1.104Mt lithium carbonate equivalent. It's doubled down on Argentina, with the company recently divesting its WA gold prospects and is evaluating other opportunities in the country. 'There's plenty of opportunity, and we're seeing some amazing prospects that may not have actually been there or available to us five to ten years ago in terms of political constraints or things like that,' Revelle said. 'Over the next 12 months, we will look at Argentina and the lithium market, which we think will eventually rebound and come back as demand continues to grow. 'If there was an exceptional opportunity in South America we would potentially look at it, but for us we are very comfortable in lithium, very comfortable in Argentina, and really just developing opportunities within the country. We expect the country to continue to grow." Revelle didn't discount other minerals, noting that gold, copper and silver are very prospective in Argentina. The company recently produced high-purity lithium carbonate samples from its 250tpa pilot plant using synthetic brine chemically identical to that of the Rio Grande Sur lithium project. To enhance product quality and simulate potential refinement steps at commercial scale, a portion of this material was further treated at bench scale using fractional crystallisation (FX) and ion exchange (IX) techniques. These post processing steps upgraded the product to 99.5% purity, meeting established benchmarks for technical-grade lithium carbonate. Samples will be used by potential partners for product qualification and assessment purposes, representing a critical milestone in Pursuit's commercial strategy. Challenger Gold is focused primarily on its Hualilan gold project in Argentina's San Juan province that has a resource of 2.9Moz of gold with a high-grade core of 1.6Moz at 5g/t gold. In June 2025, the company unveiled a toll treatment PFS that outlined attractive returns, despite using conservative spot prices of US$2500/oz for gold and US$27.50/oz for silver. The three-year toll milling strategy delivers an estimated EBITDA of A$136 million, a post-tax NPV of US$50.5 million, and cumulative post-tax free cash flow of US$56.7 million. Using a gold price of US$3300/oz, a touch below spot, this EBITDA increases to A$221 million. The toll mining operation is based on just 3% of project's current resource and requires a modest upfront capital investment of just US$8.9 million (A$13.8m), with a rapid payback period expected by December 2025, only three months after mining begins. Mining will be focused on three shallow open pits producing 465,000 wet metric tonnes of mineralised material, with an average mined grade of 6.2g/t gold and 35g/t silver. A production target of 76,600oz payable gold and 338,500oz silver has been set out with a life-of-mine strip ratio of 6:1 and a forecast mining cost of US$8.12/t. Ore will be hauled 165km on a sealed highway to the fully permitted Casposo plant, where recoveries of 84.4% gold and 65.7% silver are expected. Knauer said the company will cross a number of milestones by the end of the year. 'There'll be first drill and blast, first mining, first processing of all, first cash flow, that's all by the end of this year. That will happen in the next five months,' he said. 'You will also see some infill drilling results from the higher grade pits there as part of that, but really for us the next five months is about executing and delivering cash flow and producing gold.' This initial toll milling operation will effectively 'bootstrap' the company into the larger operation, likely to come into focus in early 2026. 'You'll have a ... study showing what the larger project now looks like and the scale of it, which will be in the first quarter next year,' he added. The broader project is already fully permitted and has the first EIA approved in San Juan gold mining for over 10 years. An EIA amendment is needed for trucking the ore to the toll mill, along with an explosives approval for drill and blast contractor Orica, with Knauer saying time frames have been as expected. On the copper front, Belararox (ASX:BRX) operates the Toro-Malambo-Tambo (TMT) project down the road from BHP and Lundin's Filo Del Sol copper deposit, recently revealed to be among the largest global copper finds of the past 30 years in a hint the underexplored Vicuna border region of Argentina and Chile could host more tier-1 copper projects. Recent Phase 1 drilling tested two of several high priority target areas with the Tambo South target returning wide and continuous anomalous copper zones. Geological interpretation has indicated multiple intrusions with varying extents of copper mineralisation with suggestions that the upper parts of the copper porphyry target have been tested successfully. A magnetotellurics geophysical survey is planned at Toro South and Tambo to characterise the most prospective zones for follow-up drilling. American Salars (CSE:USLI) acquired the Cauchari Ines 01 lithium brine project in May 2025. The project covers about 1235 hectares over part of the 2550km2 Cauchari Salt Lake basin – a proven producing salar – and is known to contain lithium concentrations, with sampling returning up to 383ppm lithium from a depth of 30cm below the salt crust. It is located about 13km from Rio Tinto's Rincon salar – an approved US$2.5 billion development that will eventually export 60,000tpa of lithium carbonate – and about 80km from the town of San Antonio de Los Cobres with access provided by existing mining tracks and roads. There is also immediate proximity to railroads, electricity and gas pipelines. Cauchari Ines 01 sits within a known geological district with significant lithium and potassium sampling and is near the San Antonio de los Cobres and Pocitos industrial centre. Mineralisation in the Cauchari Salar include borates, sulphates, carbonates and brines rich in lithium, potassium, boron and rare earths. Significant concentrations of lithium were determined in brines from the Cauchari Salt Lake area at the northern end of the company's claim boundary.
News.com.au
16 hours ago
- News.com.au
Australian cattle industry reacts to US beef imports relaxation
Australian beef leaders believe that the future of our $75 billion industry depends on the federal government's decision to relax import laws on US beef being a correct choice. Cattle Australia has called for an independent review into the bombshell decision, announced on Thursday, saying there was 'simply too much at stake' for the nation's biosecurity. Industry figures were 'unsurprised' at the call and don't expect much demand for American beef, with one likening it to 'selling ice to the Eskimos'. The decision came after a '10-year process' and was not directly linked to ongoing tariff negotiations with the US, despite Donald Trump criticising the beef trade imbalance between the two nations, the government said. US beef has been allowed into Australia since 2019 but now cattle born in Canada and Mexico will also be available for import after a biosecurity assessment. Cattle Australia chief Will Evans told ABC radio on Thursday the body had to trust the government's process, stressing bureaucrats 'made the assessment themselves'. 'When you have a $75 billion industry relying on them not making this mistake, I am sure they have been cautious in their decision-making,' he said. But Mr Evans in a statement also said it was 'a little disappointing' the government did not 'provide industry with the full details' before making the announcement. Later on Thursday afternoon, Cattle Australia called for an independent scientific panel to review the government's decision. 'While we have been given assurances … we believe an independent scientific assessment is a sensible and prudent way forward. This must occur before imports commence,' he said. 'There is simply too much at stake when it comes to Australia's world-leading biosecurity status not to get a second opinion. 'Given the Minister's confidence she should have no issue appointing an independent panel to take the highest level of precaution in protecting the Australian beef industry.' Mr Evans earlier said Australia's beef industry was self-sufficient and any imports of US beef were 'unlikely to have any effect on the market', stressing that the US 'cannot currently meet its own needs, with Australia exporting almost 400,000 tonnes of beef to the US in 2024'. In fact, US beef prices have been hitting record levels domestically with a nine per cent growth since January alone. Ground beef is retailing at about US$9 for one pound (450g). Despite the Australian government's protestations otherwise, the Trump administration has heralded the move as a 'major trade breakthrough' gained through the President's tariff agenda. In a statement titled 'Make Agriculture Great Again Trade Wins: President Trump Secures Greater Ag Market Access to Australia for American Beef', US Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins congratulated Mr Trump. 'This is yet another example of the kind of market access the president negotiates to bring America into a new golden age of prosperity, with American agriculture leading the way,' she said. James Jackson, a beef and cattle farmer and ex-president of NSW Farmers, told he 'can't think of a reason' why Australian businesses would import more expensive US beef. 'There may be sort of bespoke restaurants, you know, guaranteed American (beef) … Texan steak or something like that,' he said. 'People may do it, but I seriously doubt it. 'The main reason there wasn't beef coming into Australia was that the economics of it weren't there, and the Americans didn't tidy up their traceability enough.' Previously, concerns over mad cow disease prevented the import of beef products from cows born in Canada and Mexico – which were regularly brought into US supply chains. The US now says it can trace all cattle to the farm and through the supply chain, after its farmers had long resisted more stringent regulations. Mr Jackson said the timing of the announcement was a 'bit suspicious' when Prime Minister Anthony Albanese was hoping to negotiate on aluminium tariffs with the US, but did not believe there would have been any compromise on biosecurity. Tammi Jonas from the Australian Food Sovereignty Alliance also said the timeline made it appear the government was 'kowtowing to Trump' but added she did not foresee much impact. 'I suspect that it's more about filling seasonal gaps,' she said. 'So if we have massive drought here you'll see an increase in imports from the US, I would imagine. 'But the only ones who stand to benefit from this, of course, are the major processors, the multinationals.' Agriculture Minister Julie Collins told reporters in Canberra on Thursday the decision was 'the culmination of what has been a 10-year process'. 'The US has been able to bring beef into Australia since 2019. In 2020 they asked (for) expanded access. 'This process now is at conclusion and has taken around five years to conclude, purely based on science and a rigorous assessment by my department.' She said the risk assessment was conducted by experts and 'Australia's biosecurity system is world renowned for a reason'. Mr Trump was also US President in 2020, near the end of his first term after winning the 2016 election. Nationals Leader David Littleproud said on Thursday afternoon he was 'gobsmacked' at the move and suggested there was a 'real risk' to health and biosecurity. 'It's a huge call from our Federal Government to come out with something like this,' he said. 'And I guess it exposes us, I think it exposes us immensely. It's of immense concern. 'I don't know how what's changed apart from probably some political pressure from the US?' Tim Ryan, chief of the Australian Meat Industry Council, said the move was 'not necessarily a surprise' and the council had been engaged in the process for several years. 'We raised previous concerns with what was on the table. The assurances we gain from the government as part of this decision have met those concerns that we previously raised,' he said. But Mr Ryan said he the commercial drivers of US beef arriving in Australia were 'pretty limited'. 'We're not expecting really any beef to arrive in Australia from the United States,' he said. 'At the end of the day, Australia produces the best beef in the world. We're an efficient producer of product like that. It's a bit like selling ice to the eskimos, but that said, we still need to follow the rules of trade. 'We rely on reciprocal treatment when we send our products all around the world, us accepting the United States' beef along the same terms is really a win for rules.'
SBS Australia
16 hours ago
- SBS Australia
US hails move to drop 'absurd' beef ban, as Labor says 'nothing suspicious'
The United States has hailed Australia's decision to drop a partial ban on beef imports as a "major trade breakthrough" for Donald Trump and his administration, as the federal government faces questions over whether the move was made to appease the president. The Opposition has also raised biosecurity concerns over Thursday's announcement, with the federal government insisting the decision followed a decade-long science-based review. Many Australian cattle producers will have been left blindsided by the decision, an industry group says, but the level of American product arriving in Australia is expected to be very low. "American farmers and ranchers produce the safest, healthiest beef in the world. It's absurd that non-scientific trade barriers prevented our beef from being sold to consumers in Australia for the last 20 years," US agriculture secretary Brooke Rollins said in a statement. "Gone are the days of putting American farmers on the sidelines. This is yet another example of the kind of market access the president negotiates to bring America into a new golden age of prosperity, with American agriculture leading the way." Agriculture Minister Julie Collins says Australia would "never compromise" on biosecurity. Source: AAP / Mick Tsikas The US has been able to send beef to Australia since 2019, but any beef raised in Canada or Mexico before being slaughtered and processed in the US was previously barred due to biosecurity concerns. One concern was that Mexico's livestock tracking system could inadvertently lead producers to import beef from parts of the continent where there were disease outbreaks. But the latest announcement will lift the ban on beef sourced from Canada or Mexico after the US introduced more robust movement controls in late 2024 and early 2025, allowing for improved identification and tracing throughout the supply chain. The change is widely viewed as a bargaining chip Australia could use while attempting to push for tariff exemptions from the US. 'Nothing suspicious' about beef ban lift "It looks as though it's (biosecurity) been traded away to appease Donald Trump," Littleproud told ABC's Radio National on Thursday. He said the government has been "flat-footed" in negotiations and was now risking biosecurity to play "catch-up". Trade Minister Don Farrell said the timing had nothing to do with US calls, saying: "There's nothing suspicious about this". "If we want to export our beef overseas, then we have to accept that other countries will want to import their beef into Australia," he told Sky News. The Opposition has also raised biosecurity concerns, with frontbencher James Paterson calling on Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to "stand up ... and explain" to Australia's beef farmers that the government hasn't "watered down" biosecurity. "The prime minister himself has said [in April] that we couldn't relax the restrictions on the importation of US beef because of serious biosecurity concerns," Paterson said. "So if the government has found some way of dealing with that issue, protecting our domestic agricultural industry from the introduction of foreign diseases and pests, then they should say so." Nationals leader David Littleproud has demanded further information about the decision, accusing the government of using the beef industry to play "catch up" in negotiations with US President Donald Trump. Source: AAP Agriculture Minister Julie Collins said it was something Australia would "never compromise" on. "The US beef imports review has undergone a rigorous science and risk-based assessment over the past decade," Collins said. "The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry is satisfied the strengthened control measures put in place by the US effectively manage biosecurity risks." Australian producers may feel 'blindsided', but industry figures not rattled Cattle Australia CEO Will Evans believed the move would not have been made unless the government had the utmost confidence in the science, but said some would still be unhappy with its decision. "There's going to be a lot of people today who feel blindsided by this, there's going to be a lot of people who are going to feel really frustrated and threatened by this," he told ABC radio. "We need to talk to them. "The US is an incredibly important trading partner — we need to maintain access and we need to maintain relationships with them." Evans said the industry had "put faith" in the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry's expertise, with the deal largely favouring Australian exporters. "They've made this assessment themselves. They've said: 'look, we've looked at this. We've looked at the best science. This is a decision we feel comfortable with'," he said. Some have raised worries US beef could impact Australia's domestic market, but industry representatives remain relatively unperturbed. "It's a bit like selling ice to Eskimos," Australian Meat Industry Council CEO Tim Ryan told the ABC. Evans said the domestic beef industry is self-sufficient and any imports of US beef are "unlikely to have any effect on the market here". The US beef industry can't supply domestic demand, he said. The US remains one of the main export markets for Australian beef. — With additional reporting by the Australian Associated Press.
