I hear you
@larrygerry, though I think it's early days for talk of splitsville. The market is not currently seeing value in either side of the business.
Maybe its just my retail rose glasses on, but incredibly frustrated with the financing mindset in the West, and Australia in particular.
BHP lob a lazy $39B intro bid for Anglo, going after their Dr Copper assets.
They are obviously pivoting into the clean energy transition, as well as seeing the commodity cycle's green shoots.
What a look it would be (not to mention a canny investment) as t
hey and Vale negotiate a $25B settlement for the Mariana tailings disaster, were they to pop a couple of hundred mill QPM's way to transform their aging nickel business via the TECH process.
Mike Henry talking about zero tailings - negative carbon - green nickel would have people sit up and take notice I would think.
But SG has been banging the drum and governments and corporates so far have shied away.
And all the while China and their Indo proxies take a firmer stranglehold on the sector.
Twiggy champions Wyloo and pours stonking amounts into turning the Fortescue behemoth away from carbon icebergs; again, why not shortcut the process with the almost fully engineered TECH process?
K-Sure get cold feet, GM take their foot off the EV accelerator and step back into hybrids FFS, and all the while Chinese BEV makers improve their production processes, battery chem and take a further lead over the US.
Local banks look away from supporting a true transformational business for the equivalent of a few hundred home loans. Breaks my heart.
National Reconstruction Fund fluffs around and is yet to open its wallet after the board was announced in August 2023.
The upcoming budget will be key, in seeing how wide the government sees Australia's place in this transition, and its level of urgency.
Green energy generation via local solar PV production > tick
Green hydrogen to support heavy transportation > tick
Targeted loans announced to battery minerals HPA & graphite proponents recently A4N and RNU, and long duration BESS support in the vanadium space > tick
Common user infrastructure support to reduce setup costs, create economies of scale & crowd in further investment > tick
The set up so far has been promising in giving the local battery metals sector a fighting chance against a skewed supply chain.
IMO it must take a combined government & industry effort led by its big guns to create a transformed Australian nickel industry working together to combat the unlevel global playing field.
Super-refineries using the TECH process?
We'll take all the Indo/Philo ore you can muster.
Next level ESG comparisons and messaging so it is clear to all EV and BESS buyers of the effects of their major purchase choices.
Most all here have seen the possibilities and dipped into their pockets and parted with their hard earned to see a worthy project that truly makes a difference succeed.
Our community leaders need to do the same.
Vision someone, anyone?! Chalmers...Bueller...
Friday evening rant over. Have a great weekend all; be nice to yourself and others
(20min delay)