We are only roughly 30 or so days away from seeing ECT finally deliver and fully partner on a commercial level with 2 of India's big majors NLC and NMDC. It has been a very very long journey with ups and downs with knock backs and dreams dashed like the ALDP failure and so on. But right here and now in India ECT is at the pointy end of proving the doubters wrong as they forge their 2 game changing techs towards commercialisation. Many had hoped we would finally see Coldry move to CDP but now we have even more with Matmor joining the party and really about to be the crown and star of the show as a game changing tech that will revolutionise the steel industry. Seriously timing could not be more perfect with coking coal prices staging a serious come back and gaining 74% since February's multi year lows. With India in short supply of coking coal needed in steel manufacturing and the price surging how bad do NLC and NMDC want their hands on Matmor that uses lignite in steel making which India has in abundance. With coking coal surging in the past few months gee Matmor must be looking more and more juicy for our Indian partners.
Interestingly comments below from the TEF study suggest that Matmor is capable of delivering significant potential on both a technically and economically scale in comparison to current steel industry benchmarks even while coking coal was at lows. The below quotes from the TEF study suggest that Coldry/Matmor were a winner when coking/thermal coal and iron were at lows but now that coking coal has gone bonkers how keen are our Indian partners to tie these agreements and funding up by October.
"The TEF study concludes that the development and subsequent commercial deployment of the Coldry / Matmor technology for steel making has significant potential to deliver technical and economic performance in excess of current steel industry benchmarks.
This result has been achieved despite the current market price for coking coal, thermal coal, and iron ore being at recent historical and cyclical lows, reducing the relative competitive advantage of using lower cost raw materials.
In continuing to support the project development process and timeline, NLC has the opportunity to drive a relatively low value, low-grade lignite resource up the value chain to a higher value metallurgical application - a significant additional value proposition for NLC's abundant lignite resources.
Similarly, continued engagement and support from NMDC will allow the liberation of stranded iron ore fines and slimes to drive increased value from its mining efforts.
Combined, the outcome of leveraging lower value and stranded resources will deliver a solution that has broader implications for both NLC and NMDC"
With ECT and its partners working a TEF study around lower in particular coking coal prices 1 must wonder how big our Indian partners must feel Matmor is for them. No wonder NLC voted on a change in its constitution to be able to be involved in the production of high purity iron ingots using lignite instead of coking coal as the vote below shows.
Resolution 2: Amendment to Object clause to Memorandum of Association of the Company (including the production of high purity iron ingots using lignite instead of coking coal): For 97.42 %. Against 2.58%.
I believe as September kicks in and we approach October punters will need to get set here as agreements and funding is tied up with our Indian partners. I expect once all agreements and funding are in place ECT will finally break out of its reputation of being 1 of the dogs who have continued to fail. ECT will finally be on the path with funding and contract agreements in place to construct both techs Coldry/CDP and Matmor pilot. The company will finally be able to command respect and i expect the share price and market cap to reflect this. Below is a graph showing the performance of coking coal.
(20min delay)