Thanks Aqua. Many investors have been seduced by the label 'Critical Mineral'. The tag is now attached to every element in the periodic table to flog over-priced risk to the unwary. Click-hungry journalists and twit bloggers poured fuel on the fire.
Lithium went bubblicious; Nickel's market change (Indonesia) went unnoticed - even by individuals as well advised as Dr Andrew Forrest and Gina Reinhart.
Geoscience Australia has a useful definition of Critical Minerals:
A critical mineral is a metallic or non-metallic element that has two characteristics:
* It is essential for the functioning of our modern technologies, economies or national security and
* There is a risk that its supply chains could be disrupted.
Critical minerals are used to manufacture advanced technologies including mobile phones, computers, fibre-optic cables, semi-conductors, banknotes, and defence, aerospace and medical applications. Many are used in low-emission technologies such as electric vehicles, wind turbines, solar panels, and rechargeable batteries. Some are also crucial for common products such as stainless steel and electronics.
Risks to critical mineral supply chains can come about when mineral production or processing is dominated by individual countries or companies that could limit availability. Other risks include market immaturity, political decisions, social unrest, natural disasters, mine accidents, geological scarcity, pandemics, and war.
Y'all know I am keen on Hermosa. Yet it is difficult to see Taylor's Zn-Pb-Ag as fitting that definition: these are base metals, inexpensive and abundant with many suppliers.
Someone will protest that silver is a precious metal essential for solar panels. Sure. But the Ag/Au price ratio is now the weakest it has ever been - few want to hold Ag ingots as a 'store of value'. It is now simply an industrial metal.
We will definitely need batteries, but will the next generation of batteries need Clark's Manganese? S32 had better have done the sums on Plan B, selling the Mn for steel-making, just in case.
S32 says Hermosa Taylor is bottom quartile on cost. Good. It will be a useful, highly profitable mining operation, while not critical.
My view is Cu, Al and REE's Dy Tb are the pinch points in the electrical revolution. I am very open to having my mind changed.
Ash
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