Is Altona's Monte Muamba asset the gift that keeps on giving?

In September 2024, shareholders learned that critical mineral fluorspar was going to be the added bonus in the Monte Muambe asset that is part of Altona Rare Earth’s (LON:REE) portfolio.

Seven months on and there’s been a further surprise discovery in the project which is becoming the gift that keeps on giving.  This time it is gallium that has been found, and this rare and strategic metal is versatile used in applications including electronics, semiconductors, solar panels and light-emitting diodes.

It's early days but as the company told investors: “This discovery could potentially change the economics of some of the rare earths ore bodies at Monte Muambe by providing an additional valuable byproduct.”

The emphasis on the next field campaign has been altered to accommodate the gallium discovery to see if there’s more at Muambe as chief executive Cédric Simonet explains. “The other exciting thing is that gallium in a carbon type system is something fairly new. We found some grades which are already good, but we could find a much higher grade.”

The board’s focus though remains on the previous surprise that was the critical mineral fluorspar with high grades and 88% fluorspar at surface level.  The questions that are currently being resolved are how can it be separated from rock, can it be produced at metallurgical grade and is there an opportunity to develop a fluorspar mine at Monte Muambe and do so in the ‘short term?’

“The priority for now is really the fluorspar” says Simonet, “because there is a potential opportunity to develop a mining operation and a source of cash in the near future. But while we are doing this work on the fluorspar, we are now going to do these checks on the gallium I mentioned, reviewing the soil sampling data.”

Simonet’s gift is one of methodical multitasking.  In this video interview with Sarah Lowther, he reminds investors the company also has the Susanna copper silver project in Botswana. It’s located on a Kalahari Copper Belt sweet spot where BHP Billiton has already invested AUD $40 mln into a neighbouring project.