The latest Investing Matters Podcast episode featuring Jeremy Skillington, CEO of Poolbeg Pharma has just been released. Listen here.
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Not much in the RNS. It seems no progress with the MDA otherwise I'm sure that would have been announced in there?
Well yeah :) anyways looks like we only need to wait till 7am tomorrow...So heres hoping
Crumbs: "news of significance."
very much agree, news of significance either positive or (hopefully not) negative
Seems the Webinar is more than just a presentation and Q&A as it's being presented as a Corporate Update which to me means news of significance.
Not really in as much as those resources are not part of Mkangos portfolio... Chinas messed up again they are by-products of Zinc mining and can be sourced easily outside of China... China would not be able to source other resources it would need for semi conductors though...
It does of course play into the whole time to look outside of China for reliable resources though which is good... seeing as Rare Earths are so dominated at the moment by China... all gonna change that now though
Sounds interesting..
“ it is invoking the Defense Production Act to boost the domestic mining and processing capacity of two rare earth metals, gallium and germanium, critical for high-tech chip-making for the US defense industry. ”
I wonder if this affects negotiations..
https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/dod-invokes-defense-production-act-boost-metals-mining-after-china-export-controls
All the more reason to get a deal signed off ASAP. And hope the deal is honoured, years into the future.
But, as the saying goes, you can only control what you can control. The price (and often process) of doing business in Africa is usually somewhat different to the price of doing business in north America, for example. Believe it or not.
That is what the BOD are paid to manage and to ultimately get it done.
If it was always easy and routine then why would they need to draw a salary much in excess of minimum wage? Their experience, expertise, local knowledge and high level network - culminating in delivering the goods for us - is why their remuneration is somewhat higher.
Anyway, this has probably been covered enough now. Let's see what happens. GLA.
It is worth remembering Malawi is not only about Songwe, but There also are other rare earth deposits plus there is a Malawian on FB who seems clued up on the resources Mkango sits on and he reckons the Rutile deposit could well be the biggest in Malawi with up to 2 billion tonnes of that resource...
It would be a minimum expectation that they do already have deals/partnerships lined up for if/when this finally gets off the ground. Something that I would expect to have been informally concluded months ago in fact.
Is the government being greedy? No doubt. Is that which they seek 'fair'? Possibly not. Does it matter one jot? Of course not. TIA. Get it done, BOD. IMO, it would already have been concluded if we had accepted this reality. The BOD seem to have pushed back hard and tried their best to negotiate a better deal for the company. That is understandable. Might work in the west. Might have worked in Malawi 20 years ago, although that I do not know. Not an African nation I have any familiarity with.
Ultimately, if they only have partners/potential buyers at their current offer position and the government cannot be moved to compromise, then it is a stalemate.
And if it is this scenario, they need to confirm it at the upcoming meet, along with what they are going to do about it.
Or we can carry on waiting in the hope of a change of heart or a change of government - and one that is friendly to us, as well.
I personally do not fancy that equation one bit.
Surely for Mkango it is about securing the MDA that works for the potential partner/owner financier of that project as well we ain't paying for that mine with our Mcap and bank account .....
You would think by this time they have such a deal/s partners lined up.... So it is down if the MDA is acceptable enough to get those vital deal/s over the line to make the whole project actually happen...It is all about the money one side is being a bit too greedy for the other but yeah time is on Malawi's side not ours
I agree the recycling business has plenty of merits, but unless they can get the next fund raise away at a decent premium to the price today for that line (seems unlikely in this lending climate IMO), then we are going to need to see the BOD secure a deal with the government for what a lot of the current holders are here for in the first place - the MDA.
They have spent plenty of money progressing it to where it currently is. I appreciate that. It was a key feature and justification for the last raise. Therefore, failure is not an option and will not be acceptable.
It seems increasingly likely that they are going to have to bend to the will of the Malawi government, or at least hopefully be able to negotiate eg an 8% deal. I'm sorry, but if anyone thinks that we are going to win this battle if we hold firm...given the geopolitical stuff in play, then you are almost certainly wrong. I pretty much said this a few months ago and here we still are.
I just hope the BOD know this. They still retain my faith. For now. It is starting to falter though, I will admit. Tick tock!
Speaking from experience, the world becomes an awful lot easier to understand when you start to question not what you're being told but why you're being told it now ;)
Plenty of Africans would like a piece of MKA too ;)
The thing is Malawi has put that out into the open now so... it is a question that can now be asked of our BOD in the coming webinar :)
unless news trumps it... the fact is we don't know how progressed the MDA is ... can drop any day... It's certainly not off the table as it were
The recycling ought to be the most exciting as that will bring in profits years before any mine and could really take off fast if those US plants are announced but the market wants that MDA otherwise we are stuck with this derisory SP/Mcap and left wondering when is the next raise and at what lower than SP price
That may or may not be true but yes, the truth is usually in the middle somewhere - I don't think much of either Malawi's claim to 10%, assuming that means a royalty rather than 10% ownership with subsequent costs, or MKA's 3% offer unless it's a royalty only.
Someone needs to bag heads together clearly but delays like these often bring phenomenal opportunities - dry powder at the ready.
It will land in the middle. A year ago it was 5% sought. Just a waiting game. In the meantime more excited about magnets to be honest.
It seems Malawai is insisting on a Globe Metals-type MDA and Mkango is trying to bargain for something better.... but obviously getting nowhere with that...
I suppose it is down to whether can Mkango attract funding on that kind of deal or not but doesn't look like the Malawi Gov is budging
'A mineral extraction company in Phalombe district, Mkango Resources, is proposing to give Malawi 3% of the money realized from the extraction and sale of rare earth in Phalombe district.
The disclosure was made by the department of economic planning after receiving a query by the Public Accounts Committee on why mining activities are taking too long to take shape.
Principal Secretary in the ministry of Finance Patrick Zimpita disclosed that negotiations are taking too long because Mkango Mining Resources wants to get away with so many things, by paying a low royalty as well as tax exemptions.
Zimpita pointed out that government is not ready to have another Kayelekera hence pushing for a 10% royalty, rather than 3% adding that the government wants Mkango Mining Resources to pay certain dividends and taxes as required by law.'
https://www.facebook.com/search/posts/?q=malawi%20mining
Someone has been soaking up sells over the last few weeks. Usually a hint at something coming. Hopefully Monday in RNS
There is a hint of sarcasm in my great :)
However, they are now going to have to update investors on just what is happening with regards to the MDA ... so that is something plus other progress news
What is so great? feels completely desperate to me
That is great... There is only going to be one main question though lol... unless that is answered in the RNS before hand :)
More details to follow on Monday with an official company RNS https://twitter.com/Share_Talk/status/1677298692599042049?s=20
Geopolitics can be fluid. Maybe they did once have a very good relationship with the Malawi government, but global events and behind-the-scenes international 'negotiations' have altered this. Or maybe it is just the government dragging things out for a better deal? Hopefully the latter, but IMO the management need to update us on the current status.
I also agree that the strike price for their options should have been far higher, but like you, obviously hope that it is a sign of confidence that it will - finally and soon - be concluded.
Certainly not encouraged to increase my small holding here at the present time. Also not going to sit tight for an indefinite period either, if the months continue to roll by without completion.
Anyway, let us hope for good news soon. Or at the very least, a clear update. Will not be impressed if we continue to experience radio silence until the next fund raise request, for example.
I have been a loyal LTH in other similar outfits, given extended time and benefit of the doubt to management, adding along the way etc and paid the price. So my willingness to follow a similar path here is extremely limited.
West needs over $25 billion in Rare Earths to match China...
'But out of more than 20 projects outside China that could produce some 20,000 tons of NdPR every year, Goldman believes that "only 2-3 of these projects can get off the ground this decade."
https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/goldman-says-west-needs-over-25-bln-investments-rare-earths-match-china-2023-07-06/
Well we know one project that thanks to the Malawian Gov rug pulling games won't be one of them