Latest Commodity News

Greenland Mines has completed the acquisition of the Sarfartoq rare earth project from Neo Performance Materials for $35 million. The project, located in Greenland, is considered one of the island's most advanced rare earth developments. An independent initial assessment showed strong economic potential, with a pre-tax net present value of approximately $2.05 billion and an internal rate of return of 118.6%. The assessment is based on the ST1 deposit, which covers less than 1% of the 191-square-kilometer license area, leaving significant untapped potential.

The Sarfartoq project is enriched in neodymium and praseodymium, key materials for manufacturing high-strength permanent magnets used in various technologies. The project has a historic NI 43-101 resource estimate and a preliminary economic assessment, supported by over 15 years of exploration and more than 23,000 meters of drilling. The company plans to move directly into the next development phase, including infill drilling, metallurgical testing, mine engineering, and environmental studies, aiming to advance toward a pre-feasibility study.

According to the company's president, the NdPr oxide planned for production from the ST1 deposit alone would represent about one-third of all NdPr oxide refined outside China at 2025 consumption levels, for each of the project's nine scheduled operating years. The technical team is already on site to continue resource growth development, highlighting the project's strategic importance in the rare earth supply chain.

The global financial system is shifting from a dollar-centered structure to a multipolar one, with gold being reintroduced into central bank reserves and financial systems. This transition is seen as a major trend that could reshape the global economy.

Commodities are entering what some analysts call a generational boom market after a long bear market. Shortages are emerging across various metals, driven by geopolitical competition and currency debasement, creating a perfect storm for commodity prices.

Silver is highlighted as a particularly attractive investment due to its dual role in industrial and monetary demand. Recent technical patterns suggest silver could rise significantly, with price targets ranging from $50 to $500 in the coming years, potentially outperforming gold in the next rally.

The U.S. Forest Service has signed off on the final mine plan for a major mining project in southern Arizona, clearing the way for operations on federal land. The decision follows a favorable environmental review and establishes the framework for building infrastructure such as access roads, a tailings storage facility, and water discharge points on public land.

The project, known as Hermosa, hosts large deposits of zinc, manganese, and copper, which could support a 70-year operation and yield five federally designated critical minerals. State permits had already been granted, allowing construction on private land to reach about halfway. Underground zinc mining is expected to start in late 2027, with the first zinc product following in the first half of 2028.

The approval is significant as the first mining project to complete the federal FAST-41 permitting process, which aims to speed up infrastructure projects critical to U.S. interests. Company and government officials praised the milestone for its potential to strengthen national security by reducing dependence on imported critical minerals. Initial exploration and construction activities on federal land are scheduled to begin in the coming weeks.

U.S. uranium production has increased sharply, but the country still relies on imports for the vast majority of its reactor fuel. Output reached 2.1 million pounds in 2025, the highest level since 2017, and continued to rise in the first half of 2026 to 2.13 million pounds. Despite this growth, U.S. nuclear operators purchased 46.9 million pounds of uranium in 2025, more than 22 times domestic production. Only 7% of deliveries came from U.S. sources, while Canada, Kazakhstan, and Australia supplied 75% combined.

The higher output is backed by the most extensive drilling and spending in over a decade. Exploration drilling rose two-thirds to 1.02 million feet in 2025, and total spending on land, drilling, production, and reclamation increased 47% to $234.7 million, the highest since 2014. Six uranium facilities were operating in the second quarter of 2026, including four in Wyoming, one in Texas, and one in Utah. Additional plants are planned, but current capacity is far from meeting domestic needs.

A significant gap exists between projected reactor requirements and contracted supplies. U.S. utilities may need as much as 360 million pounds of uranium through 2035. Existing contracts only secure up to 174 million pounds, leaving 186 million pounds without coverage. Utilities hold 118 million pounds of commercial inventories, enough for three years of reactor loading at the current pace, which gives them flexibility to defer contracting. Globally, primary mine production also fell short of reactor requirements last year, with inventories and secondary sources bridging the difference.

Investor enthusiasm for uranium has cooled after a strong rally. Uranium exchange-traded funds and shares of major producers like Cameco, Uranium Energy, NexGen Energy, and Denison Mines fell significantly from their January 2026 peaks, despite an August rebound. Most uranium deliveries are based on long-term contracts averaging $55.91 per pound, while spot prices averaged $76.01, meaning higher spot prices take time to affect earnings. The uncovered U.S. requirements highlight the urgent need for utilities to sign new contracts and for miners to secure financing for future projects.

Eldorado Gold is studying a 43% expansion of its McIlvenna Bay processing plant in Saskatchewan and considering a new silver-lead circuit as the mine ramps up towards commercial production. The underground mine has already produced copper concentrate and zinc and pyrite concentrates, with over 400,000 tonnes of material ready for processing. The project is expected to reach commercial production in the third quarter, with total capital estimated at C$1.32 billion.

McIlvenna Bay, located about 65 kilometres west of Flin Flon, Manitoba, adds commercial-scale copper and zinc production, along with gold and silver by-products, to the province's mining industry. The mine is expected to produce 5-10 million pounds of copper, 3,000-6,000 tonnes of zinc, 5,000-10,000 ounces of gold, and 100,000-200,000 ounces of silver this year. Over its projected 18-year mine life, average annual production is estimated at 41 million pounds of copper, 54 million pounds of zinc, 20,000 ounces of gold, and 444,000 ounces of silver, based on a March 2025 feasibility study.

The mine is powered by a new 85-kilometre transmission line and employs about 380 people, with roughly 34% of the workforce being Indigenous. Eldorado is carrying out 14,000 metres of drilling to explore future mining opportunities, including at the Tesla zone and Bigstone deposit. The Canadian government has committed significant funding for infrastructure and clean technologies, and the project is seen as a key addition to Canada's critical mineral supply and Eldorado's copper growth alongside its Skouries project in Greece.

Sibanye-Stillwater faces a strike at its Stillwater East mine and Columbus metallurgical complex in Montana starting Thursday morning. The strike follows more than four months of contract negotiations that failed to produce an agreement. About 750 employees at the mine and the company's recycling and smelting facilities could be affected.

The United Steelworkers union gave notice of the strike. Sibanye-Stillwater said it has been engaging with the union for over four months and remains committed to reaching a deal that recognizes employees' interests while enabling operational changes needed for long-term sustainability. However, the union accused the company of refusing to bargain in good faith and unlawfully declaring an impasse.

During the six months ended June 30, 2026, the Stillwater mine complex produced 137,930 ounces, with the East mine contributing 76,334 ounces, about 55% of the total, or roughly 446 ounces per day. The production impact from the strike will depend on its duration, operating arrangements, and the time required to restart operations.

Despite concerns about copper scarcity, the real issue is that available metal is not located where it is needed. Regional trade flows are reshaping the global market, leaving China short of copper while London Metal Exchange stockpiles decrease. There is no overall shortage, but the perception of tightness exists in specific regions.

The metals market is moving away from a globalized system where supplies flowed freely to demand centers. Instead, regional differences are becoming more significant, potentially leading to separate pricing dynamics across the London Metal Exchange, Shanghai Futures Exchange, and Chicago Mercantile Exchange. This creates new arbitrage opportunities between distinct regional markets.

We are living in a metal age, with demand growing due to decarbonization and technological advancements that require more metals. This demand growth is driving investment, but Western economies face a dilemma: they have outsourced most of the metals supply chain to China and are not yet independent of Chinese supply. Rebuilding domestic capacity is challenging because it requires huge infrastructure and energy investments, such as constructing a smelter that would consume as much power as a city like Boston.

Oil prices are climbing due to renewed tensions in the Middle East and falling U.S. crude inventories. Earlier this year, these inventories helped cushion the market when hostilities began, but now the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) is being drawn down significantly, and its level is approaching a critical threshold.

The United States has released millions of barrels from the SPR as part of coordinated efforts by the OECD and China, but previous releases were never fully replenished. The upcoming release of 39 million barrels would bring the SPR down to about 243 million barrels, which is below the operational minimum of 250 to 300 million barrels. This is dangerous because the reserve is stored in salt caverns that require a certain amount of oil to function efficiently.

The physical infrastructure of the SPR could be at risk if oil levels fall too low, making it harder to pump oil out during future crises. Experts warn that a shrunken reserve undermines its ability to calm markets, potentially leading to higher price volatility. China's own stockpiles, another large cushion, have also been reduced.

Plans to refill the reserve with Venezuelan crude face obstacles, as the heavy Venezuelan oil is incompatible with the light crude the SPR is designed to store. Even indirect measures may take years to complete. In the meantime, oil prices are expected to remain elevated if tensions in the Persian Gulf continue.

A revised feasibility study for the Sisson tungsten-molybdenum project in New Brunswick has dramatically improved its projected financial returns. The after-tax net present value is now estimated at $6.9 billion against an initial capital cost of $1.53 billion, yielding a 50% internal rate of return and a payback period of 1.6 years. The previous study from 2013 estimated only $418 million in after-tax value on $579 million in initial capital.

The project is designed as a 27-year open-pit mine processing 30,000 tonnes per day. It would produce on average 598,000 metric tonne units of tungsten trioxide annually, along with 4.2 million pounds of molybdenum. In the first five years, higher-grade ore would lift tungsten output to 767,000 mtu per year. This would make Sisson one of the largest tungsten producers outside China, potentially supplying about a quarter of current non-Chinese mine production. Canada currently has no tungsten mine output.

The improved economics are largely due to higher tungsten prices, partly driven by China's export controls implemented in early 2025, as well as a weaker Canadian dollar. However, the project now has lower capital costs for a simpler operation that will sell tungsten concentrate directly rather than processing it into ammonium paratungstate. The study forecasts lower long-term tungsten prices than the current spot market. The project still needs to secure financing and a final investment decision, with construction possibly starting in 2027 and production in 2030.

AbraSilver Resource announced new drilling results from the Cerro Viejo target at its Diablillos silver-gold project in Argentina. The results include long intervals of shallow mineralization, with one hole intersecting 27 metres grading 4.6 grams per tonne silver and 0.58 grams per tonne gold from 23 metres depth, and another returning 32 metres at 2.8 grams per tonne silver and 0.29 grams per tonne gold from just 9 metres.

The company's chief geologist highlighted the continuity of shallow gold mineralization, which begins almost at the surface in several holes. This opens the potential for resource growth beyond the definitive feasibility study.

Diablillos is one of Argentina's largest undeveloped precious-metals projects, located about 160 km south of Salta. AbraSilver has completed 12,000 metres of drilling in its Phase VI program, with two rigs active and a third mobilized soon. Drilling will continue along known mineralization trends, and the company also acquired the nearby Condoryacu property with promising results.

The project is projected to have an after-tax net present value of $4.15 billion, a 42% internal rate of return, and a 1.7-year payback period. Shares rose 5.5% following the announcement.