[Tungsten Flash] SMM, July 1: The tungsten market mainly saw weak consolidation today. Trading volume at the mine side contracted, downstream smelters had few orders, and with inventories at high levels, enterprises mostly purchased tungsten concentrates and recycled raw materials as needed. Some traders mainly pushed for lower prices. The negotiation center for spot orders of 55% tungsten concentrates was around 440,000-460,000 yuan per standard tonne. SMM 65% tungsten concentrates closed at 491,000 yuan per standard tonne today, down 10,000 yuan per standard tonne from yesterday, but still up 56,500 yuan per standard tonne from early June. Going forward, key focus will be on mine tender transactions and the new round of long-term contract information.

CopperTech Metals has postponed its planned US initial public offering (IPO), citing increased volatility across the global copper mining equity sector. The company had planned to raise approximately US$423.5 million by offering 23.5 million shares, targeting a valuation of up to US$3.57 billion. According to the company, the decision was made after carefully assessing current market conditions and heightened volatility in copper-related equities. Uncertainty surrounding the upcoming US Section 232 copper investigation, shifting supply expectations and broader capital market volatility have weighed on investor sentiment. CopperTech, established by Vedanta Resources, owns and operates Konkola Copper Mines (KCM) in Zambia.

[SMM Rare Earth Flash News] The Office of Strategic Capital (OSC) of the US Department of Defense provided a conditional loan commitment of $500 million to rare earth refiner Phoenix Tailings. The loan, together with private capital, totals approximately $1 billion and will be used to build a rare earth midstream processing facility named "Freedom Facility," which will process various raw materials from mines, recyclers, etc., to produce light and heavy rare earth metals needed for US industrial and defense systems. Phoenix Tailings currently operates two metallization facilities in Burlington, Massachusetts and Exeter, New Hampshire. The new facility is targeted for initial operations in 2028.

Zimbabwe's Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube revealed during the World Economic Forum in Dalian that the country is actively considering using its abundant mineral resources as collateral through "resource‑linked debt instruments" to finance road and railway construction projects in cooperation with China. This model aims to leverage future revenue from natural resources as loan guarantees to address the huge funding gap for infrastructure development. Ncube said Zimbabwe has held preliminary discussions with China Railway Group regarding such financing arrangements. He told reporters: "We have discussed resource‑linked debt instruments and hope to use them in the future to support infrastructure development, particularly in the road and railway sectors." Under the envisaged plan, Zimbabwe would assess project costs, toll revenue potential, and the return cycle of required resource investments to determine the scale of resource collateral and the repayment path. As Africa's largest lithium producer, Zimbabwe possesses rich mineral resources, but years of economic mismanagement and political instability have left its infrastructure severely lagging. The African Development Bank estimates that the country needs approximately US$34 billion to modernise its transport and logistics network. The proposed resource‑for‑infrastructure plan resembles the model of the US$7 billion Sicomines copper‑cobalt joint venture in the Democratic Republic of Congo with Chinese companies. As early as September 2025, Zimbabwe's President, during a meeting in Beijing with senior executives of China Railway Group, promoted a railway rehabilitation cooperation plan totalling US$533 million. The project is to be implemented by Chuantie International, a subsidiary of China Railway Group with extensive experience in African projects. The scope of work includes repair and reinforcement of existing lines and bridges, modernisation of signal systems, procurement of 17 locomotives and 209 freight wagons, construction of five new stations, and the key trunk line connecting Beitbridge and Harare – a strategic corridor leading directly to South Africa, which is vital to Zimbabwe's foreign trade. Currently, the project's financing method and formal signing date are still under final negotiation. Zimbabwe's railway network was built during the colonial era and carried up to 12 million tonnes of freight annually in the 1990s. However, decades of underinvestment, equipment obsolescence, and foreign exchange shortages have caused the railway infrastructure to deteriorate continuously. Current annual freight volume has fallen to less than 3 million tonnes – only 15% of its historical peak. Many lines are overgrown with weeds, and a large number of locomotives and rolling stock have been taken out of service, directly weakening the capacity to transport bulk commodities such as lithium, chrome ore, and coal to the ports of Mozambique and South Africa. Consequently, Chinese mining enterprises operating in Zimbabwe – including Tsingshan Holding Group, Sinosteel Corporation, and Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt – all face export bottlenecks for their products. The decline of the railway system has forced a large volume of freight onto roads, leading to a surge in heavy trucks, which in turn exacerbates road congestion, traffic accidents, and pavement damage, forming a vicious cycle. In response, the National Railways of Zimbabwe has incorporated this railway rehabilitation into a broader modernisation framework and has engaged in cooperation with 11 private enterprises. Among them, South Africa's Grindrod, through its subsidiary Beitbridge‑Bulawayo Railway Company, has already deployed three locomotives and 150 freight wagons to alleviate current transport pressures. At the same time, Zimbabwe is exploring collaboration with the University of Zimbabwe to leverage the university's innovation centre for localised railway technology R&D and talent training, building capacity for long‑term operations. Analysts point out that if this railway rehabilitation is successfully implemented, it will not only fully restore Zimbabwe's deteriorated railway network, but also provide critical logistics support for the country's US$12 billion mining target, while further deepening the strategic presence of Chinese enterprises in Zimbabwe's mining and infrastructure sectors. According to market dynamics, in recent years – and especially since the beginning of this year – lithium ore shipments from Zimbabwe have been persistently delayed at ports, with insufficient inland transport capacity being one of the main bottlenecks hindering smooth cargo arrivals. As the relevant logistics system upgrades are put into effect, this situation is expected to be significantly alleviated, and the transport efficiency of lithium materials will be notably improved, thereby injecting solid momentum into the stabilisation of global lithium supply. Sources: Mining.com , Azure Track Rail, and SMM

In the short term, high raw material prices provide solid cost support for aluminum fluoride, but bearish constraints from weak downstream fluorine chemicals and the decline in long-term hydrofluoric acid contracts are also in play. Amid the tug-of-war, aluminum fluoride prices in July have little room for significant rise or fall, and the market will continue to consolidate at highs within a range.

As the core production area for lepidolite in China, Yichun in Jiangxi Province has drawn significant industry attention for its special compliance rectification of lithium mines. Amid an uncertain outlook, two other publicly listed firms decided to "partner up" and consolidate their resources. On the evening of June 22, Canmax and Yongxing Materials simultaneously disclosed that Canmax's holding subsidiary, Yichun Shengyuan Lithium Co., Ltd. ("Shengyuan Lithium"), signed an Equity Increase and Cooperation Agreement with Yongxing Materials' holding subsidiary, Yifeng County Huaqiao Yongtuo Mining Co., Ltd. ("Huaqiao Yongtuo"), and its wholly-owned subsidiary, Yifeng County Huaqiao Mining Co., Ltd. ("Huaqiao Mining"). Under the agreement, Shengyuan Lithium will use the porcelain clay (lithium-bearing) ore from the Jinzifeng-Zuojiali mining area in Fengxin County and Yifeng County, Jiangxi Province ("Jinzifeng Mine"), which it holds, to increase its capital in Huaqiao Mining. According to the announcement, Shengyuan Lithium will contribute the Jinzifeng Mine, valued at 2.692 billion yuan, to Huaqiao Mining, subscribing to 200 million yuan of newly added registered capital in exchange for a 50% equity stake in Huaqiao Mining upon completion. The 200 million yuan will be recorded as Huaqiao Mining's registered capital, and the remaining 2.492 billion yuan will be recorded as its capital reserve. Of this, the registered capital and capital reserve contributed by Shengyuan Lithium will be exclusively owned by Shengyuan Lithium, while all shareholder equity of Huaqiao Mining existing prior to Shengyuan Lithium fulfilling its capital contribution obligations will be exclusively owned by Huaqiao Yongtuo. After the capital increase, Huaqiao Mining's registered capital will grow from 200 million yuan to 400 million yuan, with Huaqiao Yongtuo and Shengyuan Lithium each holding a 50% stake. Huaqiao Mining will simultaneously hold the mining permits for both the Huashan Mine and the Jinzifeng Mine. Huaqiao Mining will then apply to the relevant authorities to merge the mining rights for the Jinzifeng Mine and Huashan Mine into a new single mining right. Using this new right as the vehicle, it will apply for a safety production permit and other required procedures for production and construction at an annual mining capacity of 18 million mt, with Huaqiao Mining subsequently taking unified charge of all ore extraction. Regarding ore extraction, the announcement specifies that it will be organized uniformly by Huaqiao Mining. In principle, mined ore from within the original Jinzifeng Mine boundary will be sold to Shengyuan Lithium or its designated third party, while ore from within the original Huashan Mine boundary will be sold to Huaqiao Yongtuo or its designated third party. Regarding the management of the future consolidated mines, the announcement states that Huaqiao Mining will be managed and operated through separate divisions for Huashan Mine and Jinzifeng Mine. Shareholders, the board of directors, and management shall respect historical practices and adopt lawful and compliant management, dividend distribution, and sales models to minimize the impact of differing ore resource endowments between Jinzifeng Mine and Huashan Mine on the investment returns of both shareholders and subsequent beneficiation revenues. On the mining right consolidation, both publicly listed firms note that Huashan Mine and Jinzifeng Mine are adjacent. Under relevant laws and regulations, a safe production setback distance must be established between adjacent mines during mining operations. Both parties believe the consolidation aligns with the national policy direction of intensive development of strategic mineral resources. On one hand, integrating the two adjacent mining areas of Jinzifeng Mine and Huashan Mine will allow coordinated development planning and safety production control, optimize the overall mining layout, strengthen the mine safety management system, and ensure long-term compliant and stable operations. On the other hand, the mine consolidation is expected to fully release the mineral resource potential within the mining area, increase total recoverable resources and the comprehensive utilization rate of mineral resources, thereby achieving scientific, standardized, and efficient resource development. It is worth noting, however, that the effectiveness of the agreement between Yongxing Materials and Canmax remains subject to two conditions. First, the transaction must be approved by the competent authorities of all parties involved. Second, the primary mineral types of both Jinzifeng Mine and Huashan Mine must be changed to "lithium ore." As the "Asian Lithium Capital," Yichun saw many mines in earlier years extract lepidolite under porcelain clay mining certificates, leading to long-standing issues such as certificate-mineral mismatches, extensive mining, ecological pollution, underpayment of taxes and fees, and non-compliant approval levels. In July 2025, the new Mineral Resources Law designated lithium as an independent strategic mineral at the national level, setting a lithium ore recognition threshold of 0.4% Li₂O, elevating lithium mine approval authority, and significantly increasing resource taxes. In July 2025, the Yichun Natural Resources Bureau issued a notice identifying that eight lithium-related mining rights, including Jianxiawo, had problems such as circumventing higher-level approval authority and handling procedures beyond their mandate. It required the preparation of mineral type change reserve verification reports to be completed by the end of September that year. The newly disclosed mining rights evaluation reports from Canmax and Yongxing Materials indicate that work such as reserve verification and development plan formulation for the Jinzifeng Mine and Huashan Mine has been completed, an application to change the main mineral type has been submitted, and the Ministry of Natural Resources accepted it on March 12, 2026. The main mineral type is expected to be changed to lithium ore. In its 2025 annual report, Yongxing Materials also noted that Huaqiao Mining needs to change the mining types on its mining license, and therefore must pay the mining rights transfer proceeds for the lithium ore resources that have historically been exploited at the Huashan Mine but not yet compensated through paid disposal. As of the end of 2025, Huaqiao Mining had accrued 144 million yuan in mining rights transfer proceeds payable. However, both evaluation reports emphasize that "this evaluation is based on the proposed change of the main mineral type to lithium ore, and the final outcome is subject to approval by the Ministry of Natural Resources and the issuance of a new mining permit." The reports also caution, "If the change is not approved, the evaluation results will become invalid."