Czechia’s Economic Committee has endorsed legislative amendments to accelerate solar deployment. Key proposals include raising the electricity tax threshold from 50 kW to 100 kW and ending double taxation for co-located battery storage systems. Supported by the Ministry of Industry and Finance, these changes aim to streamline permitting for mid-scale projects. The Czech Solar Association (Solární Asociace) expects the law to be finalized later this year and take effect by 2027, providing a significant boost to commercial and industrial solar investments.

[Lead-Zinc Ore Market Dynamics] Recently, Yunnan Chihong Zn & Ge Co., Ltd. responded to investor questions on an interactive platform, stating that the company is proceeding in an orderly manner with the third-phase exploration and boundary delineation exploration of the Xidong lead-zinc mine. The mining permit application and plan optimization for the Jinxin molybdenum mine are being actively advanced, and the matter has received great attention from leaders at the Ministry of Natural Resources and relevant authorities in Heilongjiang and Inner Mongolia.

[US Lithium Mine Development Boom: From One Mine to Over 100 Planned Projects by 2030] The US lithium industry is standing at the threshold of a historic transformation, about to leap from its current status of having only one producing lithium mine to becoming a significant participant in the global critical battery metals market. Currently, only one lithium mine is operating across the entire US, but this landscape is about to change rapidly. By 2030, at least six new projects are expected to come into production successively, with another 13 projects close behind. This round of expansion is primarily concentrated in the geologically favorable arid regions of the Southwest, but this is merely the beginning of a potential mining boom. According to the latest industry data, enterprises have identified over 100 potential lithium ore extraction areas nationwide. Behind this aggressive expansion is the continued climb in lithium ore demand from EV batteries and renewable energy ESSs—both of which are indispensable key elements of the energy transition. The rapid expansion of lithium mining scale has raised important questions from the outside world about environmental impacts, water resource consumption, and how to strike a balance between domestic mineral security and ecological protection. In this race for self-sufficient supply of "white gold," community residents and environmental protection advocates are closely watching how this industrial transformation will advance and take shape in some of America's most fragile desert ecosystems. Source: https://www.envirolink.org [Lithium Ore Reserves in Eastern US States May Replace Over a Century of Import Demand] U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) scientists announced this discovery, estimating its scale sufficient to replace over three hundred years of lithium import demand. The US currently relies on imports for nearly half of its lithium consumption, a dependency that has long been a concern for energy security analysts. Lithium occupies a central position in the modern economy, serving as a critical material for lithium-ion batteries used in smartphones, laptops, EVs, and aerospace alloys. Against the backdrop of accelerating global demand and intensifying geopolitical pressures, domestic reserves of this scale carry significant strategic importance. This discovery came at a sensitive period in the global mineral landscape. Australia currently supplies nearly half of global lithium production, while China not only has considerable production but also dominates global refining and consumption. Thirty years ago, the US was the world's largest lithium producer, but that position was long since relinquished. Whether this discovery can help the US return to that position remains to be seen, but the scale of data cited is sufficient to warrant serious attention. The scale of this discovery is most vivid in numbers. According to USGS estimates, the reserves are sufficient to support the construction of 1.6 million grid-scale batteries, and officials stated they could power 130 million EVs or support 180 billion laptops running cumulatively for a thousand years. USGS also estimates that the reserves could support the production of 500 billion mobile phones, equivalent to approximately 60 devices for every person currently on Earth. Perhaps the most striking figure in the USGS assessment is this: measured against last year's consumption levels, the reserves are sufficient to replace 328 years of US lithium import demand. This is not a forecast of future demand, but merely a baseline comparison between existing underground reserves and historical US import demand. Source: https://indiandefencereview.com [European Metals' Cinovec Lithium Mine Project EIA Passes Czech Ministry of Environment Review] European Metals Holdings Limited (ASX/AIM: EMH) announced that its flagship Cinovec lithium mine project in the Czech Republic has achieved a significant milestone in environmental permitting. The Czech Ministry of Environment has completed its review and officially released the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report, with a public hearing scheduled to be held in the coming weeks. Meanwhile, a cross-border EIA process involving German authorities has been formally initiated to address the transnational impacts of the project along the Czech-German border. For investors tracking the development progress of the Cinovec project, these developments are not routine updates — the company has explicitly identified the EIA release as a critical path period for obtaining final approval and advancing the project to implementation. "We are pleased with the progress the project team has made on environmental permitting for the Cinovec project. The release of the EIA report by the Czech Ministry of Environment is a critical path period for obtaining final EIA approval and advancing the Cinovec project." — Executive Chairman Keith Coughlan Source: [Latin America's Lithium Supply Gap: Structural Barriers Constraining Capacity Release] The global energy transition is built on a series of assumptions, and one of the most consequential is that the world's largest lithium reserves, concentrated in a narrow strip of South America, will be able to reliably convert into the battery-grade lithium materials increasingly and urgently needed for EVs, power grid ESSs, and consumer electronics. However, this assumption is being put to a severe test. Latin America's lithium supply gap is not a matter of salt flats being depleted or aquifers running dry, but rather a widening chasm between underground reserves and market-accessible capacity. Reserves are abundant, yet production-ready capacity falls far short. More critically, this gap continues to widen at a pivotal moment when global demand is accelerating its climb. To understand the root causes, one must look beyond the surface figures and examine in depth the structural mechanisms behind the entire chain from lithium geological deposits to battery cathode material. Source:

[Geopolitical and Supply-Demand Factors Intertwined, SHFE and LME Aluminum Maintain a Range-Bound Weak Pattern in the Short Term] With the macro situation fluctuating, domestic aluminum prices underperformed LME aluminum under high inventory pressure. Attention should still be paid to whether the turning point in China's inventory can arrive smoothly.

Indonesian state-owned tin producer PT Timah achieved refined tin production of 5,630 mt in Q1 2026, a significant increase of 81.9% YoY. During the same period, PT Timah's refined tin sales volume was 6,009 mt at an average price of $49,221/mt, generating revenue of 5.47 trillion Indonesian rupiah (approximately 2.291 billion yuan), up 160.5% YoY. According to the company's report, tin-in-ore production from its onshore and offshore operations reached 6,312 mt in Q1, up 96.3% YoY. The company attributed this growth to improved production efficiency, an increased number of operating vessels within permitted areas, and higher production from cooperative onshore mines (including small-scale mines and onshore suction dredge pontoon operations). Improved security conditions in mining areas also strongly supported production growth, effectively reducing the impact of illegal mining.

1 Procurement Conditions The purchaser of this procurement project, Ferrosilicon and Other Items (BG2026040318)/Low-Aluminum Ferrosilicon (BGBCGFHGXHD260506285829), is the Raw Material Procurement Department of the Procurement Center of Bensteel Sheets & Plates Co., Ltd. The project funds are self-raised. This project has met the procurement conditions, and an open inquiry and comparison is now being conducted. 2 Project Overview and Procurement Scope 2.1 Project Name: Ferrosilicon and Other Items (BG2026040318)/Low-Aluminum Ferrosilicon 2.2 Conversion to other procurement methods upon procurement failure: conversion to direct procurement, conversion to negotiated procurement 2.3 The procurement content, scope, and scale of this project are detailed in the attachment "Material List Attachment.pdf". 3 Bidder Qualification Requirements 3.1 Joint venture bidding is not permitted for this procurement. 3.2 This procurement requires bidders to possess the following qualification requirements: (1) Business license for trading enterprises (2) Business license for manufacturing enterprises 3.3 This procurement requires bidders to meet the following registered capital requirements: Registered capital for manufacturing enterprises: 10,000,000.0 yuan and above Registered capital for trading enterprises: 10,000,000.0 yuan and above 3.4 This procurement requires bidders to possess the following performance requirements: See attachment 3.5 This procurement requires bidders to possess the following capability requirements, financial requirements, and other requirements: Financial requirements: See attachment Capability requirements: See attachment Other requirements: Performance bond - See attachment 3.6 For projects that are required by law to undergo tender and bid, bids from persons subject to enforcement for breach of trust shall be invalid in this procurement. 4 Obtaining Procurement Documents 4.1 All parties interested in bidding shall log in to the Ansteel Smart Tender and Bid Platform at http://bid.ansteel.cn to download the electronic procurement documents from 08:00 on May 7, 2026 to 08:00 on May 15, 2026 (Beijing time, the same hereinafter). Click to view tender details: