Almonty Industries (TSX: AII, ASX: AII) says it recently hosted a delegation sent by the US government to assess the development of its South Korean tungsten mine. Tungsten is a rare metal used in the production of weapons, semiconductors and industrial cutting machines.
The delegation consisted of a team of four United States Geological Survey (USGS) researchers, led by the assistant chief at the National Minerals Information Center (NMIC), which plays a crucial role in gathering and analyzing data on the production and supply chain of critical minerals worldwide.
Since 2018, tungsten has been designated and managed as a critical mineral by the US government, as its rival China dominates over 80% of the metal’s supply chain. However, the US has not commercially mined tungsten since 2015, according to USGS records.
During the visit, the researchers conducted an extensive review of the progress made in the resumption of tungsten concentrate production, the development of the underground galleries, the processing plant under construction, and of the planned tungsten oxide plant, Almonty said.
The visit, said the Canadian miner, represents a “significant milestone” in the resurgence of Korea’s position as a key player in the global tungsten market, as a resumption of the company’s Sangdong mine which would “significantly mitigate” the Western world’s dependence on tungsten produced within China.
Located in the northeastern province of Gangwon, Sangdong had been spearheading the economy in the post-Korean War decades, contributing more than 50% of the country’s export revenue. The mine closed in the 1990s primarily due to low commodity prices.
The deposit is said to host one of the largest tungsten resources in the world, along with one of the highest grades. Total reserves are measured at 7.9 million tonnes averaging 0.47% tungsten oxide (WO3), for 3.7 million contained metric ton units.
Since acquiring the project in 2015, Almonty has previously pledged to spend at least $120 million to reopen the Sangdong mine, which will occur in two phases.
The first phase will average 2,300 mtu of WO3 production annually. The second phase expansion, which includes a tungsten oxide plant, would roughly double that output per year. Both phases are expected to cost $217 million.
Commissioning is targeted for late 2024, with another 12 years of ramp-up to full production. Once complete, it has the potential to produce over half of the world’s tungsten, Almonty said.
The fully permitted mine has a potential life of at least 90 years, but could even run for 100-plus years, CEO Lewis Black told the Korea Herald earlier this year. “Sangdong will be a significant producer and it will be by far the largest producer outside of China,” he said in the interview.
The operation would also boast the highest recovery rate at 85% and the lowest cost at $110/mtu, which is roughly half of China’s average, the company said. According to Black, the average quality of the Sangdong mine is 0.45-0.5%, the highest level and more than 2.5 times the global average, whereas the average quality of a Chinese tungsten mine is 0.18%.
In its press release this week, Almonty said further expansion of the Sangdong processing plant and the completion of the tungsten oxide plant in Yeongwol is projected to produce 4,000 tons of tungsten oxide annually, with a purity level of 99.99%. By comparison, global tungsten production is approximately 98,000 tons per year, about half of which is consumed in China, it cited.
In addition, the USGS is expected to make “a significant update” on the company’s Sangdong mine in its 2025 report, due out during the first quarter of 2025, the company added.
