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Blue Moon Metals buys 33 tungsten and antimony projects for $20.5M
The deal pays $15.5 million in shares and cash, plus a 1% net smelter return royalty on each project.
Blue Moon Metals (TSXV: MOON, Nasdaq: BMM) has acquired 33 tungsten and antimony projects across the western United States, including sites near its Springer complex in northwestern Nevada.
According to Mining.com, the private owners of the projects on Blue Moon and U.S. Forest Service lands will receive 2.8 million Blue Moon common shares valued at about $15.5 million, plus roughly $5 million in cash and a 1% net smelter return royalty on each project. Blue Moon also said the acquisition comes with an estimated holding cost of around $162,000 per year.
The company said it views the purchase as a step toward building a U.S.-focused critical metals platform as Washington looks to strengthen domestic supply chains and secure metals outside of Beijing’s influence. Mining.com noted tungsten production in the U.S. ended in 2015, while China dominates global output, with Beijing accounting for over 80% of last year’s total tungsten production of 81,000 tons, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
Blue Moon highlighted several newly acquired properties as candidates for direct shipping of high-grade tungsten to Springer, including the Oregon mine in Colorado, which previously produced 5,000 tons grading 14.51% tungsten trioxide from 1907 to 1929, and the Wildhorse Canyon mine in Idaho, which produced about 7,461 tons at 0.62% WO3 in the 1950s. The acquisition also marks Blue Moon’s entry into antimony, a metal the company tied to defense and industrial applications such as flame retardant fabrics, communication equipment, night vision goggles, and ammunition hardening.
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