JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – Dual-listed uranium and gold focused Aura Energy has started the process to list its Häggån project in Sweden separately on multiple international exchanges to “maximise the value of the battery metal content” of the project.
The project contains vanadium, molybdenum, cobalt, neodymium, nickel and zinc and is considered to be Aura’s most valuable long-term asset. Metal prices have risen sharply over the past two years, with vanadium prices up 400% and that of cobalt 300%.
Aura, which will continue to explore for uranium and gold in Mauritania, believes Häggån has the potential to be one of the world’s largest sources of battery metals.
Aura’s Swedish subsidiary that holds the asset will be renamed the Häggån Battery Metals vehicle. The company said on Wednesday that it would select London or Toronto as a primary listing location and Sweden as a secondary listing exchange.
Aura plans to sell down 20% to 30% of the new entity.
“Listing Häggån separately with a focused Swedish management team and the resources to independently finance and propel the project with the new impetus of the growth in battery metals is a very appealing strategy to drive development of this substantial multi-commodity project,” Aura executive chairperson Peter Reeve said.
An August 2012 scoping study delivered favourable technical and financial outcomes for the project, but did not consider the recovery of vanadium, cobalt or neodymium.
Aura believes the recent changes in the value of various elements in the Häggån metal content, given the significant changes in the price of the battery related metals, can now drive a new development focus for the project.
The company will also explore the potential for the new vehicle to create downstream businesses in the battery manufacturing sector, which will also enhance the prospects for regional employment in central Sweden.
"The role of vanadium redox-flow batteries will transform the use of renewable energy in large scale grid applications with their ability for long term energy storage. Aura has the potential to be a key player in this area and Europe is particularly well positioned to embrace this battery technology and there is no region currently, where this is more important. Pleasingly, it just happens to be where Häggån is situated,” Reeve said.