WATCH: Critical Minerals Institute interviews Rowena Smith

ASM is proud to be a member of the Critical Minerals Institute (CMI), an international organisation of companies and professionals focused on battery materials, technology metals, defense metals, ESG technologies and practices, the electric vehicle market, and the use of critical minerals for energy and alternative energy production.

ASM CEO Rowena Smith recently sat down with CMI Co-Chair Jack Lifton and took a deep dive into the Company’s unique positioning in the rare earths industry.

Watch the full interview below, via the team at InvestorNews.

ASM appoints Chief Operating Officer

Australian Strategic Materials (ASM) is pleased to advise the appointment of Mr Chris Jordaan as Chief Operating Officer (COO), effective 24 August 2023.

Mr Jordaan joins ASM with 31 years in operational and corporate leadership roles in the petrochemical, processing and mining industries in South Africa, Australia and Papua New Guinea. Prior to accepting the COO role, he was President and CEO of Superior Gold, a gold mining company listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange. He has also held senior leadership roles within Newcrest Mining, BHP and several South Africa-based companies.

“With Stage 1 of our EPC Definition work for our Dubbo Project now complete, and early establishment activities for the project underway, Chris is joining us at a crucial and exciting time in ASM’s operational development.

Chris has a substantial depth of experience and the leadership qualities required to progress our Dubbo Project, lead the ramp-up of ASM’s Korean Metals Plant and advance our metallisation technologies, particularly our innovative LK Process.

His skills and experience are perfectly suited to further develop and execute ASM’s mine to metals strategy.

Rowena Smith, ASM CEO & Managing Director

ASM awards Bechtel NPI study work to progress Dubbo Project

Australian Strategic Materials (ASM) is pleased to announce the award of a consultancy services agreement to Bechtel Australia Pty Ltd (Bechtel) for the provision of engineering services for non-process infrastructure (NPI) study work to support advancing the Company’s Dubbo Project.

This work will contribute to developing capital and operating costs estimates key to ASM making its final investment decision (FID) on the Dubbo Project.

The Dubbo Project site

“We are pleased to confirm this agreement with Bechtel – a trusted partner with extensive experience in this area of work. With federal funding confirmed [for this work] in May, we have progressed in line with our project plan to put the contract in place, commence this important aspect of our early establishment activities and keep us on track for FID by the end of 2024.”

Rowena Smith, ASM Managing Director

Bechtel will commence work immediately, with the term of the contract running until 31 December 2024.

Quarterly Activities Report to 30 June 2023

We are pleased to advise our Quarterly Activities Report to 30 June 2023 has been released.

In line with ASM’s strategic business priorities, this Quarter the Company:

  • Commenced a strategic partnership with US-based rare earth magnet manufacturer Noveon Magnetics Inc., with the sale of an initial 100 tonnes of NdFeB alloy from ASM’s Korean Metals Plant (KMP);
  • Secured the supply of rare earth oxides with a binding agreement with Vietnam Rare Earth Company, to ensure the continued ramp-up of production at the KMP;
  • Progressed its diversified funding strategy for the Dubbo Project via the award of a $6.5 million grant under Tranche 2 of the Australian Government’s Critical Minerals Development Program; and
  • Demonstrated an ongoing commitment to safety and quality in our operations, having been awarded ISO 45001 (OHS Management System) accreditation and recognised as an industry leader by the Daejeon Regional Office of the Ministry of Employment and Labor for the risk assessment practices implemented at the KMP.

Dubbo Project awarded grant funding of $6.5 million from Australian Government

ASM’s Dubbo Project has been awarded grant funding of $6.5 million under Tranche 2 of the Australian Government’s Critical Minerals Development Program (CMDP).

Subject to the execution of binding documentation, the funding will be received to progress the Dubbo Project’s EPC Definition activities with respect to non-process infrastructure.

This exciting news was announced by the Federal Minister for Resources, the Hon Madeleine King MP.

ASM’s Rowena Smith responded, saying:

ASM is grateful to receive this generous support from the Australian Government for our rare earths and critical minerals Dubbo Project. As part of our commitment to strong ESG performance, this funding will allow us to optimise the final design of the Project’s carbon, water and residue management.

This is another exciting step for our Dubbo Project, as we build our global mine to metals business and look to bring new jobs and opportunities to the people of Dubbo and the region.

ASM signs Exclusive Heads of Agreement with Hyundai Engineering Corporation

Australian Strategic Materials (ASM) has announced that following ongoing discussions with HEC in relation to the development of the Dubbo Project, it has signed a Heads of Agreement with Hyundai Engineering Corporation Co., Ltd., to exclusively negotiate with HEC the delivery of the FEED, which could progress to the EPC.

The agreement for the exclusive negotiation follows the request for proposal process run by ASM for FEED for the Dubbo Project, where HEC have been identified by ASM as the preferred candidate based on HEC’s experience and capability.

Under the HoA, ASM and HEC have entered into an exclusivity period for the award of FEED by 31 March 2022 and subject to the successful delivery of FEED for the award of EPC until 25 February 2023. The Company’s current target is for the FEED contract to be awarded in Q1 2022, and for the delivery of the FEED in Q4 2022. The terms of the FEED and any EPC (including the price, scope, and schedule) are yet to be agreed by the parties.

ASM Managing Director David Woodall said exclusively engaging with HEC was another key milestone in moving the Dubbo Project towards a Final Investment Decision and demonstrates the support the Dubbo Project has from key stakeholders in Korea.

The team at HEC are impressive being at the forefront of providing innovative and sustainable engineering solutions that will enable the successful delivery of our Dubbo Project, a key to our “mine to metal” strategy.

Meeting HEC CEO Mr Kim Chang-Hag and his team shows the quality project partner HEC brings.  The desire of both HEC and ASM to work in partnership to deliver the Dubbo Project with significant benefits to both Korea and Australia puts us in a great position as we continue discussions with Korean financial institutions to fund the development of Dubbo.

Mr David Woodall

HEC Chief Executive Officer Kim Chang-Hag said:

HEC has delivered large projects successfully globally, and we are delighted to be working with ASM on FEED progressing to EPC to develop the Dubbo Project. We believe we can deliver an innovative and optimised solution to support the development of the Dubbo Project and ASM’s critical metals business in a partnership that helps Korea secure the critical metals it needs for its manufacturing industries.

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