Mining’s old guard needs strong medicine
A new report details subpar investor returns in the mining industry over the last decade, particularly big cap diversified companies which have not adapted to new realities.
Largo Resources’ (TSX: LGO, NASDAQ: LGO) common shares debuted on the Nasdaq at the open of market trading on Monday, and by midday, the company’s stock was up nearly 5%, trading at $16.45 per share.
The vanadium miner also announced Q1 2021 total production from the Maracás Menchen mine in Bahia, Brazil, was 1,986 tonnes of vanadium oxide (V2O5), representing a decrease of 30% over Q1 2020.
The reduction was largely a result of a planned shutdown to implement upgrades to the kiln and
improvements in the cooler.
During the shutdown, the company increased its intermediate stockpiles. Following the commissioning and ramp-up phase, the upgrades are expected to increase the Largo’s nameplate capacity to 1,100 tonnes of V2O5 per month by the end of Q2 2021.
“As a result of the severe impacts of covid-19 pandemic, vanadium demand from the aerospace sector continues to lag, but we expect a gradual recovery from Q3 2021 onwards,” CEO Paulo Misk said in the media statement.
“Overall vanadium demand is expected to remain solid throughout 2021 as stimulus packages linked to the covid-19 economic recovery are implemented. A continuous focus on global carbon emission reduction will also support the increased use of vanadium in the traditional steel market as well as in the fast-growing long duration energy storage sector,” Misk said.
Midday Monday, Largo’s stock was also up 6% on the TSE. The company has a C$1.32 billion market capitalization.
