Breaking
Secure Stock Strategies
Author

admin

Browsing
Politics

Kamala Harris’ new climate director said she is hesitant to have children because of climate change threats

Vice President Kamala Harris’ 2024 campaign hired a new climate director who has frequently said the effects of climate change are part of what’s stopping her from having children.

Camila Thorndike, who previously worked in the Senate managing the climate portfolio of Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., was given the title of climate engagement director for the Harris for President campaign in September 2024, according to her LinkedIn page. 

Prior to joining the Harris campaign, Thorndike said on several occasions that she considers climate change a factor when deciding whether to have kids.

‘I was 15 when I first saw the climate ‘hockey stick’ graph. I realized that this skyrocketing arrow of temperature would take place in my lifetime. All of the big milestones of life that I was looking forward to would be in the context of this big global crisis. It led to the question of whether or not to have kids – which is still a big question for me – where I would put down roots, what my family would do,’ Thorndike said in 2018 when she was the D.C. campaign director for the Chesapeake Climate Action Network.

Again in November 2019, Thorndike described it as an ‘ethical question that keeps me up at night.’

‘I have always been someone who enjoys children and loves the idea of a family, and that’s why I have wrestled with this, because my logical mind and the facts of the future I can see bearing down on us are not supportive of the life I would want for them,’ she told Yahoo News at the time. 

During an appearance on the ‘My Climate Journey’ podcast in August 2022, a show hosted by Jason Jacobs and Cody Simms for people seeking to better understand climate change, Thorndike again made a connection between the decision to have children and what it might look like in the future amid climate change. 

‘I plotted my own lifetime against that and realized that around the time that I would, especially, be considering having kids or whatever, in around my 30s, we would start to see the escalation of this crisis. And so that was when I realized that, at the time, the grownups were not coming to save us and my generation would have to fight to take the wheel.’

Featured in a Washington Post article about whether people should not have kids due to climate change, the new Harris campaign official said she worried about her potential kids ‘suffering’ from climate-related issues.  

‘It’s coming partly from a place of love for my hypothetical child,’ she said. ‘I want to protect them from suffering. Not that life is ever free from suffering, but what of the joys and peace and goodness that make me happiest to be alive will be accessible in 20, 30, 40 years?’

Harris acknowledged this idea during a discussion at the ‘Fight for Our Freedoms’ event in September 2023.

‘I’ve heard young leaders talk with me about a term they’ve coined called ‘climate anxiety,’ which is fear of the future and the unknown of whether it makes sense for you to even think about having children, whether it makes sense for you to think about aspiring to buy a home,’ Harris said in a clip that has resurfaced since she became the 2024 Democratic nominee.

A clip of the comment, shared by Donald Trump Jr. in July, prompted backlash from critics of Harris.

Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, who is now former President Trump’s running mate, wrote in a post on X, formerly Twitter: ‘It’s almost like these people don’t want young people starting families or something. Really weird stuff.’

‘Shamala is an extinctionist. The natural extension of her philosophy would be a de facto holocaust for all of humanity!’ wrote billionaire and X owner Elon Musk on his platform. 

This post appeared first on FOX NEWS

Keep Reading
By
Politics

House launches poll watcher program amid GOP-wide push for election security

A program is being rolled out and overseen by the House of Representatives this week that is aimed at boosting transparency in the high-profile fight for control of Congress.

‘We’re excited to really ramp the program up, roll it out, as we come into the final eight weeks before the election,’ House Committee on Administration Chair Bryan Steil, R-Wis., told Fox News Digital in an interview about the program, which has been used in several election cycles.

More than a dozen House races are expected to come down to razor-thin margins in November. Democrats are fighting to win back control from the House GOP and the fight is likely to be close either way.

The House Committee on Administration is moving to boost accountability efforts at the polls for such races through the Election Observer Program.

Congressional staffers are eligible to volunteer for a training program that would set them up to be poll watchers in the upcoming election. 

They would then be sent out to districts, not including their own, if requested by a congressional candidate in a close race.

‘I think uniquely this Congress, we can raise awareness, engagement and participation in the program,’ Steil said. ‘This is a program that’s been around for some time, and it’s been a successful program. My staff has participated in it, and I think it’s an important piece of the puzzle as we work to enhance the integrity and Americans’ confidence in our elections.’

He said it is imperative to boost the program’s visibility so that candidates and incumbents running across the political spectrum in November know it is available to them.

Asked if he had any particular security concerns about this year’s elections, Steil said he was ‘frustrated’ by a lack of answers from the Biden administration in response to his probing of a June executive order aimed at using federal resources to bolster voter access.

‘The administration continues to hide the ball on the work they’re doing as it relates to President Biden’s executive order, and I think there’s areas in particular as it relates to noncitizen voting that we should work to continue to get in place,’ Steil said.

The House’s Election Observer Program is one of several election security measures Steil has used his committee gavel to focus on.

Democrats, meanwhile, have panned several key GOP-led election efforts as voter suppression. 

Congressional Democrat leaders are also opposing a short-term government funding bill that is attached to legislation mandating proof of citizenship in the voter registration process. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., called the Republican plan ‘extreme.’

Steil said he hopes Democrats utilize the program as they had before, though he conceded that election integrity issues have become highly political.

‘A lot of things that did not used to be viewed as partisan in nature, in particular as it relates to election integrity, have become an attempt by the left to try to weaponize the efforts in the other direction,’ he said. ‘We’ll see how our Democratic colleagues respond to a program they participated in the past.’

‘But I am of the view that we have an opportunity to take this program and move it up to the next level, both in visibility and in participation.’

This post appeared first on FOX NEWS

Keep Reading
By
Politics

Morning Glory: ABC News and its pass/fail test

CNN ‘passed’ its test in that came in the form of the first presidential date in June between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump. Opinions are divided on whether CNN passed or failed in its interview of Vice President Kamala Harris. (Having helped moderate five GOP presidential primary debates and being the only non-network individual in the debate prep rooms, the grade goes to the network involved, not the host. Debates and big interviews are collective efforts by the organizations hosting them.)

Tuesday ABC is carrying a heavy burden. To my knowledge, the network does not have on its payroll even one individual of significant stature as a host, contributor or executive who is a likely Trump voter. This means in a country that polling portrays as evenly divided between ‘blue’ and ‘red,’ inputs from Trump supporters into the debate preparation process are almost certainly unlikely to occur and thus it is extremely unlikely for the debate to feature questions that such voters believe are relevant and indeed crucial to the choice before the country.

How could ABC get to high ground from which the questions vetted by its debate team and posed by hosts David Muir and Linsey Davis don’t result in a ‘Bud Lite’-level meltdown for its brand and the brands of its parent company Disney? The surest path is to lean heavily on Commander-in-Chief questions. Presidents don’t pass laws. They either sign what Congress sends them or veto such bills. Hypotheticals about whether a candidate would sign this or that hypothetical bill are just hobby horses for ideologues posing the queries.

A president does indisputably have control over America’s national security and the deployment and use of its military. The primary relevant examples of this power relevant are (1) President Biden’s decision to pull American troops out of Afghanistan in the way that he did with the consequences that pullout had and (2) support or refusal of support for Israel in its multi-front war with Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis and of course Iran (the head of the snake’ as many supporters of the Jewish State deem the mullahs in Tehran.) A third obvious question in this category is whether former President Trump did the right thing when he ordered Qasem Soleimani killed in Iraq on January 3, 2020.

There are many other extremely relevant questions in this area including whether American military force will be deployed to defend our treaty ally the Philippines in the escalating confrontations with China’s People’s Liberation Army Navy or to defend the island state of Taiwan if it is attacked by China?

Another obvious area is America’s southern border. What both candidates will do about the more than 10 million migrants who crossed into the country without an invitation in the past three-and-a-half years should be on the agenda.

Because the enforcement of Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 rests with the president and his or her executive branch appointees and the Biden/Harris Administration has proposed new, controversial regulations about Title IX, an obvious and pressing question should be whether and why the candidates support biological boys who identify as girls should be allowed to compete in scholastic sports?

While we know the positions of both candidates on abortion, it is not a priority question but as FDA-approved drugs that result in abortion have been much litigated, a question in that area would not be inappropriate but, if asked, should be matched with one about when such drugs become inappropriate to prescribe? Planned Parenthood states on its website that ‘In general, you can have a medication abortion up to 77 days (11 weeks) after the first day of your last period.’ The organization adds ‘If it’s been 78 days or more since the first day of your last period, you can have an in-clinic abortion to end your pregnancy.’ A question about ensuring the interstate availability of this federally approved medication is not particularly germane as the Supreme Court has ruled on a case involving the medication’s current availability but no doubt liberals and Democrats would welcome a question about these drugs and it’s not a wholly hypothetical one. The next president has authority over the Health and Human Services Department which controls the FDA just like they will have authority over the Department of Education which enforces Title IX. These are questions for presidents.

So is the forthcoming response from a new president to the explosion of anti-Semitism on campuses.  So is the pace and success of the massive expenditures of the already legislated Green New Deal provisions. So is the future of nuclear energy and permit reform to expedite fossil fuel extraction and export. If a president can unilaterally act in an area, it ought to be on the table.

All of these questions are legitimate. Will any of them get asked? Asking both candidates how they assess each other’s choice of a running mate would be interesting. There are a hundred fair and tough questions to pose.

If ABC produces an equal number of questions that strike both red and blue America as pointed but fair, and as many that are difficult for former President Trump to answer as are posed in that category to Vice President Harris, the network, and by extension Disney, will pass. If not, the whole country and its electorate will have rendered a verdict of ‘fail’ on both by Wednesday.

Hugh Hewitt is host of ‘The Hugh Hewitt Show,’ heard weekday mornings 6am to 9am ET on the Salem Radio Network, and simulcast on Salem News Channel. Hugh wakes up America on over 400 affiliates nationwide, and on all the streaming platforms where SNC can be seen. He is a frequent guest on the Fox News Channel’s news roundtable hosted by Bret Baier weekdays at 6pm ET. A son of Ohio and a graduate of Harvard College and the University of Michigan Law School, Hewitt has been a Professor of Law at Chapman University’s Fowler School of Law since 1996 where he teaches Constitutional Law. Hewitt launched his eponymous radio show from Los Angeles in 1990.  Hewitt has frequently appeared on every major national news television network, hosted television shows for PBS and MSNBC, written for every major American paper, has authored a dozen books and moderated a score of Republican candidate debates, most recently the November 2023 Republican presidential debate in Miami and four Republican presidential debates in the 2015-16 cycle. Hewitt focuses his radio show and his column on the Constitution, national security, American politics and the Cleveland Browns and Guardians. Hewitt has interviewed tens of thousands of guests from Democrats Hillary Clinton and John Kerry to Republican Presidents George W. Bush and Donald Trump over his 40 years in broadcast, and this column previews the lead story that will drive his radio/ TV show today.

This post appeared first on FOX NEWS

Keep Reading
By
Investing

Fireweed Updates Macpass Resource Estimate, Adding Boundary Zone to Yukon Zinc Project

Fireweed Metals (TSXV:FWZ,OTCQX:FWEDF) announced an updated resource estimate for its Yukon-based Macmillan Pass (Macpass) project, making substantial additions to the asset’s zinc holdings.

In a Wednesday (September 4) release, the company shared updated resource estimates for the project’s Tom and Jason deposits, as well as maiden resource estimates for the Boundary Zone and End Zone deposits.

The entire Macpass resource estimate now encompasses 56 million metric tons at 7.27 percent zinc equivalent in the indicated category, and 48.48 million metric tons at 7.48 percent zinc equivalent in the inferred category.

‘The team has increased the contained zinc equivalent metal in the Indicated Resources category by approximately 300% and more than doubled the overall tonnage. The addition of Boundary Zone now positions Macpass as one of the world’s largest undeveloped primary zinc districts,’ said Peter Hemstead, Fireweed’s interim CEO.

According to the company, the deposits included in the Macpass resource estimate are ‘stratiform, strata-bound sediment hosted zinc-lead-silver deposits,’ and were historically described as SEDEX deposits. Now this deposit type is referred to as sediment-hosted massive sulfide deposits, or clastic-dominated deposits.

Dr. Jack Milton, vice president of geology, noted that the updated Macpass resource estimate comes after six years of exploration, including 43,000 meters of drilling at Tom, Jason and End Zone, plus the new Boundary Zone.

“We have more than doubled the tonnage from our previously reported resource, increased the contained zinc metal by 83%, and added open-pit and underground mining volume constraints for reporting,” he said, adding that Macpass could also be enhanced by the potential for by-product output of critical minerals gallium and germanium.

Moving forward, the company plans to continue its exploration at Macpass with the largest drill program so far. Launched on June 5, it’s set to encompass 14,000 meters of drilling, including 8,000 meters of step-out holes at Tom, Jason and Boundary. A further 6,000 meters will be allocated to testing new targets at the property.

Securities Disclosure: I, Giann Liguid, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

This post appeared first on investingnews.com

Keep Reading
By
Investing

Alvopetro Announces August 2024 Sales Volumes and an Operational Update

Alvopetro Energy Ltd. (TSXV: ALV) (OTCQX: ALVOF) announces August 2024 sales volumes and an operational update.

August Sales Volumes

August sales volumes averaged 1,919 boepd including natural gas sales of 11.0 MMcfpd, associated natural gas liquids sales from condensate of 79 bopd and oil sales of 9 bopd, based on field estimates. August natural gas sales were impacted by temporary demand disruptions experienced by Bahiagas clients. Natural gas deliveries to-date in September have averaged 10.8 MMcfpd.

Natural gas, NGLs and crude oil sales :

August

2024

July

2024

Q2

2024

Natural gas (Mcfpd), by field:

Caburé

10,647

13,418

8,822

Murucututu

337

353

422

Total Company natural gas (Mcfpd)

10,984

13,771

9,244

NGLs (bopd)

79

118

76

Oil (bopd)

9

19

12

Total Company (boepd)

1,919

2,432

1,629

Operational Update

We have finished the recompletion of our 183-1 well in an uphole Caruaçu zone and are now re-configuring tubing to bring the well online through our Murucututu production facility this month. In parallel, we finished the recompletion of our 183-A3 well and also expect to have production results from this well this month.

Corporate Presentation

Alvopetro’s updated corporate presentation is available on our website at:
http://www.alvopetro.com/corporate-presentation .

Social Media

Follow Alvopetro on our social media channels at the following links:
Twitter – https://twitter.com/AlvopetroEnergy
Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/alvopetro/
LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/company/alvopetro-energy-ltd
YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCgDn_igrQgdlj-maR6fWB0w

Alvopetro Energy Ltd.’s vision is to become a leading independent upstream and midstream operator in Brazil . Our strategy is to unlock the on-shore natural gas potential in the state of Bahia in Brazil , building off the development of our Caburé and Murucututu natural gas assets and our strategic midstream infrastructure.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.

All amounts contained in this new release are in United States dollars, unless otherwise stated and all tabular amounts are in thousands of United States dollars, except as otherwise noted.

Abbreviations:

boepd

=

barrels of oil equivalent (‘boe’) per day

bopd

=

barrels of oil and/or natural gas liquids (condensate) per day

m 3

=

cubic metre

m 3 /d

=

cubic metre per day

Mcf

=

thousand cubic feet

Mcfpd

=

thousand cubic feet per day

MMcfpd

=

million cubic feet per day

NGLs

=

natural gas liquids

BOE Disclosure . The term barrels of oil equivalent (‘boe’) may be misleading, particularly if used in isolation. A boe conversion ratio of six thousand cubic feet per barrel (6Mcf/bbl) of natural gas to barrels of oil equivalence is based on an energy equivalency conversion method primarily applicable at the burner tip and does not represent a value equivalency at the wellhead. All boe conversions in this news release are derived from converting gas to oil in the ratio mix of six thousand cubic feet of gas to one barrel of oil.

Forward-Looking Statements and Cautionary Language. This news release contains ‘forward-looking information’ within the meaning of applicable securities laws. The use of any of the words ‘will’, ‘expect’, ‘intend’ and other similar words or expressions are intended to identify forward-looking information. Forward‐looking statements involve significant risks and uncertainties, should not be read as guarantees of future performance or results, and will not necessarily be accurate indications of whether or not such results will be achieved. A number of factors could cause actual results to vary significantly from the expectations discussed in the forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements reflect current assumptions and expectations regarding future events. Accordingly, when relying on forward-looking statements to make decisions, Alvopetro cautions readers not to place undue reliance on these statements, as forward-looking statements involve significant risks and uncertainties. More particularly and without limitation, this news release contains forward-looking information concerning the expected natural gas sales under the Company’s long-term gas sales agreement and the expected timing of production commencement from certain wells. Forward -looking statements are necessarily based upon assumptions and judgments with respect to the future including, but not limited to, expectations and assumptions concerning forecasted demand for oil and natural gas, the success of future drilling, completion, testing, recompletion and development activities and the timing of such activities, the performance of producing wells and reservoirs, well development and operating performance, expectations regarding Alvopetro’s working interest and the outcome of any redeterminations, the timing of regulatory licenses and approvals, equipment availability, environmental regulation, including regulation relating to hydraulic fracturing and stimulation, the ability to monetize hydrocarbons discovered, the outlook for commodity markets and ability to access capital markets, foreign exchange rates, general economic and business conditions, the impact of global pandemics, weather and access to drilling locations, the availability and cost of labour and services, the regulatory and legal environment and other risks associated with oil and gas operations . The reader is cautioned that assumptions used in the preparation of such information, although considered reasonable at the time of preparation, may prove to be incorrect. Actual results achieved during the forecast period will vary from the information provided herein as a result of numerous known and unknown risks and uncertainties and other factors. Although Alvopetro believes that the expectations and assumptions on which such forward-looking information is based are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on the forward-looking information because Alvopetro can give no assurance that it will prove to be correct. Readers are cautioned that the foregoing list of factors is not exhaustive. Additional information on factors that could affect the operations or financial results of Alvopetro are included in our annual information form which may be accessed on Alvopetro’s SEDAR+ profile at www.sedarplus.ca . The forward-looking information contained in this news release is made as of the date hereof and Alvopetro undertakes no obligation to update publicly or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, unless so required by applicable securities laws.

www.alvopetro.com
TSXV: ALV, OTCQX: ALVOF

SOURCE Alvopetro Energy Ltd.

View original content: http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/September2024/09/c9433.html

News Provided by Canada Newswire via QuoteMedia

This post appeared first on investingnews.com

Keep Reading
By
Investing

Ex-OpenAI Leader Raises US$1 Billion for Safety-focused AI Startup

Safe Superintelligence (SSI), a startup co-founded by former OpenAI Chief Scientist Ilya Sutskever, has secured US$1 billion in seed funding to develop advanced artificial intelligence (AI) systems focused on safety.

Reuters reported that the funding round, led by venture capital firms Andreessen Horowitz, Sequoia Capital, DST Global and SV Angel, has raised the value of the three month old company to an estimated US$5 billion.

The funds will be used to acquire computing power and recruit top engineering and research talent. Currently, SSI has 10 employees and operates out of offices in Palo Alto, California, and Tel Aviv, Israel.

SSI’s mission is to create safe super-intelligent AI systems that won’t cause harm to humans.

Aside from Sutskever, the fledgling company’s leadership team includes Daniel Gross, former head of AI initiatives at Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL), and Daniel Levy, previously a researcher at OpenAI. Levy serves as principal scientist at SSI, while Gross handles fundraising and computing infrastructure.

Gross emphasized that the company’s singular focus on long-term AI safety will allow it to operate without the pressure of immediate profitability. ‘It’s important for us to be surrounded by investors who understand, respect and support our mission, which is to make a straight shot to safe superintelligence and in particular to spend a couple of years doing R&D on our product before bringing it to market,’ he explained to Reuters on Wednesday (September 4).

Sutskever founded SSI after leaving OpenAI in May. He had played a key role in its alignment efforts, leading the ‘Superalignment’ team that was tasked with ensuring AI systems remained in line with human values.

He left after internal disagreements at OpenAI that saw CEO Sam Altman ousted and quickly reinstated. After Sutskever and fellow team leader Jan Leike’s exit, OpenAI disbanded the Superalignment team.

Despite a slowdown in AI investment due to concerns about long-term profitability, SSI’s successful funding round underscores the continued willingness of some investors to back projects led by well-known technologists.

One of SSI’s priorities is to hire a small, highly trusted team of engineers and researchers. Gross said the hiring process focuses not just on technical ability, but also on character and alignment with the company’s culture.

In addition to securing top talent, SSI expects to eventually secure partnerships with cloud service providers and chip manufacturers to address its computing needs. While the company has not yet provided specifics, major tech players like Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) and NVIDIA (NASDAQ:NVDA) have historically supported AI infrastructure for similar ventures, providing the computing power necessary for large-scale AI development.

OpenAI is also in the midst of raising billions of dollars in a new funding round, with major investors such as Microsoft, NVIDIA and Apple reportedly in talks to invest in the AI giant.

Securities Disclosure: I, Giann Liguid, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

This post appeared first on investingnews.com

Keep Reading
By
Investing

China Files WTO Complaint Over Canada’s EV and Metal Tariffs

China has lodged a formal complaint with the World Trade Organization (WTO) in response to Canada’s recently announced tariffs on Chinese-made electric vehicles (EVs), as well as steel and aluminum.

Bloomberg reported on Friday (September 6) that China’s commerce ministry has called for Canada to reverse its decision to impose tariffs of up to 100 percent on EVs and 25 percent on steel and aluminum imports from China.

Beijing claims that these measures, which are set to take effect in October, constitute trade protectionism that violates international rules and distorts global supply chains.

The Trudeau administration announced the tariffs on August 26, citing the need to protect various industries in the country from what it believes are unfair trade practices from China. The EV tariffs, which will apply to various types of passenger vehicles, including hybrid cars, trucks and buses, are scheduled to begin on October 1.

Meanwhile, the 25 percent levy on Chinese steel and aluminum is set to start on October 15.

China’s WTO case against Canada marks its third this year after similar disputes with the US and the EU.

The Asian nation has also initiated an anti-dumping investigation into canola imports from Canada, raising concerns that trade tensions between the two countries may escalate further. The probe was announced last week by China’s commerce ministry, signaling that Beijing may take further retaliatory actions if the tariffs are not withdrawn.

Canada has defended the tariffs as necessary for maintaining a level playing field, particularly for its EV and metal sectors. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has previously stated that China’s trade practices, including state-directed overproduction, have created market imbalances that undermine competition and threaten Canadian jobs.

The tariffs are intended to counteract the impact of Chinese subsidies and overcapacity in these industries.

As mentioned, the dispute between China and Canada is part of a broader trend of rising trade tensions between China and the west, driven in part by concerns over the rapid growth of Chinese exports in high-tech sectors.

The US, which implemented 100 percent tariffs on Chinese-made EVs in May, has imposed additional duties on goods related to EV production, including solar cells, semiconductors and lithium-ion batteries.

The EU also introduced new tariffs on Chinese EVs earlier this year, with rates ranging from 17.4 percent to 37.6 percent. These measures are aimed at reducing the market influence of low-cost Chinese vehicles.

Securities Disclosure: I, Giann Liguid, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

This post appeared first on investingnews.com

Keep Reading
By
Investing

The First of Three New Drilling Programs Underway in Major Australian Gold & Critical Minerals Provinces

Metals Australia Ltd (ASX: MLS) (“the Company”) is pleased to announce that drilling has commenced testing the first of three key exploration projects in Australia1,8, which are highly prospective for gold and critical minerals. All three projects are located along strike from major mineral deposits in world-class mineral fields (see Figure 1).

An aircore drilling program of up to 6,000m is underway testing gold, lithium-pegmatite and Ni-Cu- Co targets across the Warrambie Project in WA’s northwest Pilbara1. Warrambie straddles the Scholl Shear Zone, which is analogous to the Mallina Shear – host to the nearby, 10Moz, Hemi gold deposit3. The drilling will also test for major lithium-pegmatites, being located just 10km east of the Andover lithium discovery2,5.
An up to 120-hole aircore drilling program is permitted to follow an extensive soil sampling and gravity program underway at Big Bell North in WA’s world-class Murchison Gold Province, testing greenstone-splay fault hosted gold targets identified from interpretation of imagery from the recently completed aeromagnetic survey1. Big Bell North is located along strike to the northeast of the 5Moz Big Bell gold deposit4.
Approvals imminent for a substantial drilling program at the Warrego East copper-gold project within the Tennant Creek Mineral Field, which historically produced a world-class 25Mt @ 6.9g/t Au and 2.8% Cu6. Warrego East is directly east of Warrego mine, which produced 6.75Mt @ 1.9% Cu and 1.8g/t Au6. The drilling will test a series of gravity and magnetics defined ironstone hosted copper-gold targets within a corridor which links the Warrego Mine with the Gecko and Orlando copper-gold deposits6,7.

Metals Australia CEO Paul Ferguson commented:

“2024 is shaping up as the most active and exciting period in Metals Australia’s history – with the three aggressive gold and critical minerals drilling and exploration programs launched at Warrambie, Big Bell North and Warrego East in Australia being advanced in parallel with our two gold and critical minerals programs underway in Canada.

“Critically, our projects are all located in world-class mineralised provinces along strike from major discoveries and historical mines.

We believe all our projects have potential for major new discoveries and we look forward to a period of strong news flow and results throughout the remainder of 2024 and beyond – as we look to unlock their potential and build value for MLS shareholders.”

Warrambie Lithium-Pegmatite, Gold and Ni-Cu-Co Targets, Northwest Pilbara, WA

An extensive aircore drilling program has commenced testing bedrock lithium-pegmatite targets identified at Warrambie as well as gold and Ni-Cu-Co targets in previously un-explored areas under shallow cover.

Up to 50 aircore holes (up to 6,000m) are being drilled to test targets generated through interpretation of previously acquired detailed aeromagnetics and detailed gravity imagery over the Warrambie project (see Figure 2), including:

Lithium pegmatite targets associated with northeast-trending fault corridors associated with gravity lows which intersect magnetic mafic intrusive rocks1,8. This is an analogous geological setting to the neighbouring Andover lithium pegmatite discovery (drilling intersections of up to 209m @ 1.42% Li2O2) – which is associated with a 5km wide, northeast-trending structural corridor in mafic intrusive rocks (Figure 2).Orogenic gold (and Ni-Cu-Co sulphide) targets associated with magnetic anomalies in the Scholl shear which extend west of the Sabre Resources Ltd (ASX:SBR) Sherlock Bay Project, which hosts a 100,000t Ni-Cu-Co sulphide resource9, where recent drilling produced a significant gold (Ni-Cu-Co) intersection mineralisation (8m @ 1.07 g/t Au, 0.3% Ni, 0.11% Cu in SBDD01010) – see Figure 1. The Scholl Shear is parallel and analogous to the Mallina shear which hosts the world-class, >10Moz, Hemi Gold Deposit (DeGrey Mining, ASX:DEG)3.

Click here for the full ASX Release

This post appeared first on investingnews.com

Keep Reading
By
Investing

Up to ~A$25 Million Capital Raise to Support Full Funding of HMW Phase 1

Galan Lithium Limited (ASX: GLN) (Galan or the Company) is pleased to announce the launch of a capital raising of up to A$25 million. The Company has received firm commitments for a Placement of approximately A$12 million (before costs) to institutional, sophisticated, professional investors and Chemphys at A$0.105 per share.

Highlights:

Galan has received firm commitments to raise A$12 million via a placement at A$0.105 per share (Placement)Galan launches up to A$13.3 million 1 for 4 non-renounceable entitlement offer (Entitlement Offer) at the same price as the PlacementOfftake partner Chemphys to subscribe for US$3 million (A$4.5 million) under the Placement, subject to completion of definitive agreementsProceeds of the capital raising together with the planned Chemphys Offtake Prepayment are expected to fund Galan into productionFunds will be used for further development of HMW, corporate overheads and working capital

In addition, the Company is pleased to announce a 1 for 4 non-renounceable entitlement offer to raise up to A$13.3 million at the same price as the Placement (the Placement and the Entitlement Offer together being the Offer).

Galan’s proposed offtake partner1, Chengdu Chemphys Chemical Industry Co., Ltd (Chemphys) or designated affiliate, has agreed to subscribe for approximately A$4.5 million under the Placement. The investment by Chemphys is subject to completion of definitive offtake agreements.

Galan’s Managing Director, Juan Pablo (JP) Vargas de la Vega, commented:

“We are delighted with the support for the Placement and welcome a number of new investors to the register. In addition, on behalf of the Board of Directors, I would like to thank our shareholders for their ongoing support.

We also welcome the participation of Chemphys in the Placement which further strengthens the relationship between our companies.

The Board has adopted a lower capital intensity Phase 1 development to an initial 4,000 tpa LCE rate in light of market conditions. Funds raised from the Offer and the planned Chemphys prepayment provide the means to complete this development and keep our planned start to production in the second half of 2025.

Amid challenging market conditions Galan is moving forward with the development of HMW. We remain confident about the project economics underpinning the HMW development and the future of the lithium market.”

Placement

The Company has received firm commitments for a Placement of approximately A$12 million at A$0.105 per share.

Under the Placement, excluding Chemphys participation, the Company will issue 69,533,340 fully paid ordinary shares in the Company at A$0.105 per share (New Shares) (41,832,692 being issued under the Company’s ASX Listing Rule 7.1 capacity and 27,700,648 under its ASX Listing Rule 7.1A capacity).

New Shares under the Placement, excluding Chemphys participation, are expected to settle on 16 September 2024 and to be issued on or around 17 September 2024. Chemphys Placement participation is expected to settle within 10 business days after shareholder approval, as applicable, and completion of definitive offtake agreements. The Chemphys investment is subject to a sunset date of 31 December 2024, unless otherwise mutually agreed.

The issue price of A$0.105 per New Share represents a 8.7% discount to the last closing price of A$0.115 on 5 September 2024 and a 16.1% discount to the 5-day VWAP of A$0.125 as at the same date.

The Placement is not underwritten.

Entitlement Offer

The Company is pleased to announce a 1 for 4 non-renounceable entitlement offer at A$0.105 per New Share to raise up to approximately A$13.3 million. The record date for the Entitlement Offer is 13 September 2024.

Indicative Timetable

Petra Capital Pty Limited acted as Sole Bookrunner and Joint Lead Manager and Barclay Wells Limited acted as Joint Lead Manager to the Offer. Alpine Capital acted as Co-Manager to the Offer. Terry Gardiner is a Director of Galan and is also an Executive Director of Barclay Wells Limited.

Click here for the full ASX Release

This post appeared first on investingnews.com

Keep Reading
By
Investing

Where Does Tesla Get its Lithium? (Updated 2024)

As the energy transition continues to unfold, US electric vehicle (EV) pioneer Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) has been making moves to secure supply of the raw materials it needs to meet its production targets.

Lithium in particular has been top of mind for CEO Elon Musk. Back in 2020, the battery metal had a spotlight moment at Tesla’s Battery Day, when Musk shared that the company had bought tenements in the US state of Nevada, and was looking for a new way to produce lithium from clay — a process yet to be proven at commercial scale.

Lithium prices went on to hit all-time highs, but swiftly declined last year and continuing on a downward trend in 2024. Prices for other key battery metals have also decreased as EV sales growth has fallen across most global markets in the face of economic uncertainty and higher interest rates. According to Goldman Sachs research, EV battery costs are at record lows and are forecasted to fall by 40 percent between 2023 and 2025.

In a mid-2023 Tesla earnings call, Musk seemed relieved to see prices for the battery metal had declined. “Lithium prices went absolutely insane there for a while,” he said. Lower battery prices will bring EVs closer to cost parity with internal combustion engines vehicles, leading to wider adoption and increased demand.

This spring, Musk invited Argentine President Javier Milei to the Tesla factory in Austin, Texas, where the two reportedly discussed the investment opportunities in Argentina’s lithium sector. As a prominent member of the prolific Lithium Triangle, the South American nation is the fourth leading lithium producer by country.

Australia’s hard-rock deposits and Chile’s brines are also top sources for the world’s lithium supply. But lithium refining is dominated by China, which accounted for 72 percent of global lithium processing capacity in 2022.

Read on to learn more about where Tesla gets its lithium, how much lithium is in a Tesla battery and what the EV maker is doing to better secure its lithium supply chain.

Which lithium companies supply Tesla?

Tesla has deals with multiple lithium suppliers, some that are already producers and some that are juniors developing lithium projects.

At the end of 2021, Tesla inked a three-year lithium supply deal with top lithium producer Ganfeng Lithium (OTC Pink:GNENF,SZSE:002460), and the Chinese company began providing products to Tesla starting in 2022. Major miner Arcadium Lithium (NYSE:ALTM) also has supply contracts in place with the EV maker.

China’s Sichuan Yahua Industrial Group (SZSE:002497) agreed to supply battery-grade lithium hydroxide to Tesla through 2030. Under a new, separate agreement finalized in June 2024, Yahua is set to supply Tesla with an unspecified amount of lithium carbonate between 2025 and 2027, with the option to extend the contract by another year.

Tesla also holds deals with junior miners for production that is yet to come on stream. Liontown Resources (ASX:LTR,OTC Pink:LINRF) is set to supply Tesla with lithium spodumene concentrate from its AU$473 million Kathleen Valley project. The deal is for an initial five year period set to begin this year, and production began in July 2024.The company expects to reach nameplate capacity in calendar Q1 2025.

In January 2023, Tesla amended its agreement with Piedmont Lithium (ASX:PLL,NASDAQ:PLL), which now supplies the US automaker with spodumene concentrate from its North American Lithium operation, a joint venture with Sayona Mining (ASX:SYA,OTCQB:SYAXF). The deal is in place through the end of 2025.

Even though Tesla has secured lithium from all these companies, the EV supply chain is a bit more complex than just buying lithium directly from miners. Tesla also works with battery makers, such as Panasonic (OTC Pink:PCRFF,TSE:6752) and CATL (SZSE:300750), which themselves work with other chemical companies that secure their own lithium deals.

What are Tesla batteries made of?

Tesla vehicles use several different battery cathodes, including nickel-cobalt-aluminum (NCA) cathodes and lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) cathodes.

Tesla is known for using NCA cathodes developed by Japanese company Panasonic. This type of cathode has higher energy density and is a low-cobalt option, but has been less adopted by the industry compared to the widely used nickel-cobalt-manganese (NCM) cathodes. Aside from that, South Korea’s LG Energy Solutions (KRX:373220) supplies Tesla with batteries using nickel-cobalt-manganese-aluminum (NCMA) cathodes.

As mentioned, it wasn’t just lithium that saw prices climb in 2021 — cobalt doubled in price that same year, and although it has declined since then, the battery metal remains essential for many EV batteries. Most cobalt mining takes place in the Democratic Republic of Congo, which is often associated with child labor and human rights abuses, fueling concerns over long-term supply.

That said, not all Tesla’s batteries contain cobalt. In 2021, Tesla said that for its standard-range vehicles it would be changing to lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) cathodes, which are cobalt- and nickel-free. At the time, the company was already making vehicles with LFP chemistry at its factory in Shanghai, which supplies markets in China, the Asia-Pacific region and Europe.

In April 2023, Tesla announced that it planned to use this type of cathode chemistry for its short-range heavy electric trucks, which it calls ‘semi light.’ The company is also looking to use LFP batteries in its mid-sized vehicles.

At the top of this year, Tesla made moves to produce LFP batteries at its Sparks, Nevada, battery facility in reaction to the Biden Administration’s new regulations on battery materials sourcing, especially on those sourced from China. Reuters reports Tesla battery supplier CATL will sell idle equipment to the car maker for use at the plant, which will have an initial capacity of about 10 gigawatt hours.

What company makes Tesla’s batteries?

Tesla works with multiple battery suppliers, including Panasonic, its longtime partner, as well as LG Energy Solutions, the second largest battery supplier in the world. They supply the EV maker with cells containing nickel and cobalt.

China’s CATL has been supplying LFP batteries to Tesla for cars made at its Shanghai plant since 2020. It’s also been reported that BYD Company (OTC Pink:BYDDF,SZSE:002594) is supplying Tesla with the Blade battery — a less bulky LFP battery — which the car manufacturer has used in some of its models in Europe. Additionally, BYD is set to work with Tesla on its battery energy storage systems (BESS) in China, with a plan to supply 20 percent of Tesla’s anticipated BESS manufacturing capacity, with CATL expected to cover 80 percent. The factory will use the companies’ LFP batteries.

How much lithium is in a Tesla battery?

How much lithium do Tesla batteries actually contain? That question is tricky because many factors are at play. Typically, it depends on battery chemistry, as demonstrated by the chart below, as well as battery size.

For example, the standard Tesla Model S contains about 138 pounds, or 62.6 kilograms, of lithium. It is powered by a NCA battery, which has a weight of 1,200 pounds or 544 kilograms.

The amount of lithium in a Tesla battery can also vary based on model and year as the battery chemistries and weights are often changing with each new iteration.

Back in 2016, Musk said batteries don’t require as much lithium as they do nickel or graphite — he described lithium as ‘the salt in your salad.’ As the chart below shows, the metal only makes up about a 10th of the materials in each battery.

Metal content of battery chemistries by weight.

Chart via BloombergNEF.

But a key factor to remember is volume — given the amount of batteries Tesla needs to meet its ambitious goals, it could hit a bottleneck if it can’t secure a steady supply of raw materials. Of course, this is true not just for Tesla, but for every carmaker producing EVs today and setting targets for decades to come.

For that reason, demand for lithium-ion batteries is expected to soar in the coming years. By 2030, Benchmark Mineral Intelligence forecasts that demand will grow by 400 percent to reach 3.9 terawatt-hours. Over the same forecast period, the firm sees the current surplus in the lithium supply coming to end.

Will Tesla buy a lithium mine?

For carmakers, securing lithium supply to meet their electrification goals is becoming a challenge, which is why the question of whether they will become miners in the future continues to come up.

But mining lithium is not easy, and despite speculation, it’s hard to imagine an automaker being involved in it, SQM’s (NYSE:SQM) Felipe Smith said. “You have to build a learning curve — the resources are all different, there are many challenges in terms of technology — to reach a consistent quality at a reasonable cost,” he noted. “So it’s difficult to see that an original equipment manufacturer (OEM), which has a completely different focus, will really engage into these challenges of producing.”

Even so, OEMs are coming to the realization that they might need to build up EV supply chains from scratch after the capital markets’ failure to step up, Benchmark Mineral Intelligence’s Simon Moores believes. Furthermore, automotive OEMs that are making EVs will in effect have to become miners.

“I don’t mean actual miners, but they are going to have to start buying 25 percent of these mines if they want to guarantee supply — paper contracts won’t be enough,” he said.

However, last year Musk made it clear to investors that Tesla is more focused on developing its lithium refining capabilities, rather than getting into the mining game.

Where is Tesla’s lithium refinery?

Tesla broke ground on its in-house Texas lithium refinery in the greater Corpos Christi area of the state last year. Tesla’s lithium refinery capacity is expected to produce 50 GWh of battery-grade lithium per year. Musk said in late 2023 that construction of the lithium refinery would be completed in 2024, followed by full production in 2025.

Securities Disclosure: I, Melissa Pistilli, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

This post appeared first on investingnews.com

Keep Reading
By