The National Wealth Fund has committed up to £71m to Tungsten West (LON: TUN) in a Tungsten West NWF investment that targets a full restart of the Hemerdon tungsten-tin mine in South Devon. The shares gained 16.6% to 50.25p on the news.
Structure of the Tungsten West NWF Investment
The package comprises a £36m equity subscription at 36p per share, a £25m debt facility, and a £10m uncommitted accordion facility. International Mining reported that the equity portion will be satisfied by the issue of 100 million new ordinary shares of £0.01 each, giving the National Wealth Fund a 7.42% stake in Tungsten West.
Part of the proceeds will repay a short-term loan facility that Tungsten West announced on 21 May 2026, according to International Mining.
The National Wealth Fund also receives a limited exclusive negotiation period to conclude an offtake agreement covering up to 50% of Hemerdon’s tungsten production as defined in the 2025 Feasibility Study. Separately, the company is in offtake talks with a downstream tungsten refiner.
Hemerdon Timeline and Strategic Rationale
First production at Hemerdon is targeted for the third quarter of this year, with full-scale ramp-up set for Q1 2027, according to the National Wealth Fund’s announcement. International Mining reported that Tungsten West had already produced tungsten and tin concentrate in the month before the announcement and was completing final testing ahead of the restart.
Tungsten West was incorporated in 2019 specifically to restart Hemerdon, which is described as one of the world’s largest non-Chinese tungsten resources. The National Wealth Fund cited the metal’s role in defence, aerospace, and next-generation energy as the strategic rationale for government involvement.
Galileo Resources Identifies Copper Porphyry System in Nevada
Galileo Resources (LON: GLR) reported that initial surface work at its Ferber licence in Nevada has uncovered a copper porphyry mineralised system, along with associated skarn mineralisation, according to an Investegate RNS filing. The shares jumped one-fifth to 0.75p.
The company is working alongside Bronco Creek Exploration Inc under a royalty and exploration agreement announced in May 2025, and a drilling programme is now planned. Yahoo Finance reported the Ferber property is being assessed for porphyry copper, skarn-hosted polymetallic mineralisation, and sediment-hosted mineralisation. The Galileo Resources project page describes Ferber as highly prospective for porphyry-related intrusive systems and contact skarn mineralisation. The Proactive Investors report on the Bronco Creek agreement noted the partnership was put in place in May 2025.
Other AIM Movers
Norman Broadbent (LON: NBB) rose 3.68% to 197p after being appointed to the UK Government Commercial Agency’s RM6394 Executive & Non-Executive Search 3 framework, a four-year panel covering central government and wider public sector mandates. No level of work is guaranteed.
Pennant International (LON: PEN) gained 3.45% to 30p after securing another Auxilium software contract with a US defence user through its Siemens partnership, taking Auxilium annualised recurring revenues to £2.9m.
Among the fallers, Shaires Holdings (LON: SHR) slipped 12.2% to $21.50 after raising $3.4m in a retail offer at $20 per share. Total raised reached $14.3m. The Capital Access Window closed and the shares returned from suspension.
Southern Energy Corp (LON: SOUC) fell 6.67% to 3.5p after reporting second-quarter production of 1,743 barrels of oil equivalent per day, 3% above the prior quarter, but revenues fell one-quarter to $4.2m on lower prices. Cash from operations was $700,000 and period-end cash was $8.6m. The result of the Terrible Creek 21-2 #2 oil well is expected in September.
Tialis Essential IT (LON: TIA) dipped 3.13% to 46.5p. Interim revenues fell from £8.8m to £7.6m due to delayed orders and two lost contracts, though the reported loss narrowed from £912,000 to £394,000. The company formalised a joint venture with AI Auxesis on a 12-month initial term, with AI Auxesis receiving a fee of £192,000 plus 10% of any disposal gains.
Emmerson (LON: EML) declined 2.94% to 1.65p. The arbitration tribunal confirmed the procedural calendar in its $1.2bn compensation claim against Morocco over the expropriation of the Khemisset phosphate project. Morocco must file its defence by January 2027, with the hearing scheduled for July 2028.
For Tungsten West, the binding outcome of the National Wealth Fund’s exclusive offtake negotiation period will be the next material event to watch.
