Almonty's Korean Tungsten Mine Reaches Commercial Processing as Buyback Looms
Published on 08/20/2026 at 06:40 | Redaktion boerse-global.de
The tungsten producer's flagship Sangdong operation in South Korea has crossed a critical threshold, shifting into commercial processing and stockpiling roughly 2.6 months of inventory valued at around $68 million at current market prices. The milestone validates a production ramp-up that began in early July, when the concentrator plant first came online and has since been steadily dialed toward stable output.
That inventory buffer carries particular weight given the expanded offtake agreement Almonty signed with Global Tungsten & Powders (GTP) in July. The contract now runs 21 years — six years longer than before — with contracted volumes raised by 40 percent. The stockpile gives the company tangible cover to meet those heightened long-term delivery commitments.
The operational progress arrives alongside a sweeping financial overhaul. Second-quarter 2026 results, published in August, showed revenue of C$42.989 million, a 498 percent jump from the prior-year period. Net income reached C$181.797 million, though the bulk of that figure — C$173.1 million — consisted of non-cash gains from derivative valuations. The balance sheet tells a sturdier story: cash stood at C$1.23 billion as of June 30, replenished by an oversubscribed convertible bond issue of $800 million completed in June.
Management has wasted little time putting that firepower to work. The board authorized a buyback of up to 14.4 million shares — roughly 5 percent of outstanding stock as of August 14 — worth as much as $300 million. The program runs from August 24 through August 2029, a 36-month window that signals confidence in a valuation the company considers too cheap relative to its tungsten assets.
Should investors sell immediately? Or is it worth buying Almonty?
The share repurchase is not the only structural change in motion. Almonty completed its voluntary delisting from the Toronto Stock Exchange in late July, and the ASX exit is now on a firm timetable: the last trading day for CHESS Depositary Interests lands on August 28, with the delisting effective September 1. The company intends to concentrate trading liquidity on Nasdaq and Frankfurt. A separate research note published last Friday grouped the listing consolidation with the quarterly results and Sangdong's expansion as the defining developments of the summer.
The operational and financial momentum has not insulated the stock from pressure. After fully repaying its KfW loan roughly a month ago, the shares have shed around 21.3 percent. The Sangdong commercialization could help counter that slide, assuming the processing plant sustains its current trajectory.
Institutional investors appear to be taking notice at precisely the moment the mine faces its operational test. Regulatory filings show Van Eck Associates has lifted its stake to 11,239,482 shares, a vote of confidence that pairs with the company's own repurchase plans.
The molybdenum side of the Sangdong complex is also advancing, with roughly 37 percent of a 12,000-meter drilling program completed and sample grades matching historical results. On the financial side, adjusted EBITDA swung from a loss of C$4.8 million to a gain of C$17.6 million year over year, underscoring the breadth of the turnaround.
Whether the market ultimately validates management's view that the shares are undervalued will hinge on demand for the buyback in the months ahead — and on Sangdong's ability to keep delivering tungsten concentrate without interruption.
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