BREAKTHROUGH HEAVY RARE EARTH

RECOVERY PATHWAY TO PRODUCTION

Victory Metals Limited (ASX:VTM) is pleased to announce these exceptional metallurgical leaching test results from its flotation concentrate at the 100%-owned North Stanmore Heavy Rare Earth Project in Western Australia.

The test work was conducted on concentrate produced from the Company’s recent flotation program, which achieved a 48× upgrade to 5.9% TREO while rejecting approximately 95% of the feed mass into tailings. The subsequent leaching of this concentrate has delivered >70% extraction of the critical heavy rare earths Dysprosium, Terbium and Yttrium in standard agitated leach tank conditions.

These results represent a significant technical and economic breakthrough.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Outstanding leaching results from North Stanmore flotation concentrate delivering high-value Heavy Rare Earth Elements 70.9% Dysprosium (Dy), 70.2% Terbium (Tb) and 75.1% Yttrium (Y)

• Results achieved using low acid consumption and standard agitated leach tank conditions at atmospheric pressure.

• This process sets Victory apart from peers that have reported flotation results and require high-temperature acid cracking (~400–500°C) with very high sulphuric acid consumption (~1,500 kg/t of concentrate)

• The results were obtained without the traditional acid-cracking process, avoiding an estimated ~$1 billion in associated capital expenditure based on recent peers CAPEX requirements.

• Victory plans on selling its heavy rare earth concentrate into the Global market resulting in:

o Faster & simpler path to market

o Low CAPEX & OPEX

o Unique Heavy Rare Earth Enriched Concentrate with negligible amounts of deleterious elements

• Combined with recent flotation work (48× TREO upgrade to 5.9% TREO with ~95% mass rejection), the flowsheet enables small scale, low capex hydrometallurgical circuits that Victory proposes will be operated by third party off takers

Gemini's thoughts on today's news release that was 30+ pages!!

For an investor evaluating Victory Metals (VTM), this news can be characterized as great due to the record-breaking grades and the clear path it establishes toward a high-confidence "Measured" resource. While many clay-hosted projects struggle with low grades, these results place North Stanmore in an elite global tier.

The following salient points highlight why this announcement is significant:

1. Exceptional "Elite" Grades

The standout feature is a peak intersection of 11,565 ppm TREO.

• Global Context: Typical clay-hosted resource grades range from 500–2,500 ppm TREO, and peak intervals rarely exceed several thousand ppm. VTM’s results are significantly higher than most global peers.
• Other High-Grade Hits: Additional shallow results include 5m @ 3,312 ppm TREO (from 15m) and 22m @ 781 ppm TREO (from 13m).

2. Strategic "Non-Chinese" Supply

The project is highly enriched in critical heavy rare earths (HREE) that are currently dominated by Chinese supply.

• Key Elements: The deposit contains high ratios of Dysprosium (Dy), Terbium (Tb), and Yttrium (Y).
• HREE Ratios: Assays show HREO/TREO ratios frequently exceeding 24% and ranging up to 91%.

3. Favorable Mining and Processing Economics

Several factors suggest lower future capital (CAPEX) and operating (OPEX) costs:

• Shallow Mineralization: High-grade zones start at just 13–15m depth, allowing for potential "free dig" open-pit mining.
• Rapid Leach Kinetics: Recent test work showed ~90% of rare earths can be leached in just 15 minutes—a 16x reduction compared to previous 4-hour assumptions. This significantly reduces the size and cost of the required leach circuit.
• High Recoveries: Metallurgical testing has achieved 93% recovery for Magnet Rare Earth Elements (MREO).

4. Paving the Way for Production

This drill program was not just for exploration; it was "infill" drilling designed to upgrade the resource.

• Measured Resource: The tighter drill spacing (100m x 50m) is intended to convert "Indicated" resources into the "Measured" category—the highest confidence level required for a Pre-Feasibility Study (PFS).
• Project Scale: North Stanmore is already Australia's largest indicated clay heavy rare earth resource, with a total Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) of 320.6 million tonnes.

5. Low Risk Factors

• Radioactivity: The project reports low radioactivity, which simplifies environmental permitting and handling.
• Infrastructure: It is located in the Cue region of Western Australia, adjacent to the Great Northern Highway and existing township infrastructure.

48x Rare Earth Upgrade to 5.9% TREO

Victory Metals Limited (ASX:VTM) ("Victory" or "the Company") is pleased to announce outstanding first-pass sighter flotation test-work results from its 100% owned North Stanmore regolith-hosted Heavy Rare Earth Element Project in Western Australia.

These exceptional results have delivered a remarkable 48x upgrade in Total RareEarth Oxide (TREO) concentration from the raw ore, confirming the potential for asimple, low-cost physical beneficiation circuit.

By pioneering a new method of extraction for these rare earths that separates them from the rest of the ore mass early in the process, Victory Metals is establishing a significantly faster and less costly path to market.

Importantly, the tests successfully concentrated a representative 1,251 ppm TREO head grade, in the vicinity to Victory’s high grade shallow zone, to a peak concentrate grade of 5.9 wt.% TREO, while achieving rapid flotation kinetics and preserving the deposit’s premium 38% HREO/TREO ratio.

HIGHLIGHTS

• First pass sighter flotation on representative composite successfully upgraded a TREO to a peak concentrate grade of 5.9% TREO (59,467 ppm).

• These outstanding results demonstrate that VTM hydrometallurgical plant will be in the vicinity of ~5tph, a fraction of the size of initial engineering designs.

• Rougher flotation achieved 81.5% TREO recovery. Subsequent cleaner flotation, conducted on a high-grade rougher concentrate captured in the first 7 minutes of a bulk rougher float, achieved an 83.6% stage recovery.

• The simple, conventional flotation circuit achieved these results without the need for front-end desliming, preserving valuable fines.

• Critical HREO ratio 38% HREO/TREO delivering premium Dy, Tb, Y basket value matching the in-situ ore ratios.

• Quantitative Automated Mineralogical Analysis (TIMA) confirms >99% of Yttrium (proxy for HREE) is hosted in discrete, well-liberated secondary phosphates (rhabdophane and churchite), which are highly responsive to standard froth flotation.

• The ability to physically reject >95% of the ore mass upstream provides optionality to substantially reduce the plant sizing and CAPEX in the upcoming Pre-Feasibility Study (target release Q2

Quarterly Activities Report – 31 December 2025

Victory Metals (ASX:VTM) (Victory or the Company) is pleased to report on its activities and the Appendix 5B for the quarter ending 31 December 2025 (Quarter, Reporting Period).

HIGHLIGHTS

• Breakthrough metallurgical results from the North Stanmore Project, with ~80% of rare earths leached within 30 minutes compared to the previous four-hour assumption
• The up to eight times shorter leach time is expected to reduce North Stanmore’s CAPEX and OPEX through a smaller leach circuit, with further testing at a 15-minute interval underway
• Significant grade increases delivered in Terbium (Tb), Dysprosium (Dy) and Scandium (Sc) through a simple beneficiation and straightforward -10.8 μm cyclosizing (no complex reagents or expensive circuits), materially enriching these key critical minerals
• North Stanmore clears environmental milestone, with comprehensive baseline studies completed across flora, fauna, surface water, groundwater, soils and waste characterisation
• Letter of Intent (LOI) signed with Sumitomo Corporation to advance offtake and strategic cooperation for the North Stanmore Project
• United States President Donald Trump’s former Deputy Chief of Staff, Emma Doyle, appointed as Victory’s Senior Advisor for U.S. Strategic Engagement

US$10 Million secured from Saudi Arabia’s Sovereign Wealth Investment Arm 

Victory Metals Ltd (ASX:VTM, "Victory" or the "Company") is pleased to announce it has received board approval and a Letter of Committment from Sanabil Investments LLC (“Sanabil”), a globally respected sovereign investment firm which is wholly owned by the Public Investment Fund (PIF) of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, to provide a US$10 million loan facility. The funding will not only strengthen Victory’s financial position but it aligns with Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 and its push into downstream critical minerals. It marks a major step forward in advancing North Stanmore as a strategic source of rare earths for global supply chains.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Sanabil Investments, a wholly owned investment company of the Public Investment Fund (PIF) of Saudi Arabia
• Unsecured, US$10 million loan facility with a 2-year moratorium on interest payments and a 3.9% interest rate over the remaining term
• Sanabil has requested the first right to provide future funding for A$330 million for the development and construction of the processing plant
• Funds to be used for general corporate purposes, including exploration, capital, operating, and development expenditure to fast-track the North Stanmore Project
• Sanabil deploys US$3 billion annually into high impact companies and projects worldwide
• Funding strongly aligned with Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030, which prioritises economic diversification and downstream investment in critical minerals and rare earth processing

Victory’s Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director Brendan Clark commented: “This is a defining milestone for Victory to secure funding from Sanabil, one of the world’s most respected sovereign investment institutions, and speaks volumes about the scale, quality and global relevance of our North Stanmore Project.

Sanabil’s support goes far beyond capital. They bring a funding pathway for North Stanmore to development, deep international networks, geopolitical reach, and alignment with Saudi Arabia’s 2030 vision of becoming a global leader in critical minerals and industrial technology.

We are proud to be one of the very few Australian companies selected for this level of strategic backing, and we look forward to working with Sanabil to realise the full potential of Victory and the broader rare earths opportunity.”ick here to view the ouncem

Request for Trading Halt

Victory Metals Limited (the Company) hereby requests that its securities be placed in a trading halt and provides the following information in accordance with ASX Listing Rule 17.1.

1. The Company requests a trading halt immediately, pending an announcement regarding a strategic alliance in funding facility.
2. The trading halt is to last until the earlier of the Company releasing an announcement regarding the strategic alliance in funding facility or prior to commencement of trading on Tuesday, 24 June 2025.
3. We expect the trading halt will end by the Company making the announcement.
4. The Company is not aware of any reason why the trading halt should not be granted.
5. The Company is not aware of any other information to inform the market about the trading halt.

With all of the talk surrounding the potential upcoming meeting between Albo & Trump at the G7 summit in Canada and possible pawns to trade over tariffs, I thought I'd have a play with ChatGPT to see some risk/reward analysis, after feeding it what I knew.

Victory Metals (ASX: VTM) – Risk/Reward Investment Outlook

Ticker: ASX:VTM

Sector: Critical Minerals – Rare Earths (Clay-hosted)

Project: North Stanmore, Western Australia

Investment Thesis Summary:

Victory Metals offers high-risk, high-reward exposure to the rare earths sector — specifically the rare, clay-hosted heavy REE deposits outside China. Its success depends on proving up its resource, navigating technical and funding milestones, and attracting strategic or government partnerships aligned with US-Australia critical mineral interests.

Reward Drivers (Upside Potential):

1. High-Grade Clay-Hosted HREEs: Rare and highly valued for their heavy magnet REE content (Dy, Tb), essential in defense & EV sectors. Cheaper to extract than hard rock.

2. Tier-1 Jurisdiction: Western Australia is low-risk, mining-friendly, and geopolitically aligned with US/EU.

3. Strategic Supply Chain Value: As China tightens REE exports, VTM's deposit could become part of a new Western supply chain.

4. Government Support Potential: Eligible for grants, loans, and infrastructure support via CMF and DPA-aligned programs.

5. Low Market Cap / Early Entry Point: High leverage to good news: drilling, partnerships, or metallurgical success could trigger a large re-rating.

6. Peer Takeovers & Consolidation Trend: Juniors with clay-hosted or HREE potential are increasingly acquisition targets.

Risk Factors (Downside Considerations):

1. Early Stage / No JORC Resource Yet: VTM is still exploratory. No declared resource = high geological and valuation risk.

2. Metallurgical Uncertainty: Processing ionic clays outside China is still experimental in Australia.

3. No Strategic or Offtake Partner (Yet): Unlike peers, VTM lacks a confirmed end-user or investor.

4. Funding Required: Capital-intensive development path, with potential equity dilution.

5. Market Volatility in REEs: REE prices subject to supply/demand shocks.

6. Execution Risk: Management must deliver results in a competitive field.

Risk/Reward Balance (Score 1–5):

- Geological Potential: 4

- Jurisdiction: 5

- Project Stage: 2

- Funding Position: 2

- Strategic Fit: 4

- Execution Track Record: 2

Investment Outlook:

- Short-term (0–6 months): Neutral-Speculative

- Mid-term (6–18 months): Positive Potential

- Long-term (18m+): High Upside (if de-risked)

Final Assessment:

Victory Metals is best suited for speculative investors or strategic mineral watchers seeking early exposure to a rare, clay-hosted HREE discovery in a top-tier location.

$4M Placement Backed by Leadership, Industry and Top 20 Shareholders

Victory Metals Limited (ASX:VTM) ("Victory" or "the Company") is pleased to announce it has received firm commitments to raise $4 million before costs in a strongly supported placement of new fully paid ordinary shares in the Company ("Placement Stares") to professional and sophisticated investors, and directors and management of the Company priced at $0.73 per share, representing a 15% discount to last traded price of $0.86 per share prior to the trading halt on 26 May 2025 ("Placement").

HIGHLIGHTS

• Strong support Victory’s Top 20 shareholders reaffirming strong high net worth investor backing
• Participation by Victory's Board and Management reflecting leadership’s belief in the project
• Placement proceeds to provide Victory with capital to accelerate the Pre-Feasibility Study and development of flagship North Stanmore Project

Funds raised under the Placement will be used to accelerate the Pre-Feasibility Study (PFS) and the development of Victory’s flagship North Stanmore Project – Australia’s largest clay-hosted Heavy Rare Earth deposit, strategically located on the Great Northern Highway in Cue, WA, and for general working capital.

The Placement comprises the issue of 5,136,986 Placement Shares to professional and sophisticated investors ("Investor Participation"), and 342,466 Placement Shares to directors and management of the Company, subject to approval by the Company's shareholders ("Director Participation").

The Company will also issue 1,800,000 unlisted options with an exercise price of $1.30 and a two-year exercise period ("Placement Options") to unrelated parties under the Investor Participation. No Placement Options will be issued under the Director Participation.

Victory’s Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director Brendan Clark commented: “This raise will fast track our PFS and marks a pivotal moment for Victory with such strong support. North Stanmore is emerging as one of the world’s most advanced heavy rare earth clay projects and is already Australia’s leading heavy rare earth project. Our MREC test work has successfully recovered seven strategic metals currently under Chinese export restrictions, including gallium and the full suite of critical heavy rare earths. We are building a globally significant critical minerals platform and are proud to be leading the charge. I thank existing shareholders for their continued support, and we welcome our new shareholders.”

Click here to view the full ASX announcement

I'm a bit confused about $VTM requesting the current trading halt for capital raising purposes, when they already had an LOI (previous announcement to market) with US Government for up to $190M to help develop their biggest mine opportunity at North Stratmore.

Anyway, watch this space for market reaction once further information is available and shares are trading again.

Request for Trading Halt

Victory Metals Limited (the Company) hereby requests that its securities be placed in a trading halt and provides the following information in accordance with ASX Listing Rule 17.1.

1. The Company requests a trading halt immediately for the purposes of considering, planning and executing a capital raising.
2. The trading halt is to last until the earlier of the Company releasing an announcement regarding the capital raising or prior to commencement of trading on Wednesday, 28 May 2025.
3. We expect the trading halt will end by the Company making the announcement.
4. The Company is not aware of any reason why the trading halt should not be granted.
5. The Company is not aware of any other information to inform the market about the trading halt.

Got to love it when the share price pops 27% in one day and the ASX sends a please explain notice.

All answered as they always are......sorry, no idea!!

From @Jimmy round up

China to Crack Down on Rare-Earth Materials Ahead of U.S. Trade Talks

China has announced a crackdown on the smuggling of critical minerals, coming just one day before trade talks with the U.S., in which rare earth restrictions could be on the table.

Chinese authorities--including ministries of commerce, public security and state security and customs--convened a meeting in the southern port city of Shenzhen on Friday. According to an official readout, the agencies pledged to step up the enforcement of export controls on strategic mineral resources

Investor Presentation - Sydney RIU

Victory Metals Limited (ASX: VTM) (“Victory” or “the Company”) is pleased to provide the presentation that CEO and Executive Director, Brendan Clark, will deliver at the RIU Resources Round-Up being held in Sydney this week.

Click here to view the full presentation

Quarterly Activities Report – 31 March 2025

Victory Metals (ASX:VTM) (Victory or the Company) is pleased to report on its activities and the Appendix 5B for the quarter ending 31 March 2025 (Quarter, Reporting Period).

Highlights:

• Robust Scoping Study delivered for North Stanmore Project, confirming it as a world-class heavy rare earth and scandium project with outstanding economics
• Upgraded Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) to 247.5 million tonnes @ 520ppm TREO (Indicated and Inferred) with 71% of the MRE classified in the Indicated JORC category at North Stanmore Project
• Gallium confirmed in final MREC product at 358 g/t Ga2O3, defining North Stanmore as one of the most advanced Gallium projects in Australia
• ~6,600m resource definition Aircore (AC) drilling program underway
• China imposed new export controls on key heavy rare earth elements (HREEs) Gadolinium Terbium, Dysprosium, Lutetium & Yttrium and light rare earth element (LREEs) Samarium.
• $751,909 R&D tax offsets received for the 2024 financial year
• Victory remains well funded with $4.68M in cash at 31 March 2025

WRITTEN BY Adam Orlando

Scoping study forecasts $1.2 billion NPV for Victory Metals’ North Stanmore project

Victory Metals (ASX:VTM) has completed a Scoping Study for the North Stanmore Rare Earth Project in Western Australia, which looks poised to be a “long-term, low-cost” supplier of critical minerals.

With a 31-year mine life and 72% of the resource being in the indicated category and 28% in the inferred category, the project has an estimated net present value (NPV) across multiple pricing scenarios including $1.212 billion (post tax) with 52% internal rate of return (IRR) and $1.777 billion (pre-tax) based on Adamas Intelligence downwards forecast.

https://mining.com.au/victory-metals-engaging-advisors-amid-north-stanmore-scoping-study-completion/

Trading halt announced at opening of trade on Friday 7/03. Like all trading halts, this could go either way (n.b. I've no crystal ball or inside info).

But.... the last trading halt in December 24 was to announce an offtake MOU with Sumitomo.

Just saying!!

Quarterly Activities Report – 30 September 2024

Victory Metals (ASX:VTM) (“Victory” or “the Company”) is pleased to report on its activities and the Appendix 5B for the quarter ending 30 September 2024 (“Quarter”, “Reporting Period”).

Highlights:

• Updated Mineral Resource Estimate (“MRE”) of 235Mt at the North Stanmore Heary Rare Earth Elements (“HREE”) Project, of which 149Mt (63%) resides in the indicated category, representing one of the largest Indicated Mineral Resource of Australian HREE-dominant deposits:
• 79,200t contained Indicated MRE Total Rare Earth Oxides (TREO)
• 28,000t contained Indicated MRE Heavy Rare Earth Oxides (HREO) 
• 3,010t contained Indicated MRE Dy₂O₃ + Tb₄O₇.
• Near surface higher-grade domain of 45.9Mt at 1,050ppm TREO, supports a development strategy designed to rapidly deliver new HREE supply to address global demand
• 2006ha Mining Licence application lodged
• 5,000m AC drilling program at North Stanmore has commenced
• Professor Ken Collerson appointed as Non-executive Director of the Company
• $1.5M placement completed and $1M received from the conversion of $0.30 unlisted options
• The Company remains well funded with $4.45M in cash at 30 September 2024

Announcement of a share swap funding arrangement today attributed to an approx 9% fall in the share price today, but allows $VTM to quickly progress to the next critical drilling phase.

GROWING NORTH STANMORE HEAVY REE RESOURCE

Aircore drilling program set to further expand the world-class North Stanmore HREE deposit

Victory Metals Limited (ASX: VTM) (Victory or the Company) is pleased to announce the planned commencement of an expansion drilling program at its North Stanmore Heavy Rare Earth Elements (HREE) Project (North Stanmore Project or North Stanmore) in Western Australia

Key Highlights:

• Approx. 5,000m aircore drill program set to commence in September; focussed on areas of the North Stanmore tenure adjacent to the existing Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) and up to 9km North.
• Drill program target area similar in the scale of the existing North Stanmore MRE.
• Significant MRE growth potential exists, with mineralisation open in all directions and 92% of the North Stanmore tenement area unexplored.
• Two separate RC holes to be drilled approx. 8km south of the North Stanmore MRE, with these targets exhibiting similar magnetic characteristics to the North Stanmore alkaline intrusion.
• North Stanmore Project rapidly advancing (based solely on the large-scale existing MRE), with recent submission of ML application and Scoping Study advancing.
• North Stanmore potentially forms a key part of the global drive to identify new, ethically sourced non-Chinese HREE supply options.
• Binding commitments received for $1.5M equity placement to fund these drilling activities.

To support its upcoming drilling activities and working capital (including costs of the offer), Victory has received binding commitments from professional and sophisticated investors for a Placement to raise $1,500,000 (“Placement”) through the issue of 4,545,455 fully paid ordinary shares at $0.33 per share (“Placement Shares”). The Placement shares are to be issued under the Company’s existing Placement capacity in accordance with ASX listing Rule 7.1.

The issue price of $0.33 per Placement share under the Placement represents an 8% discount to the 15-day VWAP prior to 15 August 2024. This equity injection ensures Victory’s ongoing strong financial position, allowing funding of these expansion drilling activities in parallel with rapid advancement of the North Stanmore Project.