Almonty's Spanish Tailings Deal and Korean Ramp-Up Draw Dueling Analyst Calls

Almonty signed a multi-year take-or-pay deal for Los Santos tailings, drawing a Buy at Stifel and Neutral at Goldman after Sangdong's production start.

A multi-year take-or-pay arrangement covering reprocessed tailings at Almonty Industries' Los Santos mine in Spain has added a fresh revenue line to a company already riding the ramp-up of its flagship Korean tungsten operation — and Wall Street has responded with sharply divided verdicts.

Signed on 17 September with Wolfram Bergbau und Hütten AG, a subsidiary of the Sandvik group, the contract obliges the buyer to take at least roughly 1,720 tonnes of contained tungsten trioxide recovered from the Spanish tailings. A conditional lump-sum payment of USD 3.0 million accompanies the transfer of the offtake rights. For Almonty, the deal converts an existing stockpile into contracted, predictable income stretching across several years.

That predictability matters in a tungsten market where sources outside China remain scarce. Fixed delivery commitments cushion price swings and give the producer visibility into future fiscal years — a point that has not been lost on either bulls or bears covering the stock.

Two Banks, Two Very Different Targets

Stifel kicked off coverage with a Buy rating and a USD 25.00 price target, a call that Reuters reported lent support to the shares in pre-market trading. Goldman Sachs had moved a day earlier, taking a more restrained stance with a Neutral rating and a USD 13.00 target.

The gap between the two targets — nearly double — captures the broader debate over how quickly the Western tungsten supply chain can scale. Optimists point to the growing strategic value of non-Chinese sourcing; skeptics factor in the customary execution risks of mine development.

The market sided with the bulls on Friday. The stock climbed 11% to close at EUR 12.09, lifting its year-to-date gain to 52%. Participants attributed the move to the analyst initiation and to tangible progress on the tungsten supply front.

Sangdong Enters Commercial Production

Those operational milestones are arriving in quick succession. Just over a week ago, Almonty began commercial tungsten production at its Sangdong mine in South Korea, following the authorities' issuance of final operating permits for the processing facilities. More than 90% of Phase I output is locked into a 21-year offtake agreement running from first delivery.

Since that production start, the share price has slipped 1.7% — a modest pullback that does little to alter the larger trajectory. Management is pairing long-term contracts with major buyers alongside strategic stakes in new mining jurisdictions.

Rwanda Adds a Third Continent

Africa is the latest piece of that geographic expansion. Under a binding agreement, Almonty holds 75% of Almonty Rwanda, while the Rwandan government took a 25% stake in exchange for contributing the Shyorongi exploration concession and a mineral processing licence.

Taken together — Korean ore, Spanish tailings and Rwandan exploration — the company is assembling a supply network that spans three continents, precisely the kind of diversification that has drawn both enthusiastic and cautious coverage from the analyst community.