Almonty's Tungsten Pivot: A Billion-Dollar War Chest Meets Its Korean Moment

Almonty's cash jumps 5x, revenue up 498% as Sangdong mine enters commercial operation, boosting Western tungsten supply.

The tungsten market has a new heavyweight with a fully funded growth story. Almonty Industries closed the week at $15.09 on the Nasdaq, up 8.9 percent on Friday, after the company confirmed that its Sangdong mine in South Korea has shifted from construction to commercial operation. The move caps a remarkable transformation that has seen the miner's cash position swell nearly fivefold in eight months.

From Developer to Producer

The numbers tell the story of a company that has crossed a critical threshold. At the end of June, Almonty held 1.23 billion Canadian dollars in cash, a dramatic leap from the 268.4 million recorded just eight months earlier. The catalyst was an oversubscribed $800 million convertible bond offering carrying a 2.25 percent coupon and maturing in 2031.

Diamond Equity Research analysts updated their assessment on August 14, concluding that Almonty has successfully transitioned from a development-stage risk profile to operational execution. That verdict is backed by second-quarter figures that show revenue climbing to 43.0 million Canadian dollars — a 498 percent surge from the 7.2 million posted in the same period last year. The bottom line swung from a net loss of 58.2 million to a net profit of 181.8 million, while adjusted EBITDA reached 17.6 million, an improvement of more than 22 million.

The Price Driver

The engine behind these numbers is the price of tungsten itself. The average European APT price hit roughly $3,075 per metric tonne unit in the second quarter, compared with just $453 a year earlier. That sixfold-plus jump has rippled through every line of the income statement.

The company's processing plant in Sangdong ran at full throughput for the first time in July 2026, according to management. Initial feed came from a stockpile of roughly 139,700 tonnes of run-of-mine ore grading about 0.25 percent tungsten trioxide (WO?), supplemented by 19,700 tonnes of development ore with a richer 0.35 percent WO? content mined before the production start. The ramp-up was enabled in part by the full drawdown of a $75.1 million project loan from KfW IPEX-Bank.

A Western Supply Chain Takes Shape

The operational milestone lands amid intensifying geopolitical pressure on critical mineral supply chains. Industry reports and management commentary point to a tightening of US procurement rules for defense goods, with a so-called "tungsten loophole" for Chinese materials slated for complete closure by early 2027. As a tungsten producer operating outside China, Almonty finds itself squarely in the crosshairs of investor attention.

The company has been repositioning itself accordingly. In April, it moved its headquarters from Toronto to Dillon, Montana, and the strategic pivot toward US capital markets and defense supply chains has accelerated since. Almonty voluntarily delisted from the Toronto Stock Exchange on July 31, with its Australian listing winding down as well — trading in CHESS Depositary Interests ceases at the close of business on August 28, followed by final delisting on September 1. The restructuring also brought a change in the finance leadership: Jorge Beristain, CFA, took over as chief financial officer on June 1, succeeding Brian Fox.

The US relocation follows Almonty's inclusion in the Russell 1000 and Russell 3000 indices this summer, and the company has locked in offtake arrangements that see 45 percent of concentrate production reserved for export to the United States, with the remainder destined for the South Korean domestic market.

What to Watch Next

Friday's trading saw the stock swing between $14.00 and $15.47 on significantly elevated volume, with the 52-week range spanning $3.97 to $24.41. The $15.50 level is likely to draw close attention from traders in the coming sessions.

For the week ahead, the focus shifts to the production ramp-up at Sangdong. Phase I is targeting an annual capacity of 640,000 tonnes of ore, and management expects the initially lower grades from stockpiled material to serve as a calibration phase for the processing plant. As development progresses along the main vein, ore grades should improve. The central question for shareholders is whether the exceptional margins can hold in a tungsten market that remains volatile — and whether Almonty can sustain the momentum that has carried it from a development-stage venture to a cash-rich producer in a matter of months.