Almonty Appoints Former Deutsche Bank Analyst as CFO Following Record Q1 Revenue

Almonty Industries appoints Jorge Beristain as CFO, posts 221% revenue jump to $25.4M in Q1, advances Sangdong mine expansion amid US tungsten push.

Almonty Industries is doubling down on its strategy to become a leading non-Chinese tungsten supplier, announcing a top-level finance hire just as it posts a record quarter. Jorge Beristain will step in as chief financial officer on June 1, 2026, taking over from Brian Fox, who has already left the company. Until Beristain arrives, development chief Guillaume de Lamaziere will serve as interim CFO.

Beristain arrives with deep ties to both Wall Street and the metals and mining sector. Most recently he served as Vice President of Finance at NYSE-listed Ryerson Holding Corp, a metals service provider with roughly US$5 billion in annual revenue, where he helped double the company’s market capitalisation. Prior to that, he spent years on the sell side as a managing director and head of Americas Metals & Mining Equity Research at Deutsche Bank Securities. His appointment signals Almonty’s intent to strengthen its financial structure as it gears up for the next phase of expansion.

The timing of the leadership change coincides with a sharp turnaround in the company’s finances. For the first quarter of 2026, Almonty reported a 221% jump in revenue to US$25.4 million, driven by higher spot prices for tungsten APT and strong output from its Panasqueira mine in Portugal. Operating cash flow swung from negative US$4.4 million a year earlier to positive US$9.7 million. Adjusted EBITDA came in at US$6.1 million. A net loss of US$5.3 million was recorded, but that was entirely due to non-cash revaluation losses on warrants — a bookkeeping quirk caused by the sharp rise in the share price. The stock has surged 733% over the past twelve months and now trades at roughly C$30.27, just shy of its 52-week high. Year to date, the gain stands at about 152%.

Much of the investor enthusiasm centres on the Sangdong mine in South Korea, which began commercial operations this March. Phase 1 is already processing around 640,000 tonnes of ore annually. A Phase 2 expansion is slated for completion in 2027, which would double capacity to roughly 1.2 million tonnes per year. Almonty also plans to build a tungsten oxide plant on site and has an adjacent molybdenum deposit, forming what the company calls the “Korean Trinity” — a fully integrated supply chain for strategic minerals.

The geopolitical backdrop provides added urgency. The United States has not produced tungsten since 2015, despite classifying it as a critical mineral. Proposed procurement rules would bar tungsten sourced from China, Russia and North Korea from defence contracts starting in 2027. To position itself closer to US agencies, Almonty moved its corporate headquarters from Toronto to Dillon, Montana shortly after the quarter ended — a location that also puts it nearer to its Gentung project.

CEO Lewis Black spent this week on a North American conference circuit pressing that message. On Tuesday he presented at the BofA Securities Global Metals, Mining & Steel Conference in Miami. Wednesday he delivers a keynote at the Critical Minerals Forum in Toronto titled “No Team, no Tungsten, no Time: Mining’s Human Capital Crisis.” In a bid to keep retail investors engaged, Black is also offering a trip to the Sangdong mine as a prize.

The next big question is whether Beristain can lock in the financing needed for Phase 2 before the ground breaks in 2027. Given the string of strong operational signals and improving cash flow, the new CFO will have a solid foundation to build on.