NickelX chasing yellowcake with a fresh coat of paint and cash in the bank

Meet ‘Strata Minerals’, the diversified explorer almost formerly known as NKL, which has engineered a strategic pivot.

It’s fresh cash and Canadian Yellow Cake for NickelX/Strata Minerals, as Uranium, REE and Gold top list in strategic pivot. Pic: Getty Images

• NickelX has proposed to its shareholders to change its name to Strata Minerals

• Company management says the name change reflects a refreshed focus

• NickelX is now focused on uranium, rare earths and gold

Special Report: Meet ‘Strata Minerals’, the diversified explorer almost formerly known as NickelX, which has engineered a strategic pivot into the booming uranium market.

While the name change isn’t yet official, the tactical shift at NickelX (ASX:NKL) is.

The diversified Aussie explorer with assets around the world is raising capital to drive its variety of uranium, REE and gold interests, and the new name is the icing on the yellowcake of its transformation.

NickelX newly appointed managing director Peter Woods told the ASX on Wednesday the company has already received firm commitments for $2 million in working capital via an equity placement of 100 million new fully-paid shares at an issue price of $0.02 per share to sophisticated, professional and institutional investors.

This represents a 16.6% discount to the last traded price of $0.024 and a 13% discount to the Company’s 15-day VWAP of $0.023.

Woods says the strong demand was a clear endorsement of management’s strategic pivot.

“I’d like to thank current NickelX shareholders for their continued support and we welcome our new shareholders as we reposition the Company’s strategy to growth and focus on delivering shareholder value”, the NickelX/Strata Minerals boss said.

“The focus now is on extracting value from the company’s current uranium, rare earth and gold prospects, while assessing other value adding opportunities.”

Going nuclear in Ontario

Peter says the team’s priority is to drive ongoing exploration at the company’s highly prospective Elliot Lake uranium project in the Canadian territory of Ontario.

This is where the first capital outlay will go.

NickelX/Strata Minerals has already expanded the scale of its massive uranium stake in Ontario, where 13 underground mines at the historic Elliot Lake site – last active in 1996 – produced 362Mlb of U3O8.

In March, the company snapped up the 11 multi-cell claims – known as the Blind River Block – which covers an additional 51km2 of highly-prospective ground at Elliot Lake.

Even prior to the acquisition of Blind River Block, NKL’s reach across the region spanned 129km2 encompassing the Kilpatrick, Inspiration, Quirke West and Whiskey claim blocks within the Elliot Lake district.

Woods says the company is also undertaking a complete strategic review of its current exploration portfolio together with an assessment of new opportunities and prospects.

Capital Raising

NKL says the capital raise will be completed via the issue of 100,000,000 new fully paid ordinary shares via a two-tranche placement.

The Company will utilise its existing placement capacity for the issue of a total of 14,453,790 shares in Tranche 1, with the balance of 85,546,210 shares to be issued under a second Tranche subject to shareholder approval at a meeting anticipated to be held in late August.

Directors of the Company have committed to invest $80,000 as part of Tranche 2 of the Placement subject to shareholder approval.

The Placement issue price of A$0.02 per share represents a 16.6% discount to the last traded price of $0.024 and a 13.0% discount to the Company’s 15-day VWAP of $0.023.

The Company expects the Tranche 1 Placement Shares to be issued on Wednesday, 24 July 2024.

The Placement Shares will rank equally with the existing fully paid ordinary shares on issue.

Meet Strata Minerals

The proposed name-change to Strata Minerals, the company says, reflects its new focus.

The fact that global markets have been flooded with an alternative low-cost nickel supply out of Indonesia is surely a factor.

Last week, mining giant BHP announced the ‘temporary suspension’ of operations at both its WA-based Nickel West operations and West Musgrave project from October with the transition period starting immediately, with a review of the decision only planned in February 2027.

It believes the electrification of transport will likely throw the market into deficit from 2028 on and into the 2030s, a period when untapped nickel prospects, potentially like those held by NickelX/Strata, will likely be highly attractive to majors and operators looking for new sources of the battery metal.

But the Strata reinvention will help train eyes on the junior’s more immediate opportunities in uranium, gold and rare earths. Notably, uranium prices doubled last year with contracts being drawn up by utilities at decade-long highs, at a time when other commodities were going backwards.

Gold prices also hit an all-time high yesterday and one of NickelX/Strata projects is right next door to Anglogold Ashanti-Regis Resources’ Tropicana Gold mine (10Moz Au).

“The Company proposes to change its name, and associated trading symbol on the ASX, from NickelX Limited to Strata Minerals Limited, to align with the new direction of the Company as it focusses on growth and creating value for shareholders,” today’s announcement read.

The proposed name change will be subject to shareholder approval.

This article was developed in collaboration with NickelX, a Stockhead advertiser at the time of publishing.

This article does not constitute financial product advice. You should consider obtaining independent advice before making any financial decisions.