Mining Press Roundup: Glencore and CNGR Contract Centaurus' Jaguar Nickel Output and Back It With Equity

Centaurus Metals has lined up two of the nickel market's more significant buyers for its Jaguar project in Brazil. Glencore and China's CNGR have committed $40 million to the Australian miner and agreed to buy the entire forecast nickel concentrate output from the $380 million Jaguar project for its first five years of operations, MINING.COM reported. For a developer, a fully contracted opening stretch of production, paired with strategic equity, is the kind of foundation lenders look for before a construction decision.

Centaurus Metals: Glencore and CNGR Contract Jaguar Nickel and Take Equity

The Australian miner said Wednesday that Glencore and CNGR will each invest $20 million in Centaurus. Each will also purchase at least 20,000 dry metric tonnes of nickel concentrate annually under separate five-year agreements starting in the first half of 2029, according to MINING.COM. The contracts cover material containing 30% nickel, with an estimated combined net sales value of $900 million at current metal prices. Together with an existing Glencore contract announced in March, the arrangements cover approximately 22,500 tonnes of contained nickel annually during Jaguar's initial five years of production.

"With 100% of Jaguar's forecast output over the first five years now contracted and $40 million of new strategic equity committed, we have significantly advanced both the commercial and funding foundations to develop the project," said Centaurus managing director Darren Gordon. Centaurus said its senior debt financing process is well advanced, and the new equity commitments help it complete the funding package required to authorize construction at Jaguar, in Pará state.

The equity comes with conditions. The investment will be made in two tranches, with Glencore and CNGR initially contributing $12.5 million each. A second payment of $7.5 million from each company depends on shareholder approval and a final investment decision. CNGR's participation also requires Chinese outbound investment approval, with conditions for the second tranche subject to a Jan. 31, 2027 deadline. The companies will receive Centaurus shares priced at A$0.425 apiece, a 5% premium to the 20-day volume-weighted average share price before the agreements were signed. The buyers can terminate if Centaurus fails to ship the first nickel concentrate by the end of 2029.

The deal lands in a Brazilian nickel sector drawing attention. The Brazilian Mining Institute (Ibram) expects nickel projects to attract $4.7 billion between 2026 and 2030, up 24.2% from its previous five-year investment forecast. Separately, MMG Singapore Resources, a subsidiary of Chinese state-owned MMG, is seeking to resolve European Commission objections to its proposed $500-million acquisition of Anglo American's nickel assets in Brazil.

Perpetua Resources: U.S. Army Funds Tungsten Feasibility Work at Stibnite

Perpetua Resources has received a new 36-month, $40 million award through the U.S. Army's Defense Ordnance Technology Consortium (DOTC) from the Portfolio Acquisition Executive Agile Sustainment & Ammunition in Picatinny Arsenal, New Jersey. The award will fund a program to evaluate the technical and economic feasibility of producing tungsten concentrate at its project in the historical Stibnite mining district in Idaho.

The supply backdrop is stark. There has been no commercial tungsten mining in the United States since 2015, and the country is wholly reliant on imports, with recent Chinese export controls and new federal sourcing restrictions adding to the defense and manufacturing supply risk, MINING.COM noted. Perpetua will match the U.S. Army's $40 million contribution, and the initial 18-month phase is expected to cost approximately $18 million, shared equally between Perpetua and the Army. The new award brings total U.S. Government awards to Perpetua for critical minerals to $126 million since 2022.

Drilling at Hangar Flats returned 9.8 meters grading 4.6% tungsten and 8.3% antimony, and 22.9 meters grading 1.2% tungsten and 3.2% antimony. "Historical production and recent exploration results suggest Stibnite has the potential to be one of the world's highest-grade tungsten sources," said Perpetua CEO Jon Cherry. Perpetua stock was up over 9% Tuesday afternoon in Toronto, and the company has a C$3.2 billion ($2.3 billion) market capitalization.

Nova Minerals: Final Alaska Permits Clear the Way for Antimony Phase 1

Nova Minerals announced late Tuesday it has received final approvals from the Alaska Department of Natural Resources for the plan of operations and reclamation plan for its Department of War funded antimony project, completing the project's permitting process. Nova said it secured all required permits within approximately three months of submission and can proceed with Phase 1 of its Alaska antimony development.

Phase 1 is fully funded through $43.4 million in Department of War funding to support domestic production capacity for military-grade antimony trisulfide. The permits cover stibnite mining at the Styx and Stibium prospects, ore sorting and processing at the Whiskey Bravo concentration site within the Estelle project, and downstream processing and refining at Port Mackenzie.

"Securing our final permits is a major milestone for Nova, moving our Alaska antimony project from development planning toward construction and targeted production in 2027," said Nova Minerals CEO Christopher Gerteisen. Nova stock closed up 6.7% Tuesday on the NYSE American, and the company has a $121.4 million market capitalization.

FireFly Metals: New Copper-Gold System Found Near Nugget Pond Mill

FireFly Metals has found a new copper-gold system at Mount Joy near its idle Nugget Pond mill in Newfoundland, adding a potential satellite deposit to its Green Bay development plans. Hole FFR26-071 cut 22.5 metres grading 1.87% copper and 0.64 gram gold per tonne from 109 metres downhole.

A follow-up hole, FFR26-076, cut about 40 metres of semi-massive sulphides between 240 and 280 metres downhole, with assays pending and expected within about four weeks. The caveats are plain: Mount Joy's size and economics have yet to be established, and FireFly has yet to establish how it might fit into its development plans. The company expects to consider a final investment decision around mid-year and targets copper production in 2029.

Iamgold: Drilling at Nelligan and Monster Lake Ahead of Resource Update

Iamgold reported that drill hole NE-26-272 cut 77 metres grading 2.23 grams gold per tonne from 692 metres downhole at Nelligan's zone 36. At Monster Lake, hole ML-26-318 returned 7.3 metres at 49.6 grams gold from 32 metres depth.

Nelligan hosts 122 million indicated tonnes grading 0.95 gram gold for contained metal of 3.7 million ounces of gold, plus 151 million inferred tonnes at 0.96 gram gold for about 4.6 million ounces, as of year-end 2025. Iamgold has expanded Nelligan's 2026 drilling plan to 30,000 metres from 18,000 metres, mostly to improve resource confidence. It is targeting an updated resource estimate for Nelligan within weeks and an exploration update for the complex in the first half of 2027, followed by a preliminary economic assessment.

Western Copper and Gold: CEO Departs as Casino Moves Through Permitting

Western Copper and Gold said CEO Sandeep Singh will leave the company this week, handing leadership to chairman Mark E. Smith as the Casino project advances through Yukon's highest level of environmental assessment.

"Singh's departure will be a surprise to the market," said National Bank Financial mining analyst Rabi Nizami in a note, citing the company's course toward the Panel Review phase of permitting. Rio Tinto owns about 8.5% of Western Copper and Gold, while Japan's Mitsubishi Materials owns a 5% stake.

What It Means

Today's announcements show offtake, government funding and permitting all moving at once. At Centaurus, the contracted output and buyer equity bring Jaguar closer to a construction decision, though the second equity tranche still hinges on shareholder approval, a final investment decision and Chinese regulatory sign-off. In the United States, Perpetua's Army-backed tungsten work and Nova's completed Alaska permits show defense-linked money going to domestic supply of tungsten and antimony.

Market data offers some backdrop. According to Polygon data, the COPX copper miners ETF closed at $76.68 on October 27, up 3.9% on the day, and gold traded at $4,063 an ounce in extended hours, up 1.4% from the prior close. For developers such as FireFly and Iamgold, the next catalysts are assay results, a resource update and, for FireFly, a mid-year investment decision.

This roundup covers press releases published on October 28, 2026. Company announcements are sourced from mining industry wire services. For corrections or updates, contact contact@stakeandpaper.com.