A.I.S. Resources’ mining projects to help meet demand for key metals

A.I.S Resources’ mining projects position the company well to help meet the soaring demand for gold and lithium. The global energy transition to renewable power and electric vehicles (EVs) is triggering a massive surge in demand for strategic battery metals, especially lithium. According to a recent report from the International Energy Agency (IEA), demand for lithium is expected to grow 40-fold by 2040, making it an essential commodity for companies like A.I.S. Resources.

Ending the lithium shortage: AIS is poised to help skyrocket global battery supply

AIS Resources is on the verge of a massive royalty income stream as its partners develop six projects in Argentina’s Lithium Triangle that could flip the global lithium battery shortage on its head. Consumers and businesses are frustrated over the well-publicised lithium shortage that has curbed the production of electric vehicles (EVs), computer processors, and countless other products. But China’s potential invasion of Taiwan is not playing a role: lithium is the centrepiece of rechargeable energy, which has become the focal point of global commerce, and there simply is not enough of it being produced. The primary cause of this crisis is the absence of lithium – the most important resource in the challenge to electrify the world’s power sources.

AIS Resources Holds February Conference Call to Update Investors

AIS Resources’ Phil Thomas and Martyn Element provide an update about the company’s new advanced gold project acquisitions and the current exploration actvities and future plans. This is a region that has been referred to as ‘Elephant Territory’ because of the numerous gold mines discovered and located there.

A.I.S. Resources Exploring Australia – Mineral Opportunities Abound Down Under

Resource World – Since the mid-1800s, Australia’s mining industry has grown to the point where, together, mining and the mining equipment, technology and services sector account for approximately 15% of Australia’s gross domestic product and support (directly and indirectly) 1.1 million jobs – around 10% of Australia’s total workforce, according to the Minerals Council of Australia.

A.I.S. Resources Chairman Martyn Element: Manganese to Emerge Among Battery Metals

– February 19th, 2020A.I.S. Resources CEO Martyn Element

A.I.S. Resources Chairman Martyn Element joined INN at to discuss his company’s progress in the manganese market, the future of electric vehicles and the dominant trends that are most likely to shape the resource industry moving forward.

A.I.S. Resources (TSXV:AIS,OTCQB:AISSF) Chairman Martyn Element joined the Investing News Network at the Vancouver Resource Investment Conference to discuss his company’s progress in the manganese market, the future of the electric vehicle market and the dominant trends that are most likely to shape the resource industry moving forward.

A.I.S. Resources recently completed sourcing and shipping an order of manganese to send to a client in China. The 292 dry metric tons of manganese were assayed at 53.66 percent by the purchaser following shipment.

According to Element, the move towards electric vehicles has created significant demand for manganese, lithium, copper and other metals commonly used in rechargeable batteries and the vehicles themselves. Despite the potential in similar industries, Element maintains that A.I.S. Resources is focused on the manganese industry. However, there is potential for a new company to be created by A.I.S. as an investment issuer moving forward.

Below is a transcript of our interview with A.I.S. Resources Chairman Martyn Element. It has been edited for clarity and brevity.

Investing News Network: What is the name of your company, what is its symbol, where would we find you and which market?

A.I.S. Resources Chairman Martyn Element: We are on the TSXV and have been around since 1968. We’ve never been consolidated and never been rolled back. The company is an investment issuer, A.I.S. Resources, and our symbol is AIS.

INN: And you’ve been around for a little while.

ME: I’ve personally been around for a little while; I was a broker in the early 1980s in corporate finance. I finished up with a local firm here as Director of Corporate Finance for Pacific International. I had a client that was beginning to take a lot of my time so I went full-time with the client and that was called Clearly Canadian. I found them their first money and I found all the money for Clearly Canadian, which, of course, went from 50 cents to C$31 a share. So I left Pacific International and went on my own in corporate advisory and corporate finance.

INN: For those who don’t know what manganese is, why is this an important element as we move into the green sector?

ME: It’s not a well-followed metal, but it’s beginning to be now as it’s starting to come into vogue. There’s quite an accomplished fellow who is a director over at Canaccord — he has a deal called Euro Manganese that he’s going to be producing from a tailing situation just outside Prague, and he’s going to be producing manganese in 2024. He’s capped at about C$30 million I think, so it’s significant money he’s got. He’s single-handedly putting manganese a little bit more on the map. Manganese is used as a strengthener in steel traditionally, but it’s now beginning to be used more in futuristic car batteries. Manganese and cobalt are two of the metals that are being integrated into these longer extended batteries.

Manganese is starting to get the spotlight and cobalt is beginning to get the spotlight as well. We looked at the lithium market and lithium had quite a significant correction. With all these new cars coming out, I’m sure we’ll be seeing a lot more lithium in the future. However, we looked at manganese and we decided that we didn’t want to mine it, we didn’t want to get involved in that, but we saw an opportunity to start getting involved in the trading of manganese. So we shipped our first manganese as a company about two months ago now, and we are expecting to have news of that shipment soon. There’s a learning curve, but it was a small amount relatively speaking. We shipped 400 tonnes of product which is still 21 or 22 containers, so it was a lot of work but we got it done and we hope to be in a position to announce that shortly. We’ve now discovered that in this marketplace to be a meaningful player will require a minimum of 5,000 tonnes.

In the last three weeks, we’ve written up two contracts for 5,000 tonnes. One was with a very large company, a $9 billion corporation called Erdos out of China. Another was with a company that we haven’t announced yet, so we’re awaiting clarification on that. Then just in the last three or four days, we’ve written a contract up for 50,000 tonnes.

Peru is not the country for that sort of quantity. So we’ve now gone further afield and we’re now sourcing in Zambia and indirectly into Tanzania and Brazil with larger amounts because for those sorts of quantities you’ve got to be able to have the supply. My CEO is a very accomplished fellow, he’s a mineral adviser in Australia, he’s one of 12 men in Australia considered in such high esteem, so he’s very qualified in all metals. He’s doing a lot of the sourcing and we are going to be the agent on these trades. To give you an idea about the money involved, on a 5,000-tonne order, our revenue at the end of the day would be just over US$1,000,000, so there’s a lot of money at stake here.

We’re all very excited about what we’re doing. We’re getting a reputation, we’re new guys, but we’re not without a resource and we’re not without players in the world and they are looking. One of the reasons there’s been a delay with our shipment is that the price of manganese went down and now it’s coming right back to where it was six months or nine months ago, which is more than holding its price, so it’s a nice place to be.

INN: Do you foresee demand for more battery power?

ME: That’s coming. People like Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) and these big companies are starting to get a little nervous. They’re forward buying products like manganese and lithium of course because they don’t want to get caught. When the wave comes, it’s going to be bigger than anybody would ever estimate.

INN: You touched on lithium as one of the commodities that you’re still in. Where is your lithium project at?

ME: We went into Argentina and we drilled three properties. We hit lithium on all three, but we didn’t get the parts per million. So, we didn’t get it. Millennial Lithium (TSXV:ML,OTCQX:MLNLF) did. They drilled less than 30 kilometers from one of our wells and they hit but we didn’t; it was a mother nature situation.

Now they’ve just recently changed the government again in Argentina and things are getting out of control a little bit there with inflation, the new president and a lot of the business philosophy. So, we’ve kept some key personnel in Argentina and we’re closely monitoring the situation. We’re not walking away, we’re just keeping it close. So we’re keeping our hand in but we’re not going after anything at the moment in the lithium field, we’re focusing on manganese.

INN: What are your connections like in Asia? Who do you have as a representative that’s out helping to tell your story in those complex marketplaces?

ME: The people we met in Montreal are employed close to the Chinese government and they have been incredible. We have two ladies working for us who have been successfully sourcing supply for us. I have a very close personal relationship with a very famous racing car driver, Emerson Fittipaldi from Brazil. He has told me that he’s very keen once we have a track record of success. He’s been working in China with the two biggest car manufacturers in China and the largest car manufacturer in Korea, which is KIA (KRX:000270). He said, “Martyn, when the time comes, I will take you and we will go together to meet the guys that run these plants but we have to have the success of a few things.”

So I have a few options through him. I’m going to put an advisory board together in the coming months along with some fund manager friends of mine out of Australia. We’ll have Emerson, of course, heading up the advisory board as well and I think it’s all going to come together really nicely.

INN: How important do you see manganese being in the future development of automotive batteries?

ME: Mercedes Benz is buying forward, buying lithium and other metals as we speak and they have to because the world is waiting for the explosion of cars. They’re coming on now fast and furious, with the Volkswagen (OTC Pink:VLKAF,FWB:VOW) Golf, even Volvo is going 100 percent electric by 2025. I’ve driven an electric car now for three or four years and I absolutely love it. My last car was an exotic; I had an Aston Martin DB9 Volante and it was a beautiful car. But then it was just too fast and I didn’t need it, so I’ve got an electric vehicle, a Nissan (OTC Pink:NSANY,TSE:7201) Leaf, and I love that car. Now I’m looking at the Jag, the new SUV electric that they have.

INN: Right. You’re connected to other markets as well aren’t you?

ME: Yes, yes. Well, all markets. We’re covering a lot of different things with gold through our endeavors in Peru. After two or three months, a group brought us a really nice gold property that is producing gold from two veins. Philip Thomas, a certified Mineral Valuer and Geo Scientist with the Australian Institute of Mineral Valuers and Appraisers, went out and had a close look at the property and he thinks there’s potential there for the swarming of veins that could reveal 12 to 18 veins, but it needs a little bit of money spent on it. We’ll earn our way up to 50 percent on a cash-flowing small gold mine.

There’s a county in the world that has changed all its mining laws and we’ve been working closely with some representatives there on very, very big projects in the gold world. But I don’t want to confuse investors. We have geared towards manganese. If we do something in a big way in gold, we won’t do it directly. Because of the way A.I.S. is structured, we can put an umbrella over a big deal coming in and we can vend it out quite successfully. Then you take the shareholders from A.I.S. and they get a piece of the action as we give birth to another company.

INN: OK, for somebody at home watching right now. What is my investment opportunity with you at the moment?

ME: You’ve got a company that’s capped at C$3.5 million, which of course is nothing these days. The major shareholders in A.I.S. are very big players because of my reputation and where I’ve been and they’re all staying in there, hanging in at five cents. So I think as we close on some of these bigger manganese transactions, the stock is just going to go up, very substantially and very quickly. It’s an opportunity to put some investment into the current situation and be ready for significant developments very, very shortly.

We’ve got the infrastructure, we’ve got the players and we’ve got the pedigree with me and my successes. I’m watching the market and I’m thinking you can’t ignore gold right now. I’ve got a lot of people who’ve said to me, “Look, if you do something, we’ll do something significant with you as well.” So, I’m very confident. As I’ve stressed, we will be managing, we won’t be mining, we’ll be creating another company within A.I.S. as an investment issuer.

INN: Wonderful, thank you very much.

ME: Thank you for a great interview. Thank you.

A.I.S. Resources: A New Gold Prospect + Manganese Trading + Li Extraction Technology

Peter EpsteinStreetWise Reports – Contributed Opinion

Source: Peter Epstein for Streetwise Reports  (12/11/19)
Peter Epstein of Epstein Research profiles a company that is reinventing itself as moderately diversified battery metals company.

Manganese

In the midst of tax loss selling across many sectors—not just battery metals (lithium, cobalt, manganese, vanadium, etc.) but cannabis/hemp segments as well (and most other metals/mining/mineral sectors)A.I.S. Resources Ltd. (AIS:TSX.V; AISSF:OTSQB) recently announced good news. Is the market ignoring ongoing positive developments at the company?

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Management has successfully arranged for the supply of up to 30k tonnes/month of high-grade (48%–52%) Manganese (Mn) to China and is embarking on a trial shipment of 5–10k tonnes. Reaching this significant tonnage (which is not a sure thing) has been a consistent goal since April/May. If A.I.S. achieves 20k–30k tonnes/month, it would be an excellent outcome, assuming it can consistently deliver in that range.

Management has arranged the Mn sourcing with two African suppliers, and is negotiating a supply agreement with giant, multi-billion dollar Erdos Group, one of the world’s largest buyers of Mn. A.I.S. has issued a term sheet for a trial shipment of 5–10k tonnes, expected in January. The fact that Erdos is willing to work with A.I.S. is an impressive vote of confidence in the management team.

The trial shipment will reportedly gross ~US$2 million, subject to a final delivered grade of ~50% Mn. A.I.S. will be responsible for all logistics, including quality control, assays, shipping and related activities.

Additional suppliers from Brazil and Panama, among other places, have approached management about selling ore into A.I.S.’ trading strategy. Negotiations are underway. Importantly, detailed discussions are being held with trade and project financiers from London, Dubai and Canada to facilitate payments for the purchase and shipment of Mn ore to China. Although a risk factor, management believes that obtaining trade financing will not be problem.

This news comes on the heels of another positive development, but one that failed to capture investor’s need for instant gratification. On October 24th, management locked down an option to acquire an initial 51% interest in a gold mine in northern Peru. The mine is currently producing small quantities of gold.

After completing due diligence and determining the extent and concentration of gold mineralization, A.I.S. will contribute US$500k worth of equipment and technical expertise to increase mine productivity. Low-cost due diligence efforts will focus on drilling, soil sampling, mapping and design of a process circuit. The target is 8–10 vein systems with up to 5,000 tonnes of ore in each, grading 10g/t Au or better.

Investors have questions about this new gold project: How long will it take to do proper due diligence? Will A.I.S. need to raise additional equity capital? Company-wide funding is a concern; management needs to come up with trade finance for Mn trading, cash or a gold loan for the new gold project, and US$1 million for a 15% investment in a private lithium extraction technology company.

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Readers may recall that on October 8th, A.I.S. signed an option agreement with Ekos Research, requiring an investment of US$1 million, for a 15% stake in a breakthrough lithium solvent extraction process that produces lithium chloride with 99.2% purity, but more importantly can manage high-magnesium bearing brines found in salars in Argentina like Rincón and Salinas Grandes.

Rapid lithium extraction (without solar evaporation ponds), with high recoveries and purity levels, and a strong environmental profile, is the holy grail. There are dozens of technologies in the works, but none (that I’m aware of) are operating at full commercial scale anywhere in the world.

Management gave me an example of a 20,000 tonne per year lithium carbonate plant that could reduce its cap-ex from $560 million to $210 million by using this new technology. With no evaporation ponds, the process can easily be turned on and off, and there’s no ground water issues.

How far will US$1 million take this emerging technology? While I have respect for the A.I.S. technical team being able to expertly evaluate a promising lithium extraction technology, it could take years to reach meaningful cash flow (net to the company’s 15% interest).

Ekosolve is building a semi-commercial scale demonstration plant for under US$1 million, so the cash contributed by A.I.S will go directly into this demonstration plant with a nine-month build. I’m told there is at least one producer having their brines tested now.

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Is management spreading themselves too thin? The company is now reportedly pursuing three projects at once; lithium technology, manganese trading and a gold joint venture, spanning several countries (Peru, Australia, Tanzania, China). Management doesn’t think so, and they’re only actively spending on Mn trading at the moment. Gold project due diligence costs are said to be minimal.

CEO Phil Thomas has more than 17 years’ experience in lithium technologies being highly qualified in geochemistry especially lithium, worked for more than 15 years in trading ores and has explored and operated five gold mines, with eight staff in Peru and two in China. Phil is based in Australia.

Yes, the shares of A.I.S. Resources remain highly speculative, but the upside potential is bigger than ever before. Can a company with a $3.8 million market cap (83.4 million shares at $0.045) move its Mn project forward over the next 3, 6, 12 months without massive equity dilution?

I like the diversification here, Mn, Au (gold) + a Li extraction technology. Management saw the decline in lithium prices and prudently dropped their Guayatayoc lithium project. Consider the difference in pricing of lithium (down a lot) and gold (up moderately). A year ago, A.I.S. was solely an Argentina lithium brine play. If management had not branched out into other sectors, the company would be dead in the water like many others in South America’s Lithium Triangle.

If all goes according to plan, which is rarely the case for somewhat complex logistical operations, A.I.S. has the opportunity to become cash flow positive within six months. I think it’s great that cash flow from Mn trading could be deployed into a gold project rather than a lithium brine story in Argentina.

Although the avoidance of further equity dilution is very important to the management team, readers should probably assume some equity issuance as a necessary evil. A.I.S. should be able to get by with a modest raise before reaching cash flow break even next year. There’s reason to expect only minimal equity dilution because management believes it can secure trade/working capital financing. The announcement of non-dilutive financing working cap would be a tremendous de-risking event.

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Bottom line, A.I.S. Resources (TSX-V – AIS, OTCQB: AISSF) is worth a lot more than $3.8 million if it can reach 20k–30k tonnes/month of Mn trading. Management has a number of boxes checked in this endeavor, but there are more boxes to tick.

Working with Erdos and sending them a sizable (trial) bulk shipment is great news, but timing is everything. A three-month delay in reaching 20k–30k tonnes/month could make a big difference in the number of shares outstanding.

However, to reiterate, if all goes reasonably as planned, there’s substantial upside from the current $3.8 million valuation.

Peter Epstein is the founder of Epstein Research. His background is in company and financial analysis. He holds an MBA degree in financial analysis from New York University’s Stern School of Business.

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Disclosures: The content of this article is for information only. Readers fully understand and agree that nothing contained herein, written by Peter Epstein of Epstein Research [ER], (together, [ER]) about A.I.S. Resources, including but not limited to, commentary, opinions, views, assumptions, reported facts, calculations, etc. is not to be considered implicit or explicit investment advice. Nothing contained herein is a recommendation or solicitation to buy or sell any security. [ER] is not responsible under any circumstances for investment actions taken by the reader. [ER] has never been, and is not currently, a registered or licensed financial advisor or broker/dealer, investment advisor, stockbroker, trader, money manager, compliance or legal officer, and does not perform market making activities. [ER] is not directly employed by any company, group, organization, party or person. The shares of A.I.S. Resources are highly speculative, not suitable for all investors. It is assumed and agreed upon by readers that they will consult with their own licensed or registered financial advisors before making any investment decisions.

At the time this article was posted, Peter Epstein owned no shares of A.I.S. Resources and the Company was an advertiser on [ER].

Readers understand and agree that they must conduct their own due diligence above and beyond reading this article. While the author believes he’s diligent in screening out companies that, for any reasons, are unattractive investment opportunities, he cannot guarantee that his efforts will (or have been) successful. [ER] is not responsible for any perceived, or actual, errors including, but not limited to, commentary, opinions, views, assumptions, reported facts, financial calculations, etc., or for the completeness of this interview or future content. [ER] is not expected or required to subsequently follow or cover events & news, or write about any particular company. [ER] is not an expert in any company, industry sector or investment topic.

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A.I.S. Resources Delivers 150 Tonnes High-Grade Manganese Ore in Six Containers to Dockside – for Export to China

Vancouver, British Columbia – A.I.S. Resources Limited (TSX: AIS, OTCQB: AISSF) (the “Company” or “AIS”) announced today that the Company’s initial trial shipment of 150 tonnes manganese ore has arrived at Lima, Peru and has been loaded into six containers. AIS provides the following update:

 Highlights of the Manganese Ore initial shipment include:

  • 150 tonnes of high-grade fines manganese ore has been loaded into six containers to be shipped the week of July 28, 2019.
  • 350 additional tonnes has been bagged at the mine site in preparation for shipping.  
  • Centamin analysis of the 150 tonnes showed an average assay of 49.4% Mn, Fe 0.95%, SiO2 2.4% which is an excellent specification.
  • Manganese Ore has recently sold in the range $233- $250 USD per tonne for 44% Mn content ($5.30-$5.70 USD per percentage Mn)

Short-term target of 10,000 tonnes Manganese Ore per month:
After this initial cargo of 6 containers per week for three weeks, AIS will follow with 40 containers totaling 1,000 tonnes every two weeks from the San Jorge mine. As mining progresses at other locations this will be increased to our short-term target of 10,000 tonnes per month. 

  • AIS is also negotiating additional sales agreements for high-grade fines manganese products with several purchasers who will be receiving the trial shipments.
  • Our Peruvian geologist and General Manager are currently visiting three other mines in the Cajamarca area with the objective of adding lump manganese to the AIS product line.

Figure 1 – the first six containers at dock side, each with 25 tonnes of manganese loaded as part of the first 150 tonnes being shipped the week of July 28, 2019.

Figure 2 – trucks being loaded with manganese ore in bags.

Figure 3 – bagged manganese ore being unloaded from trucks and loaded into containers at the dock.

AIS Resources President and CEO, Phillip Thomas stated, “I am delighted we have completed loading the first six containers, and will be shipping manganese ore the week of 28th July 2019.  We are elated at the grade of the Manganese fines ore our supplier has been able to produce.”

About A.I.S. Resources
A.I.S. Resources Ltd. is a TSX-V listed investment issuer, is managed by experienced, highly qualified professionals who have a long track record of success in lithium and manganese trading, exploration, production and capital markets. Through their extensive business and mining networks, they identify and develop projects worldwide that have strong potential for growth with the objective of providing significant returns for shareholders. The Company’s current activities are focused on the mining and trading of manganese ores in Peru, and exploration and development of lithium brine projects in northern Argentina.

 

A.I.S. Up 42% on Manganese Shipping Update

A.I.S. Resources Ltd. [AIS-TSXV; AISSF-OTCQB] shares rallied strongly Tuesday July 23 after the company released an update on its manganese shipping plans. It said 150 tonnes of manganese ore from a deposit in Peru is ready for shipping to China. The Vancouver-based company said the manganese ore has arrived in Lima, Peru, and has been loaded into six containers, ready for shipping. The company also said 350 additional tonnes has been bagged at the deposit site in Peru in preparation for shipping.A.I.S. shares jumped on the news, rising 41.7% or $0.025 to 8.5 cents on active volume of 1.38 million.  The shares are trading in a 52-week range of $0.04 and 20 cents.

Preparing manganese ore in Peru for shipping overseas. Source A.I.S. Resources Ltd.

Tuesday’s announcement comes after A.I.S. recently said it had commenced manganese trading operations in Peru. In a June 20, 2019 press release, the company said a contract had been signed with a miner and a deposit paid to buy 2,000 tonnes of manganese ore with samples from the mined ore averaging 45% MnO (manganese oxide). At that time, the company said it was finalizing buyer contracts in China.

A.I.S. is aiming to be a low-cost producer of battery materials. Its focus is on lithium and manganese.

Manganese is a key ingredient used in the production of steel, aluminum and battery elements. Currently, steel production accounts for 85% to 90% of manganese consumption. The second largest use of manganese is creating an alloy with aluminum to produce a metal that is more resistant to corrosion. Most aluminum beverage cans contain about 0.8% to 1.5% manganese.

A.I.S. said manganese ore has recently been selling for US$233 to US$250 per tonne.

The company has said its near-term objective is to sell up to 10,000 tonnes of manganese ore per month by trading from small producers. Production will come from two Peruvian manganese deposits, the company said.

After this initial cargo of six containers per week for three weeks, A.I.S. said it will follow with 40 containers totaling 1,000 tonnes every week from the San Jorge deposit. “As mining progresses at other locations, this will be increased to our short-term target of 10,000 tonnes per month,” the company said.

Meanwhile, A.I.S. said it is also negotiating additional sales agreements for high-grade fines manganese products with several purchasers who will be receiving the trial shipments.

“Our Peruvian geologist and general manager are currently visiting three other mines in the Cajamarca area in Peru with the objective of adding lump manganese to the A.I.S. product line,” the company said.

“I am delighted we have completed loading the first six containers, and will be shipping manganese ore the week of July 28, 2019,” said A.I.S. President and CEO Phillip Thomas. “We are elated at the grade of the manganese fines ore our supplier has been able to produce,” he said.

Centamin analysis of the 150 tonnes showed an average assay of 49.4% Mn, Fe (iron) 0.95%, SiO2 (silicon dioxide) 2.4%, which is an excellent specification, the company said in a press release.

Aside from its manganese interests, A.I.S. said it is developing two significant lithium projects, covering 5,225 hectares in Argentina’s lithium triangle.

MGX Minerals Completes TDEM Geophysical Survey at Salinitas Lithium Project – Salinas Grande Salar, Argentina

MGX Minerals Announces TDEM Geophysical Survey at AIS Resources’ Salinitas Lithium Project, Salinas Grande Salar Argentina