Brought to you by COW AND BEAR
Andrew Todd
Markets have bounced back in this short post-Easter week. The long-awaited deal between the United States, Israel and Iran briefly gave traders permission to stop buying oil on panic and return markets to “risk on” again.
News of the ceasefire dropped shortly before the ASX opened on Wednesday and money returned to the market like wildfire, rushing through the Strait of Hormuz.
In volatile fashion, the peace rally barely had time to pour themselves a drink before missiles landed in Israel and retaliatory fire threatened to destroy the party again.
A ceasefire was not fully achieved by all parties involved, reminding markets that “calm” is often only a 24-hour concept.
Israel launched its biggest offensive against Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon since the war began on Thursday. The IDF reported hitting nearly 100 targets in just over 10 minutes, saying its alliance with Iran-backed militias was not on the cusp of any agreement. Suddenly, Hormuz’s hopes of a comeback began to look more difficult.
Therefore, oil presented the strongest weekly chart, giving each update.
Although good old Dr Copper pulled back around four per cent on the good news, closer to home, Canberra started quietly cheering, insisting there was no more oil crisis. It’s getting braver for Albo’s army to hold on as more services dry up and energy costs continue to chew through the wallets and margins of businesses alike.
Tensions flared at a press conference for Energy Minister Chris Bowen when he was asked whether the war showed that the government’s handling of the crisis would lead to a full-blown economic crisis.
He stressed that the sun cannot be interrupted – despite setting before most of the daily energy time – and that ‘not a single (oil) tanker that is about to arrive in Australia, has been interrupted’. Political talks take about 30 days – or longer for hurricanes – for oil tankers from Hormuz to Australia.
Meanwhile, the government is doubling down on renewables, even as households and industry – in real time – are reminded that Australia consumes hydrocarbons – I’d hate to see how much a Tesla tractor goes for these days.
Not surprisingly, with all this market turmoil going on, advertisers were wary of rushing into the small-cap market. As a result, the Bulls N’ Bears Runners of the Week were quite a few, all sporting a unique flavor of American metal, aside from our top spot and Runner of the Week.
SPRC TECHNOLOGIES LTD (ASX: SPN)
Up to 106% (17.5c – 36c)
This week’s Bulls N’ Bears Runner of the Week is Australia’s tech optimist Sparc Technologies.
It’s not often that the simple appearance of a podcast sends a company’s stock price into a tailspin. However, that seems to be especially the case for this techie, after his stock rose more than 100 percent on the word from his new technology.
As is often the case with excitement and rumours, market leaders down in the ASX were having none of it on Tuesday and issued a statement please to Sparc.
The company said there was no new information in the market and instead, pointed to a podcast interview with its chief executive, Nick O’Loughlin, as the catalyst for the move.
According to Sparc, the podcast covered how it has spent more than six years developing graphene additive coatings for industry, particularly for steel assets such as bridges, boats, jets and infrastructure.
A one-atom-thick carbon layer can be “collapsed” as an additive to any existing manufacturing and coating processes, creating superior corrosion protection to extend service life and improve structural properties.
In March, Sparc signed a letter of intent with HydroGraph Clean Power, a producer of high-quality graphene with a market value of C$3 billion (A$3.3 billion).
The deal gives Sparc access to a stable, high-quality North American supply of graphene, allowing it to target the huge global market for protective coatings, estimated at more than US$30 billion (A$42.4 billion).
In the marine space, the goal is to create products that not only reduce corrosion but also reduce drag on the hulls of ships, resulting in significant fuel savings and reduced emissions.
The technology could also provide a non-toxic, anti-fouling solution to prevent marine life from sticking to cages, a headache for the global shipping industry.
The global market for marine coatings is a behemoth, estimated at more than $10 billion (A$14.1 billion) annually. Fuel saving solutions can be an order of magnitude higher.
It’s not every day that a podcast appearance gets the market this excited. Still, when you’re talking about the possibility of disrupting multi-billion dollar industries, it’s no wonder the bullies came in droves.
RESOLUTION MINERALS LTD (ASX: RML)
Up to 76% (4.6c – 8.1c)
Grabbing cash this week is major US mineral explorer Resolution Minerals, after its flagship Antimony Ridge project in Idaho was included in the US government’s FAST-41 strategic projects program.
FAST-41 is a special permit system used by the Trump Administration to expedite permitting and development of major US infrastructure projects and provide solutions for US national security.
According to Azimio, only three ASX companies have been selected for this coveted program, which can be fast-tracked to allow and increase investor visibility for a project important to local distribution.
Management said the FAST-41 offering points to Antimony Ridge as a major local source of — you guessed it — antimony.
It also believes that the status of FAST-41 is good for the group’s upcoming listing on NASDAQ, which has taken a lot of interest in important mining projects since FAST-41 came along.
Antimony is an important metal with uses in the defense, energy and industrial sectors. In particular, Antimony Ridge was once a steady supplier to the United States through World War I, World War II and the Korean War. The project is understood to have a nature that speaks directly to national security at a time when supply chains are not secure.
Located within the broader Horse Heaven project, Antimony Ridge is also slated for gold and tungsten. This combination of products has the potential to open the door to an integrated development game from exploration to mining and even underwater processing – rare for a youngster, unlocking more value than a pound of a single product.
Timing, as they say, is everything. U.S. antimony and tungsten supplies are in dangerous decline, squeezed by geopolitical tensions and China’s tightening export controls.
As a result, Fast-41 Resolution’s transparent nature puts the company in a club with very few members – surprisingly including our next runner – and that could be important as Washington struggles to find essential metals.
JINDALEE LITHIUM LTD (ASX: JLL)
Up to 74% (42c – 73c)
Taking the final podium position is the comeback story of Jindalee Lithium, which has returned to prominence. The company entered into a Business Combination Agreement this week to merge with a Special Purpose Acquisition Company (SPAC) to form US Elemental Inc.
The combined entity is scheduled to list on the Nasdaq in the second half of 2026, valuing it at approximately US$570M (A$810M).
Jindalee isn’t cashing in either – it’s putting all of its shares in McDermitt’s lithium project into a new car and is expected to retain majority control, as well as raise US$20-30 million in capital to get things moving.
The McDermitt project is widely regarded as one of the largest lithium deposits in the United States, with a resource of 21.5 million tons of lithium carbonate equivalent. It was designated a ‘transparent project’ under the FAST-41 system last year, placing it in an elite group of projects deemed to be of national strategic importance.
It hasn’t been an easy ride for Jindalee, having worn the scars of the lithium market over the past several years, but things have changed.
The return of white metal, along with this US pivot, has put the company in the spotlight – at one point delivering a five-fold increase in share price compared to this time last year.
OD6 METALS LTD (ASX: OD6)
Up to 70% (10c – 17c)
Rounding out our Runners-Up is Bulls N’ Bears the classic and important dynamo OD6 Metals, which has gone after claiming a high-grade fluorspar project in Nevada’s first-class mining jurisdiction.
The company’s shiny new Quinn fluorspar project is located 220 kilometers north of Las Vegas and is OD6’s latest weapon in addressing the West’s supply issues, with the US currently reliant entirely on imported fluorine.
Fluorspar is the main source of fluorine and has been designated as an essential mineral by the US, EU, Australia, Canada and Japan.
It is an important component in the production of semiconductors, advanced batteries, aerospace and defense equipment, and even nuclear fuel processing.
The company says that its recent Mammoth prospect has never been properly explored or even mined, which is surprising given that rock samples have returned up to 80 percent fluorspar.
OD6 announced the first channel samples from the prospect this week, yielding continuous, high-grade fluorspar mineralization up to 12m thick, grading a massive 40.8 percent calcium fluoride.
For a commodity that rarely gets the spotlight, fluorspar is starting to look like one of the most strategic pieces on the US precious metals chessboard – and OD6 Metals may have landed on something with real bite.
A rising breccia system running at an average grade north of 40 percent calcium fluoride in 12 meters is nothing to sneeze at. In fact, it places the project firmly in the top tier of global fluorspar deposits. In fact, these early signs look promising and are likely to get downstream users and policy makers to sit up and take notice.
Of course, the grade is only half the story. If OD6 can cobble together a resource of meaningful scale, this could quickly transform from an interesting geological curiosity into a vital strategic asset for the United States.
Is your ASX listed company doing something interesting? Address: mattbirney@bullsnbears.com.au
