Critical
Mineral Resources PLC
('CMR' or
the 'Company')
Commodities Trading update
Critical Mineral Resources plc
('CMR' or the 'Company'), the developer of advanced metal mining
projects and commodities trading in Morocco is pleased to
provide a summary of recent progress and its
proposals to further advance and develop the commodities trading business unit of the Company during
2025.
Trading update
and outlook
CMR has now undertaken several trades since
early December in a range of base and speciality
metals. This has led to multiple new trading opportunities
and the Company now intends to expand this
profitable business during 2025. The Joint Venture's focus has been
on low-risk and short-term trading opportunities in order to
provide a proof of concept. Whilst a conservative approach to risk
will continue, the near-term objective is now to scale up the
trading business with multiple small mines that have potential for
good tonnage and high-grade products in a range of metals and
potentially industrial minerals. With this is mind the management
have commenced discussions with a number of potential providers for
additional working capital.
Charlie Long (CEO)
commented:
"We are very encouraged by the
achievement of our commodities trading business in such a short
timescale. Given our Moroccan team's metals trading background, we
have known of the potential for some time and always planned to
enter the space. The benefits of having a local JV partner with a
long history of trading in metals and industrial minerals is now
very clear. As we continue to gain traction, we are investigating
sources of non-dilutive capital that would enable a step-change in
scale. That said, our organic growth trajectory is working
extremely well and we will not take undue risk. Further details of
our expansion plans will be provided to shareholders in due
course".
Small-scale mining and our social
license
Morocco's artisanal and small-scale
operators work alongside larger industrial scale mines. Our
partners have unrivalled knowledge of the cultural practices of the
rural mining economy and a deep understanding of Moroccan
commodities commerce. This gives CMR a distinct competitive
advantage.
Despite being the core fabric of the sector,
small scale mining in Morocco remains undercapitalised and will
benefit from actors such as CMR with high EISA standards.
The commercial objective is to create an efficient
mine to end-user pathway that is beneficial to all parties by
developing a profitable business while maintaining these high
social standards and building long term
relationships.
Background
Due to Morocco's stability and
status as a favoured trading partner of the EU, the US and China,
there is extremely good demand for Moroccan-produced exports
including metal concentrates and critical materials.
Morocco is a tier one jurisdiction for metals
exploration, development and mining. In the well respected and most
recent 2023 Fraser Institute's latest mining survey, Morocco ranks
27th in the 'Investment Attractiveness Index' globally and 2nd in
Africa for both overall investment and policy. In the Fraser
'Policy Perception Index', Morocco's score increased by 6 points
and now ranks 12th (out of 86 jurisdictions), an improvement from
17th (of 62 jurisdictions) in 2022.
Morocco's mining industry includes
phosphate (OCP Group), manganese, barite (chemical and petroleum
grades), lead-zinc, copper-silver, gold-silver (Aya Gold &
Silver), oligiste, cobalt and gold. There is also production of
antimony, tungsten and industrial minerals such as feldspar,
fluorspar and gypsum. The map below shows the main mine regions and
deep-water ports that handle the majority of Morocco's exported
metals and minerals.
Partnership in Morocco
In recent months the Company has
taken a series of initiatives to create a self-sufficient and
increasingly profitable commodities trading business. Central to
this has been the creation of a formal profit-sharing partnership
with an established Moroccan trading entity to identify, acquire
and trade a range of metals and industrial minerals. Our partners
have over a decade experience in sourcing and, where necessary,
upgrading crude mineral ores and semi-processed raw materials
secured from the small-scale mines, artisanal miners and
aggregators.
Fig 1: Morocco mining map

Source: Company
CONTACT:
Critical
Mineral Resources PLC
Charles Long, Chief Executive
Officer
|
info@cmrplc.com
|
Novum
Securities
Jon Belliss
|
+44 (0) 20 7399 9425
|
Notes To
Editors
Critical Mineral Resources (CMR) PLC is an
exploration and development company focused on developing assets
that produce key commodities for the global economy including those
essential for electrification and the clean energy revolution. Many
of these commodities are widely recognised as being at the start of
a supply and demand supercycle.
CMR is building a diversified portfolio of
high-quality metals exploration and development projects in
Morocco, focusing on copper, manganese and potentially other
critical minerals and metals. CMR identified Morocco as an ideal
mining-friendly jurisdiction that meets its acquisition and
operational criteria. The country is perfectly located to supply
raw materials to Europe and possesses excellent prospective
geology, good infrastructure and attractive permitting, tax and
royalty conditions. In 2023, the Company acquired an 80% stake in
leading Moroccan exploration and geological services company
Atlantic Research Minerals SARL.
Since taking over the CMR in 2022, the current
management has completed a comprehensive strategic review and
restructuring of the business and implemented its clear strategy to
maximise exploration and resource development opportunities for the
benefit of all stakeholders. The Company is listed on the London
Stock Exchange (CMRS.L). More information regarding the Company can
be found at www.cmrplc.com