Guangdong Tungsten Industry Raises Long-Term Contract Black Tungsten and White Tungsten Prices, Lowers APT in Late August

[SMM Tungsten Express] Apollo Minerals has identified additional tungsten mineralization zones at its Couflens project in France, expanding the drill target footprint around the historic Salau mine. Salau was historically one of the world's highest-grade tungsten operations, averaging 1.5% WO₃ over 15 years of production until 1986. The newly defined Veronique-Upper zone previously returned 4.3m at 1.3% WO₃, while the Veronique zone was mined at 2.5% WO₃ in the mine's final year. The company plans to initiate Phase 1 drilling in the near term.

[SMM Tungsten Express] Almonty Korea Tungsten Corp.'s (AKTC) Sangdong mine is emerging as a strategic asset for building a non-China tungsten supply chain for the semiconductor industry. Tungsten hexafluoride (WF6) is a critical specialty gas for 3D NAND, DRAM and HBM deposition processes, with demand rising amid AI-driven growth. China added APT and tungsten oxide to export controls in 2025, tightening supply of high-purity tungsten powder, with electronic-grade WF6 prices reaching RMB 2.5 million/ton by end-June. AKTC is in discussions with major Korean tungsten consumers and plans to commission its tungsten oxide plant by 2028, aiming to establish local processing capability from concentrate to APT to oxide.

[SMM Tungsten Express] Kazakhstan plans to develop the Northern Katpar and Upper Kairakty tungsten deposits into the country's first full-cycle tungsten operation, with ore processed domestically rather than exported as raw material. The two deposits contain combined JORC-compliant reserves of approximately 410,000 metric tons of WO₃ and total resources of 1.4 million tons. U.S.-based Cove Capital (70%) and Kazakh state miner Tau-Ken Samruk (30%) are developing the project, with Cove expected to provide at least $1.1 billion in financing. Planned APT production of approximately 12,000 tpa would represent roughly 15% of current global tungsten mine output. The Definitive Feasibility Study is expected to be completed by end-2027.