[SMM Nickel Market Flash] Sherritt Trading Halt Deepens Risk for Cuba Nickel as US Sanctions Expand

South Korean aerospace materials group Spear is advancing construction of a next-generation High-Pressure Acid Leach (HPAL) nickel smelter in Indonesia, with acquisition of the project finalized earlier this year. The company is operating the Indonesian business through strategic partnerships with NIC, a globally listed minerals company, and Tsingshan Group, the world's largest nickel producer. Spear said it expects to recognize equity method gains and operational profits from the smelter going forward, alongside growth in nickel raw material distribution. Part of the 90 billion won raised through a recent CB block deal will be allocated to completing construction and funding offtake settlements for high-purity nickel output.

Viridian Metals (VRDN.CN) will begin a minimum 50-hole diamond drill program in early June at its Kraken Copper-Nickel Project in Labrador, targeting copper-nickel sulphide mineralization along an approximately 5-kilometre strike length in the Main Zone. The 2026 campaign aims to connect broad-spaced drilling across the full Main Zone with tighter-spaced results from the northern portion of the system, advancing the project toward a continuously drill-defined mineralized footprint. Holes will target mineralization within 50 metres of surface, extend previously reported intercepts where earlier holes ended in mineralization or fell short of target depth, and test newly modeled conductor plates via downhole electromagnetic surveying.

Australian mining executives are warning that Treasurer Jim Chalmers' proposed CGT overhaul — replacing the 50% discount with an inflation-linked rate that would nearly double tax on mining share gains — poses a structural threat to junior exploration funding. Junior resources companies rely heavily on retail investors, as institutional funds largely avoid the sector due to high failure risk; tighter CGT terms would reduce risk capital, leading to fewer discoveries and a thinner project pipeline. The industry is lobbying for junior explorers to be included in any start-up CGT carve-out, drawing comparisons to the 2010 resources super profits tax row that destabilised the Rudd government. Chalmers acknowledged industry concern but stopped short of a sector-specific commitment.