Blue Moon buys former Utah gallium-germanium mine from Teck Resources

Blue Moon Metals (TSX-V: MOON; Nasdaq: BMM) has acquired a former gallium-germanium mine in Utah from a unit of Teck Resources (TSX: TECK.A/TECK.B; NYSE: TECK), a move that furthers its push into U.S.-based critical minerals assets.

Blue Moon said it will acquire the past-producing Apex mine from Teck American, according to a statement issued Monday. As consideration, the Vancouver-based explorer will issue about 7 million common shares, representing 8% of its total shares outstanding.

The transaction makes Teck a “key stakeholder” to support an integrated pipeline of U.S. critical mineral projects to secure North American supply, Blue Moon said. The deal also adds to an already strong working relationship with key shareholder Hartree Partners, an important partner with the U.S. government on their recently announced $12 billion critical metals stockpile, Blue Moon adds.

Blue Moon soared to an all-time high of C$7.94 in Toronto on the announcement, taking its market capitalization above $630 million. The stock has risen by 60% this year.

Primary producer

The Apex mine was once a primary U.S. producer of gallium and germanium, when Musto Explorations brought it into production in the mid 1980s and again with Hecla Mining (NYSE: HL) in the 1990s. During its peak year of operations, the mine produced 10,270 tonnes yielding 1,645 lb. of gallium, 5,634 lb. of germanium and 224,800 lb. of copper.

In 1989, Hecla completed a feasibility study for the project, reporting a reserve of 230,200 tonnes grading 0.1% germanium, 0.046% gallium and 1.6% copper. A historical reserve estimate by Ken Krahulec in 2018 estimated 1 million tonnes at 0.087% germanium, 0.033% gallium, 1.8% copper and 41 grams per tonne silver. According to Blue Moon, its germanium and gallium grades are 10 to 100 times higher than most comparable deposits.

Beyond the historical reserves, Hecla also identified several additional breccia bodies as prospective exploration targets, along with further oxide zones in the immediate mine area.

Subject to renewed permits, the company said it plans to fast-track efforts to advance the technical studies, metallurgical testing, process flowsheets, permitting and community engagement to support a final investment decision.

‘Immediate synergies’

Acquiring the Apex mine could generate synergies such as the ability to process zinc concentrates from Blue Moon’s underground mine in California, which is currently under construction, at Teck’s Trail operations in British Columbia to solidify a fully integrated North American-sourced value chain.

“Teck and Blue Moon are logical partners, combining Blue Moon’s U.S. project pipeline and processing capacity at Teck’s Trail operations,” said Blue Moon Metals CEO Christian Kargl-Simard.

“Following our cornerstone investments to rebuild zinc, lead, and silver capacity in Idaho’s Silver Valley, revitalizing the long-standing connection between U.S. miners and our smelting and refining complex in Trail, this transaction with Blue Moon marks another important step to develop new U.S. sources of critical minerals,” Ian Anderson, Teck executive vice president and chief commercial officer, added.

Located in Mariposa County, the Blue Moon site was originally mined for zinc, copper, lead, silver and gold during World War II by Hecla, producing over 55,000 tonnes of high-grade ore over a two-year period. After decades of inactivity, exploration picked up during the 1980s and 1990s under Imperial Metals, Boliden and Lac Minerals (now Barrick).

Blue Moon took on the project in the modern era, initially under the previous executive team led by former CEO Patrick McGrath. Since a management shakeup in late 2024, the company has completed a modern review and analysis of the historical data. Last March, it published an NI 41-101 resource totalling 3.65 million indicated tonnes with a grade of 13.46% zinc equivalent and 4.43 million inferred tonnes at 12.12% zinc equivalent.

Based on the resource, the company also released a preliminary economic assessment that demonstrated the potential for annual average production of 62.3 million lb. of zinc, 22,566 oz. of gold, 681,784 oz. of silver and 7.2 million lb. of copper over a mine life of more thna 10 years.

Blue Moon subsequently received mine permits and began construction of an exploration decline in October. First production should begin in 2028.

Tungsten build-out

In addition to the California operation, the company has also identified potential synergies with its recently acquired Springer tungsten complex in Nevada’s Pershing County. Like Apex and Blue Moon, the property is host to a past-producing mine that operated between 1918 and 1958.

General Electric, interested in securing long-term tungsten supply assets to support its lighting and industrial tools businesses, acquired the property in the 1970s. The current mine and mill were constructed by Utah International for GE, and subsequently commissioned and operated by GE for eight months in 1982. The property has not been actively mined since.

EMC Metals acquired the Springer project from GE in 2006 and subsequently completed the refurbishment and upgrades to the milling facility. Blue Moon purchased the site in February 2026 to provide processing capacity to support the development of its California zinc mine and to establish a regional processing hub.

Sitting on a large land package, Blue Moon said “there is significant room” to expand the mill layout and add new buildings to process multiple ore types and “unlock and maximize the value of resources” that would otherwise not support stand-alone processing facilities.

Based on data prepared by GE and Utah International, the Springer project has a historical resource estimate of 10.7 million tonnes at 0.45% tungsten that has yet to be verified. The company intends to initiate a drill program this year to update the resource model.