Almonty starts Sangdong tungsten mine in S. Korea  

Almonty Industries (Nasdaq: ALM; TSX, ASX: AII) has begun operating its Sangdong tungsten mine in South Korea, said to host one of the largest tungsten resources in the world. 

Crushing, milling, and flotation circuits are proceeding as planned and support a smooth ramp-up toward full production, the company said this week.  

The deposit, located in the northeastern province of Gangwon, also has one of the highest grades. Total reserves are measured at 7.9 million tonnes averaging 0.47% tungsten oxide (WO3), for 3.7 million contained tonne units, a fixed measure equal to 10 kg of contained WO₃ each. 

“Sangdong plays a critical role in efforts by the United States, the European Union, and Korea to diversify away from the China-dominated market, which currently supplies more than 80% of the world’s tungsten,” CEO Lewis Black said in a news release.  

The mine had spearheaded the post-Korean War economy for decades, contributing more than half of the country’s export revenue. Sangdong closed in the 1990s primarily due to low commodity prices. 

2015 buy

Almonty bought the asset when the U.S. stopped mining tungsten in 2015 and has been working to bring it back into production for a decade. The U.S. government designated tungsten as a critical mineral in 2018 for its use in defence applications.

“This first ore placement represents a strategic inflection point in advancing Almonty’s mission to strengthen the global tungsten supply chain,” Black said. 

“The resumption of production at the Sangdong Mine forms the foundation for securing reliable, non-China tungsten supply to key sectors such as defense, semiconductors, AI hardware, aerospace, and other high-technology industries.”  

Shares in Almonty gained 22% this week to C$11.79 apiece on Friday morning in Toronto, valuing the company at $2.99 billion.