Geodex Establishes Specialty Metals Trading House to Capitalize on Antimony Market Rebound
Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - May 11, 2015) - Geodex Minerals Ltd. (TSXV: GXM), (the "Company" or "Geodex") is pleased to announce that it intends to establish a Specialty Metals Trading House ("SMTH") consortium that shall initially focus on the Antimony (Sb) space, subsequently adding other currently thinly traded strategic metals such as Rare Earths, Scandium, Beryllium etc. It is envisioned that other mining companies involved in the production of these metals could eventually join the consortium to achieve proprietary access to end users. Talks are on-going with potential participants and investors in SMTH at this time.
Since announcing Geodex's refocus on Antimony last year, the company has received a steady stream of unsolicited requests from end-users and producers to acquire or sell Antimony in odd-lots. This signalled that a clear opportunity was available for the company to utilise its skillsets to insert Geodex as an important player intermediating in the Antimony space, rather than just an explorer aspiring to develop and eventually produce. These skillsets consist of the metals markets insight of current board members and + 35 years of commodity trading experience of the two veteran traders on our advisory board, Dr. Michael Hirschberger and Mr. Evan Chen. Thus, the Company plans to utilize its in-depth knowledge of the market to match trades in the Sb concentrate segment while continuing to advance its own exploration and development initiatives.
The company also takes advantage of this development to announce that it has signed an agency agreement for the South Korean market with Mr. Moon Kim and his trading firm, Lava Corporation of Seoul.
The opportunity to engage Mr. Kim is a result of the strong transactional relationship with our advisory board members. As a reminder to our shareholders our advisory board experience is significant;
Dr. Michael Hirschberger is a Principal and the CEO of Strategic Min-Metals, AG, Vienna, a niche company focused on the exploitation of Minor Metals in selected countries. He previously organized and operated Global Min-Metal Holdings, SA, an exploration company, developing manganese ore principally in Panama. He held various positions with the Wall Street firms of White, Weld & Company, Northern Trust and Societe Générale S.A. in New York.
Mr. Evan (Dong) Chen is the Founder and President of Fredstone Materials Inc., New Brunswick, Canada, a company providing marketing/consulting service for mining investments and metal/mineral trading, as well as the Canadian broker of China based mining exchange TIMEx. Previously Mr. Chen was Managing Director of Dlrow (Tianjin) Co., Ltd., a Chinese trading firm for various of metal/mineral materials, and also from 2006 till 2012 the Exclusive Representative Agent of US based Recapture Metals Inc. (now a subsidiary of Molycorp). He holds a Bachelor's degree with a major in metal materials processing engineering.
Geodex's CEO, Christopher Ecclestone, commented, "This development is the natural extension of the pooling together of the exceptionally skilled people that Geodex has at its disposal. We look forward to the benefits that might accrue from having a vector into the specialty metals trading space for both Antimony and Rare Earths".
Antimony's Recent Price Rebound
The price of Antimony has moved strongly higher in recent weeks in an environment of tightening supply at a time when major consumers have allowed in-house reserve stocks to decline to low levels. The severe and in some cases irreversible global mine supply decline is evidenced by;
- In China the largest mine in the world, Twinkling Star mine, is in decline. Twinkling Star has operated for over 100 years and supplied as much as 25% of global Sb market in recent years. The mine resource is reported to be nearly exhausted.
- Also in China beginning 1 May, 2015 an additional 11 Chinese Sb Companies will be shut down for 3 months for repair for alleged environmental issues and will be consolidated into one new operating entity-yet to be named.
- In South Africa the Consolidated Murchison Sb mine has been shuttered as its owners voluntarily commenced business rescue proceedings on 12 December 2014. Consolidated Murchison mine was the largest non-Chinese source of mine supply.
- In South East Asia recent peace accords between the Burmese government and rebel groups are threatening the artisanal mining undertaken in rebel areas (and smuggled into China). These primarily alluvial resources are already believed to be in decline due to over-exploitation and exhaustion of easily accessible material.
About Geodex
Geodex is a mineral resource company focused on strategic metals, particularly Antimony and Tin. Projecting from its traditional base in Canada's Maritime Provinces the company intends on pursuing opportunities in these metals both there and in Spain, around the Mediterranean Basin and in other traditional mining regions by aggregating past-producing and producing mines in these metals.
ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Geodex Minerals Ltd.
Christopher Ecclestone
President & CEO
Tel: (44) 795 08 53 621
For further information, please contact Investor Relations:
647-985-2785 or info@geodexminerals.com
Visit our website at www.geodexminerals.com
Forward Looking Statement
Certain information regarding the Company contained in this press release may constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Forward-looking statements may include estimates, plans, opinions, forecasts, projections or other statements that are not statements of fact. Although the Company believes that expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to have been correct. The Company cautions that actual performance will be affected by a number of factors, many of which are beyond the Company's control, and that future events and results may vary substantially from what the Company currently foresees.
Neither the TSXVenture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is definedin the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.