Image source: Getty Images
Key points
- The Hastings share price is up 7% today and 25% in a week
- The miner has received a loan to construct its flagship site
- It estimates to have spent $1.3 million in exploration during the latest quarter
The Hastings Technology Metals Ltd (ASX: HAS) share price is having an impressive week.
The Australian rare earths exploration and development company has seen its shares rise by 25% since the closing bell on January 27. The increase comes amid releasing a landslide of corporate and activity news.
The majority of the news relates to the miner's long-term goal of becoming a global frontrunner in the production of neodymium and praseodymium concentrate (NdPr). The minerals are essential ingredients in the production of permanent magnets used in electric vehicles, medical devices, wind turbines, and other devices.
At the time of writing, the Hastings share price is up 7% at 30 cents.
Let's take a look at what's been happening with this particular ASX mining share…
What has sent the Hastings share price skyward?
Most recently, Hastings announced it would receive a now-approved $140 million loan from the Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility (NAIF) to construct its flagship site, the Yangibana Rare Earths Project.
The site is located in the Gascoyne region of Western Australia. According to Hastings, it "contains one of the most highly valued NdPr deposits in the world with NdPr:TREO ratio of up to 52%".
The loan, which is part of the $300-400 million in total debt financing required for the site, comes with a 12.5-year tenor and is subject to pre-completion conditions.
Early works are underway with equipment already on site, and transport access already cleared. Plant construction is expected to commence in September and is scheduled to take approximately 27 months.
What happened during the quarter?
On Friday, the miner released its activities report for the latest quarter.
On the subject of Yangibana construction works, Hastings announced it had received approval from the Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment (DAWE) to construct the site's downstream rare earths processing plant.
The miner spent an estimated "$1.3 million on exploration during the quarter, substantially on resource drilling". Director fees and salaries totalled $276,000.
Hastings remains confident in the globally-rising prices of NdPr oxide. The price went up by 40% to US$134.22 during the quarter and Hastings expects it to remain strong.
Looking at the business's financials, the miner reported $96 million in cash and equivalents as of 31 December 2021.
Since 31 December, the Hastings share price has increased by 11%.
Hastings share price snapshot
In the past 6 months, the Hastings share price has increased by 36%.
It hit a 52-week high price of 32 cents just last month. This occurred a few days before it announced it had received environmental approval from the Western Australia EPA, progressing its Yangibana site development.
To compare, it saw a 52-week low of 15 cents in June.
The company has a market capitalisation of $521 million and 1.74 billion shares issued.
