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Sovereign Metals Ltd on Friday reported a widened interim loss amid higher exploration costs, as it remained focused on the Kasiya rutile-graphite project in Malawi. The Malawi-focused mine explorer and developer said its pretax loss increased to A$19.5 million, around £9.5 million, in the six months to December 31, from A$7.0 million a year ago. Pertinently, exploration and evaluation costs increased to A$16.5 million from A$5.0 million. Sovereign Metals shares rose 2.3% to 45.00 pence each on Friday afternoon in London. On Wednesday, the company announced that rehabilitation of the land at the test pit site, mined during the pilot mining and land rehabilitation programme at its Kasiya rutile-graphite project, has ‘substantially’ progressed. The programme provides landowners with immediate access to land to start maize crop farming, the company highlighted. Chief Executive Officer Frank Eagar said: ‘The successful return of farmers to their land within such a short time and without missing a single planting season after mining and backfilling 170,000 cubic metres is an excellent outcome. This demonstration of responsible mining and land rehabilitation will build on our positive community relationships.’ Last week Wednesday, Sovereign Metals said further test work confirmed that graphite from its Kasiya rutile-graphite project has the key characteristics required for use in expandable applications such as fire retardant, and expanded ones such as gaskets, seals, and brake linings. It said Kasiya’s medium to coarse flake achieved very high expansion ratios using standard reagents at room temperature and short durations providing a competitive advantage over other current and potential sources of graphite supply. It added that test results will be used for customer engagement and potential offtake discussions. CEO Eagar said: ‘These results along with our industry-low cost position, offers Kasiya the potential to become the world’s dominant natural graphite supplier, whilst remaining a primary rutile project.’ Copyright 2025 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
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