A production update from Iofina (LON:IOF) this week revealed it expects to be producing 300 metric tonnes of Iodine from its two operating plants, which are operating at 80-95% recovery of the chemical element.
Using its trademarked WET IOsorb system it extracts iodine from the waste brine created by oil and gas companies in North America.
Initially, the company’s IO#1 plant was limited by both a shortfall of brine and the iodine content in the brine.
The oil and gas operator supplying the brine has increased the current average daily volume along with iodine content, Iofina reported.
Shares ended the week up over 3% at 160p.
Shares also rose in Galileo Resources (LON:GLR) on Thursday after the firm released a preliminary economic assessment (PEA), which valued its Glenover rare earths project at US$512mln.
The assessment looked at a possible open pit mine at the project, and the successful outcome opens up the possibility of a fast-track development.
It predicts the project could produce 167,100 tonnes of mixed high grade rare earth elements over a 24 year mine life.
Capital costs are estimated at US$233mln, while the project's internal rate of return (IRR) is estimated at 34.5% and the net present value is estimated at US$512mln.
West African Minerals (LON:WAFM) reported assays from first holes at its South Djadom licence in Cameroon, which confirmed iron hematite mineralisation over a 2 kilometre (km) by 3km area.
Hematite is significant because this can be easily processed to produce the most valuable type or iron product - direct shipping ore (DSO).
Vice chairman Brad Mills said the assays pointed to a potentially "very large" iron discovery.
The assays come from 42 holes drilled as part of a programme to test a larger 25km by 5km area, where anomalies were identified by a previous airborne survey, the firm said.
"The implications are that this is the beginning of what potentially could be a very large discovery," said Mills.
Shares ended the week up 0.46% to stand at 54.50p.
Turning to the yellow metal, Bullabulling Gold (LON:BGL, ASX:BAB) revealed drill results this week that may potentially boost its plans to unearth a higher grade starter pit for the proposed Bullabulling mine, in Western Australia.
The results for the first 10 holes have encountered grades of up to 17 grams per tonne (g/t) gold, and the company says they are very positive.
Drilling continues and more results are expected later this month.
Having recently completed a prefeasibility study on the project Bullabulling is now carrying out targeted drilling to test extensions to known higher grade areas.
Specifically, it is aiming to show there is sufficient continuity between the higher grade Edwards and Gryphon areas to justify developing a single larger pit.
Today’s results support the potential achievement of these objectives, the company said.
Rambler Metals (LON:RMM, CVE:RAB) told investors it had made its second shipment of ore from the Ming copper-gold mine in Newfoundland.
In total 3,150 wet metric tonnes were loaded from the Goodyear's Cove facility bound for a smelter in Europe.
Sampling of the concentrate revealed it to be 28.5% copper, 7 grams per tonne gold and 54 grams per tonne silver – an improvement on the initial load.
This second shipment is part of Rambler’s off-take agreement with Transamine Trading.
Broker Cantor Fitzgerald heralded the news positively and repeated its 'buy' rating on the shares and 64 pence price target - representing around an 86% increase on their current price.
Russia- focused Amur Minerals (LON:AMC) shares rose yesterday after it uncovered a new zone of nickel mineralisation at its Ikenskoe deposit, part of its Kun Manie nickel sulphide project.
The intervals in the zone average 23.5 metres in thickness and contain 1.29% nickel and 0.29% copper.
The firm also said the last stage of drilling last year, which saw 1,212 metres of diamond drilling within 10 holes south and next to Ikenskoe, had extended the known limits of mineralisation there by a quarter of a kilometre.