Resources Top 5: Locksley spikes to three-year high as $5.3m raise validates US strategy

A three-year spike of 14.5c followed a $5.3m capital raise by Locksley Resources. Pic: Getty Images

• Funding will support a new drilling program at Mojave targeting high-grade antimony and rare earths
• A second drill rig has been added in WCN’s quest for copper at Rae project in Canada
• 1AE buoyed by a potential windfall of US$16m in Eagle Energy Metals shares

 

Your standout small cap resources stocks for Friday, August 1, 2025

 

A heavily oversubscribed $5.3 million capital raise has validated the US-centred critical minerals strategy of Locksley Resources and investors responded positively, with shares climbing to a three-year high of 14.5c.

This was an increase of 38.1% on the previous close and more than 67m shares changed hands valued at almost $9m.

As well as validating the company and its Mojave antimony and rare earths project in California, the placement was spearheaded by Tribeca Investment Partners, a globally recognised resources investment firm, which made a cornerstone investment.

Locksley chair Nathan Lude said the company was extremely pleased with the level of demand and quality of institutional participation in the placement.

“Having Tribeca cornerstone the raising is a strong endorsement of our strategy and team,” he said.

“In addition, we welcome more than a dozen new institutions to the Locksley register, providing us with a robust group of investors capable of supporting our forward-looking growth strategy. 

“This funding places us in a strong position to execute our exploration and downstream plans across the Mojave project and unlock the full value of our US-based critical minerals portfolio.”

Locksley Resources will channel the fresh funding into a new drilling program at Mojave, targeting high-grade antimony and rare earths. Funds will also be used to progress permitting and downstream development.

Surface sampling has seen LKY identify potential for antimony along with silver, with results up to 46% Sb and 1022g/t Ag.

Mojave is directly next to MP Materials’ Mountain Pass rare earths mine, recently subject to two hefty investments from the US Department of Defense and US tech giant Apple.

Mojave’s El Campo prospect lies directly along strike from Mountain Pass, while the North Block tenement directly abuts claims held by MP Materials.

Locksley intends to take advantage of looming rare earth and antimony supply shortages in North America after China moved to restrict exports of the critical minerals in recent years.

 

 

Considerable impetus has been added to the quest for copper at Rae project in Canada by White Cliff Minerals with a second drill rig added enabling it to focus on the two primary prospects at the same time.

A reverse circulation rig is now stepping out along strike at Danvers prospect while a diamond rig is focusing on deep targets at Hulk prospects.

The acceleration of drilling at the project in Nunavut province in Canada’s remote north has resulted in WCN shares increasing 18.2% to a daily high of 2.6c with more than 32m changing hands.  

The increased focus on Danvers comes after the company extended the copper mineralised footprint with a new near-surface zone which strikes over 250m adjacent to the deposit.

White Cliff is confident of RC drilling success at Danvers where maiden drilling earlier this year flagged a copper hit of 2.5%.

Efforts at Danvers also include a drone-based MobileMT survey across the lease, which is nearing completion. Results are expected to help shape future expansion drilling.

The Danvers work adds impetus to exploration at Rae where diamond drilling at Hulk is focused on the sedimentary horizons between 200 and 400 metres deep.

Results from the MobileMT survey along with initial results from the RC and diamond drilling are expected this month.

Rae is in Nunavut’s Coppermine region, an underexplored frontier for sediment-hosted copper systems, much like those at the world-class Kupferschiefer copper belt in Europe.

And given current copper supply challenges, the company believes Rae is well placed to provide a new source of the electrification metal, given its near-surface mineralisation and proximity to an open water port just 80km away.

“Our recent exploration success has validated White Cliff’s geological model, confirming all key elements required for a sedimentary copper system, analogous to world-class deposits such as the Kupferschiefer and Central African Copperbelt,” managing director Troy Whittaker said.

“White Cliff finds itself in an enviable position as we continue to advance our exploration efforts over our stranglehold that spans more than 75km of the prospective sedimentary structure.” 

 

 

A proposed merger of Eagle Energy Metals Corp with Spring Valley Acquisition Corp II, a US-listed special purpose acquisition company, will potentially benefit uranium-focused Aurora Energy Metals by way of US$16 million in Eagle shares.

This potential windfall has seen 1AE reach a 12-month high of 8.6c, a 72% increase on the previous close.

The transaction, if completed, will result in Eagle becoming a publicly listed uranium and nuclear energy company on Nasdaq under the name Eagle Nuclear Energy Corp.

This represents a significant milestone for Eagle and a major step in the development path for the Aurora Uranium Project in southeast Oregon.

In November 2024 1AE entered an option agreement with Eagle for the acquisition of Oregon Energy LLC, the wholly-owned Aurora subsidiary that holds the Aurora project. 

A successful listing of Eagle triggers the issue of US$16 million in Eagle shares to Aurora. Additional consideration remains payable upon the achievement of agreed milestones, along with a 1% Net Smelter Royalty on future uranium production.

 

 

A strongly supported placement raising $4.267m will support the strategy of Iris Metals to deliver new lithium supply into the US market from its projects in the Black Hills of South Dakota and shares rose 27.78% to a daily top of 11.5c.

The US strategy aligns with the anticipated lithium pricing upcycle driven by rising US domestic demand.

Firm commitments have been received from a range of existing and new investors for the placement at 8.5c per share, a 2.98% discount to the 15-day VWAP, with directors and management committing to about $500,000, subject to shareholder approval.

Funds will be used to further advance IR1’s lithium exploration, development and commercial work. This includes drilling and exploration, feasibility and other studies, and regulatory and registration.

Iris aims to complete current drilling programs at the Tin Mountain, Edison, and Beecher projects to delineate additional lithium resources, focusing on high-grade spodumene zones.

 

 

It has been quiet for Dragon Mountain Gold, however, a new loan and the repaying of an outstanding October 2024 convertible loan plus interest sparked a rise of 166.67% to 1.6c, a new high of almost three years.

The payment was made possible by a loan of $700,000 advanced by an unrelated major shareholder at 9% interest per annum.

Repayment of the loan gives DMG optionality in future fund raising initiatives and allows it to assess a way forward for its existing or potential new project ventures. The company has interests in the Avalon and Cawse projects in WA.

DMG recently appointed Kenneth Robinson as a director, effective immediately.

Robinson spent almost 40 years living and working around Kalgoorlie, assisting listed companies including DMG to maintain their tenures in good standing.

He was previously active in mining tenement and projects transactions and involved in the supply of mining equipment and is familiar with the Cawse and Avalon projects.

He will assist with a review of the way forward for DMG’s projects.

 

This article does not constitute financial product advice. You should consider obtaining independent financial advice before making any financial decisions. While Locksley Resources and White Cliff Minerals are Stockhead advertisers, they did not sponsor this article.

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