Shares in mineral exploration company Minrex Resources Ltd (ASX: MRR) are soaring in Tuesday's session and now trade 18% higher at 3.2 cents apiece.
That marks a single year high for the company after it took off last week and has jumped over 60% in the time since. Let's take a closer look at what the company has been up to lately and what's behind its latest share price moves.
A quick rundown on Minrex Resources
Minrex – formerly MinRex Resources NL – has its priorities set on the exploration of gold and base metal projects in Western Australia.
Minrex currently holds five projects, four of which are in the East Pilbara region of WA. These include the Daltons Gold Project, the Bamboo Creek Gold Project, the Marble Bar North Gold Project and the Marble Bar South Gold Project; as well as the Deflector Extended Gold Project at Gullewa.
At the time of writing, Minrex Resources has a market capitalisation of $15.77 million and is trading well off its 52-week low of 1.4 cents.
What's up with Minrex Resources lately?
The market had a delayed reaction to Minrex's recent announcement that it had acquired 4 exploration licences and mineral rights to 3 Exploration Licences in the Pilbara region.
The agreements are with Abeh Pty Ltd and with Maxwell Strindberg. The list of acquisitions includes the:
- Tambourah North Lithium Project
- Tambourah Creek Project
- Shaw River Lithium Project
- Coondina Lithium Project and
- 3 exploration licenses at the Soanesville Projects.
Minrex reckons the acquisition represents a significant next step in its tenement acquisition plan to become an emergent lithium explorer with high-quality assets.
It also notes that its operations lie within a 70km radius of lithium and tantalum producer Pilbara Minerals Ltd's (ASX: PLS) Pilgangoora site and Mineral Resources Limited's (ASX: MIN) Wodgina deposit.
Several of the new projects supplement and offer "fantastic synergies" to additional lithium projects to be acquired by MinRex, as announced earlier in November.
Investors have piled into Minrex on the back of the announcements. That trend continues today, with participants sending its share price north on a volume 243% that of its 4-week average volume.
That's over 28.1 million Minrex shares changing hands today, versus its 8.2 million average – a figure that will be distorted higher from the recent activity.
Speaking on the announcement, Minrex Resources Chief Executive Officer Mr Kastellorizos commented:
The MinRex team, which includes Director George Karageorge, who is one of the founding geologists of the Pilbara Minerals owned Pilgangoora Lithium-Tantalum deposits, are delighted with the success of the Company's strategy to acquire further and more highly prospective ground in the East Pilbara World Class Mineral Field.
The price of lithium continues to soar to record heights and is now up over 3% for the month and up over 400% in the last year. These strengths bode in well for lithium producers and lithium-ion battery companies, according to analysis from Goldman Sachs, Roskill, CRU Group and FactSet.
Minrex Resources share price snapshot
In the past 12 months, the Minrex Resources share price has soared over 45% and is now up 60% this year to date.
These returns are a galaxy ahead of the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO)'s gain of around 12% in the last year.
