Caravel claims that its Caravel Copper Project is the largest undeveloped copper project in Australia, with mine studies projecting a 25-year mine life, processing 30 million tonnes of ore per year for 65,000 tonnes of copper.

Funding progressing

The company is currently working on a definitive feasibility study for the project and announced last week that two European bodies had signed non-binding letters of interest to fund it.

Finnvera plc, Finland's official Export Credit Agency, supplied the company with a non-binding letter of interest, as did KfW IPEX, "a specialist provider of international project and export finance within the KfW Group in Germany''.

Caravel explained further:

The KfW IPEX letter of interest confirms interest in providing up to US$220 million in tied Finnvera backed senior debt as Senior Lender for the Caravel Copper Project, subject to satisfactory due diligence (including environmental and social), all approvals, execution of finance documentation satisfactory to KfW IPEX, and fulfilment of applicable conditions precedent. Export Credit Agency funding is expected to form a key component of Caravel's diversified funding stack, alongside project offtake partner equity, precious metal streaming, mining fleet finance, and traditional project debt. The company continues to advance discussions with multiple parties to secure a comprehensive financing package for Project development.

Caravel Managing Director Don Hyma said the letters of interest marked significant progress for the company's financing plans for the mine.

Mr Hyma added:

We are following a structured process to deliver a timely finance solution for the project and our shareholders. These letters of interest underscore strong international supply chain interest in our strategically significant copper and molybdenum product streams – recognised as critical minerals in multiple global jurisdictions – and strengthen our pathway to a multi-source funding package as we advance towards a final investment decision.

The funding announcement followed another significant milestone in November, when Caravel signed a non-binding memorandum of understanding with a subsidiary of Adani Enterprises, Kutch Copper, which could lead to either direct funding from Kutch or potentially an offtake agreement covering all of the mine's output.

Shares looking cheap

The analysts at Canaccord Genuity have assessed the latest announcement and upgraded their price target for Caravel shares from 60 cents to 80 cents.

They note that the process plant design for the mine is about 90% complete, and progress has been made on several fronts to feed into the definitive feasibility study.

Caravel shares are currently changing hands for 40 cents. The company was valued at $223.5 million at the close of trade on Friday.

The post This copper project developer could double in value, analysts say appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

But batteries will tell you they contain many more ingredients than just one element.

Titanium and copper are two minerals that aren't mentioned as much as lithium, but are just as critical for the production of many batteries.

And of course, batteries are critical for many countries' move towards zero-carbon emissions, as they allow clean electricity to be stored and used only when necessary.

This week a pair of experts named two ASX shares to buy that represent businesses producing those metals:

Reducing the cost and carbon footprint of producing titanium

Iperionx Ltd (ASX: IPX) is not a household name among investors, but BW Equities equities salesperson Tom Bleakley rates it as a buy at the moment.

The company is different from the typical resources extraction business.

"IperionX recycles titanium from scrap material," Bleakley told The Bull.

"This reduces the cost and carbon footprint compared to traditional manufacturing processes."

The share price is down about 34% since April last year.

IperionX has its headquarters in Charlotte, North Carolina and does its manufacturing in the US, according to Bleakley.

"Titanium is a critical metal used in numerous military and consumer applications," he said.

"IperionX recently announced it would be producing parts for the US Navy."

$12 million to bring project to fruition

Caravel Minerals Ltd (ASX: CVV) is another business not seen often on investment memos.

Its shares are a buy though, according to Seneca investment advisor Tony Langford.

"Caravel is a Western Australian-based copper explorer and development company," he said.

"The company has recently appointed an experienced chief executive and has raised $12 million to progress a definitive feasibility study."

The Caravel share price is down about 28% over the past 12 months.

But Langford is upbeat about the project's prospects after the feasibility study.

"Construction is expected to start in 2024, with first production planned for 2026," he said.

"Caravel offers exposure to patient investors who are confident about the outlook for this essential metal."

The post 2 obscure ASX battery mineral shares to buy right now: experts appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

At the time of writing, the Caravel shares are down 3.33% to 43.5 cents apiece.

What were the drilling results?

According to its release, Caravel announced that assay results for 22 recently completed reverse circulation (RC) percussion holes were received. The infill drilling campaign at Bindi intersected wide zones of high-grade copper mineralisation. This included the following:

• 34 meters to 42 meters at 1.75% copper (21CARC059)
• 40 meters to 54 meters at 0.77% copper (21CARC067)
• 40 meters to 60 meters at 0.59% copper (21CARC068)
• 140 meters to 168 meters at 0.56% copper (21CARC072)
• 104 meters to 138 meters at 0.96% copper (21CARC074)

Caravel stated that the results show a good correlation with field observations of mineralisation in drill chips. This helps define higher grade zones within the Bindi East Limb indicating a copper-molybdenum (Cu-Mo) rich zone.

Assay results are pending for another 47 RC percussion holes and are expected to arrive sometime in mid-September.

The company noted that a diamond core rig remains on site to improve geological confidence in the area. The rig will drill a series of 4 deep holes below the East Limb before moving onto the southern end to drill another hole.

Diamond drilling is a more efficient way for precise sampling and analysis, whereas RC drilling is used for extracting bulk samples. When it comes to speed, RC drilling is the faster method, however, diamond drilling is employed when seeking accurate results.

Caravel share price summary

It's been a positive 12 months for Caravel investors, with the company's shares accelerating almost 600%. When looking at the year to date, the Caravel share price has surged around 120%.

Based on today's price, Caravel presides a market capitalisation of roughly $164.6 million, with approximately 378 million shares on hand.

The post Caravel (ASX:CVV) share price edges lower on infill drilling results appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Below we take a look at the ASX copper shares latest drill results.

What drill results did Caravel report?

Caravel's share price is moving higher after the company reported "significantly better" assay results from its reverse circulation (RC) percussion drilling campaign than previously seen at its Dasher Deposit and nearby prospect areas.

All of the holes were drilled within the company's Caravel Copper Project, a greenfield copper mining and processing project located in Western Australia.

Caravel reported it had completed 16 drill holes, totalling 2,634 metres of percussion drilling. It said the results showed "broad zones of mineralisation at good grade".

According to the release, results from Dasher South indicate potential for extension of resource:

• 21CARC030 – 192-248m, 56m @ 0.34% Cu
• 21CARC031 – 54-60m, 6m @ 0.46% Cu and 66-76m, 10m @ 0.35% Cu
• 21CARC032 – 100-132m, 32m @ 0.38% Cu and 138-142, 4m @ 0.40% Cu

More drilling is expected to define the full extent of this mineralisation, with the company stating that, "Follow-up drilling is planned to investigate the extension of mineralisation further along strike to the south from the Dasher South Prospect."

The company plans to incorporate the latest results into an updated resource estimate. This will be used to help determine the next stage for the Dasher Deposit within the current pre-feasibility study for the wider Caravel Copper Project.

Caravel share price snapshot

Caravel shareholders will have little to complain about over the past 12 months, with shares up 1,116% since this time last year. By comparison, the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) is up 27% in that same time.

Caravel and other ASX copper shares have enjoyed a welcome tailwind from soaring copper prices. Copper is currently trading for US$9,882 per tonne, up from US$5,260 per tonne at the end of May 2020.

Year-to-date the Caravel share price has continued to outperform, up 52% so far in 2021.

The post Up 1,116% in 1 year, why the Caravel (ASX:CVV) share price is gaining today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

During early-afternoon trade, the base metals provider's shares are going for 29 cents a pop, down 3.3%.

Details of the share placement

Investors are dropping Caravel shares on news of the company's latest capital raising.

According to its release, Caravel advised it has received firm commitments to raise $7.5 million through a share placement. The offer was presented to institutional and professional investors at an issue price of 27 cents per share. This equates to close to 27.8 million new ordinary shares being added to the company's registry.

Caravel highlighted that a large institutional investor put forward its intent to subscribe for $7 million in the placement.

However, for the capital raising to go ahead, shareholders will need to approve the company's placement at the shareholder meeting. It is expected this will be held in mid-June. Should everything go according to plan, Caravel will issue the new shares, ranking them equally with the existing shares outstanding.

Proceeds of the placement will be allocated towards a number of objectives, including:

• Additional infill and extensional drilling on the Caravel Copper Project
• Potential acquisition of land over the Bindi Deposit and Caravel Copper Project
• General working capital.

Caravel noted that it remains fully-funded to complete its Pre-Feasibility studies as well as advance some key initiatives. This includes land acquisition that will reduce the risk of the copper project and hasten development decisions.

The monies received from the placement will provide detailed drilling at Bindi East after discovering new potential mineral resources. The main criteria of the programme will be to define higher-grade areas that can be brought into the early-mining planning schedule.

Caravel share price review

Caravel shares have been a standout over the past 12 months, accelerating over 1,200%. This means if you picked up $1,000 worth of shares this time last year, it'd be worth north of $12,000.

Based on the Caravel share price at the time of writing, the company has a market capitalisation of roughly $100 million, with 347.6 million shares on issue.

The post Here's why the Caravel (ASX:CVV) share price is backtracking today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Just today, shares in the company were up 23.68% before being placed in a trading halt. Before the suspension, shares in the company were trading for 23.5 cents each. The S&P/ASX All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO), by comparison, ended the day down 0.12%.

Let's take a closer look at the incredible rise of the Caravel Minerals share price. 

What's going on with the Caravel Minerals share price?

The Caravel share price has been going gangbusters over the last year.

Caravel, being a copper-based company, unsurprisingly sees its fortunes rise and fall with that of copper. Well at the moment, copper is rising.

Over the past 12 months, the twenty-ninth element's price has increased by 85.87%, according to Trading Economics. Just from the beginning of this year, the metal is up 16.57%. It currently sells on the commodity market for US$4.103 per pound.

Only one week ago, Caravel announced "significant" copper deposits had been found at its Bindi deposit in Western Australia.

A week prior to that announcement, the company declared it was exploring an area in south-west WA with high chances of "massive sulphide-hosted nickel-copper-platinum group elements…"

Copper's price is seen by many analysts as indicative of the general mood of the economy. As the COVID-19 pandemic subsides and confidence rebounds, the economy is tipped to do well in the near-term.

Another factor influencing the copper price is supply and demand. Many Latin American countries are seeing ongoing supply issues because of the pandemic. As well, there is a bill in the Chilean Congress to increase royalties on copper miners. South America is one of the largest copper producers on the globe.

As well, copper (along with lithium and some other metals) is essential in the production of climate-friendly technologies. Demand for zero-emissions tech, such as electric cars and solar panels, is soaring as governments and industry alike look to combat man-made climate change. As supply contracts and demand increases, this inevitably leads to a price rise. In economics, this is known as the law of supply and demand.

The post Caravel Minerals (ASX:CVV) share price surges 1400% in a year. Here's why appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

On news of the release, the Caravel share price rose to an intraday high of 25 cents and has now dipped slightly to 24 cents, up 8.89% at the time of writing.

About Caravel

Based in Western Australia, Caravel is a gold, copper and base metals exploration and resource development company.

Its flagship Caravel Copper project, located north-east of Perth, is currently engaged in a feasibility study to determine future development. On initial estimates, the site has a mineral resource of 661.9 million tonnes of copper at a grade of 0.28%. This makes it one of the largest untapped copper resources in the Western Australian state.

What did Caravel announce?

The Caravel share price is moving higher after investors seem pleased with the company's progress.

Caravel advised that it has received a 5-year exploration licence for its Toolbrunup project. The decision was made by the Western Australian Department of Mines, Industry Relations and Safety (DMIRS). Covering an area of 114 square kms, the licence allows Caravel to begin exploration works between Tambellup and Gnowangerup.

Previously, the company identified mafic sill and dyke structure through its magnetic survey data in the South West Yilgarn Terrane. Caravel said that the magnetic structure is around 15km long with no surface exposure caused from surface weathering and shallow cover.

Looking at the geochemical sampling results gathered, the company recorded significant nickel, copper, and platinum deposits. Caravel advised that the discovery of magnetic anomaly is somewhat similar to the style and size of the Gonneville complex at the Chalice Mining Ltd (ASX: CHN) Julimar Project.

The company noted that it's currently engaged in discussions with landowners and has completed reconnaissance field visits to the Toolbrunup project. Furthermore, Caravel is looking to conduct a low-cost evaluation for the project using geochemistry methods, and an electromagnetic survey for pinpointing magmatic sulphide deposits.

Caravel share price snapshot

The Caravel share price has been a strong performer over the last year, rising to more than 600%.

During April, the company's shares dipped to a historic low of 1.5%, before accelerating to multi-year highs.

Based on the current share price, Caravel commands a market capitalisation of $71 million.

The post Why the Caravel (ASX:CVV) share price is up 8% today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.