Blue Moon Metals has reached an agreement with Teck American Incorporated, a subsidiary of Teck Resources Limited, to acquire the past-producing Apex germanium-gallium-copper mine in Utah, becoming a key stakeholder to support an integrated pipeline of U.S. critical mineral projects.
The Apex mine consists of 26 patented and nine unpatented claims for a total of 250 hectares, all subject to a royalty capped at $1 million free and clear of all other encumbrances. Blue Moon will issue 7,031,959 common shares to Teck, representing 8% of its outstanding shares. Additionally, Teck will receive a 0.5% net smelter returns royalty on the property.
“Underground development at the Blue Moon mine is advancing well, which, together with the acquisition of the Apex Mine and our redevelopment of the Springer metallurgical complex and Springer tungsten mine, provides a unique hub and spoke platform for U.S. critical metals growth,” said Christian Kargl-Simard, CEO of Blue Moon.
“Teck and Blue Moon are logical partners, combining Blue Moon’s U.S. project pipeline and processing capacity at Teck’s Trail operations. We are excited to leverage our combined infrastructure, industry-leading technical know-how, and financing depth to advance our U.S. domestic copper, zinc, tungsten, and now germanium and gallium projects to provide long-term feed for our Springer Complex.”
Immediate synergies from the deal include:
- The ability to process zinc concentrates from Blue Moon’s Blue Moon mine in California, where underground development commenced last year, at Teck’s Trail operations, providing the final piece to solidify a fully integrated North American-sourced value chain.
- A path to redevelop the Apex mine to potentially unlock an important onshore source of germanium and gallium.
- Possible restart of the permitted Springer tungsten mine in Nevada, with the potential to supply a sizable portion of U.S. domestic requirements.
- Redevelopment of the larger Springer Complex to build critical mineral processing capacity to support the Blue Moon mine and others in the Western U.S.
Apex is a historic underground mine in southwest Utah, which was previously mined for copper oxide, and later for germanium and gallium. During its peak year of operations, Apex produced 10,270 tons, yielding 1,645 pounds of Ga, 5,634 lb. of Ge and 224,800 lb. of Cu.
Source: Blue Moon Metals