Almonty Monetizes Old Tailings in Spain as Rwanda Joint Venture Takes Shape
Published on 09/18/2026 at 15:50 | Editorial boerse-global.de
Almonty's stock advanced 2.4 percent to EUR 12.60 on Tuesday, lifted by a binding offtake agreement the tungsten miner unveiled a day earlier for its Los Santos tailings operation in western Spain. The counterparty is Wolfram Bergbau und Hütten AG, a subsidiary of Sweden's Sandvik group, and the contract carries take-or-pay terms covering reprocessing of existing tailings on site, with a minimum volume of roughly 1,720 tonnes of contained tungsten trioxide. A conditional advance payment of USD 3.0 million is attached to the deal.
For a company that has spent months deep in project development, the arrangement offers a rare proof point: legacy assets can be turned back into cash without sinking fresh capital into new mine construction. That distinction matters. Underground mining devours upfront investment, whereas reworking processing residue delivers predictable marginal costs — and, if the tonnages move through the plant at a steady margin, a wider balance-sheet buffer without recourse to expensive debt.
What the Market Will Be Watching
Two operational markers now sit at the center of the investment case. The first is the timing of the full USD 3.0 million conditional payment. The second is how quickly Almonty can process the contracted 1,720-tonne minimum of tungsten trioxide. Both will shape how soon the Los Santos agreement shows up in reported financials.
The broader strategic read is that the contract reinforces Almonty's standing as a Western supplier of critical industrial metals — a narrative that has already drawn analyst attention. DA Davidson reiterated its confidence in the stock on September 15 with a price target of USD 33.00. Jefferies had initiated coverage earlier, on September 2, with a buy rating and a USD 26.25 target, citing the company's position in the Western tungsten supply chain.
Should investors sell immediately? Or is it worth buying Almonty?
Rwanda: 75/25 Split, US Backing
That supply-chain story extends well beyond Spain. Under a binding partnership with the Rwandan government, Almonty will hold 75 percent of a joint subsidiary, Almonty Rwanda, while the state takes 25 percent. Rwanda's contribution is the Shyorongi exploration concession along with a mineral processing license. Reuters reports the venture is supported by a US economic framework — geopolitical cover that carries real weight given tungsten's classification in Western economies as a critical metal with elevated supply risks. If mining and refining in Rwanda come together as planned, Almonty gains a strategic foothold outside the traditional producing regions.
Alongside the African build-out, the company is tidying its organizational footprint, consolidating trading venues. That kind of bundling can concentrate liquidity on the remaining listings, though it also creates short-term adjustment needs for international shareholders. An extraordinary general meeting now looms on the calendar, where resolutions on the future corporate structure and project financing are expected to come to a head.
Momentum From Korea, Risks From Execution
Operational tailwinds are not limited to Spain or Rwanda. Almonty reported the start of production at its Sangdong project in South Korea more than a month ago, adding another lever to group revenue. If that momentum holds, the Spanish tailings and Asian assets together could lift consolidated sales to a new level.
Investors, however, should not lose sight of what could go wrong. Take-or-pay contracts shield the operator from short-term demand swings but impose strict delivery obligations. Metallurgical problems at the Spanish tailings — anything that undermines the required purity or yield of the tungsten concentrate — could trigger penalties or force renegotiation. Almonty also remains heavily dependent on the reliability of its processing plants. Slow commissioning of individual stages, or regulatory sign-offs that drag on for future projects, could see fixed costs eat into projected margins. Involving state partners in Africa adds political and administrative friction that can translate into unexpected cost overruns on the ground.
The Valuation Test
The stock has climbed 58 percent since the start of the year, yet at EUR 12.51 in pre-market trading it still sits roughly 39 percent below its 52-week high of EUR 20.61. That gap frames the market's expectations neatly: the next quarterly reports must show the first financial contributions from the Los Santos agreement and the expansion of the company's properties. As long as Almonty delivers contracted volumes to Sandvik on schedule and processed tonnages track the plan, the path to a fundamental re-rating stays open. Should tailings margins buckle under unforeseen process costs, or additional capacity ramp-ups stall, selling pressure is likely to return. The extraordinary general meeting should offer early signals on how smoothly this transformation unfolds.
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