Metals One completes PEA for Finland Black Schist project

Metals One announced on Friday that it has completed a preliminary economic assessment (PEA) for its Finland Black Schist Ni-Cu-Co-Zn Project, identifying the Rautavaara (R1) deposit as the key economic driver.
The AIM-traded firm said the assessment, conducted by Wardell Armstrong International, provided an initial evaluation of the deposits most suitable for further development.
It said the PEA applied NPV8 and NPV10 net present value calculations, but also considered financials at NPV5, reflecting Finland’s favourable jurisdiction.
The company noted that project returns were highly sensitive to long-term nickel price assumptions, with further upside potential as additional resources were incorporated beyond the modelled 57.1 million tonnes in the assessment.
Metals One said it intended to apply for strategic project status under the European Critical Raw Materials Act in the first quarter of 2025, positioning the project within the EU’s framework for securing key mineral supplies.
“The PEA demonstrates that although it was undertaken at a time of weak nickel prices and inflated input costs, the project is highly leveraged to rising commodity prices,” said chief executive officer Jonathan Owen.
“Considering demand for battery-grade nickel is forecast to triple by 2030 and that producing the metal domestically within the EU becomes an ever more critical goal, we are evidently sitting on valuable assets with compelling leverage to a rising nickel price.”
For now, however, Owen said capital availability for nickel projects remained tough.
“Our next move is to apply to the European Commission for designation of the Project as ‘strategic’, as defined by the European Critical Raw Materials Act, within the first quarter of 2025, before assessing the future work programme.”
At 1145 GMT, shares in Metals One were down 47.06% at 0.23p.
Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.