TSX Venture index falls nearly 4% during Apr. 17-21 trading week

The S&P/TSX Venture Composite Index fell 23.68 points or 3.7% over the Apr. 17-21 trading period to close at 614.2.  

Sigma Lithium fell the most by value, dropping $5.37 apiece to $47.99, after the government of Chile said on Apr. 20 it planned to nationalize the country’s lithium industry.  

While Sigma’s main project is in Brazil, there are concerns other South American countries accounting for some two-thirds of global production could follow suit. Brazil’s leftist President Lula da Silva began serving another term in January.  

Based in Vancouver, Sigma said Apr. 17 it had begun production at its Grota do Cirilo hard rock lithium project in Minas Gerais state after completing phase one construction. The first shipment of about 15,000 tonnes of 6% lithium oxide concentrate is expected in May as the plant ramps up to full production by July. 

Red Cloud Securities said Sigma’s production start is “a major de-risking event” that should help the stock and provide revenue for expansion where a feasibility study is already underway. The expansion would increase annual output to 766,000 tonnes lithium oxide concentrate, equal to 104,200 tonnes lithium carbonate equivalent, from 270,000 tonnes of concentrate. 

New Found Gold dropped 57¢ to $6.42 apiece despite reporting strong assays from its Queensway project in central Newfoundland. The company said on Apr. 18 that drill hole NFGC-22-911 at the Keats West target cut 31.6 metres grading 4.27 grams gold per tonne and 4.7 metres at 8.42 grams.  

The result follows assays reported in November including 32 metres of 42.6 grams gold in drill hole NFGC-22-960 and 16 metres at 18.6 grams gold in NFGC-22-773. The mineralized footprint of Keats West now spans 250 metres wide by 305 metres down dip, averaging 30 meres thick, the company said.  

NGEx Minerals gained 46¢ apiece to close at $6.78 after reporting its strongest assays yet at its Los Helados copper-gold project in Chile. Drill hole LHDH081-2 cut 343.8 metres grading 0.9% copper equivalent, including 63.8 metres at 1.25% copper equivalent.  

The results follow drill results this month from its Potro Cliffs project in northwest Argentina showing potential for a major new copper-gold system. Drill hole DPDH002 cut 60 metres grading 5.65% copper, 2.04 grams gold per tonne and 44 grams silver from 212 metres downhole. 

Shares in IsoEnergy, a uranium explorer in the Athabasca Basin of northern Saskatchewan, fell 34¢ to $2.36 each. The company said on Apr. 21 it had completed a winter program of five drill holes at the Hawk project totalling 4,273 metres, six drill holes totalling 1,909 metres at Larocque East and geophysical surveys at both plus the Geiger target. Assay results are pending.  

Also in the nuclear energy space, Uranium Royalty lost 27¢ to close at $2.53. The falls occurred despite the spot price for uranium recovering last month’s loss, rising to US$51 per lb. Moves by Western powers to shun Russia from nuclear fuel markets added pressure on supplies after Kazatomprom said its output would fall this year while Finland and Japan said they would restart power plants.