Albright Metals Exits Gabanintha Rights as AVL Buys Full Control for $1.75M
Key Takeaways
- AVL has terminated the 2017 Mineral Rights Sale Agreement with Albright Metals, paying $500,000 cash plus $1.25 million in AVL shares and assigning a 0.75% net smelter return royalty over the Tumblegum South project.
- The deal consolidates full ownership of mineral rights across key Gabanintha tenements, removing a split-rights structure that has existed since 2017 and could complicate financing and partnership negotiations.
- Nickel, copper, and gold rights — previously held by Albright — now revert to AVL, adding long-term optionality across the broader project area alongside the core vanadium development case.
- The Australian Vanadium Project holds a total Mineral Resource of 395.4Mt at 0.77% V₂O₅, including a high-grade zone of 173.2Mt at 1.09% V₂O₅, making it one of the most advanced vanadium projects globally.
- The transaction is unconditional and scheduled to complete two business days after signing, with Albright also withdrawing its caveats over the relevant AVL tenements.
AVL takes full control of mineral rights at the Australian Vanadium Project
Australian Vanadium Limited (ASX: AVL) has entered into an agreement with Albright Metals Ltd (ASX: ABR) to terminate the 2017 Mineral Rights Sale Agreement (MRSA), consolidating full ownership and control of mineral rights across key tenements at the Gabanintha project in Western Australia.
The transaction removes a split mineral rights structure that has existed since 2017, with all of Albright’s rights and interests under the MRSA reverting to AVL. The result is a cleaner, simpler ownership framework that gives AVL greater flexibility over future project development and potential by-product recovery.
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Transaction terms at a glance
AVL is paying Albright the following consideration to terminate the MRSA:
- $500,000 cash payment
- $1.25 million in AVL shares, priced at the 20-day volume-weighted average price (VWAP) of AVL shares traded on the ASX ending on the trading day immediately preceding their issue (the final share count will be confirmed in the Appendix 3B)
- Assignment to Albright of AVL’s interest in a 0.75% net smelter return royalty over the Tumblegum South project
Albright will also withdraw its caveats over the relevant AVL tenements and provide AVL with the technical and other information it holds on those tenements. AVL shares issued to Albright are subject to a customary orderly sale process. The transaction is unconditional, with completion scheduled two business days after the transaction date.
Graham Arvidson, CEO
“This transaction provides a cleaner, more flexible ownership structure for development of the Australian Vanadium Project. Our immediate focus remains the development of a globally significant vanadium operation. In addition to simplifying the operating framework, the transaction also preserves for AVL shareholders the potential value of additional minerals within the broader project area, including nickel, copper and gold.”
Why mineral rights consolidation matters for project development
Under the 2017 MRSA, AVL granted Albright (then Bryah Resources Limited) rights to explore for, mine and treat all minerals across the relevant Gabanintha tenements, except vanadium, uranium, cobalt, chromium, titanium, lithium, tantalum, manganese and iron ore, which AVL retained. That split meant two separate parties held rights over different minerals within the same ground.
Split mineral rights can create practical complications during financing processes, when negotiating strategic partnerships, and when configuring a project’s development pathway. Lenders and partners conducting due diligence often scrutinise tenure complexity closely, and a fragmented rights structure can slow or complicate those conversations.
By terminating the MRSA, AVL removes that structural layer entirely. The consolidation is expected to simplify the project’s tenure and mineral rights framework across financing, strategic partnerships and future development planning.
Unlocking optionality — nickel, copper, gold and beyond
The termination of the MRSA brings a range of minerals back under AVL’s consolidated control. The following minerals are now within AVL’s ownership across the relevant tenements:
- Nickel (reacquired via this transaction)
- Copper (reacquired via this transaction)
- Cobalt (already held by AVL prior to this transaction)
- Gold (reacquired — Albright has previously announced gold exploration targets and intersections within the relevant tenements)
Previous work undertaken in relation to the Australian Vanadium Project has identified nickel, copper and cobalt mineralisation and considered the potential for recovery of those metals alongside vanadium development. Reacquisition of the nickel and copper rights allows AVL to consider any future recovery opportunities on an integrated basis as part of the broader project.
Importantly, AVL has not completed sufficient technical or economic studies to establish that recovery of nickel, copper, gold or other minerals associated with the acquired rights would be commercially viable. No revenue, production or other economic benefit from these mineral rights is included in AVL’s current development case. On gold specifically, neither Albright nor AVL has established a gold Mineral Resource or an economic development case for gold within the project area. Any future exploration or recovery of these minerals would be subject to further technical and economic assessment and applicable approvals. These are long-term optionality considerations, not near-term revenue opportunities.
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Australian Vanadium Project — the foundation
The Australian Vanadium Project at Gabanintha, WA, is one of the most advanced vanadium projects being developed globally. The project’s total Mineral Resource stands at 395.4Mt at 0.77% V₂O₅, containing a high-grade zone of 173.2Mt at 1.09% V₂O₅, reported in compliance with the JORC Code 2012 (as at the ASX announcement dated 7 May 2024).
| Zone | Category | Mt | V₂O₅ % | Fe % | TiO₂ % | SiO₂ % | Al₂O₃ % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| High Grade (HG) | Measured | 30.6 | 1.14 | 46.3 | 12.9 | 7.4 | 6.2 |
| Indicated | 74.8 | 1.11 | 47.5 | 12.6 | 7.0 | 5.7 | |
| Inferred | 67.9 | 1.06 | 45.3 | 12.1 | 9.0 | 6.6 | |
| Subtotal | 173.2 | 1.09 | 46.5 | 12.5 | 7.8 | 6.1 | |
| Low Grade (LG) | Indicated | 61.8 | 0.55 | 26.1 | 7.1 | 26.6 | 16.3 |
| Inferred | 142.5 | 0.48 | 24.9 | 6.6 | 28.9 | 15.2 | |
| Subtotal | 204.3 | 0.50 | 25.3 | 6.8 | 28.2 | 15.5 | |
| Transported | Inferred | 17.9 | 0.65 | 31.0 | 7.3 | 24.1 | 14.4 |
| Subtotal | 17.9 | 0.65 | 31.0 | 7.3 | 24.1 | 14.4 | |
| Total | Measured | 30.6 | 1.13 | 46.3 | 12.9 | 7.4 | 6.2 |
| Indicated | 136.6 | 0.85 | 37.8 | 10.1 | 15.8 | 10.5 | |
| Inferred | 228.2 | 0.66 | 31.4 | 8.3 | 22.6 | 12.6 | |
| Subtotal | 395.4 | 0.77 | 34.8 | 9.3 | 19.1 | 11.4 |
Source: ASX announcement dated 7 May 2024. Totals may not add due to rounding. Cut-offs: nominal 0.4% V₂O₅ wireframed for low-grade; nominal 0.7% V₂O₅ wireframed for high-grade.
Beyond the project itself, AVL’s vertical integration strategy spans vanadium processing through to electrolyte manufacturing and vanadium flow battery (VFB) energy storage. VSUN Energy, AVL’s 100%-owned energy storage subsidiary, is focused on developing the Australian market for VFBs for long-duration energy storage, complementing the upstream resource development at Gabanintha.
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