Funds raised by junior and intermediate mining companies dropped by 12% in 2024 to US$10.27 billion, its lowest in five years, according to data tracked by S&P Global. This is despite a 2% rise in the number of financings, which came in at 2,802 for the year.
On a month-to-month basis, the total value of fundraising is also trending down after setting a two-year high in October 2024. In December, funds raised by miners fell 21% to US$890 million, following a near 30% decrease in November.
The number of significant deals — namely those valued at over US$2 million — also decreased by nine to 66 in December.
Gold financings down
The back-to-back monthly decrease is largely reflected by gold juniors and intermediates raising less funds over that period.
In December, gold financings declined 28% to US$375 million, despite an uptick in the number of transactions (144 versus 137 in November), S&P data showed. This is because of a fewer number of significant deals (from 36 to 29), which dragged down the December totals.
The largest and only big financing (over US$50 million) was the A$220 million placement of ordinary shares by Spartan Resources for its Dalgaranga gold project in Western Australia. This was also the largest financing overall for the year.
Base/other metals drag
Reduced funding for base and non-gold precious metals also contributed to the downtrend in financings.
Total fundraising in this group fell 45% in December to US$234 million due to lower financings in copper, nickel and silver, after reaching a seven-month high of US$428 million in November.
Like gold, there were fewer high-value financings, despite the number of transactions rising to a record high of 114 from 78 in November.
The sole big transaction, and the third-largest overall, was Osisko Metals’ $72 million bought deal, part of a larger placement for gross proceeds of $107 million.
Specialty minerals gain traction
On the other hand, funds raised for specialty commodities jumped 63% to US$281 million in December, marking the highest total in eight months, S&P said.
Lithium financings increased for the third consecutive month to US$145 million, while funds raised for uranium increased for the fourth straight month to US$63 million. Graphite financings also rose significantly, reaching US$56 million.
The number of transactions grew to 88, up from 65 in November, and there were two big transactions valued at more than US$50 million in December, compared to none in November.
The largest transaction and the second-largest overall was the A$154 million follow-on equity offering by Vulcan Energy Resources. Proceeds are intended to fund the first phase of its Lionheart lithium project in Germany.
