Chalice Mining Ltd

Founded in 2005, Chalice Mining, formerly Chalice Gold Mines spend 15 years with a strategy of developing gold mines and selling them. The 2020 discovery of the Gonneville deposit, changed it all. It was the largest nickel sulphide discovery anywhere in the world in 2 decades and the largest PGE (Platinum Group elements) discovery in Australian history. The Maiden Resource was defined at the end of 2021 and this led to a number of scoping studies, followed by a Preliminary Feasibility Study released at the end of 2025. The study outlined the potential returns for a future mine and there were impressive figures. The cumulative free cash flow was A$4.7bn in a base case scenario with US$1,300/oz platinum, US$2,900/oz gold, US$39,000/oz cobalt. But with a ‘spot price’ scenario of US$1,500/oz palladium, US$1,660/oz platinum, US$4,250/oz gold, US$14,900/t nickel and US$12,050/t copper, this was US$6.2bn. The NPV (using an 8% discount rate) was A$1.4bn pre-tax and A$1bn post tax with those figures being A$2bn and A$1.5bn at spot prices. The pre-tax IRR was 23%, increasing to 29% at spot pices, and a Stage 1 payback of less than 3 years. The project would make 51% of revenue from palladium, 22% from nickel, 17% from copper and the balance from by-products. It was shown to be low-cost with US$370/oz 3E projected from Year 4 onwards with just US$50/oz in the first 3 taking account of byproduct credits. It will be the lowest cost mine in the Western world.