ASX Runners: Santa Fe, Energy World, Next Science and Loyal Metals

The close to the financial year impressively saw the ASX crack 8600 points on the index for the first time in history. The all-time highs were welcomed largely thanks to all four major banks forecasting a July interest rate cut, as soft data brought forward forecasts and added a potential second rate cut within the calendar year.

All-time highs on the back of weak global economic data and geopolitical instability don’t seem like the strongest foundation for markets. Regardless, materials stacked on most of the Aussie index’s gains as the copper price hit US$10,000 (A$15,200) per tonne for the first time this year.

The red metal has turned into one of 2025’s hottest commodities plays, with huge global M&A and copper-gold raisings forecasting continued strength into the new financial year.

Dominoes was the market’s most notable loser. Its share price dropped nearly 25 per cent, after its recently appointed revolutionary CEO and managing director resigned. The surprise ‘see ya later’ left the market reeling, asking the remaining board ‘what the heck just happened?’.

Gold finished the financial year flat, as safe haven demand dissipated, ending a near six-month winning streak for the yellow metal. The precious metal remains at all-time high prices thanks to threats of United States President Donald Trump’s returning Tariff War looming large for next week’s market digestion.

This week’s Bulls N’ Bears Runners, like the broader ASX, was dominated by the materials sector. Taking out top spot was a microcap minnow vanadium explorer turned West African gold hopeful, which snapped up a huge project from a big brother goldie in the booming region.

SANTA FE MINERALS (ASX: SFM)

Up 416% (3.1c – 16c)

This week’s Runner of the week was snatched by Santa Fe Minerals, which blasted off on Thursday after unveiling its acquisition of the Eburnea gold project in Côte d'Ivoire from Turaco Gold. 

The news and accompanying $1.2 million capital raising at an unheard of 61 per cent premium to its last traded share price, sent the market into a frenzy. The company’s share price propelled up to a staggering 416 per cent to a high of 16 cents, from a previous week close of just 3.1c.

For a company that has long slogged it out as a Western Australian vanadium battler, this bold pivot into West Africa to explore Eburnea’s 20-kilometre plus mineralised corridor looks a promising and savvy pick up. 

Santa Fe secured the Eburnea project for a lean 12 million shares, 4 million performance rights and future 2.5 per cent net smelter royalty, valuing it at just $600,000 at the 5c vending price. 

The project includes the Satama and Bouake North permits covering 550 square kilometres. 

Satama has already shown its mettle with promising high-grade hits, such as 26m grading a juicy 4.82 grams per tonne (g/t) gold and a bonanza 3m at 35.8g/t along a 2km mineralised zone. The company says geophysical surveys hint at multiple parallel zones ripe for expansion. 

Bouake North is a little greener a prospect, sitting 35km along strike from Endeavour Mining’s 3-million-ounce Lafigué gold mine with limited drilling or modern exploration.

Santa Fe is gearing up to drill high-priority targets and extend the promising zones, aiming to unlock a major resource in this gold-hot region.

The company’s transformation from a vanadium underdog to a focussed African gold explorer comes as Côte d'Ivoire’s goldfields heat up, with Turaco banking an impressive $60 million capital raise prior to offloading Eburnea to focus on its 3.6-million-ounce Afema project in the country’s south.

With a massive surge and a new lease on life near a world-class gold mine, Santa Fe looks primed to ride the West African gold wave as investors are betting this is just the opening salvo for a glittering run.

ENERGY WORLD CORPORATION (ASX: EWC)

Up 362% (2.1c – 9.7c)

Bulls N’ Bears’ silver medal this week went to LNG developer Energy World Corporation, which unveiled a bombshell subscription agreement shake-up on Tuesday to erase a colossal US$440 million (A$659 million) in debt - plus accrued interest - sending its share price into the stratosphere. 

For a company long weighed down by its debt, this was the kind of news that had investors flocking back to the once high-flyer in the hope it might fulfil its promise of becoming a heavyweight in the Asian LNG arena.

The transformative deal was ironed out with lenders Energy World International (EWI) and Slipform Engineering Group to convert the debt into fully paid ordinary shares at a conversion price of 88c per share – a staggering 44-fold premium on the 2c average share price of the previous month.

If shareholders give the green light, the 782.2 million shares will equate to about 25 per cent of the current shares on issue. 

Translating to an equity cost of just $16.4 million for shareholders at its last traded 2.1c share price, a miniscule fraction of the debt wiped out. 

The deal boosts EWI and Slipform’s combined stake from 41 per cent to 53 per cent, cementing their grip over Energy World while slashing its financial baggage. 

Energy World is no small-scale gas fryer. The independent energy player has substantial infrastructure assets, including LNG projects throughout South East Asia. 

Its crown jewel is its Philippines LNG Hub, which is poised to be a linchpin in the growing nation’s emerging gas industry. Management says the terminal’s strategic importance can’t be overstated, especially as the Philippines ramps up its energy infrastructure to meet growing demand.

When the deal is set in stone, the company says its net asset value will be pegged at a massive 31c per share, making the company’s current valuation look like an absolute bargain.

The company also hailed EWI, Slipform and the Elliott family for slashing its debt pile and backing it with below-market, unsecured loans – a level of support described as “unprecedented on the ASX”.

The market couldn’t get enough of the news on Tuesday, before things kicked into top gear on Wednesday with $4.2 million in stock traded, as its share price screamed to a high of 9.7c, a massive 362 per cent leap from last week’s close of just 2.1c. 

For years Energy World’s share price has languished at about a 90 per cent discount to its net tangible assets, a reflection of the debt albatross hanging over its head. 

Now that it’s no longer the case, the company can push for the debt-to-equity deals it needs to commercialise its assets and cash in a burgeoning Philippines’ gas frontier. 

NEXT SCIENCE LTD (ASX: NXS)

Up 108% (7.2c – 15c)   

Bulls N’ Bears’ bronze was scooped up by medical tech innovator Next Science Limited. The company offloaded a majority of its assets on Tuesday, unveiling a blockbuster binding asset purchase agreement with Italy’s Demetra Holding S.p.A for US$50 million (A$76 million), sending its share price soaring. 

The hefty deal to sell Next Science’s proprietary bacterial eradicating XBIO technology, regulatory approvals and intellectual property, came in at a cool US$50 million, plus Demetra taking on a bunch of liabilities. 

The asset purchase is subject to shareholder approval, but is expected to net the company about US$30 million (A$45.6 million) after debts, taxes, and costs, translating to a tidy shareholder return of about 15.6c per share. 

While it’s a nice leg up from last week’s traded price of 7.2c, it’s not quite the nearly 50c highs from a little over a year ago. One could imagine shareholders might not be jumping for joy over the deal.

However punters who scooped up shares last week will be cheering. With $1.7 million in stock traded on Tuesday, the company’s share price shot up 108 per cent to a high of 15c intraday, up from last week’s close of a 7.2c low, giving the company a much needed shot in the arm.

Sydney-based Next Science has its R&D hub in Jacksonville, Florida, where it has been pioneering its infection-eliminating XBIO tech since 2012. 

The company says its arsenal ranges from antimicrobial gels to surgical solutions and has made waves in North America, Australia, and New Zealand. 

The opportunistic Demetra on the other hand is a heavyweight in bone cement and preformed spacer tech for orthopaedic infections. It says it is the perfect buyer for XBIO to wholly own the in-house infections solutions, allowing Next Science to focus on its remaining durable medical equipment assets. 

The cash-flushed Next Science will now weigh its options. If the deal gets the green light, the injection could be a warm-up act for the company. Having done it once, Next Science will try to replicate its success in the lucrative med-tech arena.

^{A bird’s eye view of the historic high-grade pit at Loyal Metal’s Highway Reward copper-gold project, where a highway was literally diverted to unlock its riches. Credit: File.}

LOYAL METALS LTD (ASX: LLM)

Up 92% (13c – 25c)   

Bulls N’ Bears’ final Runners’ spot this week was clinched by another Aussie explorer in Loyal Metals, which took off on the bourse on Wednesday after revealing a timely pivot from lithium to the sizzling copper-gold sector. 

The pivot came in the form of the historic high-grade Highway Reward mine in central Queensland. 

The binding option to acquire the long-dormant gem will cost the company up to nine million shares, five million performance shares, a 2 per cent royalty and $250,000 cash to seal the deal. 

It will also set the stage for Loyal to revive high-grade copper-gold pipes at Highway Reward, which has remained untouched since mining ceased way back in 2005. 

The project is a former high-grade titan that delivered 3.65 million tonnes at a blistering 5.7 per cent copper and 260,000 ounces of gold at a massive 4.5g/t. 

The aptly named open pit mine was so rich, they Gregory highway was rerouted to mine it.

Nestled in the Mount Windsor volcanic belt, it sits alongside giants such as Newmont’s 3.2-million-ounce Mt Leyshon and Yuxin Holding’s 3.4-million-ounce Pajingo gold mines. 

Hysteria took over on the announcement, spiking the share price up to 92 per cent on Wednesday on more than $2.5 million worth of paper trading hands.

Loyal says that no exploration has happened since 2005, despite copper prices soaring 680 per cent and gold a whopping 1250 per cent since a 1997 feasibility study. 

A 5000m drilling campaign will shortly kick off, targeting the prospective mineralisation around the project’s dunite intrusion. With $4.4 million in the bank, Loyal can hit the ground running to hunt for new copper-gold-rich discoveries along a 3km strike of polymetallic sulphides.

Fuelled by excitement over this long-dormant gem’s potential to cash in on sky-high copper and gold prices, the company has made a well-timed grasp away from a long-suffering lithium market. Should it find a repeat of the grades of Highway Reward past, the share price boost this week will look like a blip on the price chart for this exciting exploration hopeful.

Is your ASX-listed company doing something interesting? Contact: matt.birney@businessnews.com.au