Demand for strategic metals, such as silica, is only set to increase thanks to advancements in technology, the green economy and clean energy, creating a potential $120 billion market opportunity by 2033, says Emergen Research. Unfortunately, most of the strategic metals market is still strongly controlled by China, which accounts for about 70% of global production. Given that issue, the U.S. is working to establish new sources of supply, with the intent of breaking free of China’s stronghold position. In fact, companies that can help secure strategic metals, such as silica, could benefit significantly over the long term. That includes companies such as Troy Minerals Inc. (CSE: TROY) (OTCQB: TROYF), Ferroglobe (NASDAQ: GSM), Ecolab (NYSE: ECL), Evonik Industries (OTC: EVKIY) and Ecovyst (NYSE: ECVT).
Not only is high-purity silica needed for glass manufacturing, but it’s also seeing big demand in building materials, such as concrete, for semiconductor manufacturing, solar panel production, and even in 5G infrastructure. Also, with demand showing no clear signs of slowing, any company that can help provide high-purity silica could see significant long-term growth.
Look at Troy Minerals Inc. (CSE: TROY) (OTCQB: TROYF), For Example
Troy Minerals Inc. just announced the strategic expansion of its Lake Owen Project, located 50km southwest of Laramie, Wyoming, USA by adding a significant number of neighboring claims. The new Claims staking process followed the conclusion of the Company’s first phase geological program that took place in H2 2024. The exploration program consisted of first pass geological mapping, diamond drilling and sampling. Results of this program will be reported in due course.
"Our Lake Owen Project compliments our overall portfolio of strategic exploration assets in Canada, USA and Mongolia." stated Yannis Tsitos, President of Troy Minerals. " The addition of 85 claims on our Wyoming holdings, now brings our total number of claims to 185 and was made to increase the amount of potentially fertile magnetite-rich gabbro in the Property. Our near-term goals are to explore the layered mafic intrusion for vanadium and titanium mineralization, which also includes ‘reef’ style PGE (Platinum Group Elements) mineralization as noted by historic work and drilling on the Property by Chevron and, the potential for basal massive Cu and Ni sulfide mineralization along the Proterozoic- contact."
The Lake Owen Project has effectively been doubled and now comprises 1433 hectares from 714 hectares before the new staking. The newly acquired claims are accessible through existing infrastructure and cover strategic land adjacent to the existing Lake Owen claims.
The Lake Owen Project, is a Proterozoic layered mafic intrusion complex with a long history of sporadic exploration primarily for Platinum Group Elements. Similar in style to the Stillwater Complex in USA and the Merensky Reef of South Africa, the Lake Owen Complex is a highly prospective North American based target with a strong potential for significant vanadium, titanium, PGE and associated metals mineralization.
The Lake Owen Complex is the focus of the US government’s critical minerals strategy resulting in a recently completed high resolution airborne Magnetic and Radiometric geophysical survey over the complex, which also covers the Company’s property, and included ‘boots on the outcrop’ mapping and sampling by the United States Geological Survey (“USGS”). Geologists from the USGS and Wyoming Geologic Survey recently visited the Property with Troy’s Chief Geologist Bill Cronk. Their goals were to review the recently drilled core, log it themselves and select samples for petrologic studies including thin section analysis.
Other related developments from around the markets include:
Ferroglobe CEO Marco Levi noted, “2024 was a successful year for Ferroglobe with many accomplishments. We achieved an adjusted EBITDA per our guidance and generated strong free cash flow, which was used to repay our senior secured notes. This strong free cash flow and balance sheet enabled us to initiate the capital return program, including dividends and share repurchases, while positioning the company for growth. We are optimistic that, while there are uncertainties in the markets, demand will begin improving in the second half of 2025. Material progress has been made in implementing trade measures with the US Department of Commerce, imposing strong final anti-dumping and countervailing duties on Russian ferrosilicon imports while continuing to investigate the cases against Brazil, Kazakhstan, and Malaysia. The European Commission initiated its safeguard investigation into the imports of silicon metals, silicon alloys and manganese alloys into the EU. Ferroglobe, being a local producer in both the US and Europe, will be a beneficiary of these trade measures as they will reduce artificially low-priced competitive products in the market.”
Ecolab Chairman and CEO, Christophe Beck just said, “2024 was another exceptional year for Ecolab, with sales, organic operating income margin, free cash flow, and adjusted diluted earnings per share all reaching record levels. This outstanding performance was fueled by the significant total value the Ecolab team and technologies delivered to our customers. We also continued to invest in breakthrough innovation, new digital capabilities, and our sales and service expertise. These efforts aim to further strengthen Ecolab’s competitive position, enhance our customer value proposition, and create new growth opportunities for the future. We enter 2025 confident in our ability to deliver continued strong performance in a dynamic environment. Growth in the United States, our largest and most profitable region, continues to be very strong, and growth across the rest of the world is solid as we more than offset uneven macroeconomic trends. We expect to continue this good momentum by generating further market share gains through our One Ecolab initiative and accelerating performance in our growth engines, specifically in data centers, microelectronics, life sciences, and Ecolab digital. Additionally, we will implement value pricing that reflects the increasing value Ecolab delivers to customers. As a result, we expect to deliver attractive organic operating income margin expansion, as our confidence in reaching our 20% margin target over the next three years continues to strengthen. Ecolab’s business fundamentals, momentum, and balance sheet are strong, and we remain incredibly focused on generating superior shareholder returns in 2025 and beyond.”
Evonik Industries just noted that, “Effective January 1, 2025, Evonik has launched Smart Effects, a new entity counting 3,500 employees worldwide, born from the strategic merger of its Silica and Silanes business lines that will be part of ‘Advanced Technologies’ within the new company organization. This merger leverages the expertise of both business lines to deliver innovative solutions that benefit both customers and the planet. "The new business line is a strategic step by Evonik to strengthen the financing power of our complementary Silanes, precipitated and fumed Silica technology platforms,” stated Lauren Kjeldsen, President of Smart Materials Division at Evonik. “By combining our expertise in molecular silane chemistry and silica particle design, we can deliver differentiated solutions that add value to our customers with a tailored portfolio approach."
Ecovyst Inc., a leading integrated and innovative global provider of advanced materials, specialty catalysts, sulfuric acid and regeneration services, announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a strategic review process for its Advanced Materials & Catalysts business. This announcement is an extension of the Board's ongoing evaluation and review of the business, aimed at maximizing shareholder value. AM&C is comprised of two business units. Advanced Silicas is an internationally leading provider of silica-based advanced materials and catalysts, essential for the production of polyethylene, biocatalysts, and functional chemicals. Zeolyst International, a joint venture with Shell, is a world-leading supplier of zeolite-based advanced materials and catalysts. These are crucial for the production of distillate and sustainable fuels, including renewable diesel and sustainable aviation fuels.
Legal Disclaimer / Except for the historical information presented herein, matters discussed in this article contains forward-looking statements that are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such statements. Winning Media is not registered with any financial or securities regulatory authority and does not provide nor claims to provide investment advice or recommendations to readers of this release. For making specific investment decisions, readers should seek their own advice. Winning Media is only compensated for its services in the form of cash-based compensation. Pursuant to an agreement Winning Media has been paid three thousand five hundred dollars for advertising and marketing services for Troy Minerals Inc. by Troy Minerals Inc. We own ZERO shares of Troy Minerals Inc. Please click here for disclaimer.
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