The $30B Catalyst Reshaping America's Mineral Supply

Executive Summary

• Americore Resources advances its Trinity Silver Project with completed drone‑magnetometer survey and permits in place for a Q2 2026 drill program aimed at upgrading resources from Inferred to Indicated.
• Westwater Resources files an NPDES permit application for the Coosa Graphite Project, a key step toward domestic graphite supply chain integration.
• NioCorp Developments marks a construction milestone at Elk Creek Critical Minerals Project with excavation of the underground mine portal launched by Congressman Adrian Smith.
• Ryerson reports Q4 2025 revenue of $1.10 B (in line with guidance), completes its merger with Olympic Steel, and targets $120 M run‑rate synergies by 2028.
• American Resources Corp.’s subsidiary Electrified Materials expands preprocessing capacity in Indiana, supporting a fully domestic circular rare‑earth supply chain and preparing for a Regulation D capital raise and potential spin‑off.

Key Details

• Americore Resources (TSXV: AMCO / OTCQB: AMCOF)
• Completed a 350 km drone‑magnetometer survey across the Trinity Silver Project, Pershing County, NV.
• Engaged Campbell & Walker Geophysics to integrate new and historic geophysical data into a unified structural model.
• Property comprises 22,700 acres with a historic resource of ~36 M silver‑equivalent ounces; historic drill database available.
• Permitting underway for a Q2 2026 drilling campaign (BLM Notice of Disturbance for <5 acres; fee land regulated by Nevada Division of Mining).
• CEO Jeff Poloni states the program will “move the resource from Inferred to Indicated” and form the basis for a new mineral resource estimate.

• Company also evaluating monetization of an above‑ground stockpile at Trinity as a near‑term revenue source.

• Westwater Resources (NYSE‑A: WWR)

• Filed an NPDES permit application with Alabama Department of Environmental Management for the Coosa Graphite Project, Coosa County, AL.
• Application includes site‑specific engineering, hydrologic and environmental analyses to meet Clean Water Act standards.

• Permit required before mining operations at what is described as the largest natural flake graphite deposit in the contiguous U.S.

• NioCorp Developments (NASDAQ: NB)

• Construction milestone achieved: excavation of the underground mine portal at Elk Creek Critical Minerals Project, southeast Nebraska, officially launched by Congressman Adrian Smith.
• Project will produce niobium, scandium, titanium and magnetic rare‑earths from a single orebody.

• Anticipated economic impact: >400 jobs; >$600 M in state/local tax revenue over the mine’s life.

• Ryerson (NYSE: RYZ)

• Q4 2025 revenue of $1.10 B, meeting guidance; net leverage and cash‑flow targets exceeded.
• Completed merger with Olympic Steel on Feb 13 2026; combined entity now North America’s second‑largest metals service center (~160 facilities).
• Targeting $120 M annual run‑rate synergies by early 2028 via procurement scale, efficiency gains and network optimization.
• Full‑year 2025 Adjusted EBITDA (ex‑LIFO) of $138.5 M vs. $114.1 M in 2024.
• Revolving credit facility expanded to $1.8 B from $1.3 B post‑merger.

• Guidance for Q1 2026 combined revenue: $1.52–$1.58 B; expects gross‑margin recovery as commodity prices rise.

• American Resources Corporation (NASDAQ: AREC)

• Subsidiary Electrified Materials Corp. expanded preprocessing capabilities at its Indiana facility, adding equipment to aggregate and condition magnet materials, copper, aluminum and ferrous scrap.
• Conditioned rare‑earth and critical mineral feedstocks will be sent to sister company ReElement Technologies for advanced separation and ultra‑high‑purity refining, completing a domestic circular supply chain.
• Expansion funded partly by a Regulation D private placement at the subsidiary level and an Indiana state recycling grant.
• Management plans to spin off Electrified Materials as an independent public company to unlock strategic flexibility and accelerate scaling.

Notable Quotes

• “The exploration plan… is to move the resource from Inferred to Indicated, which will then become the foundation for a new mineral resource estimate.” – Jeff Poloni, CEO, Americore Resources Corp.
• “Filing the NPDES permit application reflects the progress of our engineering and environmental work and supports our long‑term plan to integrate Coosa as the primary source of natural graphite feedstock for our Kellyton Graphite Plant.” – Frank Bakker, CEO, Westwater Resources
• “We are extremely grateful to Congressman Smith… Support from federal leaders reinforces the growing alignment between national policy objectives and the advancement of domestic critical mineral projects like ours.” – Mark A. Smith, Executive Chairman & CEO, NioCorp Developments
• “The successful amendment and extension of our revolving credit facility provides us with continued financial stability while we pursue growth opportunities such as those enabled by the recent Olympic Steel merger.” – Jim Claussen, CFO, Ryerson

Materiality Assessment: Material – Positive.