"Tungsten Important"... CBI Stock Rises in San-eun Report

The stock price of CBI, which is promoting a tungsten mining project, rose following a report from the Korea Development Bank (KDB) emphasizing the need to enhance core resource response capabilities.

Through a Global Value Chain study on core resources, KDB analyzed the necessity to diversify supply chains for tungsten, rare earth elements, and key secondary battery materials, and to establish a domestic risk management system.

According to the securities industry on the 22nd, CBI's stock price recorded 1,907 won on the 21st, marking a 10.5% increase compared to the previous trading day.

In the report, KDB explained that tungsten is a key mineral used as a raw material for special steel in tools and defense sectors, and due to its excellent electrical conductivity, it is also used in electronics and semiconductor fields.

It also pointed out concerns over the fact that domestic tungsten demand is entirely dependent on imports, with a particularly high reliance on China. Although tungsten mining is being promoted in Yeongwol, Gangwon Province, it is expected that all output will be exported overseas due to the absence of domestic refining facilities and foreign capital investment.

KDB suggested in the report that, given the increasing demand due to changes in the industrial paradigm, mineral concentration, and the spread of resource weaponization trends causing supply risks, a stable supply chain for tungsten is necessary for the development of advanced domestic industries.

Besides the tungsten in Yeongwol, Gangwon Province, another tungsten mine developed with domestic capital is the Ssangjeon Mine located in Uljin. CBI invested in the mining development company Gubo and has currently started developing the Ssangjeon Mine. Ssangjeon Mine has recently begun full-scale commercial production to respond to the tungsten risk from China.

To this end, they secured all the flotation equipment needed to extract concentrates from the mine and began establishing the facilities. The confirmed reserves of Ssangjeon Mine, as identified through surveys, amount to 2 million tons, making it the second-largest tungsten mine in Korea. Trial production for commercial production is expected to start next month.