TUNGSTEN MINING NL (TGN) - Can Australia secure the world’s tungsten future?

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Prices are surging, supply is squeezed, and buyers are searching for reliable sources of tungsten outside China and Russia. We sit down with Gary Lyons, Non‑Executive Chair of Tungsten Mining, to unpack how Mt Mulgine in Western Australia could become a cornerstone supplier for hardmetals, aerospace, energy, and defence—while using near‑term gold to fund the path to scale.

Gary takes us inside the market fundamentals: China at roughly 80% of concentrate, Russia near 10%, export bans in place, and a demand profile that could double over the next eight years. Against this backdrop, Mt Mulgine stands out for its size, jurisdictional stability, and multi‑commodity upside—including molybdenum, copper, and silver. We explore the company’s $9.5m capital raise and why a staged, gold‑first approach—supported by strong metallurgical test work and conventional processing—can create early cash flow, reduce upfront capital intensity, and de‑risk the larger tungsten build.

We map the execution roadmap from studies to site: advancing engineering, environmental work, and permitting; fast‑tracking PFS and moving to DFS with a target to finalise by end‑2026 to early 2027; and aligning development with market and partnership conditions. Gary also reflects on portfolio strategy—how a years‑long acquisition program built one of the largest “tungsten warehouses” outside China, and why the focus now is on unlocking value rather than more deals. If you care about critical minerals security, supply diversification, and the practical steps to bring a world‑class tungsten project online, this conversation offers clarity, timelines, and a compelling plan.

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Episode Transcript

Andrew Musgrave (00:04):
Welcome again to ASX Briefs, the podcast that
brings you Australia's mostinnovative listed companies.
And today we're joined by GaryLyons, the non-executive
chairman of Tungsten Mining, anAustralian resources company
focused on the exploration anddevelopment of its globally
significant tungsten projects.
Gary, it's great to have youwith us today and welcome to the
ASX Briefs Podcast.

Gary Lyons (00:26):
Thank you, Andrew.
It's an absolute pleasure.

Andrew Musgrave (00:28):
Now, for Gary, for listeners that may be
unfamiliar with Tungsten Mining,can you provide a brief
overview of the company and thestrategic importance of tungsten
as a critical mineral?

Gary Lyons (00:38):
Tungsten Mining is a Perth-based ASX listed company,
Andrew.
We've focused on developing oneof the world's largest
undeveloped tungsten resources.
Our flagship is the Mt MulgineProject in Western Australia.
And our strategy is simple.
Advance a long life, low costsource of tungsten, do it

(00:58):
responsibly, and help diversifysupply for customers who need
certainty for the long term.

Andrew Musgrave (01:05):
Now, tungsten is recognized as a critical
mineral.
So how do you see the currentmarket trends, pricing, and its
importance across keyindustries?

Gary Lyons (01:13):
Yeah, Andrew, look, there are three things to know
about tungsten right now.
They are supply, price, andpull from industry.
On the supply side, the marketis constrained.
China still dominates output.
It controls currently around80% of the tungsten concentrate

(01:34):
market, with Russia a further10%, leaving around 10% to the
rest of the world.
Both have banned exports oftungsten since February of this
year.
And supply is shrinking.
There is a deficit on thesupply side, and demand is
rising.
We have compound annual growthrates of a little under 8% per

(01:58):
annum over the next eight years,which we feel is going to lead
to doubling of the demand,which is currently around 90,000
tons.
And as I express, China andRussia between them have a
little over 80,000 tons of thatsupply.
So, of course, create demandand prices flow, and the void

(02:20):
that's there at the moment isseeing prices that for tungsten
that have never been recordedbefore, which is a wonderful
thing.

Andrew Musgrave (02:28):
Okay, and you recently announced a successful
capital raise of nine and a halfmillion dollars.
So, how will this new fundingadvance your integrated gold
tungsten strategy at the 100%owned Mt Mulgine project?

Gary Lyons (02:40):
Yeah, look, we're we're very pleased with the
support.
We had the capacity to raiseup to nine and a half million,
and I'm pleased to say that wewe were actually
oversubscribed.
Both current shareholders &some new shareholders, and it

(03:01):
really strengthens the company'sposition as we move the Mt
Mulgine project towardsdevelopment.
That funding supports the nextstage of our integrated gold
tungsten strategy, whichrecognizes that Mt Mulgine is
unique, combines a largehigh-grade tungsten resource

(03:21):
with a meaningful host of manyother metals,, and some of them
critical.
For example, we we have asignificant amount of
molybdenum, which is also onthe critical metals register,
and then base metals in copper,gold, and silver in in in good
quantities.

Andrew Musgrave (03:41):
Okay, and the mine has been described as one
of the largest tungsten depositsoutside of China.
So, how does this world-classasset position the company to
address the global challengesaround critical minerals?

Gary Lyons (03:52):
Yeah, look, Mt Mulgine really is a standout
project.
It's one of the largestundeveloped tungsten deposits in
the Western world.
It brings scale, and scalematters because tungsten supply
today is as I said, is tightand highly constrained and the
need to deliver new tons intoa growing market, and the

(04:19):
supply side has has beenshrinking.
And reliable sources instable jurisdictions such
Australia are essential to meetthe needs of modern industry.

Andrew Musgrave (04:32):
Following the capital raise, you announced an
updated mineral resourceestimate for gold at Mt Mulgine.
Can you explain the strategy ofusing this near-term gold
potential to help fund thelarger tungsten development?

Gary Lyons (04:44):
Yeah, it's a key part of our integrated strategy
for Mt Mulgine.
The updated gold MRE confirmedwhat we've long known: that
there's real near-term goldsitting in the oxide layer that
sits or is hosted in the oxidelayer that sits directly above
the fresh rock that hosts thetungsten and what allows us to

(05:09):
do this stage development in away that's both financially and
technically efficient, theconcept being straightforward.
We can look to monetize thegold earlier through smaller
scale staged operations togenerate cash flow which, when
moving into the second stage ofour and third stages of our
project, the largest scales,that hopefully the free cash

(05:31):
that's generated from thatearlier gold production and
small scale tungsten productionwill underpin the capital
requirement as we move into alarge-scale operation.

Andrew Musgrave (05:43):
Now, initial metallurgical test work for gold
has shown high recoveries withconventional processing.
So, how crucial are these earlyresults in validating your gold
first development approach?

Gary Lyons (05:54):
Yeah, look, these early metallurgical results
aren't just encouraging, they'restrategically significant.
They're confirmed that MtMulgine's gold can perform
exceptionally well throughconventional processing, and
that our gold first pathway istechnically sound, commercially
attractive, and aligned with ourlong-term plan to build a

(06:17):
world-class tungsten operation.

Andrew Musgrave (06:19):
Okay, and the company has successfully grown
its portfolio through bothexploration and acquisition.
So, as you aim to become amajor player in the global
market, will strategicacquisitions continue to be a
key part of your growth story?

Gary Lyons (06:33):
Yes, strategic acquisitions have been a part of
Tungsten Mining's DNA for quitesome time.
Around six years ago, the boardcommitted to building a large
tungsten warehouse.
In fact, our ambitions were tobuild the largest warehouse of
advanced tungsten assets uhanywhere in the in the world

(06:57):
outside of of China.
And I'm pleased to say that wesit right at the very top, in
the top two or three tungstenwarehouses globally.
We've significant resourcesand I think that at this point
in time, acquisitions are notfront of mind.

(07:18):
I think it's time now that weunlock some real value from
them.

Andrew Musgrave (07:21):
Okay, now finally, with a strengthened
balance sheet and a clearintegrated strategy, what are
the key priorities andmilestones for Tungsten Mining
as you head into 2026?

Gary Lyons (07:32):
Heading into 2026, our focus is really on execution
and value creation.
Stronger balance sheet and aclear integrated strategy.
We've got three key priorities,I guess, in front of us.
Firstly, we'll continue toadvance the Mt Mulgine project
through detailed technical,environmental, and permitting

(07:54):
work that includes finalizingthe engineering studies and
development pathway for both thegold and the tungsten
components. We're building thefoundation for a staged
capital-efficient developmentthat can move when market and
partnership conditions areright.
Secondly, we're progressing thegold first opportunity,

(08:15):
completing additionalmetallurgical test work, mine
design, and early stage projectplanning.
So we can unlock near-termvalue and create a funding
bridge towards the largertungsten operations.
So that uh moves directly intouh PFS that we're fast tracking
and uh similarly with the DFS,which we finalize both of

(08:38):
those studies by the end of2026 and the latest on the the
defined feasibility study beingfirst quarter of 2027.

Andrew Musgrave (08:49):
Okay, Gary.
Well, it's been great to chattoday, so thanks for your time,
and we look forward to furtherupdates from Tungsten Mining in
the upcoming months.

Gary Lyons (08:56):
Thank you, Andrew, and it's been a great pleasure.
Thank you for your time.

Andrew Musgrave (09:01):
That concludes this episode of ASX Briefs.
Don't forget to subscribe, andwe look forward to catching you
on our next episode.