Sovereign Metals Ltd (ASX:SVM, AIM:SVML) is poised to ship off natural rutile from the Kasiya Project in Malawi thanks to a pivotal offtake deal.
The rutile stock has reached a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with US-based Chemours — one of the world’s largest producers of high-quality titanium dioxide pigments — and plans to supply 20,000 tonnes of natural rutile every year under the project’s stage one nameplate capacity.
From stage two, the MoU includes the option to buy more rutile, while costing will reference market prices of the day.
The fine print
The two-year MoU with Chemours is non-exclusive and non-binding and remains subject to negotiation and execution of the definitive agreement. Both parties can extend negotiations if they haven’t reached a definitive agreement in that two-year window.
Sovereign managing director Julian Stephens said: “To have signed an MoU for the supply of natural rutile to Chemours, a global leader in the titanium dioxide pigment industry, is a true testament to the quality and strategic nature of our world-class Kasiya Project in Malawi.
“We are excited to be working with Chemours as a future offtake partner for our premium, low carbon-footprint rutile products.”
About the offtake partner
Chemours is a leading provider of performance chemicals, which serve as key inputs in end-products and processes across a variety of industries.
The global company operates 29 manufacturing sites, serving roughly 3,200 customers in around 120 countries.
Its titanium technologies segment is one of the world’s largest producers of high-quality titanium dioxide (TiO2) pigment and aspires to be the most sustainable TiO2 enterprise in the world.
Using its proprietary chloride technology—pioneered in 1931 and improving ever since—Chemours provides innovative TiO2 solutions for coatings, plastics and laminates.
It operates four TiO2 pigment production facilities: two in the United States, one in Mexico, and one in Taiwan, bringing its nameplate TiO2 pigment capacity up to 1.25 million tonnes a year.
Over 2021, Chemours’ Titanium Technologies segment reported US$3.4 billion in net sales.