ValOre Metals: Brazilian PGM Play Gains Momentum

• ValOre Metals owns 100% of the Pedra Branca project in Brazil, hosting 2.2 million ounces of platinum, palladium, and gold at 1.08 g/t across seven near-surface resource zones spanning 51,096 hectares in Ceará State.‍
• Platinum prices surged over 77% year-to-date through 2025, while palladium gained approximately 77%, driven by structural supply deficits and sustained industrial demand, according to multiple industry sources tracking precious metals markets.‍
• The leadership team participated in CAD$1.7 billion in M&A transactions through previous ventures, including companies acquired by Rio Tinto (USD$650M), Goldcorp (USD$520M), and Royal Gold (USD$200M), per company disclosures.
• The company targets metallurgical testwork completion in Q4 2025, a gold project acquisition announcement in Q1 2026, preliminary economic assessment publication in Q4 2026, and permitting initiation in Q1 2027.‍
• ValOre pursues advanced-stage gold projects in northeastern Brazil for acquisition, aiming to build production capabilities while advancing the flagship platinum-palladium asset through engineering studies and permitting.

Introduction: Capitalizing on Precious Metals Inflection

Precious metals markets displayed coordinated strength throughout 2025, with platinum, palladium, silver, and gold posting significant gains amid industrial demand recovery and accommodative monetary policy signals. Against this backdrop, ValOre Metals Corp positions itself as a leveraged play on platinum group metals supply constraints while simultaneously pursuing a consolidation strategy in Brazilian gold assets.

The company's December 2025 corporate presentation outlines a dual-track approach: advancing the wholly-owned Pedra Branca platinum-palladium-gold project through metallurgical optimization and feasibility studies, while actively evaluating acquisition targets in Brazil's gold sector. This strategy reflects management's assessment that Brazil's mining sector remains underexplored relative to established jurisdictions, with fragmented ownership creating consolidation opportunities.

Market conditions appear exceptionally supportive of both elements of this strategy. Platinum and palladium face structural supply deficits extending through 2028, with both metals posting remarkable year-to-date gains exceeding 75% through late 2025, while Brazil's gold production trajectory shows growth from approximately USD$3.8 billion annually toward USD$6 billion by 2030, citing Grand View Research data.

Company Overview: Discovery Group Pedigree

ValOre Metals operates as part of the Discovery Group, an alliance of public companies founded in 2002 that collectively participated in over CAD$2.6 billion in M&A activity and raised more than CAD$1 billion in equity capital. The company trades on the TSX Venture Exchange under symbol VO, the OTCQB as KVLQF, and the Frankfurt Stock Exchange as KEQ0.

Jim Paterson, serving as Chairman, co-founded Discovery Group and brings 27 years of executive leadership experience. His track record includes director and officer roles at companies that raised over CAD$300 million in equity and participated in over CAD$1 billion in M&A transactions. These included Hathor Exploration (acquired by Rio Tinto for USD$650 million), Kaminak Gold Corporation (acquired by Goldcorp for USD$520 million), Northern Empire Resources (acquired by Coeur Mining for USD$117 million), and Great Bear Royalties (acquired by Royal Gold for USD$200 million).

CEO Nick Smart contributed 21 years at Anglo American and De Beers as a chemical engineer, with global experience spanning platinum and zinc operations in South Africa, nickel projects in Brazil, diamond mines in Canada, and corporate roles in the United Kingdom. This leadership combination pairs transaction experience with operational execution capabilities and local Brazilian technical knowledge.

Strategic Asset: The Pedra Branca PGM Project

The Pedra Branca project in Ceará State, Brazil represents ValOre's flagship asset, encompassing 51,096 hectares of 100% owned mineral rights. An independent technical report dated March 8, 2022 established an inferred mineral resource of 2.2 million ounces of combined platinum, palladium, and gold (2PGE+Au) contained in 63.3 million tonnes grading 1.08 grams per tonne.

The resource distribution spans seven near-surface zones identified through approximately 40,000 meters of drilling. Four core deposits (Esbarro, Curiu, Cedro, and Cana Branca) collectively host over 1 million ounces, while two southern resource zones (Trapia and Massape) contain an additional 1 million ounces. A 2023 exploration program drilled over 6,000 meters across five new zones not included in the current resource estimate, including the Salvador target discovery.

Company materials emphasize infrastructure advantages, including proximity to Fortaleza International Airport and Fortaleza International Deep Water Port via a four-hour paved highway connection. Historical operators invested USD$30 million and completed 30,000 meters of drilling prior to ValOre's acquisition, while the current operator invested CAD$10 million across 23,534 meters of drilling.

Market Timing: Structural PGM Deficits

Platinum and palladium supply-demand fundamentals shifted decisively toward deficits beginning in 2024, extending through forecast periods to 2028. Multiple industry sources reported that platinum surged from below USD$1,000 per ounce at the start of 2025 to record highs exceeding USD$2,300 per ounce by late December, representing gains of over 77% for the year. Palladium similarly rallied from approximately USD$900 per ounce to highs above USD$1,600, posting comparable percentage gains.

These price movements occurred despite ongoing automotive electrification trends, suggesting residual internal combustion engine and hybrid vehicle production continues supporting demand. Mid-term supply constraints stem from geographic concentration, with declining primary production from Southern Africa and North America resulting from cost pressures and capital expenditure limitations. The World Platinum Investment Council continues to forecast sustained market deficits, significantly depleting above-ground stocks.

Growth Strategy: Dual-Track Development

ValOre's articulated growth strategy pursues parallel tracks: advancing Pedra Branca through engineering and permitting while acquiring near-term production assets in Brazilian gold. The timeline presented in December 2025 materials establishes specific milestones across a 15-month forward period.

The Q4 2025 metallurgical testwork program, conducted in partnership with the University of Cape Town, aims to demonstrate optimal processing routes for the platinum-palladium-gold mineralization. Company materials reference bacteria-based bio-extraction testwork for PGMs, described as offering potential for efficient, lower cost, lower impact processing relative to conventional flotation and smelting approaches.

The Q1 2026 target for announcing a Brazilian gold project acquisition reflects the company's consolidation thesis. Management identifies advanced-stage gold projects in northeastern Brazil as acquisition targets, characterized by significant prior investment and clear upside potential. The Q3 2026 goal of initiating gold production from acquired assets would establish cash flow generation ahead of Pedra Branca development capital requirements.

Corporate Structure & Brazilian Context

As of December 1, 2025, ValOre Metals reported 257.9 million shares outstanding trading at CAD$0.105 per share, establishing a market capitalization of approximately CAD$27.1 million. The company held CAD$900,000 in cash at that reference date. The 52-week trading range extended from CAD$0.050 to CAD$0.155.

Ownership structure shows 45% held by retail and other investors, 25% by resource and mining funds, 20% by insiders and advisors, and 10% by close associates. The combined insider, advisor, and close associate ownership of 30% aligns management interests with shareholder outcomes while the 25% institutional and fund ownership provides market liquidity.

Brazil's positioning as a top-10 global gold producer establishes the country-level context for ValOre's gold acquisition strategy. The company presentation emphasizes Brazil's investment in mining infrastructure, stable regulatory frameworks, and streamlined approval processes. Company materials state that Brazil now graduates more mining engineers than both USA and Canada combined, citing data from Mining Industry Human Resources Council, reducing operating costs and facilitating project staffing.

Technology Advantages & Current Activities

ValOre's partnership with VRIFY addresses a specific opportunity in Brazilian mineral exploration: the fragmented and underutilized nature of existing geological datasets. Company materials note that less than 30% of Brazil is mapped at high-resolution geological or geophysical standards. The VRIFY partnership aims to reprocess legacy datasets using modern analytical techniques to unlock hidden value.

The ongoing metallurgical testwork program represents the primary technical catalyst in the near term. The University of Cape Town partnership provides access to established PGM processing expertise. The bio-extraction research could offer differentiated processing economics if successful, though the technology remains at a developmental stage relative to established processing methods.

Exploration activities at Pedra Branca identified an emerging north-south trend across the property. The Salvador target, identified as a new discovery in company materials, adds to an exploration portfolio described as encompassing 80 km or more of prospective and underexplored PGE trend.

The Investment Thesis for ValOre Metals

• Establish positions in platinum-palladium developers following 75%+ price gains if supply deficits persist and long-term structural fundamentals support continued strength.
• Consider Brazilian precious metals exposure as geographic diversification from traditional African and North American PGM production regions.
• Monitor Q1 2026 for gold asset acquisition announcements that could establish near-term production and cash flow visibility.
• Track Q4 2025 metallurgical testwork results as indicators of processing cost structures and potential economic viability at Pedra Branca.
• Evaluate 2023 drilling results from five new zones and Salvador target discovery for potential resource growth beyond the current 2.2 million ounce estimate.
• Weight transaction execution capabilities demonstrated through CAD$1.7 billion in historical M&A participation when assessing development timeline credibility.

ValOre Metals presents investors with leveraged exposure to platinum and palladium price movements through a 2.2 million ounce resource in Brazil, combined with potential near-term catalysts from gold asset acquisitions and metallurgical optimization results. The company's market capitalization of CAD$27.1 million represents approximately CAD$12 per contained ounce of platinum-palladium-gold, suggesting significant upside potential if the asset advances through feasibility studies and permitting toward construction decisions.

The management team's transaction history provides credibility to the dual-track strategy of organic PGM development and gold acquisition consolidation, though execution risks remain substantial. The dramatic 2025 price rallies in both platinum and palladium, with gains exceeding 75% for both metals, validate the supply deficit thesis underpinning the investment case. Investors seeking exposure to platinum and palladium supply deficits while maintaining optionality on Brazilian gold consolidation opportunities may find the risk-reward proposition attractive at current valuation levels, particularly given the sustained structural deficits forecast through 2028.

TL;DR

ValOre Metals owns a 2.2M oz platinum-palladium-gold project in Brazil while pursuing gold acquisitions. Platinum rose over 77% and palladium approximately 77% in 2025 YTD amid supply deficits. Management participated in CAD$1.7B previous M&A. Catalysts: Q4 2025 metallurgy results, Q1 2026 gold acquisition target, Q4 2026 PEA. Market cap CAD$27.1M represents CAD$12/oz contained metal. Speculative play on PGM supply constraints and Brazilian consolidation with execution risk.

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