RWANDAN tungsten producer Trinity Metals is leaning towards a New York listing as soaring tungsten prices support plans to expand its operations, Bloomberg reported.
CEO Peter Geleta said the company was speaking to potential advisers and investors about an initial public offering, as well as a possible fundraising ahead of the listing.
“We’re leaning strongly toward a US, New York listing,” Geleta said. Trinity has been working towards a listing since he became CEO in 2022.
Tungsten prices have risen more than eightfold over the past two years, according to Bloomberg, following Chinese export controls and tighter supplies. The metal is used in defence, aerospace and industrial applications and has become a focus of Western efforts to secure critical mineral supply chains.
Trinity’s majority shareholder is TechMet, an investment company headed by Brian Menell. The US International Development Finance Corporation is a TechMet shareholder and has also provided Trinity with technical-assistance funding.
Trinity remains in discussions with the US development finance agency over a proposed $35m to $50m equity investment for which it applied in 2024.
Its immediate priority is the Nyakabingo tungsten mine in Rwanda. Studies are expected to be completed in the first half of next year, ahead of construction of a processing plant and tailings facility costing between $60m and $80m.
Nyakabingo currently produces between 100 and 120 tons of concentrate a month. Geleta said output could triple within three to five years through mechanisation, bulk mining and the new plant.
Trinity expects to generate about $100m in cash this year, which Geleta said would be reinvested in the business. The company ultimately wants modern processing plants at all three of its Rwandan mines — Nyakabingo, Rutongo and Musha — within five years.