Almonty kicks off processing operations at Sangdong tungsten mine in South Korea 

Almonty Industries (NASDAQ: ALM) (TSX: AII) (ASX: AII) has commenced processing plant throughput operations at its Sangdong tungsten mine in Gangwon Province, South Korea.  

The company began in June feeding stockpiled run-of-mine ore through its newly commissioned processing plant to produce saleable tungsten concentrate — in what it said is a pivotal milestone marking Sangdong’s transition from mine development into active, revenue-generating operations. 

Historical producer 

The Sangdong mine was historically one of the world’s largest tungsten producers before operations were suspended in the early 1990s following a prolonged downturn in commodity prices.  

Since acquiring the project in 2015, Almonty has invested more than $100 million to redevelop the site as a modern underground mining operation with a newly constructed processing plant. 

Almonty exited the first quarter of 2026 with approximately 120,000 tonnes of ore stockpiled at an average grade of 0.24% tungsten trioxide (WO₃).  

During the second quarter, the company mined an additional approximately 19,700 tonnes of development ore at an average grade of 0.35% WO₃, while advancing 214.6 meters of underground development, primarily along the Main Vein. This brings total stockpiled ore to approximately 139,700 tonnes at a blended grade of approximately 0.25% WO₃ ahead of the plant’s commissioning.  

Almonty said it is utilizing lower-grade throughput during the initial ramp-up phase and anticipates higher grades as the process advances, with Sangdong’s low-grade ore approximately three times higher than that of its Panasqueira mine in Portugal. 

With throughput now underway, stockpiled ore is being introduced during the initial commissioning phase to optimize ore blending and maintain the consistent feed quality the plant requires as the operation ramps up. The Sangdong mine processing plant is designed to upgrade run-of-mine ore into a high-purity tungsten concentrate, the company said. 

At prevailing tungsten prices, the contained tungsten in the current stockpile represents approximately 2.6 months of Phase I throughput feed with an illustrative gross in-process value of approximately $68 million. 

“Our Sangdong processing plant is now up and running, with throughput finally underway in what is a highly beneficial tungsten pricing environment,” Almonty CEO Lewis Black said in a news release.  

“This is the moment our team has worked toward for years; the transition from building and commissioning a mine to actually processing ore into saleable tungsten concentrate. After decades in which the West allowed its tungsten supply chain to atrophy, the Sangdong mine is once again producing one of the most strategically critical metals on earth.” 

Sangdong has an expected mine life exceeding 45 years and an average ore grade of approximately 0.51% tungsten trioxide (WO₃), roughly three times the global average. At full capacity, Sangdong is expected to supply around 40% of the global tungsten demand outside China, Almonty has said.