UK-based tin developer Cornish Metals (AIM: TIN) has announced it has received a non-binding letter of interest from the Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM) for up to US$225 million in financing for the company’s South Crofty tin project.
The potential financing support is linked to the mine providing tin concentrate to the United States.
This follows EXIM sending a letter of interest to fellow UK-based tin developer First Tin in November, and progress made by leading US secondary tin producer Nathan Trotter to secure supply for its new primary tin smelter currently under construction.
The company was recently admitted to the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange following its re-domiciliation to the UK from Canada – a condition of the National Wealth Fund’s £56 million investment.
Cornish Metals’ CEO Don Turvey said the letter is “a testament to the quality and strategic importance of South Crofty and its potential to become the first new tin producer in the western world”.
The company is advancing towards a final investment decision, and plans to bring the mine into production in mid-2028. The mine is expected to produce an average of 4,700 tonnes of tin-in-concentrate over a 14-year mine life.
Cornish Metals’ 2025 PEA update demonstrated a pre-production capex of £198 million (approximately US$269 million) and a life-of-mine AISC of £11,125 (approximately US$14,460) per tonne of tin.
As with First Tin’s Taronga project in Australia, EXIM said that the South Crofty project may additionally qualify for special consideration under the bank’s China and Transformational Exports Program (CTEP).
Our view: ITA is pleased to see continued interest from state-backed funding sources in future tin supply. Following years of under-investment, and tin’s strong position as an energy transition metal, the market is set to experience prolonged deficits without urgent investment in supply.
Cornish Metals is a member of ITA’s Explorers & Developers Group.
