Transcription of The Stock Network Interview with Venari Minerals (ASX:VMS), Executive Director and CEO Matt Healy
Lel Smits: Benari Minerals has started the new year by receiving the final assay results from its October 2025 RFC drilling program at the Red Mountain Lithium Project in Nevada, marking a major milestone as work accelerates on the project’s maiden mineral resource estimate expected within three weeks. This comes at a time when lithium prices have more than doubled in the past five months, and global banks forecast a looming supply deficit in the year ahead. I’m joined today by Executive Director and CEO Matt Healy to discuss the significance of the finalised drill data set, progress towards the maiden MRE, and what investors should watch as Red Mountain enters a catalyst-rich period.
Matt, welcome back to The Stock Network. Thanks, Laura. Now, the final three holes from the Northern Project area have now been reported.
Can you talk us through these highlights of the latest results and also what stood out for you?
Matt Healy: Sure. Well, yeah, so these are the last three holes we are standing from our October drilling campaign at Red Mountain. It’s a 13-hole campaign.
And yeah, these have delivered, these last three lots of results. So we go, the first two holes, RMRC 16 and 17, that are the northern end of the northern part of the project, 6.1 metres at 2,100 ppm lithium, and 3 metres at 2,770. So those are great results.
And at the southern end of the northern part of the project, 4.6 metres at over 1,300 ppm. So again, another great result and well above the average resource grade for this style of deposit that you typically see in the US. Excellent.
Well, we certainly have been waiting to see these, so it’s great to see them finally released. And also with the full 13-hole October 2025 drilling program now fully assayed, work has begun on Red Mountain’s Maiden Mineral Resource Estimate.
Lel Smits: What key elements should investors be looking for here as you approach the delivery within three weeks?
Matt Healy: That’s right, Lel, having those last three results, that was the final hurdle. And now those are being put into the database and being wireframed as we speak. So what should investors look for?
I’d say take a step back and look at Venari. So the Red Mountain project is located in Nevada in the US, fantastic mining jurisdiction.
And at the federal level, the US is absolutely hungry to establish critical mineral supply chains, and that includes lithium, because the US imports over 90-something percent of its lithium. And if you look at the results we’ve had today, you can see mineralisation at surface, you’ve got high-grade lithium and thick intersections of high-grade lithium, and over a long strike extent. So we’ve got the jurisdiction, we’ve got great grades, we’ve got mineralisation at surface, we’ve got thick widths.
And if you look at the leadership team, our chairman Tony Leibowitz is one of the founding directors of Pilbara Minerals. So as an investment proposition, I think it’s hard to go past Venari. You certainly put forward a strong case, and looking more broadly at lithium, the prices have been rebounding sharply, also major banks forecasting a supply deficit.
Lel Smits: How does this backdrop influence the strategic importance of Red Mountain?
Matt Healy: Yeah, well, if what I said before isn’t enough to get interested, then yeah, the lithium price, it’s now cracked $20,000 a tonne. And for context, it was only, I mean, in October, lithium was, lithium carbonate was trading for around $9,000 a tonne. And you know, we’ve been speaking for a while, I’ve been pretty vocal about what my thoughts were on a pending supply deficit in terms of lithium.
And I think that’s, I think we’re here now, right? So 2026 is looking very bullish for lithium. The futures pricing for the rest of the year on the Shanghai Metals Exchange is well over $20,000 a tonne right through December. So I think you can reasonably expect a fantastic year for lithium.
Lel Smits: Well, it’s great to have such a strong update to start the year with you, Matt, and look forward to hearing more in the coming weeks and year ahead.
Matt Healy: Thanks, Lel.
Ends