Union Power Metals Will Be Drill-Ready by August in Slovakia
CEO.CA Jul 6, 2026 9:48
Summary
Union Power Metals owns its Slovak manganese licences outright and is drill-ready, converting Soviet-era estimates into a 43-101 compliant resource (Canada's mineral reporting standard).
Carbonate ore may allow the project to skip energy-intensive roasting and leach directly, a cheaper path to battery-grade high-purity manganese.
A $6 million raise from January still fully funds this year's Slovak drilling, metallurgical testing, and resource conversion programs.
Botswana uranium work spans 2,400 square kilometres over seven licences, with airborne surveys and drill targets due around September.
China processes over 80 percent of the world's high-purity manganese, which the CEO argues makes Western control of EU deposits strategic.
Derrick Dao's takeaways
- Top takeaway Dao's top watch item is Slovakia drill assays in Q3-Q4 2026, which he expects to come in above historically reported grades.
- He argues the multi-stacked reservoir geometry, multiple manganese horizons documented in historic data but excluded from the tonnage, is potential upside to the resource.
- He frames the Slovak deposit as strategic because China processes more than 80% of the world's high-purity manganese while Chinese-linked gigafactories are being built in Slovakia, including what he calls the largest battery project in the country's history.
- He treats Botswana uranium as low-cost upside optionality, with surveys and the environmental assessment finishing around September 2026 and drilling most likely following in the second half of the year.
- He contends the carbonate ore lets the company skip energy-intensive roasting and move straight to leaching on the path to high-purity manganese production.