Tungsten West achieved its first concentrate production from a trial at its Hemerdon Mineral Processing Facility.

Tungsten West, the company working to restart production at the Hemerdon tungsten and tin mine (Hemerdon) in Devon, UK, has successfully produced concentrate from a processing trial.

The trial follows the granting of an environmental permit in June 2024 by the Environment Agency for Hemerdon’s Mineral Processing Facility.

This marks a key step in Tungsten West’s broader programme to optimise mineral processing, collect technical data, and derisk operations ahead of full-scale production. The company expects to begin operations around 12 months after securing final project funding.

In August 2025, Tungsten West released an updated feasibility study outlining a post-tax net present value of US$190M (7.5% discount rate) and an internal rate of return of 29%. The life-of-mine post-tax cash flow is projected at US$456M, based on an ammonium paratungstate (APT) price of US$400/mtu, well below current European prices of US$648–700/mtu.

The restart is expected to require US$93M in pre-production expenditure, supported by roughly US$300M in historical investment, with steady-state production forecast to average 3,320tpy of WO₃-in-concentrate.

The US Export-Import Bank has also expressed interest in the project, issuing a letter of intent in August this year, stating it would consider financing up to US$95M for a maximum repayment term of 15 years under its Supply Chain Resilience Initiative.

The successful trial strengthens Tungsten West’s pathway to restarting Hemerdon amid a tight global tungsten market.

With Chinese intermediate exports still constrained despite the issuance of new export licences, Hemerdon’s return to production could help ease supply shortages and provide a strategic source of non-Chinese tungsten.