Highlights
- Pensana secures US$25 million investment from Angola's sovereign wealth fund to begin construction at the Longonjo rare earth mine.
- M&G Investment Management increases stake to over 12%, indicating institutional confidence in the project.
- Longonjo project positioned as a high-grade, near-surface rare earth deposit with low estimated capital costs outside of China.
Pensana PLC (opens in a new tab) has announced a £2 million (~US$2.54 million) equity raise, split evenly between existing institutional investor M&G Investment Management (opens in a new tab) and unnamed “strategic investors.” The new shares are being placed at 35 pence each. This follows a separate, more material investment: a recent US$25 million injection by Angola’s sovereign wealth fund (opens in a new tab) (FSDEA) into Ozango, Pensana’s 84%-owned subsidiary, which enabled construction to begin at the flagship Longonjo rare earth mine in Angola. Pensana claims this capital will cover corporate expenses for the next 18 months.
What’s Material:
First, the real material development is that site construction has begun at the Longonjo rare earth project, enabled by FSDEA’s US$25 million investment. Longonjo is one of the few rare earth projects outside China progressing toward production and boasts a high-grade, near-surface deposit (4% TREO) and a low estimated capital cost.
Additionally, the press release reveals that M&G's participation (a substantial London investment house) now holds over 12% of the company following the placing, signaling continued confidence from a large institutional player—a potential de-risking signal for retail investors.
What’s Likely Less Compelling?
The reference to unnamed “strategic investors” may simply mask small-cap participants with minimal strategic significance. No specifics on offtake agreements or long-term partnerships were disclosed.
Also, while Longonjo’s grade is notable, the “world’s largest” framing is standard promotional language without a comparative context. More relevant would be clear timelines to commissioning, processing plant status, and customer agreements—none of which are detailed here.
Retail Investors
This announcement confirms that Longonjo construction is underway and corporate liquidity is temporarily stabilized. However, more meaningful near-term catalysts would include confirmation of offtake deals, progress on processing infrastructure, and clarity on refining pathways—especially given global pressure to reduce reliance on Chinese downstream rare earth separation.
A bit too quick to the press on this one; all your doubts have now been answered with the end of month ‘Presentation’ to shareholders: Also, it should be noted that this US$25M is the second tranche/draw down from the full funding that has now been arranged. https://pensana.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Pensana-Corporate-Presentation-May-2025.pdf