Zijin Gold’s proposed C$5.5 billion (about $4 billion) cash acquisition of Allied Gold is facing delays at China’s National Development and Reform Commission, which is questioning the roughly 5% premium and jurisdictional risks tied to Allied’s African assets. The deal would add the Sadiola mine in Mali, a large Côte d’Ivoire complex and the Kurmuk project in Ethiopia, with the first two delivering nearly 380,000 oz of gold in 2025 and Kurmuk due to pour first gold this year. Allied’s market value sits around C$4.4 billion and the outside closing date has been pushed to end-July.

Pulsar Helium has bought 1,360 acres of surface land at its 100%-owned Topaz project in Lake County, Minnesota, from Wolf Lands Inc. for $2.48 million, securing the JS#7 (Jetstream #7) well site and other key infrastructure locations directly above its leased mineral rights. The company now controls surface access over the core discovery area as it tenders for up to four new production wells to complement two production-ready wells, supported by newly enacted Minnesota helium-specific permitting legislation signed on 26 May.

Military Metals’ share price fell as much as 60% to C$0.16 after Slovakia’s Ministry of the Environment revoked its exploration licence for the Trojarova antimony-gold project near Bratislava, which the company says was cancelled “without appropriate justification”. Trojarova, interpreted as a continuation of the historic Pezinok mine, carries a Soviet-era resource of 415,000 tonnes grading 0.162% Sb and 1.148 g/t Au based on underground exploration. The licence had been within Slovakia’s designated exploration areas under the EU critical raw materials framework, raising questions over regulatory risk for antimony supply projects in the region.