MTM Critical Metals' Gallium Recovery Story Meets a Newsflow Drought

A string of government grants and commercial partnerships validated its critical minerals recycling technology, but a quiet patch has hit the share price hard.

31 Aug 2026 · 4 min read

MTM Critical Metals, known as Metallium and using proprietary Flash Joule Heating technology to recover critical minerals from e-waste, delivered a string of contract wins, government grants and commercial partnerships through late 2025, before the stock fell more than 65 percent through mid-2026 despite fund managers arguing the weakness reflects a genuine lack of newsflow rather than any deterioration in the reshoring thesis.

A US government-backed recycling technology gathers momentum

Pengana Capital Group said Metallium rose 48 percent after receiving a modest US$100,000 grant from a US government SBIR program, importantly opening the door to much larger grants in the future, with the focus on gallium recovery from gallium-rich e-waste, a strategically important metal whose exports from China to the US were banned the previous year, sending the price up fourfold to US$1.2 million a tonne. NorthStar Impact Funds said Metallium was awarded its first SBIR contract from the Department of Defense for domestic gallium recovery, applying its proprietary Flash Joule Heating process to recover gallium from waste streams including LED scrap, which also contain other valuable metals including germanium.

Gallium exports from China to the US were banned last year, and the price has since increased fourfold to US$1.2 million per tonne.

— Pengana Capital Group, Monthly Report, September 2025

Commercial partnerships and a Nasdaq listing ambition

Pengana Capital Group said the stock fell 26 percent despite several positive updates, including a memorandum of understanding with Glencore for e-waste supply and offtake of recovered metals, with a formal contract expected by year-end, and progress at its new Texas facility, where commissioning had begun on an e-waste line capable of producing 1,600 tonnes of metal from 8,000 tonnes of printed circuit board feedstock. The stock later rose 21 percent after broker Canaccord initiated coverage with a detailed 35-page report, and the company established a US ADR listing to allow US investors to more easily invest. NorthStar Impact Funds said Metallium was heading for a Nasdaq listing with its rare earths extraction and recycling solution, entering a binding commercial framework with New Frontier Minerals to create a novel processing pathway for Harts Range, targeting Heavy Rare Earth Element supply to US magnet and defence customers.

Metallium and New Frontier Minerals Ltd entered a binding commercial framework to create a novel processing pathway for Harts Range, targeting Heavy REE supply to US magnet and defence customers.

— NorthStar Impact Funds, Monthly Report, November 2025

Continued technical milestones amid policy uncertainty

NorthStar Impact Funds said Metallium successfully and safely completed its first chlorine flash using its proprietary Flash Joule Heating technology, marking the formal start of commissioning its first plant, a major step in de-risking the company's US-based critical-metals recovery platform. Pengana Capital Group said the stock gave back some of its strong 2025 gains, falling 21 percent in January, after Reuters reported a US Senate committee had raised concerns about government support for price floors in critical minerals, and fell a further 10.5 percent in February on little news, though it believes Metallium remains very well positioned to benefit from the reshoring of critical minerals supply chains to the United States and expects the recent weakness to prove temporary, with the Texas plant continuing commissioning toward full production from its gold-rich e-waste line expected in the fourth quarter.

We believe the company remains very well positioned to benefit from the reshoring of critical minerals supply chains to the United States and expect the recent weakness to prove temporary.

— Pengana Capital Group, Monthly Report, February 2026

A prolonged newsflow drought drags the stock down

NorthStar Impact Funds described Metallium as a resource circularity enabler using its proprietary Flash Joule Heating technology to recover rare earths and other critical minerals from waste and primary mining sources, proving the scalability of the technology through a modular expansion approach while assessing different waste streams for optimal economics, noting a lack of newsflow saw the share price decline further.

What fund managers say they are watching next is commissioning progress at the Texas facility toward full gold-rich e-waste line production, delivery of the Glencore offtake agreement and the Harts Range Heavy REE partnership, resolution of Senate committee concerns about critical minerals price floor support, and whether the reshoring thesis reasserts itself once newsflow resumes.