Titan Mining's (TI.TO, TII) unit, Empire State Mines (ESM), received conditional selection notices from the U.S. Army for Enhanced Use Lease (EUL) opportunities at Pine Bluff Arsenal, Arkansas, and Anniston Army Depot, Alabama, it said in a statement overnight Thursday, pushing the company's U.S.-listed shares up 36% in pre-market trade.
ESM will design, finance, construct, and operate the Kilbourne Graphite Purification Plant, subject to finalization of "Business Terms Agreements" with the U.S. Army, it said. The lease term is up to 50 years.
ESM's selection under the U.S. Army's EUL program establishes a new public-private partnership model for deploying critical mineral processing infrastructure on U.S. defense installations, the company said in a statement. The U.S. Army retains ownership of the land at all times, it added.
Shares of the company closed up 4.4% to C$3.11 on Thursday on the Toronto Stock Exchange.