Inward investing magnet metal specialist Pensana was the best-performing stock in its class in 2020, industry analysts have found.
The company, listed on both London and Australian markets, saw a 411 per cent and 1,000 per cent rise in respective hemispheres, as it geared up to add the next stage in the supply chain for burgeoning offshore wind and electric vehicle markets.
Pensana is fast-tracking a £100 million development at Saltend for processing, with 100 jobs - many in complex chemical engineering.
It picked the East Yorkshire site over Merseyside, Teesside and Germany.
Reacting to the findings, chief executive Tim George and chairman Paul Atherley, said: “While 2020 proved to be a very challenging year for many, according to The Rare Earth Observer, Pensana was the world's best performing Rare Earth stock with a 1,000 per cent rise on the ASX and a 411 per cent rise on the LSE.
“This outstanding performance reflects the major strides the company made throughout the year, culminating in the plan to establish the world’s first sustainable rare earth processing facility at the Saltend Chemicals Park in Yorkshire, UK.
“It would not have been possible without valuable support from everybody in Australia, Angola and the UK who got behind the story and made it such a big year.”
Pensana’s intentions for the Humber Bank site were revealed in early December, as mining is established in Africa.
As the year closed it revealed high grade deposits from exploration at a second Angolan site, where it has proudly been “first off the rank” as the political situation settled under new democratic rule.
The company is hoping to complete the planning process with East Riding Council in the first half of 2021, with the hope of then entering construction, with financing and government support also being worked on.
