Ormonde Mining, the IEX-listed exploration group, has said its drilling programme in Spain has found the reserves could support a far higher production rate than initially thought.
The company said drilling results from seven the last holes at the Barruecopardo Tungsten Project in Salamanca may sustain a 400,000 tonnes per year production rate, almost double earlier estimates.
Tungsten has a high melting point and is used in light bulb filaments, heating elements, engines, as well as for toughening steel and a range of other purposes.
Ormonde holds a 90 per cent interest in the Barruecopardo project. The company expects longer-term prices for tungsten concentrates to remain buoyant.