Temas and Saga Push Chloride Leach Toward Pilot Testing

Temas Resources Corp. (OTCQB: TMASF) and Saga Metals Corp. (OTC: SAGMF) advanced their joint metallurgical program to Stage 2 detailed bench-scale optimization of Temas' Regenerative Chloride Leach technology on September 29, 2026, after Stage 1 returned recoveries of up to 90.8% titanium, 91.5% iron and 97.4% vanadium on three Saga feed materials.

Temas Resources Corp. (OTCQB: TMASF) and Saga Metals Corp. (OTC: SAGMF) said on September 29, 2026 that their joint metallurgical program has moved to Stage 2, a detailed bench-scale optimization of Temas' proprietary Regenerative Chloride Leach process, known as RCL. The step follows a first stage that tested the leach on three separate Saga feed materials and, according to the companies, an independent assessment of the work that supported proceeding.

The headline recoveries from Stage 1 were titanium up to 90.8%, iron up to 91.5% and vanadium up to 97.4%. Those are laboratory figures on small samples, and the companies are explicit that Stage 2 is the phase meant to establish optimized operating conditions, downstream separation parameters and preliminary process design criteria — the groundwork for pilot studies rather than the pilot itself.

What the leach is actually being asked to do

Hydrometallurgy — dissolving metals out of rock with acid or another chemical reagent rather than smelting them — has long struggled with titanium-bearing iron ores. Vanadiferous titanomagnetite, usually shortened to VTM, carries three metals of value locked into one mineral lattice: iron, titanium and vanadium. Conventional routes tend to recover one well and waste or dilute the others. A chloride leach attacks the material with chloride chemistry; the "regenerative" element implies the reagent is recovered and cycled back into the circuit, which is the difference between a chemistry that works in a beaker and one that works on an operating cost line.

The three feeds tested in Stage 1 are not interchangeable. Run-of-mine massive oxide is material essentially as mined, with no upgrading. VTM concentrate and ilmenite concentrate have both been through beneficiation, and ilmenite in particular is the standard commercial feedstock for titanium dioxide pigment. Demonstrating a single flowsheet on all three matters because it widens the range of deposits the technology could be sold into, and because a process that tolerates run-of-mine feed can skip capital-intensive upgrading steps.

Tim Fernback, President and CEO of Temas Resources, framed Stage 1 as the proof that RCL works on Saga's titanium-bearing material. Stage 2 is the harder commercial question: at what temperature, concentration, residence time and reagent loading does it work, and how cleanly do the three metals separate into products a buyer will actually pay for. Recovery percentages describe how much metal leaves the rock. They say nothing about product purity, and purity is where titanium and vanadium revenue is won or lost.

Two small caps, two thin share prices

Both companies trade at levels that leave little room for disappointment. As of the last trade at 13:56 GMT on September 29, 2026, Temas' OTCQB line was quoted at 0.07 per share, down 4.55% on the day from a prior close of 0.07, with the day's range flat at 0.07. Saga's OTC quote stood at 0.28, down 4.63% from a prior close of 0.30, having traded between 0.28 and 0.30.

Neither move suggests the market treated the Stage 2 announcement as a re-rating event, and that is consistent with how metallurgical milestones usually land. The broader tape was quiet in any case: the S&P 500 proxy SPY was at $765.67, up 0.01%; the Nasdaq 100 proxy QQQ at $738.75, up 0.30%; and the Dow tracker DIA at $513.10, down 0.18%. On a flat market day, a percentage-point move in a sub-dollar resource stock is close to noise, driven by a handful of trades in a thin book.

Temas carries an unusually wide listing footprint for its size — ASX:TIO, CSE:TMAS, OTCQB:TMASF and FSE:26P0 — which points to a deliberate effort to reach Australian, Canadian, U.S. and European investors. Saga trades on the TSX Venture Exchange under SAGA alongside its U.S. over-the-counter line. Investors comparing the two quotes should be careful: different listings settle in different currencies, and the OTC lines are generally the thinnest of each company's venues.

Where titanium and vanadium fit the battery-and-energy story

The sector framing here is worth unpacking, because titanium, vanadium and iron sit in very different end markets. Titanium's bulk demand is pigment and aerospace-grade metal. Iron is iron. Vanadium is the one with an energy-transition narrative attached, through vanadium redox flow batteries — long-duration stationary storage systems that use vanadium electrolyte and are pitched at grid applications where lithium-ion's shorter discharge profile is a poor fit. That is the thread connecting a chloride leach in a Vancouver-announced lab program to the wider storage build-out.

The 97.4% vanadium recovery figure is the most eye-catching of the three for that reason. Vanadium is typically a by-product of steel slag or a co-product of iron ore, and a flowsheet that pulls it out at high rates alongside saleable titanium and iron products changes the economics of deposits that are currently uneconomic on any single metal. Whether that holds at scale is exactly what pilot work exists to find out. Bench-scale results on kilogram quantities routinely degrade when continuous circuits, recycled reagent streams and real impurity loads enter the picture.

The checkpoints that will matter next

Stage 2's stated deliverables give a clear list of things to watch. Optimized operating conditions will indicate how energy- and reagent-hungry the process is. Downstream separation parameters will show whether the three metals can be split into discrete products rather than a mixed intermediate. Preliminary process design criteria are the input to any capital cost estimate — without them, no pilot plant can be specified and no engineering study can be commissioned.

Beyond that, three questions decide whether this program becomes a business. First, product specification: does RCL yield a titanium product that meets pigment or metal feed standards, and a vanadium product at electrolyte or ferrovanadium grade? Second, reagent regeneration efficiency, which drives operating cost far more than recovery percentages do. Third, funding — pilot plants consume cash, and two companies with sub-dollar share prices will need to say how the work is paid for.

The commercial structure between the two parties is the other open item. Temas owns the technology; Saga supplied the feed. A program that succeeds through pilot scale eventually needs a licence, a joint venture or a toll-treatment arrangement to convert lab data into revenue for either side. The Stage 2 announcement, reported by INN Lithium, is a technical milestone rather than a commercial one — but it is the milestone that has to come first.

Key facts

• Temas Resources (OTCQB: TMASF): 0.07 per share, -4.55%, as of 13:56 GMT Sept 29, 2026
• Saga Metals (OTC: SAGMF): 0.28 per share, -4.63%, as of 13:56 GMT Sept 29, 2026
• Stage 1 recoveries: Titanium up to 90.8%, iron up to 91.5%, vanadium up to 97.4%
• Feed materials tested: Run-of-mine massive oxide, VTM concentrate, ilmenite concentrate

Frequently asked questions

What is Regenerative Chloride Leach?

RCL is Temas Resources' proprietary hydrometallurgical process, which dissolves target metals out of ore using chloride chemistry rather than smelting. The "regenerative" element refers to recovering and recycling the leaching reagent within the circuit, a design feature that is intended to control operating costs. It is being applied to titanium, vanadium and iron-bearing feeds.

What did Stage 1 of the program show?

Stage 1 demonstrated that RCL could be applied to three separate Saga Metals feed materials: run-of-mine massive oxide, VTM concentrate and ilmenite concentrate. Testing achieved titanium recoveries of up to 90.8%, iron recoveries of up to 91.5% and vanadium recoveries of up to 97.4%. An independent assessment of the program supported advancing to the next stage.

What happens during Stage 2?

Stage 2 is described as detailed bench-scale optimization. It is designed to move past initial metallurgical validation and establish optimized operating conditions, downstream separation parameters and preliminary process design criteria for the RCL flowsheet. Those design criteria are the necessary input for specifying pilot-scale work, which the companies say Stage 2 is preparing for.

Where do the two companies trade?

Temas Resources Corp. carries four listings: ASX:TIO in Australia, CSE:TMAS in Canada, OTCQB:TMASF in the United States and FSE:26P0 in Frankfurt. Saga Metals Corp. trades on the TSX Venture Exchange as SAGA and over the counter in the U.S. as SAGMF. Different listings settle in different currencies, so quotes are not directly comparable.

How did the shares react to the announcement?

Neither stock rose on the news. As of the last trade at 13:56 GMT on September 29, 2026, Temas' OTCQB line was at 0.07, down 4.55% on the day, while Saga's OTC quote was 0.28, down 4.63% from a 0.30 prior close. Broad U.S. benchmarks were close to flat the same session.

Why does vanadium matter for the energy transition?

Vanadium is the electrolyte metal in vanadium redox flow batteries, a long-duration stationary storage technology aimed at grid applications where lithium-ion's shorter discharge profile is less suitable. Vanadium is usually produced as a by-product of steel slag or iron ore, so a process recovering it at high rates alongside titanium and iron products could change deposit economics.

Sources

• Temas and SAGA Advance RCL to Stage 2 Targeting Titanium, Vanadium and Iron Products in Preparation for Pilot Studies — INN Lithium

Photo: jarmoluk · Pixabay Content License — source