u/FrostyAd4457

One thing I think newer mining investors miss:

big copper producers and tiny explorers usually move for completely different reasons.

Freeport, Southern Copper, Teck and Hudbay mostly move with:

• copper prices

• production

• margins

• costs

• disruptions

That is producer leverage.

NovaRed is a completely different type of trade.

NovaRed is still an early-stage explorer:

• no resource

• no mine

• no revenue

Which means the stock is much more tied to discovery perception than current copper production.

That is where juniors can sometimes move harder than producers.

If the market starts believing a company may actually be sitting on a meaningful copper system, the repricing can happen long before production ever exists.

That is why the technical side of Wilmac matters.

NovaRed controls around:

• 16k hectares

• roughly 160 sq km

• in BC's Quesnel porphyry belt

• about 10 km west of Hudbay's Copper Mountain Mine

The Lamont side of the project is probably the most interesting piece:

• historical 3DIP/AMT interpretation

• two interpreted intrusive bodies

• pipe-like features extending upward

• copper-in-soil values up to 1,125 ppm

• chargeability and conductivity anomalies

North Lamont also recently returned:

• 43 soil samples

• highs up to 379 ppm copper

• western cluster averaging around 209 ppm copper

Important caveat obviously:

none of that proves an economic deposit.

But this is usually how discovery speculation starts in the junior space:

• district location

• large land package

• geophysics

• soil anomalies

• rising copper backdrop

• future drill targets

Meanwhile the macro setup for copper keeps improving.

S&P Global projects copper demand rising from around 28M tonnes in 2025 to roughly 42M tonnes by 2040 while warning of a possible 10M tonne supply gap if new mines are not developed.

That is why future copper supply stories like NovaRed are starting to get more attention again.

Also watching:

• Kodiak Copper

• Hercules Metals

• Cascadia Minerals

NFA

Copper deficit headlines are starting to show up again.

Reuters reported the refined copper market could swing to around a 150k tonne deficit in 2026 according to the International Copper Study Group. Earlier expectations were for a surplus closer to 209k tonnes.

Big reason for the change:

• mine disruptions

• slower refined production growth

• issues in Indonesia, Chile and Congo

Feels like the market spent years assuming copper supply would always catch up eventually.

Now every few weeks another headline comes out about:

• lower grades

• aging mines

• expansion delays

• production problems

Meanwhile demand keeps building from:

• AI data centers

• EVs

• grid upgrades

• cooling systems

• defense infrastructure

That usually changes how people look at explorers.

When copper is oversupplied, nobody really cares about tiny pre-resource juniors.

When deficit talk starts coming back, future supply gets more attention.

One name that popped today:

CSE: NRED

OTCQB: NREDF

was up around 3.5% on the CSE.

Still very early-stage obviously, but Wilmac in BC is large:

• around 16k hectares

• roughly 160 sq km

• around 30k football fields

Project also sits inside the Quesnel porphyry belt near Copper Mountain.

Recent North Lamont work included:

• 43 soil samples

• highs up to 379 ppm copper

• western cluster averaging around 209 ppm copper

Company also has more IP/AMT work planned for 2026.

Important caveat:

soil geochemistry and geophysics are not drill results.

Still, deficit headlines tend to make target-building stories more interesting because the market starts thinking harder about where future copper supply could eventually come from.

NFA

The copper conversation feels different lately because the numbers behind U.S. supply are honestly pretty aggressive once you look at them closely.

According to recent USGS estimates, the U.S. produced around 1M tonnes of copper while consuming roughly 2.2M tonnes. Import reliance climbed to about 57%.

At the same time:

AI infrastructure keeps expanding

data centers are pulling more electricity

utilities are upgrading grids

EV demand keeps growing

transformer shortages are already happening

So demand keeps moving higher while domestic supply still struggles to catch up.

That is partly why North American copper projects are getting more attention again.

The market increasingly wants:

stable jurisdictions

existing mining districts

infrastructure access

future supply optionality

Been following NovaRed Mining more lately because Wilmac in British Columbia checks several of those boxes from an exploration perspective.

The project now covers around:

16,078 hectares

160.8 square kilometers

39.7k acres

roughly 30k football fields

around 2.7x Manhattan

Large enough that it starts looking more like district-scale exploration ground rather than a small isolated target.

The recent North Lamont work was also pretty data-heavy:

43 soil samples

copper values up to 379 ppm

western cluster averaging 209 ppm copper

overlap with magnetic anomalies

porphyry-style fertility indicators

The chemistry comparison was probably the most important part though.

Older Aqua Regia work from nearby areas showed weaker copper response. NovaRed later used four-acid digestion and nearby samples returned materially stronger copper values from the same general target area.

That does not suddenly create a mine.

But it can absolutely change how geologists prioritize targets and interpret the system.

The next step is the IP/AMT survey already authorized under the 2026 exploration program. If the geophysics lines up with the soil chemistry and magnetic data, North Lamont could move much higher on the drill-priority list.

Feels like the market is slowly realizing copper is becoming more of an infrastructure-security metal now instead of just another industrial commodity.

NFA

Genuine question because I have noticed this pattern happen a lot over the years.

A small company trades quietly for months or years. Then suddenly they start adding advisers or executives with much bigger backgrounds than the company itself. Usually people ignore it at first. Then later the company rerates and everyone looks back wondering why the signs were so obvious.

That is kind of what came to mind when NovaRed (NREDF) announced Gregory Fedun joining its advisory board.

This is someone with over 30 years in natural resources, project development and capital markets. The release says he worked across multiple continents including Africa and the Middle East, advised the Al Mualla Royal Family, and helped facilitate a $70M business combination involving Anadarko Petroleum.

For a tiny exploration-stage copper company, that is honestly a pretty serious network.

And I think the broader environment matters here too.

Copper has quietly become one of the hottest long-term macro stories in the market:

ㅤ• AI infrastructure needs huge amounts of electricity

ㅤ• electricity needs transformers, grids and copper wiring

ㅤ• EV adoption keeps rising globally

ㅤ• power demand forecasts continue climbing

ㅤ• future copper deficits are projected later this decade

At the same time, supply remains slow and messy.

Some copper mines take nearly 20 years to move from discovery to production. Existing mines are aging and ore grades are falling globally. Then you have sulfuric acid supply-chain stress adding another layer of complexity to the industry.

This is probably why mining capital has started flowing back into the sector:

ㅤ• mining ETF assets reportedly jumped from around $37B to $87B over the past year

ㅤ• mining M&A hit around $21.6B in Q1 2026

ㅤ• majors continue searching aggressively for future supply

So when a company like NovaRed starts adding globally connected advisers during this type of macro setup, it makes me think management sees a bigger strategic window opening.

Especially because NRED is not trying to position itself as just another generic junior miner anymore.

The company now sits inside several narratives simultaneously:

ㅤ• copper scarcity

ㅤ• AI infrastructure demand

ㅤ• western supply-chain security

ㅤ• BC mining jurisdiction

ㅤ• AI-assisted exploration technology

That combination is probably part of why these advisory additions matter more than people initially realize.

I honestly think retail investors underestimate how much markets value relationships and credibility during early-stage phases.

People usually focus only on assays and drill results. But sometimes the strongest signal is simply noticing what kind of people are willing to attach their names to a company before the bigger catalysts arrive.

Curious if anyone else follows management/advisory changes this closely with small-cap miners.

NFA

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