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  • Iofina reports record year as CEO discusses results with Zak Mir

    Iofina reports record year as CEO discusses results with Zak Mir
    May 14 2026
    Zak Mir talks to Dr Tom Becker, President & CEO, Iofina, in the wake of the specialists in the exploration and production of iodine and manufacturers of speciality chemical products, announcing its audited full-year results for the 12 months to 31 December 2025. This included another record year: Production up 17%, Revenue up 22% and Adjusted EBITDA up 56%.Iofina has been quietly doing the hard yards for years, and the market is now starting to pay attention.Following its audited full-year 2025 results, the specialist iodine producer and chemical products business reported another record year, with production up 17%, revenue up 22% and adjusted EBITDA up 56%. That is the headline. The more interesting story sits underneath it: a company that has executed a very specific growth plan, built capacity at pace, and is now looking to accelerate again.At the centre of that story is a simple idea. Iofina operates in a niche market, but one with critical end uses, steady demand, and room for disciplined expansion. For a business still valued at under £100 million, that combination is understandably beginning to attract attention.Iodine is niche, but it matters more than most people realiseIodine is not a commodity that gets discussed every day, yet it plays an essential role in a surprisingly wide range of industries. The global market is relatively small at around 40,000 metric tonnes, but demand is underpinned by applications that are difficult to replace.The single biggest end market is human healthcare. In particular, iodine is heavily used in x-ray contrast media drugs. These are the agents used in CT scans and certain x-ray procedures when doctors need clearer imaging. That application alone accounts for roughly 38% of the market.Beyond that, iodine shows up in many places people barely think about: Disinfectants, including the familiar brown antiseptic used on cuts and before surgery LCD screens, where iodine-based polarising film is used Nutrition, because iodine is needed in the diet to support thyroid function Pharmaceuticals and biocides, where it serves a range of specialised purposes So while iodine may be a niche market, it is tied to healthcare, technology and industrial applications that give it resilience. That is a useful backdrop for any producer looking to grow production over time.How Iofina produces iodineIofina’s model is one of the more interesting parts of the business. Rather than mining iodine in the traditional sense, the company extracts it from briny water produced by the oil and gas industry.This water is effectively a co-product, or waste stream, from oil and gas operations. In the right areas, it contains iodine in concentrations that can be extracted economically. Iofina builds plants to process that brine and recover the iodine.At present, the company has eight iodine plants in operation, all located in Oklahoma. A ninth plant is under construction in the Permian Basin, spanning southwest Texas and southeast New Mexico, which is one of the most significant oil and gas regions in the world.That approach gives the company a clear link between operational execution and growth. If it can continue identifying suitable brine streams and building plants at an attractive return, production can keep climbing.From 500 metric tonnes to 1,000 metric tonnesOver the last four to five years, Iofina has roughly doubled its production profile.The business was producing about 500 metric tonnes several years ago. Once the Permian plant comes online, management expects that to rise to around 1,000 metric tonnes.That is not a theoretical target. It has come from a concrete build-out programme:Three plants built in three yearsA fourth, larger plant making it effectively four plants in four yearsA balance sheet that has remained in sound shape while growth has been funded by reinvesting profitability back into the business This matters because scaling production is often where smaller resource and speciality chemical companies stumble. Capital can become stretched, timelines can slip, and growth stories can get ahead of operating reality. What stands out here is that management’s strategy has been rooted in repeatable execution.As Dr Tom Becker put it, the company has had a specific goal of increasing iodine production in a market that continues to grow, and the team has delivered against that plan.The next goal: 2,000 metric tonnes in the next few yearsReaching 1,000 metric tonnes is not being treated as the finish line. It is being treated as the foundation for the next stage.The vision now is to move towards 2,000 metric tonnes over the next few years. To get there, Iofina is looking to increase the pace of plant development. In other words, not just building one plant a year, but building more frequently where the economics support it.The Permian Basin project is a good illustration of that next phase. It is expected to produce around 200 metric tonnes once fully online, making it a larger ...
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    8 mins
  • Zak Mir talks to Ippolito Cattaneo, CEO of Ajax Resources

    Zak Mir talks to Ippolito Cattaneo, CEO of Ajax Resources
    May 5 2026

    Zak Mir talks to Ippolito Cattaneo, CEO of Ajax Resources, in the wake of recent significant news for the natural resources investment company. This includes the announcement that it has agreed to invest a total of £200,000 in Reveille Resources Limited, a European-focused investment company, intending to list on the Aquis Stock Exchange Growth Market. The investment will result in Ajax becoming a majority shareholder in Reveille.

    Ippolito Ingo Cattaneo, Chief Executive Officer of Ajax, commented:

    "We are delighted to become a major shareholder in Reveille at a formative stage in its development. The company's focus on undervalued historical mineral deposits aligns with our investment strategy, where prior exploration and infrastructure provide a strong foundation for value creation.

    The Lombardy Project, comprising the Novazza and Val Vedello uranium deposits, represents a compelling opportunity. These assets were the subject of extensive historical exploration, including approximately 80,000 metres of drilling, yet have not been evaluated to modern standards, offering clear potential for re-assessment and advancement.

    This investment is an extension of our strategy into Europe, where we see a broad pipeline of opportunities across past-producing mines with significant exploration and development potential.

    The evolving European energy landscape, shaped by the Russian invasion of Ukraine, ongoing geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, and the accelerating drive toward decarbonisation, has reinforced the importance of secure, domestically sourced energy. Energy autonomy is becoming an increasingly critical priority for European countries, and in this context nuclear power, and by extension uranium, is regaining strategic relevance. This is reflected in Italy, where the Government under Giorgia Meloni has signalled renewed support for nuclear energy. Against this backdrop, uranium market fundamentals and pricing have remained positive.

    Reveille is expected to be one of the only UK-listed, European-focused uranium exploration companies, offering investors a differentiated opportunity to gain exposure to this strategically important sector.

    We believe Reveille is well positioned to capitalise on these supportive macroeconomic and policy trends, and we look forward to supporting the company as it progresses towards its planned admission to the Aquis Growth Market and advances the Lombardy Project."
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    20 mins
  • Powerhouse Energy CEO talks strategy and recent developments

    Powerhouse Energy CEO talks strategy and recent developments
    May 4 2026
    Zak Mir talks to Paul Emmitt, CEO Powerhouse Energy (AIM: PHE), as the company pioneering integrated technology that converts non-recyclable waste into low carbon energy, announced an operational update in the wake of the recent oversubscribed retail offer of £400,000 and £260,000 battery developer contract.Powerhouse Energy looks to be moving into a more commercial phase, and the most interesting part of that shift is not just about technology. It is about timing, market need and where demand is now coming from.For a long time, the story around the company was heavily tied to hydrogen and the broader net zero narrative. That is still part of the picture, especially in certain projects. But the market has evolved. The stronger angle now is decarbonisation paired with energy security, and that combination is opening doors that were not as wide open even six or twelve months ago.That is the backdrop to the latest operational progress, which follows an oversubscribed retail offer and a third-party battery developer contract worth £260,000. The bigger message is that Powerhouse is trying to prove that it is more than an early-stage technology story. It wants to show it has real engineering capability, growing commercial traction and a product that fits a changing global energy market.A step closer to commercialityOne of the clearest signs of progress is the introduction of third-party work into the business. This matters because it is not simply work flowing through a historic channel or linked to an internal arrangement. It is direct business for Powerhouse itself.That may sound like a small distinction, but strategically it is important. It demonstrates that the expertise inside the company has value beyond the core waste-to-energy technology alone. In effect, the business is beginning to validate its broader engineering and technical competence in the market.That matters for two reasons:It helps bring the company forward faster by generating commercial activity now. It reinforces the core competency that will ultimately help sell the technology at scale. The company is also pushing this momentum through newer marketing activity and sales agreements in multiple regions. The effort is no longer limited to one or two flagship opportunities. It is becoming a wider commercial campaign.Why the market is changing in Powerhouse Energy’s favourThe most striking theme is the shift in customer motivation.Historically, many conversations in clean technology revolved around net zero targets, emissions reduction and environmental policy. Those issues still matter, but they are now being joined, and in some cases overtaken, by a more immediate concern: security of supply.Across the world, energy markets have become more volatile. Geopolitical disruption in the Middle East, the continuing effects of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, and broader fossil fuel price instability have made businesses and governments think much harder about resilience.That is where Powerhouse sees its opportunity.If a region or business produces waste and depends on imported fossil fuels, especially diesel, then converting that waste into low carbon energy becomes about more than sustainability. It becomes a practical route to greater independence and better control over energy costs.That is a far more urgent conversation.The appeal of using local waste for local energyThe company’s proposition is straightforward in principle:many regions already have a waste streammany of those same regions are exposed to expensive or insecure fuel importsturning local non-recyclable waste into energy can reduce that dependence That message appears to be resonating particularly strongly in island markets and remote locations.Places that rely heavily on diesel generation have been hit hard by rising fuel costs. Yet they also generate waste that needs dealing with. For those markets, a waste-to-energy solution addresses two problems at once: waste managementenergy security This is one reason why recent commercial agreements matter. The company has signed sales arrangements with Green Gecko, with HUI for Central Europe, and another covering the Caribbean islands. These are not random geographies. They line up with exactly the kind of market conditions the company believes now favour its technology.Hydrogen still matters, but it is no longer the whole storyPowerhouse was originally built around a strong hydrogen focus, and that remains relevant in specific projects. The best example is Ballymena, which is expected to be the company’s flagship hydrogen development.The Ballymena project is progressing through planning, and while the pace is not as fast as management would like, the direction appears positive.There are a few notable points here:the planning process is advancing through the council systemcommunity feedback has not presented major issuesthe main comments received appear to relate to matters that could likely have been addressed before submission ...
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    8 mins
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