Demand for critical minerals is booming & sources of supply are more important than ever but junior miners face new challenges in raising the finance to deliver.

Raising money has always been the toughest part of the junior mining story. Right now, however, it feels like the challenge has gone up a notch. Mining is a marathon, not a sprint, often taking 10 to 15 years and can run into billions in spend before production begins. Juniors have traditionally carried the risk at the front end, turning raw geology into viable projects that majors could later scale. Without them, the pipeline of new mines dries up.

Not long ago, funding options were straightforward. Some juniors were snapped up well before construction. Others struck joint venture deals with major (large) miners. Many tapped the equity markets, where raising hundreds of millions alongside debt was perfectly possible. It was a system that worked. Juniors took risks and proved up resources, majors built them out, and investors got their returns.

That balance has shifted. Majors are under pressure to deliver short-term shareholder returns and have tightened their capital allocation. Specialist mining funds have shrunk, even as alternatives such as ETFs have provided investors with an alternative means of investing in commodities and some mainstream investors are chasing ESG scores rather than long-horizon opportunities. Debt, meanwhile, rarely fits projects still wrestling with geological, permitting, and social risk. The squeeze comes just as demand for critical minerals is exploding.

Out of necessity, new ways of funding have been taking shape. Streaming and royalty agreements are increasingly filling part of the gap, giving junior miners long-term capital in return for future production. Host governments are also playing a bigger role, not just granting permits but partnering directly with miners China and Middle-Eastern investors are investing or actively pursuing investment in critical mineral projects in Africa showing how quickly strategic players are moving to secure supply. At the same time, governments in the US and UK are ramping up investment in their own domestic critical minerals industries including projects that could be considered junior miners in scale and risk profile.

A fresh breed of investor is stepping in. Sovereign wealth funds, development finance institutions, and state agencies bring patient, strategic capital better suited to mining timelines. Customers are entering too. OEMs in the battery, automotive space, defence and aerospace are showing strong interest in investing upstream to lock in supply, with ESG, traceability, and long-term security as high on their agenda as cost. These partnerships are creating new alignments across the value chain that would have seemed unlikely a decade ago.

Equity financing hasn’t disappeared altogether. Strong companies with the right commodity, scale, and jurisdiction still attract support. The route to raising money in the markets will always be there for the projects that make it. Debt capital markets also remain open for projects with clearer paths to cash flow. But for most juniors, survival appears to hinge on non-traditional capital, strategic partnerships, and a willingness to innovate in financing as much as in exploration.

What hasn’t changed is the role of majors. They cannot ignore juniors forever. With long lead times to production, the fastest way for majors to grow market share, particularly in critical minerals, will be through acquisition. Buying juniors with advanced projects remains the most efficient route to secure future pipelines, and history suggests this cycle will come full circle again.

The funding landscape for juniors is shifting. Those that adapt to working with new partners, embracing alternative financing, and keeping projects investor-ready, will be the ones that make it through. For them, optimism and creativity aren’t just helpful; they are essential. The industry’s future supply depends on it.  In this environment it is more important than ever that junior miners communicate strategically and effectively, neither overpromising nor allowing long gaps in their newsflow to develop, which undermine their credibility.

Tanya Chikanza and her team at Cardew Group have decades of experience in supporting mining companies to communicate effectively and consistently with markets, managing stakeholders from investors and NGOs to Governments. If you would like to discuss developments in mining or to speak to Tanya do get in touch: enquiries@cardewgroup.com