Octava Minerals Limited
Octava Minerals Limited (formerly 8 AU Limited, renamed February 2022) is a Western Australian explorer whose principal project is the 100%-owned Byro Critical Minerals Project in the Gascoyne region, 220 km south-east of Carnarvon, acquired in April 2026. Byro targets rare earths, lithium and vanadium hosted in black shale of the Coyrie Formation: a first 16-hole aircore program in February 2026 intersected mineralised shale across the project, bioleaching testwork by BiotaTec and CSIRO returned strong initial recoveries, and the company has outlined a conceptual exploration target of 4.9-7.4 billion tonnes. Octava also holds the East Kimberley nickel-PGM tenements, in which Future Metals can earn up to 70% by sole-funding exploration, and in September 2026 agreed, subject to conditions, to take an option to acquire up to 100% of the West Sierra Grande fluorspar project in Rio Negro Province, Argentina. It relinquished the Yallalong antimony project during the 2026 financial year and decided not to complete its option over the Federation project in Tasmania.
Notable vs. Peers
- Trading within 3% of its 52-week low — weak recent price momentum.
Lifecycle Milestones
Jurisdiction (40%)9/10
Western Australia: Fraser PPI 2025 is 88.53 of 100 (rank 13 of 68), which maps to 9 on this site's scale. Western Australia -- Tier-1 mining jurisdiction.
Infrastructure (40%)Not yet researched
No flagship project on file yet, so existing mill, road access, grid power, and tailings facility haven't been researched.
Nearby producing mine (20%)Not yet researched
No project coordinates on file yet, so distance to a producing mine can't be measured.
Acquisition Susceptibility
A relative ranking of how closely this company matches the profile of juniors that have actually been acquired — not a probability, and not a reason to buy. Acquisitions are rare: only a few dozen significant deals happen a year across a universe of thousands of juniors, so even a high score here describes a long shot. The strongest signal in the research, a producer that already owns part of the company, is scored from its disclosed strategic shareholders. A producer that is a joint-venture or earn-in partner on the project, rather than a shareholder, isn't captured yet.
How this score is built
- Disclosed pending dealSub-score: Not scored
No pending acquisition or merger disclosed (checked)
Not scored: having no deal in flight isn't held against a company.
Weight 26.25% - Producer's strategic stakeSub-score: Not scored
No producer stake on file; largest strategic holder is Fuyang New Energy Development Co. Ltd (9%) See holders
Not an operating producer, so it isn't the toehold-then-takeout pattern the research documents; a missing producer stake isn't held against a company.
Weight 25% - Distance to a producing mineSub-score: Not yet researched
Distance not yet researched: no project coordinates on file
Distance can't be measured without coordinates, so excluded rather than counted as far.
Weight 22.5% - Lifecycle stageSub-score:1/10
Stage: Grassroots Exploration
Feasibility and permitting score 10, where deals cluster, and production 5.5; earlier stages score less, down to 1 at grassroots.
Weight 15% · 57% here - JurisdictionSub-score:9/10
Australia: jurisdiction score 9/10
Our jurisdiction score, used as is: higher means lower political and permitting risk.
Weight 6.75% · 26% here - CommoditySub-score:2/10
Primary commodity: Other
Gold 10, copper 8, silver 5, nickel and uranium 4, others 2: most majors' deals are for gold.
Weight 4.5% · 17% here
Weight is each input's share of the full score. “Here” is its share of this company's score: inputs that aren't scored are left out and the rest re-weighted, never counted as zero.
Your Rankings
Management Team
MD & CEO of Octava Minerals Limited, Executive Director since 16 December 2021. Over 25 years' experience in resource geology and marketing; spent a decade with Rio Tinto including on the Roy Hill Iron Ore startup team; member, Australian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy.
Non-Executive Chairman of Octava Minerals Limited. Chartered accountant with more than 35 years' experience in finance and the resources sector across Australia, South Africa, South America, the UK and North America; previously led Podium Minerals Limited.
Non-Executive Director of Octava Minerals Limited. Over 40 years' experience in the mining industry through roles including Denis O'Meara Prospecting and involvement with the founders of Atlas Iron, Kalamazoo Resources and De Grey Mining; co-founder of Outback Trees of Australia.
Non-Executive Director of Octava Minerals Limited ('Mr Qi' / 'Sam Qi'). Concurrently CEO of Fuyang New Energy Development Co. Ltd, a cornerstone strategic investor holding a 9% stake in Octava (see holders below -- disclosed related-party arrangement). Degree in Project Management from Shanghai University; 20+ years' experience advising international businesses.
Insiders, Investors & Smart Money
Notable shareholders and insiders whose involvement is worth knowing about, plus what we're seeing from institutional/large-investor activity.
No producer, strategic investor, or resource-specialist fund holds a disclosed stake. A director interest notice exists on the public record but could not be confirmed as a purchase.
No notable insiders tracked for this miner yet.
Reports, Presentations & Documents
Octava Minerals, formerly 8 AU, is a Western Australian explorer whose principal project is the 100%-owned Byro critical-minerals project in the Gascoyne region, 220 km south-east of Carnarvon, acquired in April 2026. Byro targets rare earths, lithium and vanadium hosted in black shale of the Coyrie Formation: a first 16-hole aircore program in February 2026 intersected mineralised shale across the project, bioleaching testwork by BiotaTec and CSIRO returned strong initial recoveries, and the company has outlined a conceptual exploration target of 4.9-7.4 billion tonnes, which is not a resource. Octava also holds the East Kimberley nickel-PGM tenements, where Future Metals can earn up to 70% by sole-funding exploration, and in September 2026 it agreed, subject to conditions, to take an option to acquire up to 100% of the West Sierra Grande fluorspar project in Rio Negro Province, Argentina. It relinquished the Yallalong antimony project during its 2026 financial year and decided not to complete its option over the Federation project in Tasmania.