February 07, 2026
Contents
The global trade war continues. And it has been pushing commodity prices higher and higher.
Gold and silver are rallying again. Critical minerals such as copper have joined this once-in-a-generation bull market. Over the past twelve months, copper has soared by about 30%.
Investors can choose how they want to play this setup of high inflation and out-of-control debt.
They can go the common way and get exposure to commodities through ETFs. It’s easy, but ETFs have limited upside.
If you want to give your portfolio an extra boost, there are only a few options available outside of the junior resource space.
The world’s wealthiest people are investing in a junior resource company working in this specific country… Zambia.
A company linked to the United Arab Emirates, the global oil leader, has invested over $1.1 billion in a Zambian mine in 2025.
And this money is flowing into one specific commodity… copper.
Now, many copper companies operate worldwide… even in Zambia.
The problem here is that it’s not easy to tell future winners from potential losers.
That is why, here at Canadian Mining Report, we bring our investors opportunities they don’t learn about anywhere else.
The resource junior we will discuss in a moment works in the copper space, owns projects in Zambia, and has one of the most distinguished geologists on its team.
The team at Midnight Sun (MMA.V, MDNGF), including its geologist Kevin Bonel, made the first significant discovery in the Zambia-Congo copper belt in 22 years.
Mr. Bonel was Exploration Manager in the region for one of the world’s largest copper producers and has many deposits to his credit. He led the team that transformed Barrick’s Lumwana deposit in Zambia into a 1.62 billion-tonne monster. Lumwana was part of a CAD7.3 billion acquisition 20 years prior, when copper was trading at only $1.50 per pound.
And now, he is working to advance a project that looks the same geologically, only with a larger footprint along strike, measured at surface.
Same commodity, same country… but a much better copper price environment. Just look at this 12-month copper price chart.
Midnight Sun has successfully brought its story to the market. Mr. Adrian O’Brien, the company’s Vice-President of Business Development, is responsible for that.
Mr. O’Brien is arguably one of the strongest and most knowledgeable executives in the business. He is also personally invested in Midnight Sun’s success. This “skin in the game” is potentially one of the most significant catalysts in the company’s story.
Mr. O’Brien’s commentary on both Midnight Sun and the resource sector in general is worth following. If you want to understand what’s going on in the mining space, you should pay attention to his analysis and opinion.
You can learn more about Mr. O’Brien’s take on the mining sector here.
In short, we believe that Midnight Sun (MMA.V, MDNGF) is one of the rare “right place, right time” situations.
Let’s start with the “place” part…
Few investors have Zambia as their top-of-mind copper jurisdiction. Yet they should.
The country has been one of the world’s top copper producers for over 100 years. Its geology created large and scalable copper deposits billions of years ago… yet it takes a specific kind of expertise to find them.
Zambia remains a world-class copper producer and hosts some of the largest mining companies, such as First Quantum, Barrick (and its Lumwana mine, which Midnight Sun’s geologist helped unlock), Ivanhoe, Rio Tinto, Anglo American, and others.
The country takes mining seriously. The industry represents 75% of its exports. Zambia’s government has an ambitious goal of tripling its copper output over the next five years.
It is also a stable and predictable mining jurisdiction. It ranks third in Africa, according to the Fraser Institute.
And investment has been flowing in. For example, the United States and the European Union plan to build a multibillion-dollar Lobito railway that would start in Eastern Zambia, connecting a North-South rail line with an East-West one and linking the four key Zambian copper mines to a port in Angola.
First Quantum, one of the global mining giants working in Zambia, is building its own 371-kilometer route to cut transit times for its operations. The company expects the upgrade to be ready within two years.
First Quantum and Barrick are pouring billions of dollars into Zambia. First Quantum is working on a $1.25-billion production expansion at its Kansanshi mine, and Barrick is investing $2 billion in Lumwana.
China, the United States, and the European Union have earmarked billions of dollars to improve the country’s infrastructure and get its copper to the international markets as quickly as possible.
Midnight Sun looks poised to benefit from this investment frenzy, regardless of which global superpower comes out first.
Before the Zambian copper rush began, Midnight Sun realized it could position itself in one of the world's most prolific copper regions—and potentially create billions of dollars in shareholder value.
The company’s CEO, Al Fabbro, who has over 45 years of experience in mining and finance, has been implementing a strategy of focusing on projects with ultra-large-scale potential.
Dumbwa, Midnight Sun’s flagship deposit, has the potential to reach the same size and scale as the neighboring Lumwana deposit, the largest in the Zambian copper belt…
In a nutshell, this is what Midnight Sun is on to. The company has started exploration at Dumbwa, and the early drill results have delivered excellent progress. (More on that in a moment.)
But this is likely just the beginning of the Midnight Sun story. Here’s why…
The company has continued reporting positive drill results from its Dumbwa copper deposit. Those have included:
(Sign up to receive the company’s latest updates here.)
Midnight Sun has now entered its Phase 2 drilling campaign. The campaign’s goal is to extend known mineralization laterally and along strike and test new prospective structures.
And here’s why it matters…
The soil anomaly at Dumbwa that Midnight Sun is currently drilling out appears to continue for 20 kilometers… This represents the potential for a vast copper deposit. To date, the company has drilled 12 kilometers of strike, leaving another 8-9 kilometers along strike to the north to test.
Management is targeting a large-tonnage, near-surface bulk-tonnage deposit with similar grade and scale to the surrounding mines.
With the assays already received, the Company has identified the zonation of the Dumbwa Deposit, where higher-grade centers exist and the structures that control that higher-grade mineralization.
As for the grades and widths the company has seen so far, they are very similar to those of the Lumwana mine located just 20 kilometers away.
Lumwana is operated by Barrick Mining Corp., one of the world’s leading resource companies.
Lumwana widths and grades range from 10–40 meters at 0.3–0.6% copper. The assays that Midnight Sun has received so far show intervals with similar widths and grades. The image below shows a snapshot of some results to date.
Midnight Sun has 20 kilometers of highly prospective target to drill, and they are already nearly halfway there, with new prospective areas being discovered along the way. Even without the high-grade sub-intervals, the longer, lower-grade intervals that contain them are comparable to those economically mined at Lumwana. For example:
This means that the company has defined what could be the newest major Zambian copper deposit in the belt.
Keep in mind, Midnight Sun’s geologist, Dr. Kevin Bonel, was Exploration Manager at the Lumwana mine and Freeport-McMoRan, another copper major. He knows what to look for and how to quickly advance deposits like Dumbwa.
While working as Exploration Manager for Barrick at Lumwana, Dr. Bonel and his team transitioned the project from about 900 million tonnes at 0.5% copper to 1.6 billion tonnes.
He and his team almost doubled Lumwana’s tonnage while keeping its grade intact. With that, they added 62 years of mine life to the project with nearly 9 million tonnes of contained metal.
Of course, we cannot predict which strategic investors may get as excited about Dumbwa as the company’s team already is, but we know majors are starved for new discoveries… and Dumbwa is starting to look like a very significant one.
The company also has enough liquidity to continue its exploration effort.
Midnight Sun's plan for Phase One was ambitious. The team drilled almost 90,000 meters over the past 12 months.
The company has now completed drilling the first 12 kilometers of the projected 20-kilometer expected strike length. Midnight has just announced the discovery of a “blowout” – a portion of the deposit where the width of the mineralization jumps from 400–600 meters across (east to west) to 2,400 meters. This zone is called “The Northern Block”. And the team doesn’t plan to slow down. Phase two is underway now and will see a continuation of drilling to expand and define this new large-scale copper system.
Management pointed out that, on average, the company spends about USD160 per meter of drilling. This is one of the lowest numbers we have seen. In other words, Midnight Sun can do much more work with its capital than some rivals, which face higher costs.
This benefits investors who see their money going toward getting more work done – and potentially creating more shareholder value in the process.
The best thing about these drill results is how close they are to the surface. Usually, if a deposit lies deep in the ground, it is expensive to mine. An operator would need to remove a lot of “waste,” or non-economic material, before it gets to the good stuff.
At Dumbwa, as the company’s recent drill results show, the good stuff starts almost at the surface. This is fantastic news for the project.
Dumbwa has a very similar geological structure to that of Barrick’s Lumwana mine. Lumwana has a cut-off grade of 0.1% copper and a very low strip ratio, and is scheduled to produce 240,000 tonnes of copper per year starting in 2028. It’s a massive mine with a life of over 60 years.
A lot of resource juniors don’t have an exit scenario. They plan to deliver the next batch of assay results or an economic study and see what happens.
Often, nothing does.
Midnight Sun has its eyes on a potential acquisition by a mining major. The company expects Dumbwa may be too large for the biggest players in the mining space to ignore.
Management compares it to Lumwana, which we mentioned above. It was purchased 20 years ago for CAD7.3 billion. At the time of acquisition, it had about 900 million tonnes of ore at 0.5% copper. The two deposits are geologically similar, and Dumbwa is just in the early stages of delineation.
Plus, copper was trading at about $1.50 when Lumwana was purchased. For reference, as of this writing, copper has closed at $6.70, which is more than four times higher.
In other words, Midnight Sun might have a similar deposit available for purchase in a much better copper-price environment than Lumwana’s previous owners had to work with. Investors should make their own conclusions about where Dumbwa’s acquisition value might stand.
On top of that, early testing indicates that Dumbwa doesn’t appear to have any “deleterious,” or bad, elements in its mineralization. Lumwana, which was purchased for CAD7.3 billion, did. But Midnight Sun’s team has found no uranium, cadmium, talc, or arsenic at this stage of delineation, and they have full-scale met-testing underway now to confirm.
This, among other features, shows some of Dumbwa’s potential advantages over its neighbor, owned by the multi-billion-dollar mining major.
Plus, Dumbwa’s mineralization is copper-only. This makes it easier to work with than a polymetallic deposit, in which copper can be trickier and costlier to extract, which can damage project economics.
In addition to Dumbwa, which could be a new major copper deposit, the company has other assets in its portfolio.
For example, the Company’s near-surface Kazhiba oxide-copper deposit, which is also in Zambia.
The company has recently announced a mineral resource estimate for Kazhiba. It outlined a NI-43-101-compliant Indicated resource of 2.3 million tonnes at 1.41% copper. The deposit contains 72.3 million pounds of copper.
The resource was modeled to a depth of just 30 meters, meaning that its strip ratio will likely be extremely low... Kazhiba also has access to excellent infrastructure.
Midnight Sun plans to monetize Kazhiba by selling the high-grade material and using projected cash flow to finance exploration and development at Dumbwa, the company’s crown jewel.
If executed, this plan could allow Midnight Sun to keep advancing Dumbwa without raising funds through private placements. This could protect existing shareholders against potential dilution.
In other words, Midnight Sun has developed a non-dilutive plan to bring a brand new Zambian copper deposit to the stage where it may be nearly impossible for the world’s largest mining companies and potential acquirers to resist.
The trade war continues raging.
China, the United States’ archrival, is doing everything it can to secure critical minerals worldwide.
The two superpowers have their eyes on Zambia and its vast copper resources.
Access to the country’s critical minerals is so valuable that the world’s most powerful political players and richest people compete to control Zambia’s copper wealth.
Both governments and private investors have deployed billions of dollars in Zambian copper projects and the country’s transport infrastructure.
Meanwhile, established players such as the multibillion-dollar First Quantum, Barrick, Ivanhoe, BHP, Anglo American, and others look for growth opportunities in Zambia.
Midnight Sun (MMA.V, MDNGF) has positioned itself to benefit from this competition.
The company is advancing a project that could potentially rival the largest copper mines in the country.
It has discovered a near-surface sulfide copper-bearing deposit with a drilled surface footprint already over 12 kilometers along strike… and which could potentially increase along strike for up to 20 kilometers.
Midnight Sun (MMA.V, MDNGF) continues a massive drill campaign through the end of the year and 2027, and the company is funded to execute it.
New drill results will be coming in shortly… and so far, exploration has confirmed management’s geologic theory. Dumbwa, the company’s flagship property, may indeed be a monster-sized near-surface deposit located close to one of the copper majors’ mining infrastructure.
Sophisticated investors have noticed, and the company had no problems raising tens of millions of dollars from them.
It received a vote of confidence from some of the smartest money in the business.
But the Midnight Sun (MMA.V, MDNGF) story is still in its earliest stages. If the company continues to deliver strong drill results, its market value may change.
As we said earlier, this is a “right place, right time” situation. And we would argue the right time to pay attention to this story is now. This once-a-decade opportunity should be at the top of every watch list.
MUST WATCH: Investment Round Table Discussion on Midnight Sun Mining
Sign up to receive our future articles and updates.
Disclaimer
The material in this article should not under any circumstances be construed as an offering, recommendation, or a solicitation of an offer to buy or sell the securities mentioned or discussed, and is to be used for informational purposes only. Neither Canadian Mining Report (the "Publisher", "we", "us", or "our"), nor any of its principals, directors, officers, employees, or consultants ("Publisher Personnel"), are registered investment advisers or broker-dealers with any agencies in any jurisdictions. Canadian Mining Report ("Canadian Mining Report", "Us", "Our" and/or "We") is a Canadian based media company that typically works with publicly traded companies and provides digital marketing strategies and services.
At most, this communication should serve only as a starting point to do your own research and consult with a licensed professional regarding the companies profiled and discussed. Conduct your own research. We do not provide personalized or individualized investment advice or advice that is tailored to the needs of any particular recipient.
Read More
The content disclosed herein is intended to highlight Midnight Sun Mining Corp. and its project for your further investigation; this is not a stock recommendation or constitute an offer or sale of the referenced securities. The securities of Midnight Sun Mining Corp. can be volatile and may be considered high risk; if you do invest despite these warnings, you may lose your entire investment.
The material in this article is intended as general information and not information that you should rely on for investment or trading purposes. We do not give any investment advice nor advocate the purchase or sale of any security or investment. You should consult with your professional investment advisor regarding investments in securities referred to herein. By using our services, you agree that the Publisher and the Publisher Personnel will not be liable for any investment decision made or action taken by you and others based on news, information, opinion, or any other material published in this article. The companies we focus on are typically smaller, early-stage junior mining companies. Investments in such companies by nature carry a high level of risk. Anyone who cannot accept this risk of total and sudden loss of their investment should not invest in such securities.
The information contained in this article is based on sources which we believe to be reliable but is not guaranteed by us as being accurate and does not purport to be a complete statement or summary of the available data. The information in this article reflects the current opinion of the Publisher and is subject to change. The Publisher undertakes no obligation to update any such information.
Disclosure
The Canadian Mining Report has been retained by Midnight Sun Mining Corp. to provide various digital marketing and advertising services. We have been paid to provide editorial and marketing services to profile the company and its project. The preceding Article is PAID FOR CONTENT sponsored by Midnight Sun Mining Corp. and produced in cooperation with CanadianMiningReport.com. The publisher of CanadianMiningReport.com owns securities positions in Midnight Sun Mining Corp. and may trade on their own behalf at any time without prior notice, however, it is our general policy to not sell any shares while we are currently engaged with a client.
The Canadian Mining Report's business model includes receiving financial compensation to carry out various services for companies which may include advertising, marketing and dissemination of publicly available information. This compensation is a major conflict of interest in our ability to be unbiased.