I see where you are coming from, in my view if the grades between the 2 were similar I would agree.
But as the grades appear to be much better (assuming this is proved and that met work is also favourable), the ability to supply DSO would provide early cashflow, which could help fund future exploratory works and perhaps some capex for an actual mine if we go that far. Share prices are always held back when a capital raise is near, so the potential to reduce this is a great opportunity that should be explored as a priority. Even if it delays full production by a few months, some minor (in comparison to actual mining) cashflow may have a much more positive impact for shareholders short and long term, especially when securing funding for capex.
If cashflow can be generated towards capex for mining, this is a great result for shareholders. A short delay to mining could very well be in shareholders interests if it allows for less funding to be required and may open up avenues such as debt funding rather than equity funding, allowing holders to maintain more of the company.
Seeing a few companies in the cobalt space start to release large capex figures has scared investors off (as very large dilution to fund capex would be likely in my view) and it's a major factor that can impact the ability to secure favourable finance. I don't imagine capex here will be anywhere near some of those, however DSO could be a very significant factor in the success of shareholders here if it becomes a viable option. This would appear more than likely enough to bother investigating further based on the current information available.
We know Vanadium prices are relatively high right now, and rising. Using any means to take advantage of this is a positive sign for shareholders in my opinion. There are still many unknowns and risks, but the potential at the moment is massive in my eyes.
TNO Price at posting:
0.0¢ Sentiment: Buy Disclosure: Held
