Squarepoint-backed STG Metals eyes Congo tin, explores financing MMR

What the talks involve

STG Metals has been in discussions to line up tin from the Democratic Republic of Congo. The talks cover the possibility of extending financing to Mining Minerals Resources SAS and taking a slice of MMR's production.

People familiar with the negotiations, who asked not to be named because they are ongoing, said there is not yet a finalized deal and did not detail the tonnage under consideration. MMR and STG declined to comment.

Who STG is and how it is expanding

Founded in 2024, STG has stepped up its tin drive over the last year after recruiting Ben Thomson, formerly of Trafigura Group, to expand its trading book. The trader has provided financing for the Huntore mine in Australia and plans to route the project's tin to a new Virginia smelter supported by the US Department of Defense.

Congo supply and related deals

Tin sits at the heart of defense and aviation supply chains, from high-reliability solder and connectors to coatings for electronic components, radar and aerospace systems. MMR draws feedstock from its mechanized sites as well as cooperatives involved in artisanal and small-scale mining on its concessions.

The company exports tin in several forms, including high-purity metal from its smelter in Lubumbashi in southeastern Congo. Records from the government indicate that in 2025 the plant dispatched in excess of 3,100 tons of refined metal. MMR belongs to the Vinmart Group, which also owns Somika SAS, a mid-sized copper and cobalt producer.

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Earlier this week, leading Congolese tin miner Alphamin Resources Corp. stated it will supply up to 3,600 tons of metal contained in concentrate per year to the same US smelter that has agreed to buy Huntore's output. Alphamin, with Abu Dhabi's International Resource Holding as its majority owner, called the agreement "an important step in building a diversified global customer base" for its mines in eastern Congo.

Why it matters for your portfolio

If STG adds MMR to its supply web, it could redraw trade routes for tin feeding a US smelter tied to defense demand. Track who funds mines and who gets offtake, because those contracts decide which producers plug into high-spec electronics supply chains and at what scale.

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