Critical stocks on sale? Standard Lithium, European Lithium, D-Wave, BASF!

European Lithium: Rare earths and lithium at a discount

NASDAQ-listed Critical Metals Corp. (CRML) is currently one of the most exciting rare earth companies in the world. Everything revolves around the Tanbreez project in Greenland. It is one of the largest approved deposits worldwide and contains high concentrations of heavy rare earths, which are indispensable for high-tech, defense, and energy technologies. When rumors emerged in mid-October that the US government might invest in CRML, the stock shot up from USD 6 to USD 30 within a few days. The rumors have since been denied, and the share price is trading just below USD 10. However, the strategic importance of the Company remains unchanged.

Those who want to benefit from the opportunities can do so at a discount via European Lithium. The Company holds around 50% of CRML, and this stake is currently worth around USD 600 million. European Lithium currently has a market capitalization of around AUD 316 million. In addition, CRML shares worth around USD 50 million were sold to a strategic investor in October. So the coffers are well filled. Among other things, the capital will be used to buy back the Company's own shares. This is because management has repeatedly emphasized that it considers its own shares to be significantly undervalued.

And there are even more reasons why European Lithium's share price should be higher. With a lithium deposit in Austria, the Company wants to help the German automotive industry free itself from its dependence on China for batteries. From 2027, it plans to supply BMW with lithium for the batteries of its new class of vehicles. In addition, the Leinster lithium project in Ireland has been taken over. The project is considered one of the most promising hard rock deposits in the EU. Historical drilling has revealed high lithium contents of up to 3.75% Li₂O.

Standard Lithium: Progress in the third quarter

While European Lithium is benefiting from the West's demand for rare earths and lithium, Standard Lithium, as its name suggests, is focused squarely on lithium.

At the beginning of the week, the Company reported on developments in the third quarter of 2025. Progress was made on all core projects. The primary focus was on the Definitive Feasibility Study (DFS) for the South-West Arkansas Project (SWA). It envisages a capacity of 22,500 t/year of battery-grade lithium carbonate, based on 447,000 t of lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE). Construction of the facilities is scheduled to begin in 2026, with lithium production expected to start in 2028. The project is expected to have a 20-year lifespan.

At the same time, Standard Lithium has published an initial resource estimate for the Franklin project in eastern Texas. This yielded 2.2 million tons of LCE at an average lithium concentration of 668 mg/L. According to the Company, these are the highest reported lithium-in-brine grades in North America. In addition, 15.4 million tonnes of potassium chloride (a critical raw material listed in the USGS 2025 draft) and 2.6 million tonnes of bromide were identified. In Arkansas, Standard Lithium also announced that regulators had granted approval for the Reynolds Brine Unit. Samples from the new Lester well reached 616 mg/L, the highest single value to date in the SWA area (average 582 mg/L), completing the subsurface work for Phase 1.

Financially, Standard Lithium placed an increased USD 130 million follow-on offering at USD 4.35 per share after the end of the quarter, citing strong institutional demand. As of September 30, 2025, cash and cash equivalents were USD 32.1 million, with working capital at USD 29 million and no financial liabilities.

The share price appears to have stabilized above the USD 3 mark following the recent sell-off. From its 52-week high of USD 6.40 in mid-October, it had more than halved.

Is D-Wave giving BASF a boost?

BASF is emblematic of the plight of the German chemical industry: high energy and location costs, weak demand, low capacity utilization – plus restructuring and capacity closures at its headquarters in Ludwigshafen. The industry association VCI reported further declines in production, prices, and revenue for Q3/2025. Major players are responding with cost cuts and job cuts.

Can D-Wave's "quantum power" give the DAX-listed company a boost in its operations? BASF and D-Wave have completed a joint proof of concept in a liquid filling plant. A hybrid approach combining quantum annealing and classical heuristics optimizes production planning, sequences, and tank allocations under real-world constraints. The project partners have drawn a positive conclusion. The planning time was reduced from around 10 hours with a classic industrial solver to five seconds - a significant leap in efficiency in test operation.

In addition to the radically reduced computing time, the application showed measurable operational improvements. Setup times were reduced by 9% and tank unloading times by up to 18%. For BASF, this means faster rescheduling in the event of fluctuations in demand and plant capacity. For D-Wave, it is a robust industrial use case that can be transferred to other industries.

The results are exciting. However, it remains to be seen how quickly the technology can be integrated into real operational processes.

China continues to use critical raw materials as a geopolitical tool. The West must catch up, and companies like Standard Lithium stand to benefit. European Lithium offers investors the opportunity to get involved in rare earths and lithium at a discount. Meanwhile, the collaboration between D-Wave and BASF demonstrates the real-world potential of quantum technology. It remains to be seen, though, when we will notice its full impact in everyday life.