First Tellurium ($FTEL | $FSTTF) & PyroDelta Energy on Heavy-Lift Drones and Thermoelectrics
Investor TV Sep 8, 2026 37:34
Summary
PyroDelta's 150-pound drone carries 300 pounds for two hours at 40 mph — a 2:1 payload ratio that beats most heavy-lift competitors.
The team designed its own 40-horsepower engine after manufacturer specs fell short, then built a thermoelectric heat-recovery system around it.
First Tellurium's Deer Horn property in British Columbia hosts tellurium, silver, gold, bismuth, copper, and molybdenum — inferred tellurium of roughly 100 tons.
An end-of-September Florida demonstration targets firefighting, search-and-rescue, and northern-Canada logistics as the first drone revenue path.
Tellurium's role in thermoelectrics opens adjacent opportunities in solar overnight generation and data-center heat recovery, offering non-mine revenue.
Don Durrett's takeaways
- Top takeaway Don asks how large the tellurium deposit is and how long it will last, signaling investor focus on resource depth.
- Don argues drone manufacturing has a low regulatory barrier since it only requires a permit, with no environmental testing.
Michael Abdelmaseh's takeaways
- Top takeaway Michael argues the payload-to-weight ratio matters because it drives operational cost per hour, the main bottleneck for drone adoption.
- Michael states the drone is designed for volume production at 20 units per month using laser cutting, plasma cutting, and in-house assembly rather than expensive CNC milling.
- Michael argues gas-powered drones carry 20 times more energy than advanced batteries and are safer near fires than lithium-ion battery drones.
- Michael claims a custom-built 40HP engine that weighs less than competitor 20-23HP engines, paired with a coaxial rotor head that eliminates the tail rotor and rudder.
- Michael explains the thermoelectric heat exchanger is not strictly required but recovers waste heat from the two-stroke engine to extend range and power onboard avionics.