Notes from the Floor: Red Cloud Mining's Fall Mining Showcase

Capital markets solutions provider Red Cloud Mining Capital held its Fall Mining Showcase last week in Toronto, and it was packed with presentations from companies, as well as other key members of the mining industry. 
Highlights were a keynote address from former Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird, and a lunch panel on investing in mining from a private equity perspective, hosted by Northern Miner publisher Anthony Vaccaro.
A total of 18 companies presented at the event, and though most were gold-focused companies — including Integra Gold (TSXV:ICG) and Richmont Mines (TSX:RIC,NYSEMKT:RIC) — other commodities were also represented by companies like Royal Nickel (TSX:RNX) and Stornoway Diamond (TSX:SWY). Overall, the event provided a good overview of where those companies stand in today’s difficult market.

Baird talks mining in Canada

As mentioned, the event kicked off with a keynote from Baird, who is certainly well qualified to comment on the state of the Canadian mining industry. In addition to his former post as Canadian foreign affairs minister, he’s currently senior advisor to Bennett Jones, an advisory board member of Barrick Gold (TSX:ABX,NYSE:ABX), global strategic advisor to Hatch Interactive Technologies (TSXV:TSQ) and a member of the corporate boards of CP Rail (TSX:CP), FWD Group and PineBridge Investments (TSX:PRF.UN). 
Stay tuned for a full recap of his speech, including his thoughts on environmental activists, foreign governments and the outcome of the upcoming Canadian federal election.

Private equity in mining

The lunch panel on mining investing and private equity featured Cheryl Brandon, partner, investment management at Waterton Global Resources Investors; David Thomas, managing director, Canada at Resource Capital Funds; and Dan Wilton, partner at Pacific Road Capital.
Private equity consists of investors and funds that either make investments in private companies or conduct buyouts of public companies. The panelists said that while those involved in private equity tend to have a reputation for being ruthless, that is an unfair representation.
They drew a clear distinction between private equity generalists, like Carlyle Group (NASDAQ:CG), KKR & Co. (NYSE:KKR) and Blackstone Group (NYSE:BX), and private equity groups that are focused specifically on the mining industry. They argued that mining-focused private equity groups have a much fuller appreciation of the unique risks associated with the resource sector, allowing them to be more supportive investment partners.
Furthermore, the panelists discussed some of the benefits of private equity in general. Those include guaranteed long-term capital, and a strong, supportive partner if the market should take a turn for the worse. They stressed that private equity investors are fully cognizant of the risks that come with specific projects and try to remain prepared for all eventualities, both good and bad.