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Impact Selected To Participate In The BHP Xplor Program To Help Accelerate Exploration Needed For The Energy Transition
Impact Minerals (ASX:IPT) is pleased to announce that it has been selected to participate in the inaugural BHP Xplor program, principally to help fund exploration at the Company’s Broken Hill Project in New South Wales.
BHP Xplor, an accelerator program introduced by BHP in August 2022, is designed to help provide participants with the opportunity to accelerate their growth and the potential to establish a long-term partnership with BHP and its global network of partners.
Impact will receive up to US$500,000 in cash payments from BHP over the next six months and gain access to a network of internal and external experts to help guide development in the technical, business and operational aspects of the company.
Impact’s Managing Director Dr Mike Jones said “We are thrilled and honoured to be one of first-ever participants of the prestigious BHP Xplor program and to partner with the world’s largest mining company in our exploration. This is a testament to Impact’s innovative thinking over the years and we are looking forward to working with them to accelerate exploration at Broken Hill and also upgrading our skills company-wide by gaining access to their global network”.
Sonia Scarselli, Vice President, BHP Xplor shares, “We are amazed by the diversity and quality of the submissions we reviewed and selected. We are confident that the BHP Xplor program will support the companies chosen to accelerate their concepts and ideas, to help take them to the next level.”
The BHP Xplor funding will be used to identify new target areas for copper and other energy metals around the Broken Hill area where Impact has been quietly adding to its ground position for a number of years.
Impact believes that there is significant untapped exploration potential at Broken Hill for copper mineralisation and has been working with world renowned geologist Prof. Tony Crawford on a new model for copper associated with mafic intrusions that are part of the Broken Hill Group rocks.
This is a different exploration model to that being pursued by Impact’s joint venture partner IGO Limited on EL7390 and EL8234 which are excluded from the program and comprise a very small portion of Impact’s tenements in the area (ASX release 9th November 2021).
The funding, to be spent over the next six months, will be mostly directed at developing a new, detailed three- dimensional model of the geology of the region based on new insights gained by Impact during its work there over the past ten years, together with an interpretation of magnetic and gravity data.
Under the Xplor program agreement between BHP and Impact, BHP does not acquire an equity interest in Impact or any project, however Impact commits to certain exclusivity and pre-emption regimes with respect to investments in Impact or its projects, as well as data sharing provisions in relation to the six month program.
About BHP Xplor
BHP Xplor is dedicated to accelerating innovative, early-stage mineral exploration concepts to find the critical resources necessary to drive the energy transition.
We are searching around the globe for the next generation of explorers that are ready to think about the earth’s
minerals systems differently to unlock copper, nickel and other critical mineral deposits.
To stay up to date with the BHP Xplor program news and opportunities, visit https://www.bhp.com/xplor.
This announcement has been approved for release to the ASX by Dr Michael Jones, Managing Director.
Click here for the full ASX Release
This article includes content from Impact Minerals, licensed for the purpose of publishing on Investing News Australia. This article does not constitute financial product advice. It is your responsibility to perform proper due diligence before acting upon any information provided here. Please refer to our full disclaimer here.
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Impact Minerals Limited
Overview
Impact Minerals (ASX:IPT) is an exploration and development mining company focusing on discovering and developing new resource projects within Australia. Lake Hope, a recent transformational acquisition by the company and its current flagship asset, is a high-purity alumina (HPA) project in Impact’s home territory of Western Australia, a tier-one jurisdiction. This advanced-stage project allows the company to fast-track the asset toward development and puts the company firmly on the road to production and increasing shareholder value.
HPA is a high-value product with various uses in several industries that are key to the transition to a low-carbon world. Its main uses are in LED lighting, micro-LED screens, and ceramic-coated separators in lithium-ion batteries. Both these markets are forecast to grow dramatically over the next decade, and a looming supply shortage is predicted for 2026. HPA is also necessary for producing synthetic sapphire and scratch-resistant glass. With these ever-widening applications for HPA, demand for this resource is expected to reach $4.79 billion in 2027 at a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 18.4 percentLake Hope is the company’s current focus as it moves towards production, and where a very shallow, high-grade resource of HPA precursor material has been identified in the top two meters of a dry salt lake. The deposit has unique physical and chemical properties that will allow for inexpensive digging and mining, with transportation to a processing facility off-site in an established industrial area, enabling the acceleration of production.
Impact is currently focused on lodging a Mining Lease Application. The company aims to bring Lake Hope, which contains almost 1 million tonnes of potential HPA, into production when the forecast average price for 4N HPA (99.99 percent AL203) and related products is about US$20,000 per tonne. The ‘4N’ designation indicates the purity grade, making it suitable for high-tech end uses.
In June 2023, Impact announced a maiden mineral resource estimate (MRE) of 3.5 million tonnes at 25.1 percent alumina (Al2O3) for a contained 880,000 tonnes of alumina. The company also received heritage clearances for the entire Lake Hope deposit further de-risking the project and providing another critical component in the company’s application for a mining lease.
Impact released the results of a scoping study based on realistic production and capital expenditure estimates for the company’s Lake Hope High Purity Alumina (HPA) Project. The study indicated Lake Hope's potential to be one of, if not the lowest-cost producer of HPA globally, possibly by a significant margin of up to 50 percent.
The company received a significant research and development refund of $753,000 from its exploration activities completed in the financial year ending June 30th, 2022. The refund brought Impact’s cash balance to more than $4 million after a successful capital raising which was strongly supported by the company’s two major German shareholders. The company is well funded to finance the pre-feasibility study at the Lake Hope High Purity Alumina project and exploration activities at the Arkun battery minerals project.
Impact Minerals was also one of the inaugural cohort of seven companies selected to be part of the prestigious BHP Xplor program. BHP Xplor, an accelerator program introduced by BHP in August 2022, is designed to help provide participants with the opportunity to accelerate their growth and the potential to establish a long-term partnership with BHP and its global network of partners.
In addition to funding, the BHP Xplor program allows Impact to gain access to a network of internal and external experts to help guide development in the company's technical, business and operational aspects.
The BHP Xplor funding has been used to identify new target areas for copper and other energy metals around the Broken Hill area in New South Wales, eastern Australia, where Impact has been quietly adding to its ground position for several years.
Additionally, the company is exploring its large Arkun battery metals project, also in Western Australia. The company has completed a significant exploration campaign at its Arkun project, reporting encouraging results of nickel, copper, PGMs and lithium-caesium-tantalum. Targets are currently being defined with the aim of drill testing in early 2024.
“In trying to reduce the risk, it’s the case nowadays where you need to take a scientific approach to what you’re doing. One of the big changes in the industry over the past ten years is that it’s now a lot easier and cheaper to generate a great amount of data. So, we’ve been recognized for our technical excellence,” said Dr. Mike Jones, Managing Director at Impact Minerals, in an interview.
A strong management team with over 50 years of combined industry experience leads the company. With a mining and exploration geology degree, Jones launched a long career consulting and leading mining organizations. Peter Unsworth, the non-executive chairman, has more than 35 years of experience in multiple financial sectors, such as securities industries and wealth management. Paul Ingram, a non-executive director, has led several mining companies since 2003. Impact Minerals has the experience and expertise to lead the company to success.
Company Highlights
- Impact Minerals is an exploration and development mining company focused on rapidly moving its flagship Lake Hope high-purity alumina (HPA) project towards production.
- Lake Hope project has a high-grade maiden mineral resource estimate (MRE) of 3.5 million tonnes at 25.1 percent alumina (Al2O3) for a contained 880,000 tonnes of alumina which can be converted to HPA.
- HPA is used throughout multiple industries, and the overall HPA market is projected to grow by a CAGR of 18.4 percent by 2027.
- A Pre-Feasibility Study is currently in progress and Impact plans to lodge a Mining Lease Application after results of its scoping study indicated how the Lake Hope Project could potentially be one of, if not the lowest-cost producer of HPA globally, possibly by a significant margin of up to 50 percent.
- The company’s project portfolio also includes assets with high-grade mineral deposits of a range of base, critical and precious metals.
- Impact Mineral’s 2,000-square-mile Arkun nickel-copper-PGE project in Western Australia has produced encouraging assays motivating further exploration.
- The company is also exploring its Broken Hill copper project in New South Wales under the auspices of the BHP Xplor program.
- A strong management team leads the company with experience in geology, mining and corporate finance.
Key Projects
Lake Hope HPA Project
Impact Minerals’ Lake Hope HPA project is in Western Australia, a tier-one mining jurisdiction. HPA is a crucial component in many new and emerging technologies, creating ongoing demand for high-grade sources. The Lake Hope project has become the company’s flagship as it moves toward production.
Project Highlights:
- Maiden Mineral Resource Estimate: A maiden mineral resource of 3.5 million tonnes at 25.1 percent alumina (Al2O3) for a contained 880,000 tonnes of alumina has been defined at the Lake Hope HPA Project. About 88 percent of the resource, or 775,000 tonnes of alumina, is in the higher confidence indicated resource category.
- Amenable to Open-pit Mining: The Lake Hope project is a unique HPA asset amenable to shallow, open-pit mining. The deposit is soft and shallow, allowing for cheap digging and minimal infrastructure requirements. This type of deposit also lowers the environmental footprint of the operation.
- Fast-tracked to Production: The company is currently awaiting its Mining Lease Application. Once granted, the company will begin working towards a pre-feasibility study and mini pilot plant. Impact Minerals plans to reach a complete pilot plant by 2026.
- Impressive Results of the 2023 Scoping Study: Outstanding economics show Lake Hope to potentially be the lowest-cost producer of High Purity Alumina (HPA) globally by up to 50 percent. Key outcomes from the scoping study include:
- Annual production of 10,000 tpa of 4N HPA with an initial 25-year mine life
- Annual EBITDA of US$17 million and annual revenue of US$258 million
- 2 years construction period with 5,000 tonnes of production during the first year, 8,000 tonnes in the second year and 10,000 tonnes of production thereafter.
- US$934 million post-tax NPV8 at an IRR of 55 percent.
Broken Hill Copper Project
The Broken Hill project has a significant land position of 815 square kilometers and hosts multiple targets with the potential for high-grade copper. Broken Hill is located in New South Wales, Australia, an area known for its prolific silver-lead-zinc mining operations and the giant Broken Hill deposit.
Project Highlights:
- Participant in the BHP Xplor Program: Impact was selected for the BHP Xplor program based on its Broken Hill project. The program is designed to allow participants to accelerate growth and establish a long-term partnership with BHP.
- Potential for Additional Minerals and Deposits: As well as copper, the project has significant exploration potential for magmatic nickel-copper-PGE sulphides, and at the time the host rocks were formed, Broken Hill was located close to the world-class nickel-copper-PGE deposit of Jinchuan and the significant Lengquisheng deposit. The project area also has the potential to contain zinc-lead-silver deposits, providing even more value.
Arkun Nickel-Copper-Gold-Lithium-REE Project
The Arkun project is a 2,000-square-kilometer nickel, copper and gold project located in the emerging Ni-Cu-PGE province near the world-class Julimar Ni-Cu-PGE deposit and surrounded by Anglo American Corporation, which secured its ground holding shortly after Impact secured its asset. Anglo-American is one of the world’s top ten mining companies, and their presence in the region brings confidence in the project’s potential.
Project Highlights:
- Additional Exploration Underway: Impact plans follow-up work programs, including drilling, at its priority targets.
- Encouraging Targets: Impact Minerals’ early geochemical survey campaigns indicated the presence of nickel, copper and gold anomalies, as well as lithium and rare earth element anomalies throughout the project area, which has never been explored before.
Management Team
Peter Unsworth - Non-executive Chairman
Peter Unsworth, formerly a chartered accountant, has over 35 years of experience in the corporate finance, investment and securities industries and a wealth of management experience with public and private companies. A former executive director with a leading Western Australian stockbroking company, Unsworth has been a director of several public exploration and mining companies. He recently completed a long time serving as chairman of the Western Australian Government-owned Gold Corporation (operator of The Perth Mint). Unsworth is the founding chairman of Impact Minerals.
Dr. Mike Jones - Managing Director
Dr. Mike Jones is the founding managing director of Impact Minerals Limited, which was listed on the Australian Stock Exchange in November 2006. Reporting to the board of directors, he is responsible for the company's performance as it moves towards production at its Lake Hope High Purity Alumina Project and also for implementing strategies to explore and maximize the value of the company's other extensive tenement holdings.
Since listing, he has helped raise more than $60 million to help fund the exploration of Impact’s projects and managed the company through significant adverse events, including the global financial crisis and the Fukushima nuclear disaster, which affected Impact’s considerable investment in the uranium sector, a five-year global downturn in the mining sector and more recently, the COVID-19 pandemic.
Paul Ingram - Non-executive Director
Paul Ingram is a geologist with extensive experience managing major mineral exploration programs for several publicly listed companies and has been involved in the mining sector for over thirty years. He has designed and implemented innovative techniques for exploration in remote areas and has managed projects in countries throughout Australia and East Asia. Ingram has been a director of the following listed companies in the past three years:
Dr Frank Bierlein - Non-executive Director
Dr. Frank Bierlein is a geologist with 30 years of experience as a consultant, researcher, lecturer and industry professional. Bierlein has held exploration and generative geology management positions with QMSD Mining Co Ltd, Qatar Mining, Afmeco Australia and Areva NC, and consulted for, among others, Newmont Gold, Resolute Mining, Goldfields International, Freeport McMoRan, and the International Atomic Energy Agency. He is currently a non-executive director of PNX Metals Ltd. He was previously a non-executive director of Gold Australia NL and chaired the advisory board of a Luxembourg-based private equity fund between 2014 and 2021.
Bernard Crawford - Company Secretary
Bernard Crawford is a finance and governance professional with over 25 years of experience in the resources industry in Australia and overseas. He has held various finance, governance and management positions with NYSE, TSX and ASX-listed companies. Crawford holds a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Western Australia and a Master of Business Administration from London Business School. He is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants and the Governance Institute of Australia.
Kerry Stevenson: Gold, Uranium, Lithium — What I'm Doing with My Money
Kerry Stevenson, host of Making Money Matter, spoke with the Investing News Network about sentiment among Australian resource companies and investors, as well as what she's doing with her money right now.
She sees gold as a key portfolio component, especially during today's turmoil, and said she has exposure to physical gold and silver in addition to gold equities. "For me it's all about diversification. Because my view is that if you keep printing like drunken sailors, then hard assets are something that you really, strongly need to look at," she said.
However, Stevenson, who also runs the Australian Gold Conference, is following markets like uranium and lithium as they continue to gain traction on the back of the ongoing energy transition.
"We need more and more energy to transition, regardless of which way you look at it. This energy transition, this zero-carbon world that people want us to live in — uranium in my opinion is a commodity to really start to have a look at," she said, pointing to Saskatchewan's Athabasca Basin as a location where Australian companies are gravitating.
When it comes to lithium, she said the market can be confusing. She encouraged investors to be hopeful but skeptical, and said that as with other sectors she focuses first on management, and then on the project and jurisdiction.
Overall Stevenson said gold remains her first choice given its long history as a store of value.
"I'll always go back to gold, because to me gold is money and everything else is credit. As an investor I would say physical gold is your friend — that's what will protect your purchasing power. You keep it, you hold it, you don't spend it," she said.
Watch the interview above for more from Stevenson on gold, uranium, lithium and more.
Don't forget to follow us @INN_Australia for real-time updates!
Securities Disclosure: I, Charlotte McLeod, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
Editorial Disclosure: The Investing News Network does not guarantee the accuracy or thoroughness of the information reported in the interviews it conducts. The opinions expressed in these interviews do not reflect the opinions of the Investing News Network and do not constitute investment advice. All readers are encouraged to perform their own due diligence.
Top 5 Gold Stocks on the TSX in 2023
Gold and gold companies have had a tumultuous year following insolvency in the banking system and tensions continuing between Russia and Ukraine and violence starting during Q4 in the Middle East.
Simultaneously, economic forces from central banks attempts to control 40-year high inflation levels saw interest rates pushing investors away from the yellow metal.
Despite opposing market elements, the price of gold remained elevated in 2023 and approached record prices in May and November before breaking them in December. The high prices have been a boon for gold mining companies, helping drive profits and fund projects and expansions.
The five stocks below have seen the largest share price gains in the gold sector year-to-date on the TSX. The list was generated on November 27, 2023, using TradingView’s stock screener, and all companies listed had market caps above C$50 million at that time.
1. Collective Mining (TSXV:CNL)
Year-to-date gain: 52.49 percent; market cap: C$249.86 million; current share price: C$3.98
Collective Mining is a gold, copper and silver exploration company with focused interests in Caldas, Columbia. Its two projects, Guayabales and San Antonio, consolidate large portions of a mineral belt that surrounds Aris Mining’s (TSX:ARIS,NYSE:ARMN) Marmato mine and within a region with 10 operating mines.
The first quarter of the year saw Collective shares make significant gains on the back of exploration results at the Apollo target at its Guayabales project. The first of these on February 15, came from four step-out holes that extended the breccia system to a width of 395 meters and a depth of 915 meters with the deposit beginning at surface.
Testing results from the last of these holes, APC-31, was released on February 23 revealed the high grades at the Apollo target consisting of a 384.7 meter intercept with 1.17 grams per metric ton (g/t) gold, 43 g/t silver and 0.37 percent copper.
The company’s share price climbed steeply to reach a year-to-date high of C$7 on May 9 following a pair of press releases on March 30 and April 11 that indicated drilling results from Apollo had revealed higher quantities at near-surface depths. Executive Chairman Ari Sussman said he was “impressed with the sheer quantity and quality of mineralization.” Consistent results through Q2 and Q3 helped maintain prices around the C$6 mark.
Prices began trending down at the beginning of September along with a broader decline in the gold market despite continued good results from Guayabales, including news on October 11 of a new precious metal discovery, the Plutus target. Exploration at the site has been limited to one drill, but the company said one hole had encountered a large intercept of 0.97 g/t gold, 20 g/t silver and 0.04 percent copper over 136.45 meters.
On October 30, Collective also reported its best hole to date from a subzone at Apollo expanding the system to the north, west and at depth, with an intercept with 2.12 g/t gold, 36 g/t silver and 0.1 percent copper over 519.1 meters.
Shortly after, on November 7, the company announced it had encountered a high-grade tungsten deposit from the shallow portion of Apollo
2. Equinox Gold (TSX:EQX)
Year-to-date gain: 50.76 percent; market cap: C$2.1 billion; current share price: C$6.95
Equinox Gold is a mid-tier gold producer formed in late 2017 that is operating seven mines in the Americas: four in Brazil, one in Mexico and two in California, US. Additionally, the company is currently in the process of constructing its Greenstone project in Ontario, Canada, as well as undertaking expansions of three of its mines, namely Castle Mountain in California, Aurizona in Brazil and Los Filos in Mexico.
Shares in Equinox climbed at the beginning of 2023 alongside gains in the gold price, during which time it released its preliminary 2022 results, which included annual production of 532,319 ounces. These numbers were confirmed on February 21, when Equinox released its final 2022 report and provided its 2023 production guidance of 555,000 to 625,000 ounces of gold.
Equinox’s primary focus for the year was the construction of its Greenstone project, at which it expected to begin pouring gold in the first half of 2024. The mine will have annual production of over 400,000 ounces of gold per year in the first five years of its initial 14 year mine life.
In the company’s Q1 financial results released on May 2, Equinox President and CEO Greg Smith reported a good start to the year, with Greenstone ending the quarter 73 percent complete and permitting for Castle Mountain underway. Operations for the quarter produced 122,746 ounces of gold and brought in C$234.1 million in revenue.
The company’s share price shot up on May 2, as did the gold price, and Equinox hit a year-to-date high of C$7.76 on May 8. Share prices largely continued to track the price of gold throughout Q2 and Q3 as well.
On August 2, Equinox released its Q2 results showing the company was on track to meet its guidance targets. During the first half of the year, the company saw record production and revenue, having produced 260,408 ounces of gold and generated C$506 million in revenue during the H1 period.
Its most recent financial report released on October 31, the company reported another record-setting period, delivering its strongest third quarter yet, with production of 149,089 ounces of gold and revenue of C$285 million.
As for its most recent update on Greenstone, on November 20 Equinox reported it was 96 percent complete and that commissioning is underway. “The priority is now on completion and commissioning of the process plant, commissioning of the (tailings storage facility) and ramp up of mining and operations,” Smith stated.
3. Mawson Gold (TSX:MAW)
Year-to-date gain: 48.89 percent; market cap: C$101.97 million; current share price: C$0.335
Mawson Gold is a gold exploration company with two projects in Scandinavia. In Finland, Mawson wholly owns the Rajapalot gold-cobalt project and in Sweden it has an earn-in agreement for up to 85 percent of the Skellefteå North gold project. It also owns 51 percent of Southern Cross Gold (ASX:SXG,OTC Pink:SXGDF), which is focused on the Sunday Creek project in Australia.
Mawson experienced significant changes within its management team in 2023. On March 21, the company announced that then-CEO and Director Ivan Fairhall had resigned and would be replaced by Noora Ahola as interim CEO. Additionally, independent directors were announced on February 13 and October 27.
With no news being released from its operations in Sweden and Finland in 2023 and management instability, share prices trended down for the first three quarters of the year.
However, positive news for the year came from its subsidiary as Southern Cross posted several strong assay results from the Sunday Creek project in Victoria.
Despite strong results starting on February 28, with an intersect of 4.1 g/t over 18.6 meters, Mawson’s share price wasn't affected until September 4, when Southern Cross announced its best hole drilled to date at Sunday Creek. The drill core contained 5.1 g/t gold over 404 meters, with 7 intersections containing over 100 g/t, including 2,679.8 g/t gold over 0.4 meters. After ending August at C$0.19, Mawson's share price climbed to C$0.34 by September 13.
Mawson announced a plan on October 31 to split into three separate companies to create value for shareholders. The terms would see the sale of its Finnish assets to Springtide Capital Acquisitions, while Mawson would focus on its gold and uranium properties in Sweden, the latter of which it acquired in Q1. Lastly, Mawson’s shares in Southern Cross would be distributed to Mawson shareholders.
4. Eldorado Gold (TSX:ELD)
Year-to-date gain: 44.04 percent; market cap: C$3.33 billion; current share price: C$16.68
Eldorado Gold is a gold mining company with mines in Türkiye, Greece and Canada: the Efemçukuru underground and Kışladağ open pit gold mines in Türkiye, the Olympias gold-silver-lead-zinc mine in Greece and the Lamaque underground gold mine in Québec, Canada. The company is also developing its Skouries gold-copper project in Greece.
Shares in Eldorado have tracked with the price of gold this year, with highs being hit in early May as the price of gold climbed to near-record highs on the back of the banking crisis in the US.
The company also posted strong results throughout the year starting with the year end results for 2022 on February 23. In the release, Eldorado noted it had a full year gold production of 453,916 ounces of gold, with production climbing quarter by quarter following a challenging start to the year. Ultimately, production came in just 1 percent below its 2022 guidance.
The news coincided with the release of its 2023 production guidance outline and its five year growth profile. The company stated it expected to produce between 475,000 and 515,000 ounces of gold in 2023, with plans to grow production to 700,000 ounces by 2027.
In the company’s Q1 results posted on April 27, Eldorado indicated it was on track to meet guidance and had experienced a 21 percent increase over Q1 2022, with 25 percent higher production at its Kışladağ mine.
The company’s Q2 results were released on July 27, showing it was well positioned to meet guidance for the year, but the 109,435 ounces in the quarter was a 4 percent decrease over the same quarter due to wildfires near its Lamaque site in Quebec, Canada and lower gold grades at Olympias in Greece.
In its Q3 results released on October 26, Eldorado stated it had produced 121,030 ounces of gold, a 2 percent increase over Q3 2022, which the company attributed to “the enhanced materials handling circuit at Kışladağ, (and) productivity initiatives and associated improvements at Olympias.” However, production at Lamaque was impeded by wildfires in Q2.
Eldorado also reported on April 5 that it had closed a 680 million euro financing deal for the development of the Skouries project in Northern Greece. The deal provides 80 percent funding for the project with the remaining 20 percent coming from Eldorado and its wholly owned subsidiary Hellas Gold. The project has proven and probable reserves of 3,630,000 ounces of gold.
Shares in Eldorado reached year-to-date highs of C$17.60 on November 27.
5. Calibre Mining (TSX:CXB)
Year-to-date gain: 43.96 percent; market cap: C$593.49 million; current share price: C$1.31
Calibre Mining is a growth-focused mid-tier gold producer focused on the Americas with assets at every stage of development, from exploration to production. The company currently has four gold mines in Nicaragua: Limon, Libertad, Pavon and Eastern Borosi. Additionally, it has the Pan gold mine in Nevada, US, and several development and exploration projects in Nicaragua and the US, specifically Nevada and Washington state.
Shares in the company have performed well since the start of the year following a series of strong financial results, with Q3 results indicating it has increased cash on hand to US$97 million and had a fourth consecutive quarter of record production totals, including a year-over-year increase of 50 percent to 73,485 ounces compared to 49,081 ounces in the previous period.
Production totals were further supported by the opening of the Eastern Borosi gold-silver mine in Nicaragua, which the company reported on May 30.
Calibre’s most significant business news of the year came on November 13 when it announced it would be acquiring Marathon gold (TSX:MOZ,OTCQX:MGDPF). The combined companies would create a mid-tier miner with a projected 500,000 ounce per year of gold production. According to Calibre, its strong cash flow would allow the company to fully fund the construction of Marathon’s Valentine gold project in Central Newfoundland through to production.
Calibre’s performance has been further buoyed by strong results from its exploration this year. The company’s share price began its ascent in January, which saw initial drill results from Calibre’s Golden Eagle project in Nevada project, including a highlight of 4.3 g/t gold over 92.4 meters.
As for its Limon mine complex in Nicaragua, May assays from Limon’s Talavera deposit included a highlight of indicated 15.46 g/t over 6.7 meters, and September exploration news from the mine’s Atravesada underground deposit included a highlight of 9.67 g/t over 13.3 meters.
The company also announced on September 18 it had delineated another open pit gold deposit 5 kilometers from its Libertad mine site with indicated and inferred resources of 161,000 ounces.
Don’t forget to follow us @INN_Resource for real-time news updates!
Securities Disclosure: I, Dean Belder, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
Investor Education: US Debt and Currency Collapse with Expert Don Hansen
Private investor Don Hansen has honed his resource sector investment approach for more than 20 years, and in a conversation with the Investing News Network he shared his research on the US debt-to-GDP ratio.
Looking back to 1945, the ratio was at 111 percent due to major spending on World War II. However, by 1965 it was down to just 43 percent — Hansen noted that this happened on the back of a balanced budget and good economic growth. The ratio remained fairly stable from 1965 to 1985, but rose dramatically from 1985 to 2005.
"The debt grew 9.3 percent between 1985 and 2005, but the GDP only grew 6.1," he noted. "So obviously then the debt-to-GDP ratio was climbing, and in 2005 it was up to 61. So you're going up 50 percent in 20 years." By 2025, Hansen expects the ratio to rise to 150 percent, with debt growing 9.5 percent annually and GDP only increasing by 3 percent.
In his view, this exponential increase is being driven by the loss of capitalism, which requires three elements to work properly: sound money, a free market and limited government. Hansen said sound money was lost in 1971, while the free market was lost as the US government started becoming more interventionist.
He believes a currency collapse is inevitable, and thinks real assets like gold and silver are key for investors who want to protect themselves from the coming storm.
"I had an 'aha' experience about that where I realized that the thing that will break, and almost always will break, is the currency," he explained. "And the reason for that is that of all the variables involved in these economic situations, the one variable that the government cannot control is the exchange rate of the currency. Because it's determined by everybody else's buying and selling. So that's what breaks. That's what gives up."
Watch the interview above for more of Hansen's thoughts on the US debt-to-GDP ratio and the coming currency collapse. You can also click the the timestamps below to view specific parts of the interview:
- 0:00 — Intro
- 0:50 — History of the US debt-to-GDP ratio
- 4:38 — US debt-to-GDP ration in the future
- 10:51 — Currency collapse is inevitable
- 17:49 — Preparing with gold and silver
- 23:28 — Wisdom vs. intelligence
- 26:20 — Outro
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Securities Disclosure: I, Charlotte McLeod, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
Editorial Disclosure: The Investing News Network does not guarantee the accuracy or thoroughness of the information reported in the interviews it conducts. The opinions expressed in these interviews do not reflect the opinions of the Investing News Network and do not constitute investment advice. All readers are encouraged to perform their own due diligence.
Falcon Gold Eyes Spring Drilling at Newfoundland Copper, Lithium and Gold Projects
Falcon Gold (TSXV:FG,FWB:3FA,OTCQB:FGLDF) is getting ready to ramp up exploration work at its gold, lithium and copper projects in Newfoundland, with permitting and subsequent drilling on the properties expected by spring 2024, according to CEO Karim Rayani.
“Once we get those permits in and we’re able to execute on our drill plan … we’ve been in a fairly slow period, but once drills start turning, I’m fairly optimistic we’ll be able to generate some high-grade material,” he said.
Falcon Gold’s Newfoundland landholdings are surrounded by significant deposits, which Rayani broke down in the interview. For example, its Golden Brook property hosts the Hope Brook zone, which is less than 10 kilometers from the new high-grade lithium discovery at Benton Resources (TSXV:BEX) and Sokoman Minerals' (TSXV:SIC,OTCQB:SICNF) Golden Hope project.
"They've been hitting very high-grade pegmatites (at Golden Hope), so much so that Piedmont Lithium (ASX:PLL,NASDAQ:PLL) just injected $20 million into that company for a 70 percent interest," he said. "And we have one of the largest landholdings in the center of all that action."
Falcon also has the Great Burnt copper-gold project located in the Great Burnt Greenstone Belt, home to Spruce Ridge Resources' (TSXV:SHL) Great Burnt copper zone, which contains indicated resources of 381,300 metric tons at 2.68 percent copper and inferred resources of 663,100 metric tons at 2.1 percent copper.
In addition to its Newfoundland properties, Rayani said Falcon Gold is still focused on its flagship Central Canada gold project in Atikokan, Ontario, where recent drilling intercepted grades as high as 20.5 grams per metric ton (g/t) gold near surface and grab samples as high as 79.7 g/t gold.
“Between the Central Canada and the Newfoundland projects, I think there’s enough there to really gather or to gain momentum here,” Rayani said.
Watch the full interview with Karim Rayani, CEO of Falcon Gold, above.
Disclaimer: This interview is sponsored by Falcon Gold (TSXV:FG,FWB:3FA,OTCQB:FGLDF). This interview provides information which was sourced by the Investing News Network (INN) and approved by Falcon Goldin order to help investors learn more about the company. Falcon Gold is a client of INN. The company’s campaign fees pay for INN to create and update this interview.
INN does not provide investment advice and the information on this profile should not be considered a recommendation to buy or sell any security. INN does not endorse or recommend the business, products, services or securities of any company profiled.
The information contained here is for information purposes only and is not to be construed as an offer or solicitation for the sale or purchase of securities. Readers should conduct their own research for all information publicly available concerning the company. Prior to making any investment decision, it is recommended that readers consult directly with Falcon Gold and seek advice from a qualified investment advisor.
This interview may contain forward-looking statements including but not limited to comments regarding the timing and content of upcoming work programs, receipt of property titles, etc. Forward-looking statements address future events and conditions and therefore involve inherent risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially from those currently anticipated in such statements. The issuer relies upon litigation protection for forward-looking statements. Investing in companies comes with uncertainties as market values can fluctuate.
Siren Gold
Overview
Siren Gold (ASX:SNG) is an exploration and development company focusing on gold assets at its 1,100-square-kilometer tenement package located on the historic, high-grade Reefton, Lyell and Sams Creek goldfields in New Zealand.
Reefton Goldfield was first discovered in 1866 with total current recorded production of 11 million ounces (Moz) of gold, consisting of 2 Moz @ 16 grams per ton (g/t) gold from underground, 0.7 Moz from open pit and ~8 Moz gold from alluvial mining.
Mining and the local communities thrived in the region during the early 1900s, but most of the 94 underground mines closed by 1942 during WWII, and the Blackwater mine, which produced 740 koz @ 19 g/t down to more than 700 meters below the surface, finally shut down in 1951 bringing the entire field to a close. The gold price in 1951 was US$35 per ounce.
Fast forward to 2023, mining analysts believe current gold prices are only the beginning of a large upward trend, with gold prices reaching the $2,000 mark in the last quarter of 2023. What we know is clear: Gold has outperformed the S&P 500 over the past 20 years, as production from gold mines runs low without enough new projects to replace them.
Siren’s gold projects present an opportunity for new supply sources to emerge. The Reefton Goldfield is a high-grade mining district located on the West Coast of the South Island of New Zealand.
Siren’s global mineral resource currently sits at 1.33 million ounces at 3.3 grams per ton (g/t) AuEq (gold equivalent), from Sams Creek, Alexander River, Big River, Supreme and Auld Creek.
The district is widely known for producing gold, antimony and coal. A crucial aspect of the Reefton Goldfield is the significant occurrence of antimony, a rare thermal-resistant metal and a poor conductor of electricity. These attributes make it ideal for flame retardants, paints and various industrial applications to improve thermal tolerance. Additionally, antimony is a critical element in lithium-ion batteries and next-generation liquid metal batteries utilized for energy storage systems. The presence of antimony in the goldfield creates additional value for Siren’s projects as exploration continues.
Siren currently has seven projects, many of which were active sites that were closed during WWII despite encouraging exploration or production. Now, the company has built an expansive portfolio of projects and will undergo systematic exploration of its assets using leading-edge technologies and techniques.
With seven projects under its belt, Siren is primarily focused on Sams Creek, Alexander River, Big River and Auld Creek. These four projects are slated for future exploration and potential development to improve the assets’ value.
A skilled management team leads the company towards fully exploring its promising portfolio, with diverse expertise in geology, corporate administration and finance.
Company Highlights
- Siren Gold is an exploration and development company focusing on gold assets in the high-grade, historic Reefton Goldfield and Sams Creek in New Zealand.
- Siren owns seven highly prospective projects throughout the region, each with the potential for gold and antimony, a rare metal used in various thermal-resistant applications.
- The company’s global mineral resource is currently at 1.33 million ounces at 3.3 g/t AuEq (gold equivalent), with significant potential to increase as exploration continues.
- The Reefton Goldfield historically produced over 11 million ounces of gold before the entire field closed after WWII.
- Siren’s assets within the Reefton Goldfield are highly prospective but have yet to be fully explored through modern exploration techniques, creating significant blue-sky potential.
- A management team with a range of expertise in the natural resources industry leads the company towards fully realizing the potential of its highly prospective portfolio.
Key Projects
Sams Creek Gold Project
The Sams Creek Gold Project is located 140 kilometers northeast of Reefton and 100 kilometers northeast of Lyell.
The Sams Creek porphyry dyke-style gold deposit is equivalent in geology deposits to the Australian Eastern Lachlan fold belt that contains very large porphyry copper-gold and porphyry gold-style deposits like at Cadia and Ridgeway in New South Wales.
Siren believes there is significant potential at Sams Creek for a very large underground mining operation as the orebody is over 60 meters thick, has a vertical extent of 1 kilometer and has been traced for more than 7 kilometers along strike.
To date, around 127 diamond holes have been drilled at Sams Creek and the blue-sky project already contains an impressive resource estimate, with much of the asset remaining unexplored.
Project Highlights:
- Prolific Resource Estimate: The asset’s newly updated JORC (2012) mineral resource estimate (MRE) describes 8.9 million tonnes at 2.82 g/t gold for 808 koz of contained gold. However, there is still tremendous potential for expansion as work continues.
- The main mineralization at Sams Creek is open at depth and will be further drill-tested as the deposit is open in all directions and has significant potential for increased gold resources from additional exploration drilling.
- Siren has an access agreement with the Department of Conservation that allows up to 100 drill sites within EP40338.
- Additional drilling will also be focused on infilling any new mineralized zones discovered, so an updated MRE can be completed, feasibility studies can be commenced, and a mining permit application can be advanced in 2024
Alexander River Gold Project
The Alexander River project covers 16.75 square kilometers and is 100 percent owned by Siren Gold. The asset is located 15 kilometers away from the prolific Blackwater Mine, a vital sign of what’s possible at Alexander River.
Project Highlights:
- Encouraging Resource Estimate: The project’s inferred mineral resource estimate is currently 1.07 million tonnes at 5 g/t gold for 170 koz at a 1.5 g/t cut-off. Encouragingly, this is a substantial increase of 30 percent and a grade increase of 22 percent from previous estimates.
- Past-producing Project: Operations at the project closed in 1942; before shuttering, they had historical production of 41 koz at 24.6 g/t gold at a cut-off grade of 15 g/t gold. Now, Siren is using modern techniques to explore and develop the project further.
- Exploration Targets: Currently, the company focuses on a 1.2-kilometer-long outcropping quartz reef with mineralization defined by surface trenching over 800 meters long and 4 meters wide at 8g/t gold. The width of the outcropping is well-suited for efficient mechanized mining.
Big River Gold Project
The Big River project covers 44.87 square kilometers and is considered a highly prospective exploration target of 100 to 125 koz at 7 to 9 g/t gold. The company will continue exploring to determine the asset's depth and gold grade.
Project Highlights:
- 4-kilometer Anomalous Strike Length: The Big River project contains a significant 4-kilometer strike length. Sampling along this strike hosts massive stibnite veins with high-grade gold deposits, with results up to 82 g/t gold.
- Encouraging Drill Results: Completed drill campaigns have produced high-grade near-surface assays, with the best drill holes including:
- 6.6 meters at 21.4 g/t gold
- 3 meters at 18.5 g/t gold
- 6 meters at 5.1 g/t gold
- 5.2 meters at 6.3 g/t gold
- Maiden Mineral Resource Estimate: Siren recently announced the asset’s Maiden JORC (2012) mineral resource estimate with a total indicated and inferred estimate of 11 million tonnes at 3.11 g/t with a cut-off of 1.5 g/t.
Auld Creek
The Auld Creek project contains an epizonal mineralization that extends over 2 kilometers and contains high-grade gold and massive stibnite veins. Nearby mines have produced over 400 koz of high-grade gold, which indicates what’s possible at the company’s asset.
Five diamond holes have been completed at Auld Creek with all five holes intersecting significant mineralisation in the Bonanza East Shoot.
The company provided a maiden mineral resource estimate (MRE) for the Auld Creek Prospect which includes 132 koz @ 7.1 g/t gold equivalent (AuEq) containing @ 3.5 g/t gold and 8,700 tons of antimony @ 1.5 percent antimony. The MRE includes the following significant intersections;
- 35 meters @ 4.1 g/t gold, 2.9 percent antimony or 35 meters @ 11 g/t AuEq
- 6 meters @ 4.1 g/t gold, 4.1 percent antimony or 6 meters @ 13.8 g/t AuEq
- 34 meters @ 1.6 g/t gold, 0.7 percent antimony or 34 meters @ 3.3 g/t AuEq
- 20.7 meters @ 5.9 g/t gold, 2.6 percent antimony or 20.7 meters @ 12 g/t AuEq
With a global MRE of above 1.3 Moz, Siren is on track to achieve its vision of being a multiple-million-ounce, high-grade gold and antimony producer.
Additional Projects
Siren owns additional gold assets that are being systematically explored to increase shareholder value further.
Project Highlights:
- Lyell Goldfield: The 100-percent owned project spans 54.25 square kilometers north of the Alpine United Mine. The project has historical production of 91 koz at 1.84 g/t gold with a cut-off grade of 15 g/t gold. Early trenching indicates grades up to 13.8 g/t gold.
- Cumberland: The company’s Cumberland tenement package is in the center of a 35-kilometer-long structure corridor that hosts some of the most significant projects in the Reefton Goldfield. The project has historical production of 45 koz at 14.2 g/t.
- Reefton South: The Reefton South asset covers 333 square kilometers and is considered a 20-kilometer extension of the Reefton Goldfield. The underground nature of possible deposits hid them from past explorers but created significant potential for applying modern technologies.
Management Team
Brian Rodan – Chairman
Brian Rodan is a fellow of the Australian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy with 45 years of experience. He is the managing director and owner of Australian Contract Mining, a mid-tier contracting company that successfully completed $1.5 billion worth of work over 20 years. ACM was sold to an ASX-listed gold mining company in 2017. Rodan is the founding director of Dacian Gold, which purchased the Mt Morgans Gold Mine from the Administrator of Range River Gold. After listing on the ASX in 2012, Rodan became Dacian’s largest shareholder. He had a 15-year tenure with Australia’s largest full-service ASX-listed contract mining company with an annual turnover of more than $850 million.
Paul Angus - Executive Technical Director
Paul Angus is a New Zealand-based exploration geologist with more than 30 years of mining and geology experience in New Zealand. He graduated from Otago University and has held senior management roles with OceanaGold. While he was an exploration manager, Angus discovered more than 3 Moz at Macraes, Reefton and Sams Creek.
Keith Murray - Non-executive Director
Keith Murray is a chartered accountant with 40 years of experience at the general manager level in audit, accounting, tax, finance, treasury and corporate governance. During the 1990s, Murray was group accounting manager, corporate and taxation joint company secretary for Eltin Limited, a leading Australian-based international mining services company. Murray is currently general manager corporate and company secretary for the Heytesbury Group.
Victor Rajasooriar - Non-executive Director
Victor Rajasooriar is a highly experienced Australian mining executive and board director who has more than 25 years of operational and technical experience across both underground and open pit mining operations. Rajasooriar’s distinguished career has seen him hold senior roles with major resource companies, including managing director and CEO of Echo Resources (ASX:EAR) until the completion of a takeover by Northern Star Resources (ASX:NST). Prior to joining Echo, Rajasooriar held the role of chief operating officer for leading underground mining contractor Barminco and has held senior technical roles with Gold Fields and Newmont Mining. At Newmont, this included operational responsibility for the Waihi Gold Operation in the North Island of New Zealand between 2006 – 2008. He holds a bachelor of engineering (mining) from the WA School of Mines and is a member of both the Australian Institute of Company Directors and the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy.
Sebastian Andre - Company Secretary
Sebastian Andre is a chartered secretary with over 10 years of experience in corporate advisory, governance and risk services. He has previously acted as an adviser at the ASX and has a thorough understanding of the ASX Listing Rules, specializing in providing advice to companies and their boards for capital raisings, IPOs, backdoor listings, corporate compliance and governance matters. Andre holds accounting, finance, and corporate governance qualifications and is a member of the Governance Institute of Australia.
Top 5 Junior Gold Stocks on the TSXV in 2023
It’s been an unpredictable year for gold. After facing ups and downs throughout 2023, the yellow metal has climbed substantially through the fourth quarter since conflict broke out in the Middle East.
Gold's momentum culminated in a new all-time high of US$2,152.30 on December 4. These high levels have helped to ensure interest in exploration companies, with many small-cap companies providing good returns for shareholders.
So which TSXV gold stocks have performed the best in 2023? This list below shows the TSXV-listed gold companies with the biggest year-to-date share price gains. It was generated on November 28, 2023, using TradingView’s stock screener, and all stocks included had market caps above C$10 million at that time. Read on to find out more about their activities.
1. Rusoro Mining (TSXV:RML)
Year-to-date gain: 700 percent; market cap: C$252.93 million; current share price: C$0.40
Gold-focused Rusoro Mining used to have interests in Venezuela. Up until 2012, the company was operating two mines and two mills in the country, along with two additional projects that were nearing the production stage.
However, in March 2012, the Venezuelan government nationalized Rusoro’s operations without compensation. Following the appropriation of its operations, the company entered into arbitration proceedings before the World Bank’s International Center for the Settlement of Investment Disputes; over four years later, in August 2016, Rusoro was awarded US$967.77 million, plus pre- and post-award interest, for a total of more than US$1.2 billion.
Over the next two years, Rusoro filed multiple rounds of proceedings to enforce the award. Finally, in October 2018, the company announced it had come to an agreement in which Venezuela would pay Rusoro US$1.28 billion incrementally and in return Rusoro would give Venezuela its mining data. In this agreement, an initial payment of US$100 million would be issued in November 2018 and the balance was to be paid in monthly installments over five years starting in January 2019.
Venezuela issued the November payment as agreed, but Rusoro announced in December 2018 that a portion of the funds had been frozen by its Canadian bank due to concerns about US sanctions against Venezuela.
The company announced more negative news in January 2019, when the Paris Court of Appeals partially annulled the arbitration award for the company. The court upheld the original tribunal's findings that Venezuela was liable for unlawful expropriation of Rusoro’s investments, but annulled the findings on damages. Following lengthy court proceedings, the French Supreme Court reinstated the arbitration award in March 2021.
Shares of Rusoro began rising this year following a series of positive announcements beginning on April 11 that point to a possible end to legal proceedings, and show the company could be getting closer to obtaining compensation for Venezuela’s expropriation of its assets. The US District Court for Delaware found that Rusoro has proven that oil company Petroleos de Venezuela (PDVSA) is a corporate alter ego of Venezuela, which means that the now US$1.4 billion award could be enforced through the seizure of PDVSA assets.
Another announcement came on July 10, when Rusoro shared news that a three judge appellate panel had rejected Venezuela’s argument that political turmoil warranted a different outcome when deciding that PDVSA was controlled by the government. “Even accounting for those differences (regarding political turmoil), the district court correctly concluded that PDVSA remains the alter ego of Venezuela,” the panel determined.
Rusoro stated in the release that it hopes "the Republic will voluntarily pay its obligation to the Company and allow the parties to bring this longstanding dispute to its overdue conclusion." Shares in the company have gained 700 percent this year, reaching a year-to-date high of C$0.51 on August 2.
2. Winshear Gold (TSXV:WINS)
Year-to-date gain: 400 percent; market cap: C$21.54 million; current share price: C$0.275
Winshear Gold is a gold and copper exploration company that is focused on the development of two projects in Peru. Its Gaban project consists of 41 concessions across 15,629 hectares, and its Ica copper-gold project has six concessions over 2,198 hectares. Its previous SMP gold project in Tanzania was halted following the abolishment of retention licenses by the Tanzanian government, and Winshear entered into arbitration proceedings with the government in 2020.
On May 16, Winshear received authorization to begin exploration at the Gaban site, where previous work had identified sample values of up to 15.8 grams per metric ton (g/t) gold over 1 meter.
The company's share price rose in July following news that Indiana Resources (ASX:IDA,OTC Pink:GSMGF) had been awarded US$109.5 million from arbitration proceedings against the Tanzanian government over the abolishment of retention licenses. Winshear believed the news was a positive sign for its own efforts.
This proved to be true, and the company announced on October 16 that it had reached a settlement agreement with Tanzania's government and had been awarded US$30 million.
On October 26, Winshear indicated it would be using a portion of its settlement to make a return-of-capital payment to shareholders at a rate of C$0.25 per common share, with the remainder to be used to fund the initial drill program at Gaban. The company later shared that it would begin distribution of funds to shareholders on December 8.
3. Canadian Gold (TSXV:CGC)
Year-to-date gain: 385.71 percent; market cap: C$29.36 million; current share price: C$0.17
Formerly Satori Resources, Canadian Gold is a junior miner whose primary asset is the past-producing Tartan mine, located near Flin Flon, Manitoba. It produced 47,000 ounces of gold between 1987 and 1989, and its most recent resource estimate was released in 2017; it includes indicated reserves of 240,000 ounces of gold.
After starting the year at C$0.04, shares of Canadian Gold saw a considerable rise early in the year following a February 6 news release announcing that former Goldcorp Chairman and CEO Rob McEwen would acquire a 37.6 percent stake in the company; Canadian Gold was also to acquire McEwen’s private exploration company, Apollo Exploration.
The deal, which closed on April 25, gave Canadian Gold access to Apollo’s portfolio of exploration projects that are in the vicinity of current gold mines and significant development sites, namely the Malartic South project near Agnico Eagle’s (TSX:AEM,NYSE:AEM) Canadian Malartic open-pit mine and upcoming Odyssey underground mine, as well as the HEES project near Barrick Gold’s (TSX:ABX,NYSE:GOLD) Hemlo mine and the Hammond Reef North and South projects, adjacent to Agnico Eagle’s Reef gold project. Canadian Gold hit a year-to-date high of C$0.345 following the announcement.
On September 27, the company released drill results from exploration at Tartan, with intervals grading up to 23.8 g/t gold over 12.6 meters. These numbers built on previous results from August 23, which include assays of up to 12 g/t over 8 meters. The second phase of drilling at Tartan began on November 8.
In its most recent news on November 16, Canadian Gold closed the second round of a private placement offering, raising gross proceeds of C$1.73 million. This brings the total for the first two tranches to C$2.36 million. Canadian Gold anticipates one more round of funding and will increase the offering to C$2.56 million.
4. Trailbreaker Resources (TSXV:TBK)
Year-to-date gain: 278.95 percent; market cap: C$11.64 million; current share price: C$0.36
Trailbreaker Resources is a gold explorer and project generator with a portfolio of projects in BC and the Yukon, Canada. In BC, its projects include the Castle Rock project on Vancouver Island, the Atsutla project just north of BC’s Golden Triangle and the Golden Sable and Eakin Creek projects near Kamloops. As for the Yukon, Trailbreaker owns the Sheldon project. The company also recently optioned out a portion of its Eagle Lake project in South-Central BC.
Shares of Trailbreaker started to see significant gains at the end of March and into early April as it shared a pair of news releases. The first was on March 27, when the company received permits to start drilling at its Eakin Creek asset. Trailbreaker acquired and consolidated Eakin Creek following the discovery of gold-bearing boulders on the site, and after grab samples from the area returned values of between 2 g/t and 130 g/t gold.
On April 3, the company received a geological study for its Atsutla gold project; it points to evidence of a porphyry-epithermal system and possible orogenic-type mineralization, and specifically highlights the Swan zone, at which nearly all rock units are variably altered. The study lays out recommendations for future work, including LiDAR surveys across the property, an induced polarization survey at Swan and drilling at Swan and the Highland zone.
Trailbreaker completed maiden drilling at Eakin Creek on June 29. It consisted of 2,039 meters across 11 holes, and tested geochemical anomalies discovered during 2022 exploration. The firm published results from the program on September 5, saying it encountered gold-bearing intervals in all 11 drill cores, with one intersection grading 14.3 g/t over 1 meter.
On September 14, Trailbreaker announced that recent testing was successful in extending the project’s previously delineated 3 kilometer long gold-in-soil anomaly by 1 kilometer, with it remaining open. On November 27, Trailbreaker received results from testing at Castle Rock. In the report, the company said it has defined a 3 kilometer gold-in-soil anomaly, as well as two new zones at the site, Kokummi and Watchtower. It also said rock samples graded up to 42.1 g/t gold and 1.93 percent copper from the Flan zone, confirming historic results from the property.
While the company’s share price did not react strongly on November 27 and it has not issued further news, shares suddenly soared on December 1, reaching a year-to-date high of C$0.49 during trading.
5. Golden Horse Minerals (TSXV:GHML)
Year-to-date gain: 257.14 percent; market cap: C$19.94 million; current share price: C$0.125
Golden Horse Minerals, formerly Altan Rio, is an exploration company with projects focused within Western Australia’s Southern Cross Greenstone Belt. Its sites, which are located in the northern portion of the region, include the Hopes Hill zone, the Corinthia North zone and the Bullfinch zone, the last of which was acquired in June. Each zone is located close to historic mining sites, and Hopes Hill hosts a historic mining stockpile at its Pilot prospect.
The company saw gains early in the year as it began to consolidate its properties within the Southern Cross region. Its first news came through a SEDAR filing on February 22, when it announced it had exercised an option agreement for a 90 percent interest in an exploration license between Southern Cross and Bullfinch.
In a release on May 12, Golden Horse provided an update on a sampling program at the Parisian target area, pointing to a rock chip sample of 11.75 g/t gold. The company said it was in an enviable position with multiple drill-ready targets identified, and noted that it would be prioritizing these targets as it was finalizing a drill program.
During the June to August period, the company made significant additions to its assets. On June 12, it acquired the Hakes Find, which Golden Horse said is an exciting acquisition that could become a near-term producing asset. Then, on June 26, it signed a conditional agreement with Torque Metals (ASX:TOR) to acquire the Bullfinch gold project, which consists of five exploration licenses and has recorded historical production grades of 35.7 g/t gold.
On July 4, Golden Horse said it had satisfied the conditions of its earn-in agreement to purchase the Southern Cross North project from Surveyor Resources. Its final expansion came on August 1, when it acquired the Ennuin package, bringing its total consolidated tenure size to more than 930 square kilometers. The company also said in the release that it had delivered 1,578 ounces of gold from the mining stockpile at Pilot, generating AU$4.5 million in revenue.
Shares of Golden Horse reached a year-to-date high of C$0.16 on November 29 following the release of its report for the quarter ended on September 30.
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Securities Disclosure: I, Dean Belder, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
Editorial Disclosure: Trailbreaker Resources is a client of the Investing News Network. This article is not paid-for content.
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