RE: Prophecy Management - give some credit I agree. They did buy a weak coal mine in the middle of nowhere and try and make a go of it.
I disagree that the Mongolian country is going to leave it up to these upstarts to supply a good portion of their power going forward. Think about that. If you were a President of a country that desperately needs power would you rely on a bunch of young guys operating on a wing and a song to supply your countries energy needs? Or would you have someone more proven in the field, like oh say, International Power secure your economic future?
PCY does not fit that bill. Not only do they not meet the basic smell test, the Mongolians have massive amounts of coal and sites to scrap from the surface and give to ANYONE in exchange for some heat. Why would the Mongolian govt choose PCY over a breadith of well seasoned veterans? Sure Mongolia is the wild west but that does not mean the people are dumb.
So far as NKL, the question that has never been answered is why did Friedland dump the thing? The whole premise on this one is that JL is much smarter than an industry vet? Open pit ... really? Oh I am sure they did not think about that 20 years ago! Give the old guys some credit. JLs claim that his method of mining vs people who have been in the business for many many more years is way more effective I am sure.
I would like nothing more to continue to believe the story but ... really the core basics just do not seem to add up.