UpdateGreg McCunn's Alio Gold Inc. (ALO) gained 10 cents to $6.50 on 325,000 shares on its first day of trading under a new name. Alio, which also consolidated its shares 1:10, had previously been Timmins Gold Corp. Mr. McCunn, chief executive officer, launched his rebranded promotion with some news: a prefeasibility study of its Ana Paula project in the Guerrero region of Mexico. The study, based on a reserve of 13.4 million tonnes averaging 2.36 grams of gold per tonne, about 1.02 million ounces, yielded a discounted net present value of $223-million (U.S.) after taxes. The proposed $137.2-million (U.S.) mine would produce nearly 870,000 ounces of gold over its projected 7.5-year life. Mr. McCunn says that Ana Paula has been "significantly derisked" over the past six months through infill drilling that supports a resource estimate that includes 500,000 ounces that did not make it into the mine plan. (Ana Paula could use some derisking of another kind: The United States Department of State ranks Guerrero as "the most violent state in Mexico," and says personal travel for government personnel to the area is prohibited. Fortunately, there has not been word of any violence directed against the area's miners since the attacks that affected two of Alio's rivals three years ago.)
The Vancouver-based Mr. McCunn, now 48, earns $550,000 per year in salary. He replaced Mark Backens, who held the job on an interim basis for over a year, in February. Mr. Backens, who remains a director, toiled for just $250,000 last year, but he also raked in an $850,000 cash bonus. The company also has a president, Arturo Bonillas, whom it also pays well. He is earning $500,000 per year and he got a $500,000 bonus last year.