Opportunities in NE OntarioHere are some of my speculations on KL's future activity in NE Ontario:
- Makuch recently said his sights are set on doubling or tripling KL's value. Quote from the recent BMO interview: "We want to take KL from being a $10-12 billion company to $20-30 billion."
Ambitious, yes. The potential at Detour is pretty insane, and Macassa is sinking its fourth shaft. I think Fosterville still has some life left (I could be wrong) but I have heard there are some junior producers who have what seem to be promising discoveries adjacent to Fosterville.
How might KL go about these ambitions for growth, besides the obvious stated above?
- KL has recently established large-ish offices in Timmins (1.25 hours north of Macassa, and about 1 hour south of Detour bus depot in Cochrane), including a lab in the city. Additionally, they have purchased a large industrail property on the outskirts of Timmins (including a fancy dancy house, previously owned by a business tycoon in NE Ontario).
Why would they do this, in city sanwiched between two of their current mines and where they have no mining activity (yet)?
- Makuch himself started Lakeshore Gold's mines in Timmins a while back. He knows exactly what is there. But, the thing is, Lakeshore is owned by PAAS ... a *silver* company. Lakeshore has not been investing in exploration in the area. I think Makuch knows better than the folks at Lakeshore right now what the true value of those properties are (Timmins West and Bell Creek Mines). In short, KL likely will buy Lakeshore properties off PAAS for a very good deal at book value, but way under actual value.
Also in Timmins:
- Newmont has several properties there, none of which are considered their key assets. There is some life in those mines with more opportunities for more aggressive exploration. I bet KL will purchase these off NGT, including their mill.
For a company that has a tremendous amount of cash, no debt, local knowledge of the Timmins mines, and has sights set on aggressive growth, these seem like they would be good moves for KL. Timmins would be a great location for these reasons, along with close proximity to Macassa and Detour.
[as an aside, starting another mill in Timmins after acquiring Lakeshore and NGT properties would be huge for KL, especially as Detour is only going to increase production. They will likely do this as a final step to these possible aquisitions.]
Just my thoughts from a local perspective informed by those inside every one of these companies mentioned. I have no crystal ball, so take it or leave it.
GLTA.