Erin Ventures - Breaking up an oligopolyThis is the 3rd article written by 3 different German authors about Erin Ventures since May 19th. They originally come out in a German version and then are published in English on this website.
June 15, 2022
Erin Ventures - Breaking up an oligopoly May 27, 2022
The next player in the raw materials hype May 19, 2022
Erin Ventures: EUR 7 million market capitalization makes you want more Erin Ventures - Breaking up an oligopoly
The Canadian company Erin Ventures is active in an area dominated by Rio Tinto and a Turkish state-owned company. It is all about borates, which is not an obvious concept even for experienced commodity traders. Borates are used in many areas, such as fertilizers, magnets, ceramics, LCD screens, solar panels, semiconductors, and glass and glass fibers. Without borates, there would be no Gorilla Glass in smartphones or tablets, and borates can even be used for shielding. Erin Ventures owns the Piskanja boron project, located in Serbia, and covers an area of approximately 3 sq km. The latest mineral resource estimate from an independent source suggests a total of 3.4 million tons of boric oxide on the property.
That represents a high-grade boron deposit in a historic mining region with good infrastructure. To develop the project, the Company decided last November to enter into a joint venture with Temas Resources. Temas can acquire up to 50% in the project, paying for it with 250,000 shares and 250,000 options, and has committed to invest EUR 10.5 million in the Piskanja project. Currently, the Company is working on an updated economic analysis (PEA), as the old one dates back to 2014 and assumes about USD 2 billion in total revenues with a mine life of 21 years and a net margin of 68.7%. The upcoming PEA will include detailed deposit modeling, which is essential for the mining license process and can be reused in the future feasibility study.
As soon as the new PEA is available, the feasibility study is to be completed this year. Construction of the mine, which is expected to produce 200,000t of boric oxide per year, is expected to be completed by the end of 2025. Around EUR 41 million will be needed for construction. The equity share is to be EUR 10.5 million. Within two years after the start of the mine, a boric acid plant is to be built, which will cost around EUR 9 million and is to be financed from cash flow. The borates market is an oligopoly, with two producers covering 70% of the market. However, demand is increasing and will outstrip supply in the medium term, thus ensuring rising prices. The share is currently quoted at 0.065 Canadian dollars (CAD) and has a market capitalization of only around CAD 10 million. Therefore, the Company is undervalued according to the available facts.