RE:RE:RE:RE:RE:Condition of Spur Road The reason I bring this up is the history of junior buyouts rather then anything optimistic. They typically float 2 ways:
- There is an older feasibility but 0 to any movement due to political or geo political issues such as agreements to still be made or funding issues between the various stakeholders
- The mine is boots on the ground ready, with maybe a new feasibility study needed, but otherwise the company could be bought out, and with an injection of cash, could start building tomarrow
There has historically never been an "inbetween" and FT is a little too far into the second scenario to backtrack into the first. Typically companies that sit in the middle have historically been bought out for less money than the ones at either end because the midde requires new agreements - or - agreements need to be backtracked and remade with the new company which ruins what it was buying in the first place.
A fresh or near fresh slate is much better then a half full plate that needs to be thrown out. Saying that, if we all recall, the building for the Spur Road was delayed last year because they "just" missed the cut off for when they needed to start it and it should of at minimal started this year... Which is unfortunate because the highway construction crew were readily available to be hired, who were trained, and just building roads in the area, to continue building there.
Everyone is wondering why our share price is so low and there is no interest - well - forgetting the feasibility study for a moment as 1 still exists, and the pricing is only looking better every year (its not like cobalt went down in price since the first one), its the fact you cant drive mining equipment straight to the site if someone were to buy it out tomarrow.
What good is a refinery, if we have no actual means of using it? let alone being able to pay for its site renovation? I love to use NOT as an example, but NOT didnt have a refinery in place, they had a place of intent.
It feels like the choice selection of FT priorities moving a junior to a senior is flaking a little bit if that is the intended goal as we get lost in the brush of what is important... which unfortunately is - get the rock out of the ground at this point and start making money -> it has been almost 3 decades.
While I have no doubt that the refinery will be very important, it isn't something that was absolutely necessary to getting this mine up and running for either a buy out or junior to senior (and frankly never has been since it is a literal 2000kms away and by the time the mine is functional, ELBM could of been a great partner for this)
Either way, it shows where the company might be sitting --- securing a refinery site > with no product to refine for the better part of the next decade - or - start building the mine that can make the money that will greatly improve the chances of any and all financing for that refinery..... which requires that spur road to be built. Both technically look good for a buyout, one is intrinsically more valuable then the other at this stage in the game.
It doesn't matter if there is buy in from the Tlicho, at this point, to build 50kms of road, if they havent started it yet - it means its not happening this year or they somehow got a pit crew standing by to work night and day to make it happen (typical construction season is 230 days, between May and November into December depending on the thaw/freeze not including the hiring process involved for 50kms of road)
I still say good luck to longs as myself am one - but of all the years to be on your game, this was the one as the debt comes knocking in November