RE:The possible problem that I seeI think a $100M buyout net of the debt is a reasonable scenario. Once (if) all the permits are granted, Goldboro will be attractive as a turnkey operation that can be developed 'quickly' and 'cheaply.' There is a good probability of these approvals being granted coincident with an accelerating bull market in gold, juniors and M&A that is just beginning now.
Of course costs are higher now than those outlined in the FS but gold has outpaced inflation since then (right now spot gold trades at base case +97%). This is still one of the lowest capital cost gold projects to develop in the world. Drilling did appear to limit upside around Dolliver. Results were however consistent with the in-pit resource (1k oz/linear meter of trend) up to 600m west of the current pit outline (potentially adding ~500k oz of in-pit resource). The gas pipeline would need to be addressed to access this resource (if it is still active, pardon my ignorance about this and I would very much appreciate clarification) but could probably be rerouted for ~$20M. Underground resources don't add much current value but a suitor wouldn't be able to entirely ignore their future potential with infrastructure in place from the surface operation. The same goes for potential satellite resources that could be discovered and incorporated into a hub and spoke operation.
Jurisdiction also appears favourable with respect to climate, infrastructure and importantly, politics. The usual Canadian NIMBYism isn't strong here with local rural Nova Scotian support as well as a Conservative majority in Provincial parliament. Odds are there will also be a Conservative federal majority (and no CBC!)in 18 months (or sooner). Most significantly the ubiquitous Canadian FN diplomatic quagmire is absent in this area. Opposition to this project would be limited to some vocal urban environmentalists in Halifax with short attention spans.
On a macro level I see support for gold prices going forward. Western governments are accelerating into a debt spiral and gold production is decreasing with a deficit of new projects coming online. The gold junior market remains out of favour in spite of an increasing gold price but there are signs of life with some of the more attractive companies (not Signal!) having been bid up this month. As attention returns to the market investor money will flow to the more marginal projects. As M&A heats up scrappy mid-tier producers with an eye for leverage and opportunity (that can accessed quick and cheap) will turn their attention to Signal. Potential suitors like Artemis or Calibre come to mind. This won't happen overnight so for now we hopefully minimize costs and do our best to manage debt while we wait for permits to roll in. I see value here.
-L