RE:Is Northern all smoke and mirrors? Palmer009,
Should you not already be most well informed with respect to the remaining historical graphite reserve at Lac des Illes, I suggest you become quickly well informed.
As I now clearly understand it to be the case, LDI historical graphite proven reserve was scheduled as being depleted this year.
Whatever yammering Hugues Jacquemin et al have gone about conveying, with respect to what the company executives claim could be a newly discovered graphite reserve suggested as existing within and below the existing nearer to depleted pit at LDI . . . Suffice to say it has not been deemed to be a graphite reserve as yet; and who really knows exactly how much comprehensive work and study still has to be performed - how long it would take and what the expense involved would be of course - in attempting to necessarily "prove up" what they are calling a find and have it acceptably deemed to be an actual graphite reserve?
You stated "I feel that management is spinning off this tech rebranding non sense to buy them time to get through this downturn"
It's more than just nonsese; it's what many could agree would be catagorized as "deceptive practice" on the part of NGC officers and directors. In my experience, it's all part in parcel of their individual and collective modus operandi Palmer009.
"The truth" is that NGC officers and directors provided Heraeus Group with control over an exact amount and exact mesh size of processed graphite flake material (NGC assets), this in exchange for the 10 year old "PorocarbTM" product candidate comprehensive IP license (which is now worth less), the battery R&D division (which is essentially "a white elephant" and another serious capital drain) and access to 100 tpa pilot scale manufacturing facility in Germany provisioned by Heraeus Group (which is in all likelyhood sitting idle for how many years now?).
You keep waiting for the interest on the part of any other company in NGC's nearly depleted graphite deposit to materialize.
As for whatever other NGC graphite bearing lands projects presently held by NGC, anyone interested is likely going to be only interested in picking up such assets in exchange for obligations already owed by NGC to such creditors, perhaps as part of a CCAA process.
Management is buying time alright; and no, they are not going to be able to avoid the specific impacts resulting from a continued downturn in the price of graphite material.
China dictates the price of either synthetic graphite or natural graphite material. That is not changing this year or the next; and NGC, as a viable corporate enterprise, is just about depleted and is clearly being taken towards the end of it's useful life.
The $100 Million preliminary base shelf prospectus announced yesterday is, in my opinion, clearly representative of a huge "FIRE SALE" sign having been posted up for all to see.