Will be looking for new lows over the coming months Mac Balkam's Eskay Mining Corp. (ESK) closed unchanged at 18 cents on 89,000 shares on word it has wrapped up its summer exploration program at the Eskay-Corey project, in the Golden Triangle district of northwestern British Columbia. Details are sparse but promotional hand waving was in abundance, as Mr. Balkam, president and CEO, was "pleased that much of this summer's ground truthing has led to significant insight into the property's potential, as well as targets for future drilling and other exploration."
The work included a ground review of historical high-grade rock chip samples, an effort that involved the collection of another 363 samples. Assays from that sampling are expected by mid-September, and the results are "anticipated to aid in identifying drill targets" -- which, naturally, is the primary purpose of chip sampling in the first place.
In the absence of details, Mr. Balkam alternately moaned about the "recent depressed market for mineral exploration companies" and applauded the work by geologist Ken McNaughton, who, he enthuses, led the team that had discovered the Brucejack deposit in the area. Because of the market depression, "we decided to be financially prudent and hold off on undertaking a drill program this season," Mr. Balkam rationalized, although thanks to Mr. McNaughton's data, "Eskay Mining can pursue an aggressive exploration and drilling program in 2025, once capital markets have improved."
Mr. Balkam carried on in that vein, self congratulating the "keen financial management" displayed by him and his crew, which "has left us in the strong position of having over $2.5-million in cash, cashable instruments and government resource credits" -- this "at a time when the exploration industry is generally cash starved." Investors will recall that Mr. Balkam grumped about market conditions late in June, when he called off a merger with Joseph Ovsenek's P2 Gold Inc. (PGLD). Mind you, three weeks earlier, when he proposed the merger, he touted "improved access to capital markets" as a reason why.