Note: This report was first distributed to Ticker Trax subscribers on Monday, Nov. 30, 2009.
SAN ANTONIO PROJECT, Baja – Pediment Gold (TSX: T.PEZ, Stock Forum), a Mexico gold prospector led by financier Gary Freeman and geologist Mel Herdrick, negotiated a landmark $450,000 purchase for Baja Peninsula property rights.
The transaction took place a week ago with the second-generation and third-generation los ejidos who have legal property rights (plus water rights) on much of Mexico’s terrain. It is significant.
Pediment Gold already owns government-run mineral rights to its San Antonio Project on Baja, 40 kilometers from the city of La Paz. Mr. Herdrick, profiled in a Ticker Trax™tour of the gold property two weeks ago and pictured here eight days ago at his Baja Peninsula desk, signed the checks for Mexican rights owners: approximately $560 per acre.
The securing of surface property rights is another step toward rapid mine development of a property that could contain upwards of 2.5 million verifiable gold ounces. Mr. Freeman, Pediment’s CEO, and Mr. Herdrick, Pediment’s 67-year-old chief geologist, say a Canada-compliant (43-101) report on measured and indicated and inferred resources at the sprawling San Antonio project is imminent.
Echo Bay Mines first tracked, mapped and drilled the project starting in the late 1990s. To date, Pediment (and legacy drilling) amount to 270 holes across about 38,000 meters of land.
“We and the ejido (Mexican property rights holders) have much more future together. We will need to be coming back with them assuming we hit resources in other places, two to three other places,’ Mr. Herdrick says.
When I witnessed Pediment VP of exploration Mel Herdrick on the Baja Peninsula two weeks ago, the resident geologist was confident about the San Antonio Project and an 18-month timeline toward heap leach of alluvial mineral.
The purpose of this Stockhouse and Ticker Trax update is to allow investors to track Pediment Gold, which as a Canada-traded security appears to reside at the low end of fair value for the San Antonio Project. That is, if the fresh resource estimate by independent technician Gary Giroux proves out. It’s due in a week or two.
Mr. Freeman adds that La Colorado, a high-grade gold and silver project the company is working on the Mexico mainland near Hermosillo, could boost Pediment’s total entire resource estimate by 20% or more. Indications thus far are encouraging. Like many new-age miners working historic veins, Pediment has upped the ante on the quality of its data reports. See reports.
Ticker Trax by Thom Calandra is the right investment report for these uncertain times with its focus on identifying unique opportunities to help make you money.
and you won't miss out on any upcoming trading opportunities reserved exclusively for Ticker Trax subscribers.
Get your free copy of Ticker Trax Report Now
A 43-101 compliant technical report (Canada) on La Colorada is in late stages and said to be a week or 10 days from a press release. One rarely knows the timing on lab-assayed drill hole data. Anything above a flat line 500,000 to 700,000 ounces fresh gold-equivalent ounces will confirm the lustre of Pediment’s mainland Mexico property.
“We should be outlining the work program for the Baja project soon and we are very excited to get this program going as we feel that there are going to be more ounces on the Baja,” Gary Freeman tells me Sunday.
Like all financiers, Mr. Freeman is in the business of managing shares and raising money. “Thom, the long and the short is that we didn’t dilute the company during the tough times; we slowed the money spending down to a snail’s pace and so we are in good shape financially and we have 47 million shares out.”
Earlier this year, Freeman and Pediment decided not to raise about $8 million in an announced brokered placement of shares. The miner, already holding $15 million Canadian, was leery of diluting current shareholders when the price of the stock fell below a 90-cent Canadian mark.
Since then, Pediment shares have rebounded and now sell for $1.40 each. The stock climbed 7% Friday and was selling for $1.41 Canadian early Monday.
When the latest compliant resource tallies show up on the ticker for Baja and at La Colorada, we here at Ticker Trax and Stockhouse are fairly certain the company will surpass its current $67 million market capitalization (before cash). Why? Even a horribly lowball 2.5 million gold equivalent ounces across both La Colorada and San Antonio would amount to $50 million at a dirt cheap (far below peer-rated) $20 an ounce.
On geological structure, Mel Herdrick and an independent geologist, Mickey Fulp, joined me across this dusty Baja hillscape the other week. “This is essentially a mesquite-style deposit – para-luminous granites, extremely shredded rock, brittle ductile interface … I think the company is basically making a district play here – an entire gold district with good to very good roads and easy access out to the sea,” Mickey Fulp says as we lay maps across the hood of Mel’s pick-up truck.
Two native Mexicans, led by Jorge Diaz of Chihuahua and his young assistant, Memo Estefani Monarrez, lobbied the ejido community that wield those surface rights across many of the San Antonio parcels. I have met both and like their easy, honest style. In the photo, Mr. Herdrick is signing 140 individual checks.
“Actually it is a big team work between (heap leaching expert) Chris Babock, Jorge Diaz and myself,” Memo Estefani told me Sunday. “ Jorge Diaz came to close the deal, and I was there supporting him.”
As with several other silver and gold companies we are tracking down south (among them, Animas Resources (TSX: V.ANI, Stock Forum) and Paramount Gold (TSX: T.PZG, Stock Forum) ), I have to say, once again, “Mexico, you are my goddamn flag-nogging hero.” See Thom Calandra’e earlier report.
Sandspring Resources debuts security
Republic of Guyana: On Monday, Guyana’s Sandspring Resources (TSX: V.SSP, Stock Forum) saw trading of its freshly-scrubbed securities in Canada. The initial public offering stems from ETK, the John Adams family’s working mine (4,000 ounces alluvial gold ounces yearly) that we visited last month in that English-speaking nation kitty-corner to Venezuela and within 100 kilometres of that nation’s Kilometre 88 Gold Trend. The shares were set to open at 35 cents Canadian and sold early Monday for 75 cents Canadian. Book value for the Guyana property is rated 55 cents a share. Even at 75 cents, the shares rank among North and South America’s 10 cheapest gold stocks ranked by per-ounce price in the ground.
The Toroparu deposit in Guyana is seen as an open-pit gold-copper resource. Some 3.36 million gold-equivalent ounces (includes 266 million pounds of copper) are included in a 43-101 compliant resource estimate across all categories.
TC on TT™
Ticker Trax™ and Thom Calandraare headed to Colombia and Peru on Thursday. I’ll be kicking rocks at four or five companies in the two nations, including Colombian Mines Corp. (TSX: V.CMJ, Stock Forum) not far from my once long-ago home of Medellin in the department of Antioquia … as well as a separate and privately-held Antioquia property. Also on the radar are Guyana gold mine operator Adrian Hobkirk’s miniscule Caerus Resource (TSX: V.CA, Stock Forum) in Colombia, which has property options and interests in Norte de Santander department.
The radar also includes an EL Marmato mountainside (Antioquia) I already have visited, have reported on at length and in which I long have held a (losing-money) interest.
A 2009 success story in northern Colombia, Ventana Gold (TSX: T.VEN, Stock Forum), declined requests to open its property for a visit next week.
In Peru, it shall be Fortuna Silver Mines (TSX: V.FVI, Stock Forum) and Focus Ventures (TSX: V.FCV, Stock Forum), both of them part of the Goldgroup network of mines. Joining me will be several writers and analysts, at least one fund manager, Stanford U.-trained geologist Paul Zweng of Honolulu, assorted financiers and minerals mavens.
(Please see:Thom Calandra’s Stockhouse articles. Thom Calandra owns no shares of Mexico’s Pediment Gold. Nor does he own Fortuna, Focus or CMJ. He has no interest in Sandspring Resources. Thom does own each of the 11 Planetary Prospects in subscriber-supported Ticker Trax™. Thom also has informed Ticker Trax subscribers that he intends – but has yet to – purchase shares of Mexico-focused Animas Resources.)
Ticker Trax™
Please see tickertrax.comto learn more about this wealth service and its 11 Planetary Prospects. Also, please see its breakout feature examinations of two Ghana gold prospectors, one Guyana prospector and gold producer and one molybdenum mine in British Columbia proceeding toward its own metals factory. Subscribers, please click here for password-secure Ticker Trax.
HOLDINGS:Thom’s stock holdings are listed for all Stockhouse members on www.Stockhouse.com under the “portfolio setting” for user TCALANDRA. It is public and free to view. He also owns recently minted gold and silver coins and shares of two private companies. Thom does not do private placements or accept payment in return for coverage. But you can buy him a cold beer in Cabo or a double Grey Goose in Toronto. Thom participates in select company-sponsored and company-paid tours of mining sites.
THOM CALANDRA of Ticker Traxhelps his audience find value in a quagmire of investment choices. Thom co-founded and was executive VP of news for CBS MarketWatch andMarketWatch.com. As the voice of Thom Calandra's StockWatch and The Calandra Report, Thom pegged $300-ounce gold as a long-term hold and dyed his hair blonde multiple times as gold surpassed $400, $500 and $600.
Ticker Trax™ is published by Stockgroup Media Inc. Ticker Trax is an information service for subscribers and neither Stockhouse nor Thom Calandra is a broker or an investment advisor. None of the information contained therein constitutes a recommendation by Mr. Calandra or Stockhouse/Stockgroup Media that any particular security, portfolio of securities, transaction, or investment strategy is suitable for any specific person. Ticker Trax does not purport to tell or suggest the investment securities subscribers or readers should buy or sell for themselves. Subscribers and readers of Ticker Trax should conduct their own research and due diligence and obtain professional advice before making any investment decisions. Ticker Trax will not be liable for any loss or damage caused by a reader’s reliance on information obtained in the reports. Subscribers and readers are solely responsible for their own investment decisions. Opinions expressed in Ticker Trax are based on sources believed to be reliable and are written in good faith, but no representation or warranty, expressed or implied, is made as to their accuracy or completeness. All information contained in Ticker Trax should be independently verified. The editor and publisher are not responsible for errors or omissions or responsible for keeping information up to date or for correcting any past information. Ticker Trax does not receive compensation of any kind from any companies that may be mentioned in the report. Any opinions expressed are subject to change without notice. Owners, employees and writers may hold positions in the securities that are discussed in Ticker Trax. PLEASE DO NOT EMAIL THOM SEEKING PERSONALIZED INVESTMENT ADVICE, WHICH HE CANNOT PROVIDE. Copyright 2009 all rights reserved.