TIBURON, California -- I do not own gold ETFs. I own a closed-end fund that holds gold and silver in a Canada repository. You can guess the one. It has been terrific.
Rather than own an exchange-traded fund that supposedly trades in step with gold and silver, I prefer to get the premium (and I suffer the discount in bad times) that goes with owning gold and silver as real coins and real bullion in that Canada closed-end fund.
This is because I think it is early days still for gold and silver.
Early days
This autumn, I have been getting way too many introductions to new or existing natural resources companies. Way too many given the current frenzy of this accelerated commodities market.
Thus, the intros from folks whom I know and for whom I can vouch are a way to sidestep the barrage of look-see requests.
When I recognize someone I know PLUS hear something that says to me, EARLY DAYS, I am likely to be interested in viewing the file.
The Prospect Valley Gold Project is close to Highland Valley Copper Mine about four hours north of Vancouver in British Columbia, Canada. I have not been there and I do not own shares in Altair Ventures (TSX: V.AVX, Stock Forum), the Canada-traded company with the option on the property.
I happen to know the chairman of the company, Robert Archer, via his other company, a Mexico silver miner (whose shares I do, in fact, own).
At Altair, the company has an option to earn as much as a 90 percent stake in the 107-square-kilometer Prospect Valley. This is within what is called the Spences Bridge Gold Belt. Fayyaz Alimohamed, whom I do not know, is CEO. All I know about him is that he went to the London School of Economics and has ties to Dubai.
Bob Archer (in photo) tells me, “We have recently had some exciting developments that change the complexion of Prospect Valley. I feel that the project has excellent potential for a significant discovery, perhaps similar to Richfield Ventures (TSX: V.RVC, Stock Forum).”
Altair is less than $4 million fully diluted in terms of market cap. It is not often that we get to see something that small come along. The company just extended the strike length of gold mineralization at Prospect Valley to approximately three kilometers. Bob Archer tells me from Vancouver that large, low-grade gold deposits with bulk tonnage potential are just starting to gain visibility in B.C.
“Fayyaz and I started Altair as a CPC (cash-pool corporation) a few years ago. We met through his newsletter (for Middle East investors) called the Acamar Journal,” Mr. Archer says. “We optioned Prospect Valley last year and have had one short drill program. Almost every drill hole has been gold-bearing, as were all 10 samples in new zone.”
In British Columbia, two bulk-tonnage examples are Spanish Mountain, a four million-ounce gold (measured and indicated) resource at 0.58 grams/tonne; and Blackwater, which belongs to Richfield and has a $103 million market cap.
Prospect Valley has no resource as of yet. Average grades based on past drilling are about 0.8-1 grams/tonne. So the idea here is a low-grade, bulk gold deposit. One of the zones’ mineralized structures looks like it could set up for an open-pit operation (see graphic above).
Bob Archer says the property has the potential to be the largest gold deposit in southern B.C. Richfield Ventures (TSX: V.RVC, Stock Forum) 18 months ago was less than 20 cents Canadian a share and “working on a large project with indications of gold from previous drilling & soil geochemistry,” according to Altair’s presentation.
Today, Richfield’s Blackwater is the site of what appears to be a sizeable discovery. RVC trades at $2.70 a share these days in Canada. Using that comparable, Mr. Archer says Altair might have “huge upside.”
Altair’s upcoming drill program will test the property’s northeast extension. Early-days companies live and die on fresh drill data. (Please see www.Stockhouse.com for reports and press releases.)
Mr. Archer has done much of what he said he would with Great Panther Silver (TSX: T.GPR, Stock Forum), the Mexico miner that has increased its grades and production and is lowering costs. That does not mean that Altair has a one-up chance at success.
Still, any prospector in Canada with a market worth less than $10 million is worth a look-see during this accelerated (and high-risk) commodities market. Thus, Altair Ventures. Once again, I do not own the shares. The company received a reference this week in our subscriber service, Ticker Trax.
For more, please view Thom Calandra’s Stockhouse articles.
THE NOVEL: It’s complete and for your reading pleasure: PABLO BY NUMBERS. It’s about the world of natural resources.
Ticker Trax™Please see tickertrax.com to learn more. For an index of free Thom Calandra articles, please click here. For an entire explanation of our strategies, research methods and disclosure procedures regarding all aspects of Ticker Trax and our Stockhouse reports, please visit our readily available Stockhouse articles at Stockhouse.com. For the password-protected Ticker Traxlibrary, please see: www.tickertrax.com/Login.aspx.
HOLDINGS: Thom’s holdings are listed for Stockhouse members at www.Stockhouse.com under the “portfolio setting” for user TCALANDRA. It is public and free to view. He and his family own recently minted gold and silver coins and shares of about 30 public companies.
THOM CALANDRA of Ticker Trax helps his audience find value in a quagmire of investment choices. Thom was founding editor of CBS MarketWatch. He was the voice of Thom Calandra's StockWatch and The Calandra Report. Thom has been covering life-sciences and natural resources since 1988.
Ticker Trax™ is published by Stockhouse Media Inc. Ticker Trax is an information service for subscribers and neither Stockhouse nor Thom Calandra is a broker or an investment adviser. None of the information contained therein constitutes a recommendation by Mr. Calandra or Stockhouse 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 that subscribers or readers must buy or sell for themselves. Subscribers and readers of Ticker Trax are asked to conduct their own research and due diligence and obtain professional advice before making any investment decisions. Ticker Trax will not be liable for any losses or other damages caused by a reader’s reliance on information obtained in these 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 representations or warranties, expressed or implied, are made as to the accuracy or completeness of those opinions. All information contained in Ticker Traxshould 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 and Thom Calandra do not receive compensation from any companies that may be mentioned in Ticker Trax. Some of those companies are advertisers or clients of Stockhouse, the publisher. Xtra-Gold Resources was a preferred client of Stockhouse for investment relations, marketing and other commercial but not editorial services, which are never guaranteed. Also, Thom Calandra owns each of the Planetary Prospects and discloses any changes when it comes to purchases and sales. Companies hosting research tours sometimes pay for travel expenses. 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 E-MAIL OR CALL THOM CALANDRA SEEKING PERSONALIZED INVESTMENT ADVICE, WHICH HE CANNOT PROVIDE. Copyright 2010 all rights reserved.