Idaho, “The Gem State”, has a long history in mining but has always been known more for its silver and phosphate than for its gold endowment. Revival Gold and its peers – Midas Gold, Otis Gold and Integra Resources – have begun to change that perception and are putting Idaho on the map as a great place to explore for gold.
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Revival Gold’s Beartrack Gold Project and neighbouring Arnett Creek Gold Project, encompasses 3,800 hectares of land in Lemhi County, Idaho. Beartrack produced 600,000 ounces of gold in the 1990s but was closed in 2001 when the price of gold dropped below US$300 per ounce. In 2017, Revival Gold drilled 3,000 metres and intersected 3.5 g/t Au over 67.5 metres and another 2.56 g/t over 52 metres, both intercepts of which were encountered close to surface. Revival Gold seeks to aggressively build resources at the former producing property with an additional 8,000 meters of core drilling planned at Beartrack for 2018.
At Arnett Creek, historical grades run from 0.6 to 1.9 g/t Au. Revival Gold is currently permitting 60 drill pad sites at Arnett Creek and is planning to drill 2,000 metres of core on the project this fall.
Building and materializing the full potential of a new gold company comes as second nature to Hugh Agro, Revival Gold’s President and CEO. Mr. Agro has a background in mining engineering with a business development bent and was a member of the senior executive team that grew Kinross Gold from $1.7 billion to $17 billion before his early retirement in late 2009. With Revival Gold, Mr. Agro is now back in the gold business and he gave this interview with Stockhouse Editorial about the upside potential he sees in his new company.
You had a very successful career in the mining business, first in banking with Deutsche Bank and then with Placer Dome and Kinross Gold, before retiring in late 2009. Why have you chosen to return to the business?
Success in the mining business has a lot to do with good timing. I believe that we crossed the threshold towards better metal prices in 2016 after a long bear market, especially gold. Through the course of that bear market, we saw a sharp decline in investor interest and the rate of new discoveries, Numerous “B” and “C” players were flushed out of the business and some very good opportunities surfaced.
I’m now back in the business with Revival Gold because I see a rare opportunity to build an exciting new growth company in gold, surrounded by quality people and focused on delivering exceptional returns for our shareholders.
Idaho might not be on the radar of many investors but it is very rich in several mineral resources. What makes this jurisdiction so attractive to gold mining companies? What kind of results did these properties produce at their peak?
Idaho has a rich mining history dating back to the 1860’s and the settlement of the Western United States. Idaho is best known for its world class Silver Valley district in the north and phosphate deposits in the south but lesser known for its major molybdenum, cobalt and gold deposits in-between.
With geopolitical risk rising elsewhere in the world and the pendulum of support for responsible mining swinging back into favour in the United States, investors are re-discovering exploration and development opportunities in the previously underexplored state of Idaho.
Midas Gold, with its 6-million-ounce gold Stibnite project, is leading the charge in bearing out Idaho’s gold potential. Otis Gold has attracted the attention of Agnico Eagle Mines with its Kilgore gold project and the Integra Resources team, hot off their success in Quebec, have come to Idaho as well. They all see the potential for Idaho to become a major gold producing state in the current environment of growing support for responsible mining.
Revival Gold’s Beartrack Gold Project produced 600,000 ounces of gold in the 1990’s and ceased production in 2001 when the price of gold fell below US$300 per ounce. Revival Gold optioned the Beartrack property from Yamana Gold with a view to expand the historic 1.3 million ounce gold resource that remained after the mine had closed. Today, the price of gold is over US$1,300 per ounce and the in situ value of gold in historic resources at Beartrack and the neighbouring Arnett Creek Gold Project is worth multiples of what it once was.
What is the regulatory process like in Idaho? How have you seen it change over the years?
The state of Idaho enjoys an established permitting process on state and federal land and offers a constructive operating environment with the availability of strong local expertise in earth sciences and modern mining, host communities that desire economic stimulus and, importantly, forward-looking regulatory leadership.
The Revival Gold team has noted a positive shift in Idaho in the approach of federal and state regulators over the years to a more constructive stance on the role of exploration and mining activity in the balanced use of public lands. With appropriate levels of economic activity generated on public lands, both the public lands and the communities that they border, thrive.
During its due diligence on Beartrack, Revival Gold was able to re-activate a dormant drill permit and received timely approval for over 50 drill pad locations on the company’s project area. Responsible mining is making a comeback under the current federal administration and appears to be supported by America’s desire to be independent of other nations. This includes gold mining.
In your chart Global Production vs Global Discovery, there is a major gap of production outweighing discoveries by a significant margin from 2010 to now. What do you predict for the next five years at this pace?
We see the gap between the pace of global gold production and discovery continuing to grow. Corroborating this view, we’d point to (I) the declining reserves of gold producers; (2) the fact that many gold producers are mining well above reserve grade (almost 50% over reserve grade in the last quarter in the case of Goldcorp); and (3) the weak funding outlook for exploration companies. I predict that the intermediate and senior producers, who are making strong margins at current gold prices, will have to spend more on exploration in the future and will ultimately have to pay up for new gold reserves to sustain their businesses.
Revival Gold drilled 3,000 metres at Beartrack in 2017 and is planning to drill a further 8,000 metres at Beartrack this year. What results is the Company expecting?
Revival Gold’s initial 3,000 meters of drilling at Beartrack in 2017 was primarily focused on confirming underlying historical drill data to complete an updated NI 43-101 gold resource estimate. We are excited to be coming out with the updated gold resources estimate for Beartrack very shortly. All eyes are watching!
As to this year’s drilling, we are slated to complete an additional 8,000 meters of exploration drilling (versus definition drilling) to expand the known gold resources at Beartrack and develop the Joss target located approximately 800 meters south along strike from last year’s drilling. In 2018, we also plan to complete metallurgical testing, re-processing of historical geophysical data and a structural mapping program to enhance our knowledge of the five-kilometer-long gold mineralized trend at Beartrack.
Beartrack is a proven producer, but what can you tell investors about the potential at the neighboring Arnett Creek project?
Arnett Creek offers Revival Gold “blue sky” potential. The land position was re-assembled by Revival Gold after a long period of inactivity. A small historic gold resource served as the starting point and staking and acquisition has now increased Revival Gold’s land position to encompass all key areas of interest. Arnett Creek represents a potential satellite oxide gold opportunity located 6.5 km away from the infrastructure at Beartrack. Not only does Arnett Creek present us with a very good opportunity to leverage the existing infrastructure at Beartrack but it also hosts large trends of surface mineralization that have yet to be properly assessed.
Can you provide an update for investors on exploration happening at Arnett Creek and what is happening there this year?
Last year, Revival Gold collected 107 rock samples at Arnett Creek with more than a third of them assayed greater than 1 g/t gold. This year we are pursuing a phase I program of data compilation, permitting and 2,000 meters of core drilling with drilling expected to commence in the fall.
Your updated NI-43-101 Technical Report will be finished ahead of schedule in mid-2018. What does this say about your technical team and the project?
We have a stellar technical team including VP, Exploration, Steve Priesmeyer, General Manager, Pete Blakeley and Project Geologist, Larry Hillesland. Our independent Q.P. is Mike Lechner with Resource Modeling Inc. These individuals have a significant amount of history and experience with Beartrack, Arnett Creek and the local district.
Steve Priesmeyer completed his M.Sc. in Geology at the University of Idaho, Pete Blakeley was the former General Manager at the Beartrack Mine and Larry Hillesland and Mike Lechner have worked on Beartrack and a number of other projects in the area over the years.
The Beartrack Gold Project has been “off the radar” as it’s been in closure since the low gold prices of the early 2000’s. Revival Gold has a starting point of more than 450 drill holes to work with and enjoys all the benefits (power, roads and other infrastructure) that come from involvement in a brownfields camp. With our technical experience and Beartrack’s site advantages, I think that Revival Gold continue to deliver well ahead of expectations.
Diane Garrett has recently joined RVG’s Board of Directors as Chair. What is her background in the industry?
Thank you for mentioning Dr. Garrett. Diane has over 20 years’ experience in the mining industry. She has a track record of developing projects, building companies and creating value for shareholders. Diane is the current President & CEO of Nickel Creek Platinum Corp. Previously, she was President & CEO of Romarco Minerals, which was acquired by OceanaGold Corp. in 2015 for over $550 million. During her tenure with Romarco, Diane built and led the team that developed the Hale Mining project in South Carolina from exploration through to final feasibility, permitting and into construction. There are a lot of similarities between what Romarco did with Hale and Revival Gold’s ambitions for Beartrack-Arnett Creek. Diane is a resident of the United States and a tremendous credit to the Revival Gold team - we are thrilled to have her involved.
To wrap things up, please tell us about your funding and shareholder base.
Revival Gold came out the gate with a strong shareholder base of institutions and high net worth individuals including Orion Mine Finance, Gold2000, US Global and Delbrook Capital. Management owns a significant part of the business and we are fully funded for 2018 having started the year with $7.6 million of cash.
Revival Gold discusses the Bear Track Gold Deposit from Stockhouse Publishing Ltd. on Vimeo.