RE: Prospects?1 Jan 2023 19:15
The large cap mining companies have over recent years had their internal affairs under review. Re-building balance sheets, paying down debt, optimising mining operations, expanding existing resources and so forth, followed by M&A activity to bolster the business, then umpteen share buy-back programmes with record dividends to shareholders. Consequently, the large caps are mostly in pretty good shape, cashed-up and are now entering a new phase in the mining cycle for new prospects in new territories replenishing inventories as evident from the news Barrick Gold are looking at Indonesia as an exploration target (unheard of a few years back) is just one example.
Beutong is a large high-quality porphyry copper-gold, silver, molybdenum deposit. Has a JORC compliant resource (M,I&I) of 509Mt @ 0.48% Cu, 0.13g/t Au, 1.28g/t Ag and 120ppm Mo for contained metal of 2.43Mt Cu, 2.11 Moz Au and 20.9Moz Ag.
With outcropping at surface, open laterally and at depth, the current resource envelope extends only to a depth of around 500m, 200-300m below, is a notable transition to chalcopyrite-bornite mineralization similar to other porphyry systems in the area such as Grasberg (Freeport) giving the project massive upside potential.
Is ideally located on Sumatra with good access to both power and a sea port.
To borrow an expression taken from elsewhere, 'the time is ripe' for Asiamet to start 'dancing'. It won't be long now before the Majors are queuing-up 'to take Beutong home'.