Member Info for mattlilly

Qus 3 to 7...

3 SolGold Finance AG was incorporated in September 2020 and holds the Net Smelter Royalty Financing agreement with Franco-Nevada.

This structure was put in place to house all future project funding and off-take arrangements.

It is a consolidated 100% subsidiary of Solgold plc and it holds the 85% stake in ENSA.

Why was this never specifically RNSed?

Why is it not explained in detail in the 2021 Annual Report?

I understand the Directors are:

Paul Bushell
Ingo Hofmaier and
Nick Mather

Which means that Mr Mather is the only Solgold Board Member in a company responsible for all the project funding of Alpala and which owns a Company where the only other shareholder is Cornerstone, who Mr Mather managed to badly upset in 2020.

It also seems certain that CGP were one of the shareholders that voted against his re-election.

You might please excuse me if all of Mr Mather's Board and Committee roles are quite stunning when you are approaching investors for feedback in preparation for a massively important AGM.

4 How would you characterise the current relationships with Cornerstone, BHP and Newcrest?

5 In the Annual Report you stated:

“Our shareholders expect sustainable value creation which requires us to ensure good governance and risk management alongside operational performance.”

And yet the Share Price is still 10% below where it was after last year's AGM and 20% below the June high despite Copper being just short of its all time high. In fact its down today on good news.

How do you explain that?

6 You currently have a PFS and a welter of drilling reports that Investors are expecting this quarter. Are these being held up by the failure to appoint a CEO?

Is the PFS still on track for this quarter and what is the current situation on the Alpala licence?

When can we expect drilling reports on concessions where you must by now have a wealth of information?

7 ESG is going to be the key differentiator in investment for the foreseeable future. I must say I commend you on being, in my view a leading ESG ready miner. But what specifically is it about the current corporate governance that the company feels needs to be addressed with the main shareholders. Have they expressed concern? If so, what has changed since 28th May?

When will this CG roadshow be completed and will you be issuing an RNS explaining the background and conclusions?

I cannot say...

Qus 1 & 2

1 The first question won't surprise you...

On 19 January you said:

“The Company will commence immediately a global executive search...”

On May 28 you said:

“The shareholders consulted are supportive of ….. the international search being conducted for the appointment of a new permanent CEO to lead the Company through its next stage of growth and development.”

The information we've had for weeks has been that the CEO appointment is with the Nominations Committee.

On 10 September, almost six weeks ago, Fawzi Hanano said:

“With regard to the CEO process, this is in the final stages and we do hope to announce something very soon....”

In the Annual Report on 29 September, Keith Marshall said:

“The Nominations Committee viewed the appointment as the most important current issue for the development of SolGold. I am pleased to say that we are now well advanced with the recruitment process and hope to be making an announcement in the near future.”

While Keith remains interim CEO you have a minority of Independent Directors and you still don't have a CG Committee...

Why is it taking so long to make a CEO appointment?

2 There is no doubt that Mr Mather has contributed a huge amount to Solgold's exploration, especially Alpala, but...

At the last AGM he would have been voted out without his own votes, so...

Why is he sitting on the Nominations Committee and the Board of Solgold Finance AG?

The CG Charter document states that the Nominations Committee shall be:

“all, if not most, Independent non-executive Directors”

In the Annual Report you state:

“The Board considers that each of the Audit, Remuneration and Nominations Committees now fully comply with the requirements of the Code.”

But, if I quote verbatim from the Code:

“The Code provides that a majority of members should be independent, rather than all, therefore membership can include executive directors such as the chief executive.”

Mr Mather could not by any definition be regarded as an independent Director. In fact you state in the Annual Report:

“Mr Nicholas Mather is not independent as he was the Chief Executive Officer of the Company to 31 March 2021."

And he is not an Executive Director.

Indeed he is the only Major Shareholder with a seat on the Board.

Why is he a key part of appointing his own successor given the result of last year's AGM?

Could we be forgiven for thinking he may be part of the reason for delay in appointing a CEO?

Is Mr Mather acting in any executive capacity for Solgold? If so, why?

Hi Guys...

I was very impressed with these two Directors. Not only were they refreshingly honest and straightforward, but they were aware of the major issues, partly through their repeated occurrence during the Investor calls.

For those who don't find ESG and Corporate Governance a bore, I am confident in repeating that this is a Board that has it in their DNA and is not, like many even major miners, seeing it as a tick box exercise.

They clearly recognise that ESG is a potential differentiator going forward and I was walked through in detail and frankly, what has been achieved and what is still to do, with a target final completion of the outstanding issues by mid 2022.

My own view is that on Governance the Company has come 'light years' from the debacle of last year and the AGM, but there is one central issue, which they clearly acknowledge and accept and have been primed on by other investors...

It will be interesting to see how they handle it, but in my view the outcome could leave the Company vulnerable to a bid....

Oh and its not the PFS...

conversations...

I've just finished the call with the Chairman and Elodie, which was immensely useful.

I have been quite rightly asked not to share the answers I was given, not just because they could be market sensitive, but also because this is a continuing process and it would devalue the con versions that the Chairman has still to have with other investors, as I'm sure you would understand.

So I will post the detailed questions I asked on the next few posts.

I must say that I found the Chairman and Elodie refreshingly candid. That will help me immensely in my posts over the next three months or so.

But specifically in relation to Tandy, I have no doubt that there is consideration about including this in the PFS, which would be value enhancing, but I exhorted the Board not to hold up the PFS beyond the end of the year, so that they could at least keep that promise.

To pacify the investors the Chmn is talking to.....?

Hi Jerry
If he is making me an insider he will be required to state that up front before we start the meeting.

I have now drafted all the questions and I will publish them with the responses after the exchange...

Unless he makes me an insider...

Did you miss this Bubble...?

18-Oct-21 16:35:07 27.70 83,409 Sell* 27.70 27.85 23.10k UT

Don't worry Lunch, I got all those...

Thanks for those who have offered suggestionsI.

I'm finalising the questions now for tomorrow.

I can't ask that DBW...its pejorative...sorry

Top 11 trades = 371,000 shares...

The remainder = 104 trades for an average size of c1,000 shares...still c£280k per bargain...

Plenty for me to ask the Chairman tomorrow...

1 to 1 tomorrow at 9.30 am.

Take out the top 9 trades and you're left with 83 trades worth c£18k or an average trade size of 280...

Autobots rule...the rest are semi comatose...

92 trades...£102k...average trade £1.1k...

Pathetic...

Or plenty of things have not happened...

Thanks for that Orthern...

So does nobody else have any questions for me to put, other than the obvious...

CEO...PFS...

The CG roadshow plan predates the Berry letter.

It's all about sounding out views before the AGM.

I now have a date with the Chairman so I am open to any suggestions as to what you would like me to ask.

Sadly I agree addickt...right now the management has more common sense than the Board...but no clout...