The next focusIR Investor Webinar takes places on 14th May with guest speakers from Blue Whale Growth Fund, Taseko Mines, Kavango Resources and CQS Natural Resources fund. Please register here.
With copper coming off the boil, has the opportunity to sell Bushranger (short term) been missed?
https://www.ft.com/content/f211f1e2-e080-4d31-96c8-7a0599da77a9
Lots of news flow coming over the next two weeks, I’d expect end of year results landing very soon.
Question is, do the board believe the cash inflow from Manica will be enough and in time to replenish coffers, will the board put this in this years report:
“Upon reviewing those cash flow projections for the forthcoming twelve months, the Directors would not expect for funds to be raised through equity raisings, or require additional financial resources in the twelve-month period from the date of authorising the consolidated information to enable the Company to fund its current operations and to meet any future commitments in the event that the Company decides to continue with further exploration work including drilling campaigns in Australia and Zambia”
I’m very much hoping they do! It’ll send a very clear message about expected level income.
Here’s something to cheer everyone up.
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2022/06/03/britain-hits-tipping-point-electric-car-ownership/
That’s an unbelievable shift, not just in the U.K., but globally. Check out the China stats!
Even if a recession does kick in, the potential demand for copper globally and the needed infrastructure to support (ie what governments invest in during recession) is going to be huge. We might see the separation of copper being the bellwether for economy.
Guess it just depends on when the sale will kick in, delay whilst not wanted by some, might not be a bad thing.
Must admit, the 20 year at 20mt comment did raise an eyebrow.
Putting my rose tinted glasses on, I’m assuming the 20 year at 20mt was just referring to Ascot as it’s 750m strike and open in all directions.
Taking them off again, probably not.
I can understand why there’s jitters with the acknowledgment of further drilling of undefined amount, no geo results and uncertainty about Bushranger tonnage, as the funding barrel must be approaching if not scraping the bottom.
Will the funding barrel get replenished in time, that’s the big question and risk, with the SP reflecting it.
Given Empress twitter feed and CB comments on ‘days’ and testing site with water, I’m hoping funding will not be needed (if not for a short pause in drilling).
Finally, with additional drilling and 3-4 months assay + modelling, we’re already at the back end of the year (maybe hence need for interim update) happy Christmas!
Hi Ella, pretty sure all of CB interviews happened pre gold discovery at Ascot?
I don’t think Ascot needs drilling to death, but it needs another couple of months (or more) to get a better understanding of what could be down there ie prove there’s some cathedral spires with a cathedral (or at least a big porphyry church) attached.
I get it’s a fine balancing act, at the moment I’d be weighing in on the more to explore side - and with that ideally pushing warrants (or serious Manica income) to avoid raise!
And on that point, all credit to Xtract team for getting this far on the budget they had, well over my expectations.
I’m with you on that Howzap, push for warrants to pay for further Ascot drilling, can’t leave that lose end unexplored before sale.
I think CB has given up trying to convince the market into believing he’s got 2mt. Clearly need some hard numbers.
Above 2mt and we’ll see announcement before Manica announcement. Below 2mt and we’ll see announcement after Manica announcement.
All could be interim and not fully declared JORC compliant for independent analysis (hope he’s taken legal advise on that!)
I’m hoping we get an interim interview with gold cathedrals tomorrow, the spires are looking promising. Another thought, if gold goes up the deeper it goes, what sort of gold values will be below the 15g per tonne drill!
I’m leaning more towards presentation being cancelled as not enough evidence for Ascot could be given.
Hole 33 original RNS from announcement of Ascot:
Based on preliminary logging, hole BRDD-21-033, which was angled to the east, intersected a long interval of alteration and sulphides. Traces of copper mineralisation extended from a down hole depth of 85m until the end of hole at 783.7m, a total interval of 698.7m. This included a zone of stronger visible chalcopyrite and pyrrhotite mineralisation over a 110m interval from 670m downhole depth.
Actual Assay result:
2m at 15.50g/t Au from 191m in drillhole BRDD-21-033
Drill Hole BRDD-21-033 targeted an outlying geophysical anomaly to the east and intersected a high-grade gold interval of 15.5 g/t Au which warrants follow-up drilling to test for along-strike and down-dip extension
So whilst there is something there and a really nice chunk of gold, feels like a lot more drilling and science is needed before standing in front of all your peers and talking about it - maybe one for next years meeting.
I think the RNS this week suggests no NDA in place or block on coms, it’ll be all or nothing on coms relating to Bushranger if NDA is / isn’t in place (Africa could have been separate)
Probably laying low whilst they figure out what the next steps are. 15.5g of gold less than 200m down at random is a pretty epic result. To put it into scale, grab a tennis ball (about the width of the drill / core), start walking and drop it at random around 200m in, continue walking 783 meters. Are you going to be able to do that time after time or, chances are, theres going to be something a lot bigger that’s been tapped into?
There’s a 6 week countdown for Manica, but given the Empress team went out, I’d not expect to go the full distance on that as I’m sure they’d want to see it running. Long way from Canada if it isn’t!
I’d be getting of all the news that could drag price down (done, with a small seed of good news), regroup, before building up. Could mean pausing drilling to avoid a raise and wait for Manica income to start coming in.
Getting rid of a drill team, stopping for breaks etc - none of this was put in recent RNS, so it is possible.
Obviously, all guess work, just kicking ideas around whilst we wait for news.
If you’ve got bad news to drop, don’t drip drip feed it. Wait for other bad news and drop it all at once (or sandwich it, not done this time)
Wasn’t expecting much between Racecourse and Ascot, if there was then AA would have kept drilling down and probably discovered Ascot.
Now that’s out the way and we’re not under NDAs / detailed talks, would be good to get some guidance on:
Drill Pad locations?
MIMDAS results?
Mine application?
Metallurgical results?
Do holes 47 and 49 close off Racecourse?
Guidance on hole 49 - it’s a monster length.
New Time scales?
Africa results?
Funding?
Lots going on a positive news due, expecting a different tune very soon.
Howzap, Lucky - both right, CB clearly has a vision and knows what needs to be done to deliver. People won’t always agree, raise was painful, but needed.
Here’s what I’ve been pondering whilst we wait for the next set of news.
Look back at the last IP results from 2021:
https://www.rns-pdf.londonstockexchange.com/rns/7490Y_2-2021-5-14.pdf
The bottom south east of the IP results and the shallow markings to the left. Could this be the start of the Ascot / Racecourse overlap??
Pretty epic if it is, looking forward to seeing the overlap of 2021 and 2022 IP results.
It’s a great spot Andy, thank you for sharing.
If you’re going to go into negotiations, having the clearance to be actually able to mine is a must.
You’re not going to spend hundreds of millions on a maybe it’ll be ok to mine….. we haven’t applied yet!
I’m expecting results to be pretty reasonable and gold sold on or confirmation the drill and IP team has been working for free?
I know the Bushranger budget has been tightly controlled, but there’s only so far you can stretch it.
Given the drill pad submission was put in before the geo results, I’m guessing that more drill pads have been applied for than needed to cover everything.
From Colin’s interview, they’re on line 3 of geo as of Wednesday and from that, 100% the drill that’s spinning at the moment will be bang on the money - either north or south, he didn’t say sequence.
Final thought, issue of geo and drill pads will come at the same time. Wouldn’t declare all the drill pads if too many have been applied for as it would send wrong message to market and we’d then start working out new time lines.
Going to be a very interesting May.
In terms of 44, 45 and 46 location.
Previous drill pad sign off was in Octobers RNS:
https://www.lse.co.uk/rns/XTR/bushranger-drilling-and-licence-update-vpgpoctrvouww01.html
Location plan:
https://www.rns-pdf.londonstockexchange.com/rns/8649O_2-2021-10-12.pdf
The new holes look like there about 250m to the West of the old approved drill pad, I don’t know what tolerance they’ve got, information swayed them to move it or if it’s approved.
Just an observation, I do like CB little Easter Eggs.
Nice addition to the copper pot.
As always, reading between the lines and looking for what’s not been said:
44,45 and 46 locations on the new release:
http://www.rns-pdf.londonstockexchange.com/rns/7889G_1-2022-3-31.pdf
Given the number sequence, I’d assume we’re down to one drill team and they’ve hit something to keep going off the same pad being drilled at different angles?
No drilling update since 17th of Dec, but we know 40 holes have been completed (as of a couple of weeks ago, could be 42+ by now).
There’s a couple of key bits of info due in the course of the next few weeks.
Firstly, decision on new drill pads is due w/c 7th of March. I would expect to see an update of prior holes and new locations.
Secondly, geophysics should be two weeks in, so update due mid-end March.
If either bits of these are held back or the shared info is limited, then something is going on behind the scenes.
Hi Ella, is this the one you’re looking for:
https://www.lse.co.uk/rns/XTR/bushranger-drilling-update-and-licence-renewal-lsjo4k2b1lrbgzo.html
Can only remember two being renewed, haven’t seen anything that I can remember about the others:
Exploration Licence Renewal
Licence number EL5574, which covers the Racecourse deposit, and EL8585 have been in the renewal process and the Company has been informed by the New South Wales licensing authority that it proposes to renew both licences for a further three-year period until 4 June 2024 and 5 June 2024 respectively
EL8585 has been highlighted on a couple of other miners as having potential for exploration.
I guess Racecourse might be ready for March / April as most of assay results should be back.
But new drill locations approval (Ascot + 3rd porphyry / feeder zone?) is 6th of March.
Say 3-4 holes more = 6 weeks drilling
Then Assay results = 10 weeks (should be overlap as first cores sent away as drilling continues)
I’m expecting its going to be the back end of June/July at the earliest before full picture is ready.