Check back later today for Daniel’s Den and visit the BMR comments section throughout the day for updates and helpful information.
1. Gold is off $1 an ounce at $1,289 as of 7:00 am Pacific…the yellow metal climbed as high as $1,299 this morning but then got knocked lower after positive preliminary U.S. manufacturing and service sector sentiment data was released which gave the greenback a lift…the flash manufacturing PMI for May rose to a 44-month high, according to research firm IHS Markit…at the same time, the firm’s service sector PMI was higher than expected as it jumped to 55.7 from April’s 54.6…SPDR Gold Shares, the world’s largest Gold ETF, has only shed around 4.13 tonnes, or 133,000 ounces, since bullion’s drop below $1,300 May 15…Silver is off 18 cents at $16.33…Copper, Nickel and Zinc are all under mild pressure at $3.09, $6.57 and $1.36, respectively, while Cobalt is unchanged at $41.28…Crude Oil has backed off 27 cents to $71.93 while the U.S. Dollar Index has jumped half a point to 93.98…
2. Cobalt 27 Capital (KBLT, TSX-V) has agreed to pay $145 million (CDN) for estimated attributable stream production of approximately 450,000 pounds of Cobalt and 2.25 million pounds of Nickel in concentrate per year (approx. $40 million CDN in revenue) from the Ramu mine in Papua New Guinea, marking the first streaming deal of its kind in the battery-metals space. “This completely transforms our company because it brings immediate free cash flow into the business,” stated Chairman Anthony Milewski…Cobalt 27 announced an $80 million (U.S.) credit facility earlier this month and $185 million (U.S.) in equity financing in April, so it won’t be taking on any new debt for the deal…Ramu has successfully ramped up since construction was completed in 2012 and accounts for 3% of the world’s annual Cobalt production…the mine is operated by Metallurgical Corporation of China, which has a market capitalization of approximately $12 billion, and is in the first quartile of the global cost curve with robust margins at spot and long-term consensus prices…KBLT is up 36 cents at $12.26 through the first 30 minutes of trading…
3. Underground drilling at the Iron Creek Cobalt Project in Idaho has returned impressive initial results for U.S. Cobalt (USCO, TSX-V)…all 3 holes intersected significant Cobalt mineralization, extending the known mineralization to over 520 m along strike…drill hole IC18–01 returned 55.8 m grading 0.18% Cobalt and 0.26% Cu, drill hole IC18–02 returned 13.4 m @ 0.13% Cobalt and 0.26% Copper, and drill hole IC18–03 returned 43 m grading 0.20% Cobalt and 0.26% Copper…all intersections are true width…US Cobalt has completed 14 of 70 planned drill underground holes…President Wayne Tisdale stated, “We continue to increase the known strike length at the Iron Creek Project as we work towards a maiden resource estimate later this year. US Cobalt has already begun to work closely with First Cobalt ahead of the upcoming close of the recently approved acquisition by First Cobalt. We are pleased by the overwhelming support this transaction has received, and US Cobalt shareholders will benefit from a meaningful position in a leading vertically integrated pure-play North American Cobalt company that is fully funded to execute on the 2018 programs.”
4. Nemaska Lithium (NMX, TSX) dropped nearly 20% in early trading after announcing financings totaling $360 million – a $280 million bought deal PP at $1 per share through National Bank, BMO and Cantor Fitzgerald as co-lead underwriters, plus a separate PP for $80 million, also at $1 per share, with an institutional investor. Guy Bourassa, President and CEO, stated: “Today marks a big day in the life of Nemaska Lithium, as we are announcing the last piece of financing required to start the commercial development of the Whabouchi Lithium mine project. This project financing package, which covers capital expenditures of both the Whabouchi mine and Shawinigan electrochemical plant, project contingencies, working capital requirements, and financing costs, will ensure the future of Nemaska Lithium. This will also allow the corporation to stay on target to initiate the commissioning of the Whabouchi mine by 2nd half of calendar year 2019 and start commissioning the Shawinigan electrochemical plant during the first half of calendar year 2020.”
5. The Dow has slipped 70 points as of 7:00 am Pacific after retail giant Target reported earnings that missed expectations while trade talks with China remained uncertain after President Trump said a deal might be “too hard to get done”…that’s just the Trump way of negotiating…in Toronto, the TSX is off 35 points while the Venture has slipped 3 points to 785…Eastmain Resources (ER, TSX) has released results of a PEA on its 100%-owned Eau Claire Gold Project in James Bay, Quebec…after-tax NPV (5%) is $260 million (CDN) while after-tax IRR is 27%…pre-production capital capital costs are $175 million and the payback period is 3.1 years…total cash cost is $632 per ounce while average life-of-mine All-In-Sustaining costs are $746 per ounce for estimated average annual production of 79,200 ounces…Probe Metals (PRB, TSX-V) is raising $14 million for its Val d’Or East Gold Project through a combination of flow-through units at $1.90 per unit and non-flow-through units at a price of $1.15 per hard unit…Bonterra Resources (BTR, TSX-V), another promising Quebec play, was halted 30 minutes into trading, pending news…
6. Aben Resources (ABN, TSX-V) announced this morning that it will be commencing a 5,000-m diamond drill program in mid-June at its Forrest Kerr Project in the northern part of the Eskay Heart of Gold Camp…the initial focus for the program will be to expand the high-grade precious metal mineralization discovered last summer at the Boundary North zone, located near the center of the property…3 separate drill holes, collared from the same drill pad, pierced a near-surface high-grade zone of Gold-Silver-Copper mineralization, in addition to broad intercepts containing Gold bearing quartz veins…however, the company didn’t start its program last year until the beginning of August and pulled out before the end of August, just before Garibaldi Resources (GGI, TSX-V) made its discovery at Nickel Mountain…Jim Pettit, President and CEO, stated: “Notable regional discoveries by Pretium, GT Gold, Garibaldi Resources and others have illustrated the significant discovery upside remaining in the district, and we are confident in the potential at Forrest Kerr given the newly discovered and historic high-grade mineralization there as well as the numerous untested Gold-in-soil anomalies present.” Hopefully this summer, Aben’s sense of timing will be a little better and they’ll be starting a Phase 2 program by the middle of August as opposed to leaving the party early…
7. National Access Cannabis (META, TSX-V) is making a $1 million investment in NAC Bio Inc., a separate legal entity established to advance clinical research into the medicinal benefits of cannabis in the treatment of chronic disease and illness…headquartered in Vancouver, NAC Bio will be run by Dr. Tyler Wish, who previously led National Access’s research and development efforts. “Globally, there is a lack of high-quality, large-scale research data on medicinal cannabis patients, yet this information, evidence and analysis is critically necessary for advancing medical knowledge, enhancing patient outcomes and supporting innovation,” said Wish, CEO of NAC Bio. “NAC Bio is aiming to establish a large-scale, longitudinal patient registry that integrates phenotypic and genomic information. Medicine is quickly becoming a data science and our goal is to provide patients and providers with data-driven insights that enable more informed and personalized treatment decisions with respect to the use of medicinal cannabis.”
Most Popular Recent BMR Posts
“The Enemies Of Progress, The Radical Environmentalists, Are Ramping Up For A War In The Woods”
Why Are These People Smiling? – Their Stock Has Tanked 80%!
BMR Morning Alert! – Venture Slips On An Oil Slick, And Updates On 5 Special Situations
The Template For The Next 10% Stake In Garibaldi Resources
The Nickel Mountain Magma Highway
Two Big Plays Emerge in B.C., Setting The Stage For A Summer To Remember
How To Bring A Junior Resource Market To Life!
Northern Ontario Cobalt Junior Attracts Interest From Metal Trading Companies
The Most Important Venture Development Since The New Bull Market Began
Hi BMR, you had mentioned in previous articles that GTT has plans to really tell the story for what they are doing and hoping to achieve. Lots of marketing promises in this sector. What do you anticipate seeing from the company? I know they plan on going after Hole 62 hard…
Comment by BigBid — May 23, 2018 @ 9:49 am
CCW News!!
CANADA COBALT UNDERGROUND DRILLING TARGETS COBALT-RICH VEINS
Canada Cobalt Works Inc. has made significant progress at the company’s 100-per-cent-owned Castle mine in the Northern Ontario cobalt camp.
Highlights:
– Rehabilitation of the first-level workings has prepared this very prospective area of the mine for first-ever cobalt-focused underground drilling targeting cobalt-rich veins discovered through extensive sampling
– drill crews to mobilize during the week of May 28
– A high performance Scooptram that can remove as much as two tonnes of rock every six minutes in the Castle mine is hauling out broken mineralized material from the stopes above the first level
– Composite samples of this material, visually well-mineralized with cobalt, have been delivered to an assay lab for analysis and will also be put through the company’s proprietary Re-2OX process to create cobalt sulphate test products for Asian battery-sector clients according to specifications received by Canada Cobalt.
Jacques Monette, director of Canada Cobalt and mine consultant, commented: “The first level of the mine is being converted to a trackless system from the historic track system that has been used throughout the cobalt mining camp. New water pipelines and air pipelines have been put into the adit. A ventilation system has been installed with flexible mine vent tubing. Replacement of timbers in the drifts is ongoing.
“We are impressed with the visual evidence of cobalt mineralization in the extensive stope material and in the vein systems on the first level,” Mr. Monette continued. “In a very cost-effective manner we have prepared the first level for immediate drilling, an important new development for Canada Cobalt, which will contribute also to the understanding of the broader district.”
Castle was mined for high-grade silver in the 1980s by Agnico Eagle and features 11 levels covering 18 kilometres of underground workings.
Re-2OX progresses toward pilot-plant stage
Canada Cobalt’s 100-per-cent-owned Re-2OX hydrometallurgical process for cobalt battery metals, which will ultimately allow the company to bypass the expensive smelting process, continues to be optimized. Part of the process involves the effective removal of arsenic from the cobalt though leaching prior to creating a cobalt sulphate solution.
Dr. Ron Molnar, Canada Cobalt adviser, has designed, built and operated more than 60 pilot-plant circuits extracting, separating and purifying a wide range of metallic elements from cobalt to rare earths, and he will be one of the key individuals who will assist Canada Cobalt in taking Re-2OX to the full pilot-plant stage with client-specific cobalt formulations for the battery sector.
With its Re-2OX process, unique underground access and other initiatives, Canada Cobalt is strategically and uniquely positioned in the Northern Ontario cobalt camp to benefit from the electric vehicle super-cycle and the continuing uptrend in cobalt prices.
Qualified person
The technical information in this news release was prepared under the supervision of Frank Basa, PEng, Canada Cobalt’s president and chief executive officer, who is a member of Professional Engineers Ontario and a qualified person in accordance with National Instrument 43-101.
About Canada Cobalt Works Inc.
Canada Cobalt is a pure play cobalt company focused exclusively on the Northern Ontario cobalt camp, Canada’s most prolific cobalt district. With three 100-per-cent-owned past-producing mines, a proprietary hydrometallurgical process known as Re-2OX, and plans for a 600-tonne-per-day mill at its flagship Castle property near Gowganda, Canada Cobalt is well positioned to become a vertically integrated North American leader in cobalt extraction and recovery.
Comment by Tycoon777 — May 23, 2018 @ 12:31 pm
Excellent, Tycoon…action underground, at last!…the cue to add some more…drills finally about to turn, well-mineralized Cobalt in the stopes – great sign…Scooptram hauling out material…
Comment by Jon - BMR — May 23, 2018 @ 12:33 pm
Great news on CCW. Why is the news release not showing up under the CCW stock news on my phone? It is also not showing on my scotia iTRADE account under news for CCW. Just makes me think a lot of people might miss the news release.
Comment by Dwight — May 23, 2018 @ 4:30 pm
How does CCW compare to US Cobalt that got bought out for 150 million?
Comment by donald — May 24, 2018 @ 12:09 am
Same here Dwight, and wondering the same thing!
Comment by Lady — May 24, 2018 @ 4:38 am
I’m adding more CCW at these levels, Donald, not just because of the chart dynamics but the fundamentals point to a re-set of the current valuation.
We know that from extensive sampling, there is impressive high-grade Cobalt on the first level of the Castle mine, and historic operator Agnico Eagle (1980’s) also pointed out the Cobalt potential but it was focused on retrieving very high-grade Silver at a 3 oz per tonne cut-off. At this mine, the very high-grade Silver was accompanied by low Cobalt values; the lower-grade Silver, below 3 ounces per tonne or about 100 g/t, featured high-grade Cobalt. The vein structures that did not show really high-grade Silver were left alone by Agnico Eagle and therein is the opportunity for CCW in 18 km of underground workings.
You’ll note in yesterday’s news that CCW mentioned that there is mineralized material in the stopes – visually well-mineralized with Cobalt, another indication of what Agnico Eagle left behind.
Yesterday’s best result from US Cobalt, in its first 3 underground holes, was 55.8 m grading 0.18% Cobalt, with some low-grade Copper. Can CCW find better grades? – absolutely, IMHO, given the nature of this mine and the sampling results to date. Significantly, CCW has an advantage over US Cobalt in terms of processing/recovery/removal of arsenic with the Re-2OX process – Re-2OX just by itself is a hugely valuable asset for CCW. In CCW’s intersections we can also expect to see Silver, Gold, and some base metals.
Comment by Jon - BMR — May 24, 2018 @ 5:20 am