pureenergy

Nevada lithium explorer Pure Energy (PE.v) grabbed the spotlight this morning with the announcement of a tentative lithium supply agreement with Elon Musk's Tesla Motors.

The deal establishes a commitment from Tesla for the purchase of an annual volume of product over a period of 5 years by Tesla or its authorized purchasers, based on "terms and conditions related to project execution, product quality and timing of delivery."

The stock was up about 26%, to $1.01, in early trading on the TSX Venture exchange and has surged 390% year-to-date.

Pure Energy's Clayton Valley, Nevada lithium brine project is located about 3.5 hours drive from Tesla's massive gigafactory in the Nevada desert. Pure Energy will complete a PEA, PFS or FS to confirm the technical feasibility and economic viability of the project, according to the news release.

The economics will be a key piece, as the news release notes the agreement lays out a (confidential) "predetermined price that is below current market rates and is aligned with Tesla's goal to continuously reduce the cost of its lithium ion batteries."

"This agreement with Tesla is a significant milestone that validates Pure Energy's lithium brine project and business development model, and is an important step in the development of the Project," said Pure Energy CEO Robert Mintak. "Pure Energy is aligned with both Tesla's and the State of Nevada's development objectives, and we hope to positively contribute to Nevada's booming clean energy based economy."

News release: Pure Energy Minerals announces lithium supply agreement

Pretium Resources

High-grade gold developer Pretium Resources cleared a major hurdle with the announcement of a US$540-million construction financing late yesterday that will pay for about 70% of its underground Brucejack gold mine.

The financing, with Orion Mine Finance Group and Blackstone Tactical Opportunities, includes a credit facility of US$350 million, a US$150-million prepayment under a callable gold and silver stream agreement and a private placement of Pretivm common shares for US$40 million.

The loan is at a fixed interest rate of 7.5%.

Each of Orion and Blackstone will subscribe for 3,848,004 of Pretivm's common shares at US$5.1975 per common share for aggregate proceeds at closing of approximately US$40 million.

In a flash update, Canaccord Genuity analyst Joe Mazumdar said "the relief of having a significant part of the funding in place is a strong positive" for Brucejack mine development. Canaccord rates Pretium as a "speculative buy" with a price target of $8.50.

Pretium shares were up 5.6% to $6.85 in early trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange.

News release: Pretium announces construction financing, production decision

Kaminak Gold

Yukon gold developer Kaminak Gold has announced that it has chosen a northern road route from Dawson City for further study as the supply road for its Coffee gold project.

The company had previously envisioned an access road extending from Western Copper and Gold's nearby Casino project, which is stuck in permitting.

The route would be about 190 kilometres long. More than 160 km of that already exists as a public road (some of it would need upgrading). The road includes two river crossings, by way of a ferry in the warmer months and an ice road in the winter.

The Dawson city-based Tr'ondek Hwech'in First Nation, on whose land the Coffee deposit is located, endorses the new road. Employees and the gold would be transported to and from the site using the airstrip.

News release: Kaminak announces northern road route