A comprehensive exploration program is underway at North American Nickel’s (NAN:TSXV) Maniitsoq nickel-copper-cobalt-PGM project in southwest Greenland. This morning, the company announced the results of the completed geophysical, electromagnetic and gravity surveys which have confirmed both the presence of nickel mineralization found by previous drilling and also identified new anomalies. The Sentient Group, an Australian… Continue Reading

This morning, Dundee Capital Markets’ equity research team initiated formal coverage on Lukas Lundin’s Lucara Diamond (LUC:TSX) and put a buy rating with a $3.00 target price on it (approximately 10% higher than the last trade of $2.73). Yesterday, outperforming Lucara announced the sales figures from its second exceptional stone tender of 2014 and fifth… Continue Reading

As the coal market continues to remain soft, especially in the currently oversupplied thermal coal sector, Coalspur Mines (CPT:TSX) is doing everything it can to remain solvent.  That challenge has now forced two of the largest shareholders off of the Board. Coalspur recently announced that Colin Steyn and Peter Breese would be resigning from the Board.  The… Continue Reading

Last week, Kaizen Discovery (KZD:TSXV) held a conference call with President and CEO, Matthew Hornor to discuss the recent acquisition of West Cirque Resources, their strategic partnership with ITOCHU Corp and his company’s plans for more acquisitions. Last week, ITOCHU agreed to provide $4.25 million in funding to Kaizen (as part of the West Cirque deal) in… Continue Reading

Few gold developers in the world today have an opportunity like Roxgold Inc (ROG:TSXV). The company is developing the high-grade Yaramoko gold project in Burkina Faso that has an after-tax IRR of nearly 50% (in a sector where you are lucky to achieve double-digit returns). The economics are unique for three reasons. First, the grade, which sits… Continue Reading

Since an unprecedented staking rush in 2010 that had not been seen since the Klondike Gold Rush, the Yukon has fallen out of favor with many mining and exploration investors due to its short seasons and expensive work programs. One company that has continued in the land of the midnight sun is Kaminak Gold (KAM:TSX), which discovered the… Continue Reading

Bloomberg has a solid profile on KKR founder and private equity tycoon Henry Kravis. The story focuses on the massive leveraged buyout of RJR-Nabisco in 1987, then the largest private equity transaction in history. “We’re going to start our own firm and just focus on something that has never been done before; at the time we called… Continue Reading

After investing $25 million in the latest $1.50 financing, Ivanhoe Mines’ (IVN:TSX) founder and Executive Chairman Robert Friedland now controls 23.8% of the company or 167,133,422 shares (and another 19,166,667 warrants). Today, Ivanhoe announced that the Singapore-based billionaire, Friedland, 61, exercised his overallotment right as part of the financing which enabled him to acquire an additional 2.5 million units at a… Continue Reading

(Suroco shares are currently trading at $0.83 per share, indicating the market currently anticipates Petroamerica’s offer will win.) This morning, VETRA, the private Colombian oil company that is in a battle over Suroco Energy (SRN:TSXV) with Calgary-based Colombian light-oil producer Petroamerica Oil, raised their cash bid for the company to $0.85 per share, representing a small, 2.4%, increase… Continue Reading

The most western Canadian province of BC continues to attract capital from some the largest and most sophisticated metals and mining shops on the globe.  This time it’s ITOCHU Corp., one of Japan’s leading trading houses and suppliers of metals, who announced this morning that it has agreed to fund $4.25 million worth of exploration on… Continue Reading

This morning, Dominion Diamond (DDC:TSX), the operator of the Ekati mine which was Canada’s first diamond mine, announced that it had come to an agreement with Chuck Fipke to buy his remaining 10% participating interest in the mine for $67 million. Charles E. (Chuck) Fipke’s Dia Met Minerals discovered what would become the Ekati Mine in the Northwest Territories in… Continue Reading

Joe Mazumdar is the Director of Research and a Senior Mining Analyst at Canaccord Genuity Inc. here in Vancouver. He has a particularly interesting perspective on the mining sector, having spent the majority of his early years at large companies including: Mount Isa Mines (Australia), Rio Tinto (Argentina), Phelps Dodge (Phoenix, USA) and Newmont (Denver,… Continue Reading

Freeport was founded in 1912 (then called Freeport Sulphur) in Freeport, Texas and currently employs over 36,000 people and is the US’ largest miner. According to a Wall Street Journal report today, Aaron Regent’s private equity firm, Magris Resources, is among the bidders for Freeport-McMoRan’s (FCX:NYSE) Candelaria copper mine in Chile which could raise multiple billions of… Continue Reading

The London-based gold fund, Baker Steel (named after co-founders Trevor Steel and David Baker), have made their first investment in shale oil.  The investment firm has solely focused on metals companies, but given the similarities between the extraction and processing of shale oil and metals, the firm is comfortable with the space. Baker Steel bought 3.3… Continue Reading

This morning, after a month of battling, Timmins Gold (TMM:TSX) and their 17% dissident shareholder, Sentry Investments have come to an agreement on the composition of the company’s Board of Directors.  After Sentry proposed a new slate, the investment fund that manages over $14 billion in assets accepted Timmins’ proposed Board of seven nominees as long as they could… Continue Reading