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GREETINGS to our new website.
The FORUM began in the late 1990’s at origsix.com. Do to its age a modern website became necessary. Here it is; however all the transaction from origsix.com during the transition are not yet available on the site. Our original website will remain. Welcome and enjoy your journey with the oldest USA gold mining corporation. Participate using either or both sites.In this case, it would be another Canadian precious metals miner goes foreign.
Credit: Jackson Chen (mining.com)
Shares of IAMGOLD Corp. (TSX: IMG) surged over 9% on Thursday — its biggest jump in four years — amid whispers of a possible bid from China. The nation’s second-biggest gold mining company, China National Gold Group Corp., is said to be considering a bid for a stake in IAMGOLD, according to BNN Bloomberg’s latest report.
So far the report only says the state-owned gold miner is in discussions with financial advisers regarding a potential offer. China National Gold has not responded to the bid rumors.
Just last month, IAMGOLD went public to address reports of a planned asset sale, stating there were no material changes in the company. However, the Toronto-based gold miner also did not openly deny it might be in talks with advisers and potential buyers.
China National Gold is the largest shareholder of Hong Kong-listed China Gold International Resources Corp. and Shanghai-traded Zhongjin Gold Corp.
IAMGOLD currently operates four mines — three in Africa and one in Canada — producing a total 882,000 ounces of gold last year.
The company’s most recent quarterly results fell short of analyst expectations, and earlier this year, it cut workforce at the Westwood mine by 32%. Reports of IAMGOLD exploring an asset sale followed shortly after its Q1 release.
A week prior, CEO Stephen Letwin said at the Mines & Money conference in New York that “we are going to see consolidation” and “there are too many mid-tier miners” — commenting on the sizable mergers that have materialized in the industry. Letwin added that IAMGOLD gets “a lot of interest” from Chinese investors.
It appears that the Mountain Pass Mine in SoCal is operating again. It was purchased out of BK by JHL Capital of Chicago. Somehow a Chinese company owns 9.9% of it. I wonder who they paid in order for permission to buy in to our only rare earth minerals mine?
The loss of an economical rare earth producer in southern California is due to ignorance by California Water Boards. Attempts to educate those board members falls on the boards and to a minor degree the various staff advisors. Enlightenment has become a necessity to secure our national defense. Latest news below:
CHINA WEAPONIZED RARE EARTH
May 29, 2019 |
Chinese state-run media outlets published reports Wednesday, including an editorial in the top newspaper of China’s Communist Party, hinting at the possibility of cutting off exports of rare-earth materials to the U.S.China supplies about 80% of the United States’ rare-earth imports, which are then used in everything from smartphones to electric vehicles.
“China, as the dominant producer of rare earths, has shown in the past that it can use rare earths as a bargaining chip when it comes to multilateral
negotiations,” Northern Minerals CEO George Bauk told Bloomberg.Rare earths actually are found all over the planet, but China supplies the most largely due to environmental issues and pollution caused by their production. Rare-earth materials are made up of 17 elements from the periodic table that are found in a number of products critical in U.S. manufacturing, including batteries, flame retardants, smartphones, electric cars and fighter jets. They are reportedly used in tiny amounts, but are crucial to the manufacturing process.
It wouldn’t be the first time China weaponized its rare earths. In 2010, Beijing cut off exports to Japan after a Chinese boat captain was captured by Japanese authorities. The ban was so effective, Japan immediately released the captain in what the New York Times described as “a concession that appeared to mark a humiliating retreat in a Pacific test of wills.”
There is High Grade in other parts of the world as well:
Journal: “Australian Mining” reported today:“RNC Minerals has unearthed its second high-grade gold discovery in nine months at the Beta Hunt mine near Kambalda, Western Australia.
An estimated 987 ounces of coarse gold has been recovered in 238 kilograms of rock from a series of veins, worth approximately $1.9 million at today’s gold price.
The discovery continues what has been a successful period for the Canadian company, after finding a 90-kilogram stone with a gold content of 1000 ounces in October last year at the Father’s Day vein at the Beta Hunt mine.”
By the way: RNC (Royal Nickel Corporation) CEO Mark Shelby, is listed at TSX in Toronto.
April 11, 2019
Newmont Shareholders Vote to Create World’s Leading Gold CompanyNewmont Mining Corp.’s shareholders voted overwhelmingly to approve the proposed transaction with Goldcorp Inc. Goldcorp’s shareholders have also voted overwhelmingly in support of the combination with more than 97% of votes cast in favor of the transaction. Newmont shareholders approved the increase in Newmont’s authorized common stock with more than 76 percent of the outstanding shares voting for the proposal and approved the issuance of shares pursuant to the transaction with more than 98 percent of the votes cast for the proposal. The transaction is expected to close in the second quarter.
Thank you Newmont, a USA corporation, for moving forward with the organization. How about California?
Men and Mines of Newmont by Robert H. Ramsey identified Fred Searls, Jr as the leader in 1925. “Newmont found a man whose experience and capabilities matched the company’s needs. People who knew him well characterized him as being generous, stingy, courageous, fearful, uncommunicative, forthright, decisive hesitant, intuitive, and pragmatic”. On page 71: In 1931 Newmont bought the Original 16 ti 1 mine near Alleghany, California, a small, very high-grade gold property Searls remembered from his early exploration days. (Factually incorrect: Searls, General Lucius Clay and Bernard Baruch participated in a joint venture with the Sixteen to drive the 1500 foot level north into the Red Star mine in 1964-65.) They found gold but not enough to profit at the fixed price of $35 an ounce. Our crew is working successfully in the area today. Gold is $1298 an ounce.
March 7, 2019 Breaking News 2:49 PM
Newmont Mining Corp. has rejected a proposal from Barrick Gold Corp. to merge the two companies. Newmont said a merger with Barrick poses a “significant risk” and was not in the company’s best interest. Instead, Newmont decided to continue with its agreement to acquire Goldcorp.
Newmont CEO Gary Goldberg says it best unaltered. Quote:
“Our thorough review of Barrick’s unsolicited proposal and its associated risks has reaffirmed our conclusion that the combination of Newmont and Goldcorp represents the best opportunity to create value for Newmont’s shareholders and deliver industry-leading returns for decades to come,” “Unlike Barrick, Newmont Goldcorp will be centered in the world’s most-favorable mining jurisdictions and gold districts. The combination with Goldcorp is significantly more accretive to Newmont’s shareholders on all relevant metrics compared to Barrick’s proposal, even when factoring in Barrick’s own synergy estimates.”While the hostile takeover by Barrick would have no potential impact on Sixteen to One, It is not a good move for our Country. Americans must get real about the topics of domestic natural resource production. There is so much yacking from children and their future due the sorry projections of our environment. Well, without domestic capabilities to produce the very required essences of life, the future will guided by others. Historical warfare does not lie
THIS IS INCREDIBLE……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Just received the following news:
February 22, 2019Barrick Gold could soon be involved in a US$19-billion hostile bid for Newmont Mining, but the miner stated a decision has not yet been made.
According to the source quoted by The Globe and Mail, which has been noted as “familiar with the matter,” said Barrick is looking at Newmont for approximately US$19 billion in stock, in what could potentially be one of the largest-ever deals in mining history.
“Barrick Gold today confirmed that the company has reviewed the opportunity to merge with Newmont Mining in an all-share nil premium transaction. No decision has been taken at this time,” Barrick stated in a press release.
Any Comments?
I’m working on a future project for a project. I’m finding what I want and in the process reading old writings. You may enjoy some I read but not on the subject of my project. The following was written July 31, 2009 by Scoop. China was not getting much recognition for its economic shift to gold, the yuan and the declining influences of the all mighty US dollar. Today China is getting a lot of press. Are you seeing it in your publications?
“Slow morning in Alleghany but the following seems worth repeating.
China has gone crazy for gold.
In April the government’s Foreign-Exchange Agency announced the purchase of an additional 16 MILLION ounces for state coffers.
A few months earlier, National Geographic Magazine reported that for the first time China had surpassed the U.S. as a buyer of gold jewelry.But here’s the amazing thing few investors realize…
What the Chinese government did for oil over the past decade… they are today doing for gold. This is a huge development. China is also one of the few countries in the world where known gold reserves are increasing… not shrinking.
In short, the Chinese government wants more gold. It realizes gold is one of the only buy-and-hold investments in the world right now. The Chinese have a lot of money to spend… nearly $2 Trillion according to a recent report in The New York Times.The Ministry of Land and Resources has completely rewritten the country’s mining laws (known as the Minerals and Resources Law) to encourage local and foreign companies to explore for and produce more gold. The government has also recently created the Shanghai Gold Exchange, to allow anyone to trade gold, on the open market, without government interference.
Twenty years ago, China produced an inconsequential amount of gold. Today, China is the #1 gold-producing nation in the world (a fact Scoop lacks multiple sources to support).
When it comes to gold mining in China, it’s a whole different world than what is found in America or Canada. There’s no such thing as a NI43-101 disclosure form for mining companies. Instead of a handful of giant companies running the industry (how global gold mining has evolved, especially in the US), it’s basically thousands of small operations scattered across the country.
In short, it’s like the American Wild West. Ah, the American wild west; frontier freedom and frontier justice; pioneering spirit as defined by the California gold rush and the population and development of the west; exploiting the natural resources for the benefit of society; producing new wealth. Go, China, go!
As Mike has offered “The California gold belt is the most proven deposit with the fewest miners working it on earth.”
Scoop asks, “Why is the American investor asleep and ignoring gold and developing the gold assets of its oldest gold mining company?”
WAY TO GO NEWMONT MINING
Newmont Mining has completed a US$69-million expansion at its Exodus operation, which has resulted in a 10-year extension to production and will lower all-in sustaining costs by about US$25 per ounce at its Carlin mine during its first five years of operation. The expansion, which was the company’s second in the last month, was completed both ahead of schedule and within budget and will add between 50,000 ounces a year and 75,000 ounces a year of gold production. The expansion will also lower Carlin’s all-in sustaining costs by about US$25 per ounce in its first five years of operation.
Thanks to John Livermore and friends; Nevada continues supporting America with new gold production.
Fred Searls Jr., one of initial Leaders of Newmont, began his lifetime interest with gold mining in California. His history with Sixteen to One mine differs from the inaccurate account In “Men and Mines of Newmont” by Robert H. Ramsey (page 71). No disrespect intended. Mining exudes folk-lore, myths, legends and downright fabrications. Fred cut his geological teeth going north in the 250 level beyond the Tightner Shaft. He rued his mistake in surveying the level which is clearly noticeable on old maps. He, General Lucius D. Clay and the famous stock guru and statesman, Bernard Baruch liked mining ventures.
Baruch Clay and Searls were buddies. Searls told them about his days as a geologist at the Sixteen to One. He told a friend of mine, Donald Dicky that it was the only mistake he ever made in mining. Don and I laughed because Don told me years earlier when I was down and pouting about a story of mining. We failed to find enough gold in the fall of 1991. I had to lay off the crew shortly before Christmas.
Don liked Fred and spoke of his large idiosyncrasies as well as his large ego. (He was also a colorful dresser.) “One mistake?” Don grunted. “Mistakes are many when it comes to mining. Don’t worry Mike, Let it go. It’s your comeback that counts.”
Fred and group put up some money in the early 1960’s to keep the Sixteen mining. Gold spot price, frozen in 1933, caused the other mines to close. What must have interested Fred was where he screwed up his survey was this new target: north on the 1500 level into the Red Star. The miners found speckled gold along the drift, but expenses caught up to the Sixteen and in December 1965, management laid off the miners; however management allowed those loyal men to continue mining, which they did for years. Fred never owned stock in our Company. He and his buddies loaned some cash for operating. They tore up the note. Maybe Fred cleared his conscious. One mistake? Baloney!
Problems continue with major gold producers in foreign countries.
As the tax dispute between Acacia (Barrick owns 63.9 percent of Acacia and the Tanzanian government continues, the company’s representative, Barrick Gold, has decided that it won’t provide a definite deadline to end the negotiations. The decision comes after Barrick, which is negotiating on behalf of Acacia, failed to meet a mid-year target to complete talks surrounding the ongoing tax issue.
Despite failing to meet the deadline, both Acacia and Barrick remain positive about the situation, noting that the discussions between Barrick and the government of Tanzania are constructive and that progress has been made towards creating a “definitive agreement,” which is necessary for the “implementation of the proposed framework.”
The tax dispute between the miner and the East African country transpired when Tanzania began making sweeping changes to its mining industry in order to reap more benefits from its minerals.
As part of these changes, the Tanzanian government slapped Acacia, its biggest gold miner, with a US$190 billion bill in unpaid taxes, penalties and interest in 2017. This is not the first time that the company has suffered as a result of the Tanzanian government making changes to policies and procedures within the mining sector. The miner has lost almost 80 percent of its value following a ban on unprocessed ore that was set into motion in March of last year.
According to the deal, Acacia would give the government a 16-percent stake in its mines, as well as a payment of US$300 million and equally split any “economic benefits” from operations.
California has mining problems but not ones like those outside USA.
The following headline caught my eye and stimulated the question, “why”:
Sumitomo Buys 5-percent Stake in Yanacocha Gold Mine for U$48 Million.The sub heading was, “in an effort to boost its metals assets, Japan’s Sumitomo has purchased a 5-percent stake in Peru’s Yanacocha gold mine for US$48 million. “ My curiosity is not that Sumitomo bought an interest in a big gold producer. No. it is, who is Sumitomo?
Sumitomo Corporation (Sumitomo, Head Office: Chuo-ku, Tokyo; President and Chief Executive Officer: Masayuki Hyodo), is pleased to announce that Sumitomo has reached an agreement with Newmont Mining Corporation (Newmont) and Compania de Minas Buenaventura S.A.A. (Buenaventura) to purchase certain ownership interest of Yanacocha Gold and Copper Mine in Peru (Yanacocha).
Newmont is the world’s largest gold producer. Sumitomo had a long and productive partnership with Newmont at Batu Hijau Copper-Gold Mine in Indonesia from 1996 to 2016.
Buenaventura is a leading precious metals producer in Peru. Sumitomo has partnered with Buenaventura at Freeport’s Cerro Verde Copper mine in southern Peru since 2003.Sumitomo’s investment comes as Japanese trading companies enjoyed their best profit in six years and are now searching for assets to add to their portfolios. Profits have been driven by higher prices for commodities such as coking coal and copper.
If this interest’s you read about Sumitomo and all the extensions of this Japanese corporation. It definitely crosses natural resources with varied financial business. What if banks and other dollar related institutions gobble gold producing companies?
By the way,today I turn 76 years from a birth in Sacramento. If you are a shareholder in Original Sixteen to One Mine, Inc. our company is older than Sumitomo, I congratulate you for becoming a part of another natural resource producer.
ARE US DOLLARS AND GOLD CLOSELY RELATED? Turkey is making a statement.
Turkish Gold Imports Triple As Central Bank Diversifies Out Of Dollars
Turkish gold imports surged due to a sharp increase in investment demand as well as renewed Central bank purchases. Turkey added 86 metric tons to its official holdings in the last seven months of 2017.According to the 2018 World Gold Survey, Turkish official gold holdings reached a new record high of 565 metric tons (mt) last year as the government decided to replace a significant amount of its Dollar reserves with gold.
Turkish gold imports more than tripled from 106 mt in 2016 to 361 mt in 2017. Again, the large increase in Turkish gold imports was due to a 60% increase in investment demand and the 86 mt purchase by the Central bank.
What is quite interesting about the increase in Turkish gold demand and imports is how it compares to the United States. In 2017, Turkey imported 361 mt of gold versus 255 mt for the United States. Thus, Turkey, whose population is one-quarter of the United States, imported 100+ mt more gold. Look at the major foreign holders of U.S. Treasury securities, Turkey has been liquidating its Dollar holdings by $16 billion since its peak in October 2017.
Russia has also been liquidating U.S. Treasuries by approximately $11 billion since its peak in November 2017. However, Russia wasn’t selling U.S. treasuries to purchase gold; rather they were diversifying out of Dollars and into IMF Bonds.
While there are countless reasons why Russia is adding gold to its official holdings, the most important reason is quite simply, because IT CAN. The majority of countries is running massive trade and balance account deficits and cannot purchase gold. Russia is one of the few countries that export a great deal more oil than it uses domestically which is part of the reason it enjoyed a $115 billion trade surplus last year.
U.S. Government could print money to purchase gold. There are no western central banks buying gold. They just can’t. Most of the Central Bank sold into the market has come from the IMF and western central banks. Second, for a western central bank to start purchasing gold, it would be seen as a huge red flag to western fiat currencies.
Gold is a barometer for the U.S. Dollar. If the U.S. Government started printing money to buy gold, think about how that would not only impact the price but market sentiment. Western central banks will continue to liquidate gold until the financial markets and the fiat monetary system disintegrate. When more countries like Turkey add to their gold reserves, it’s a clear sign that all is not well in the global financial markets.
World Gold Council Edit.
May 14, 2018This date stands strong with me for two reasons: Pearl Harbor and my father’s birthday, December 7, 1906. Now it also stands with September 11 as 9/11, as infamous days of terror.
The Japanese, with few natural resources, sought to copy the pattern of European colonialism in Asia. The Japanese military faced a particular tactical problem in that certain critical raw materials — especially oil and rubber were not available in Japan or their colonies. The intensification of Chinese resistance to the pressure of the Japanese military drew Japan into a draining war in the vast reaches of China proper. Japan was not militarily or economically powerful enough to fight a long war against the United States, and the Japanese military knew this. Its attack on Pearl Harbor was a tremendous gamble.
Our country and today my state home, California, must reform its understanding of our own natural resources. Our public service industries lead the nation in economic and scientific ignorance regarding its value and development. Let’s begin meaningful reformation today.
Scotiabank will sell its gold trading unit following a scandal involving a US refinery and smuggled gold from South America.
The Canadian bank’s ScotiaMocatta business is one of London’s main gold-trading banks, and was acquired by Scotiabank almost two decades ago., Chinese buyers are the key targets of the sale, which is being led by JPMorgan. What prompted the sale was Scotiabank’s lending to Elemetal, a precious metal refinery in Dallas.
Earlier this year, US prosecutors accused workers at NTR Metals, a subsidiary of Elemetal, of a money-laundering scheme using “billions of dollars of criminally derived gold,” mostly from Peru: “knowingly conspired to purchase gold with the intent to promote the carrying on of organized criminal activity, including illegal gold mining, gold smuggling and the entry of goods into the US by false means and statements to US Customs, and narcotics trafficking.”
Of course the whole issue has layers of responsible entities downstream from the bank. NTR Metals is said to have imported more than $3.6 billion worth of gold from Latin America between 2012 and 2015. Scotiabank and ScotiaMocatta have not been accused of any wrongdoing.
Scotiabank has been seeking a buyer for the unit for up to a year, and is likely to shrink the business if a sale is not completed. Scotiabank has the biggest foreign presence of any Canadian bank, and is focusing its international strategy on the Pacific Alliance, a Latin American trade bloc comprised of Mexico, Peru, Chile and Colombia.US President Donald Trump and staff were approach with a suggestion to nationalize the whole Mountain Pass enchilada to turn it into a national laboratory “dedicated to rebuilding America’s rare-earth mining industry, so the world knows it is safe to build high-tech manufacturing plants in the U.S.”
The Trump administration has not commented on the proposal that Mountain Pass be nationalized by eminent domain via the Takings Clause of the Fifth Amendment. Yikes!!
Shall I make a comment regarding my belief that the U.S. must retain a domestic mining industry? Yes.Whether it is gold in California or rare earth minerals in California, state and federal governments must take notice as to reasons our rare earth deposit fell into a mixture of foreign hands and the Sixteen to One mine is again the last commercial underground gold operation. BUT, nationalization?
No, our governments have projected a negative attitude to miners. We ask for a neutral behavior of regulating the industry or even a helping hand. Nationalization will bring more harm than benefits. Yet, to make America greater than it has been for a while, how about governmental bureaucracy easing the pain to our miners? Hey business leaders…find another way.
Here is a tiny story of what I currently face regarding California water regulations. The Sixteen to One mine is a mineralized area commonly called a deposit. Surface water trickles through the earth and discharges from an underground hole excavated in 1865. The water has done this over 150 years with no adverse effect to Kanaka Creek and its environment. When the federal and state bureaucrat launched its broad brush to save the environment, identifying mineral levels jumped from measurements in parts per million to parts per billion. The number becomes larger and frightening to the “soft knowing eyes.”
Here is the result: California water public servants decided that the water from the Sixteen to One mine must be treated to meet drinking water standards before it passes into mineral rich Kanaka Creek, previously recognized as highly mineralized. This is governmental insanity without doubt! Mine water is not a problem. Using precious funds to negate a non-problem without beneficial gain is money lost towards production. There is no economy here that provides benefit to the public.
What a surprise!!!
A buyout group backed by a Chinese company has been declared the winner at a bankruptcy auction yesterday (June 14, 2017) for the Mountain Pass rare earths mine, the sole U.S. source of elements essential to electronic devices. Molycorp, the mine’s original owner, poured $1.5 billion into Mountain Pass in 2011, when rare earths prices were high. A drop in light and heavy rare earths prices forced the mine to close in mid-2015, and Molycorp went bankrupt. The US currently imports most of its rare earths from China. What contributed to the drop in price? China began dumping inventory into a market it controls.
An Australian led group of companies was designated as backup bidder. The group will be submitting an objection on or before June 19th to object to issues related to the auction process. Swiss bases mining investment fund, Pala, plays a role in the take-over as does ERP Group of Companies (private company). Russian-born billionaire Vladimir Iorich established Pala Investments in 2007.
The high bid was $20.5 million.
TEN TOP GOLD PRODUCING COUNTRIES
Once again, China was the world’s top gold-producing country with output of 455 MT. The country has now held that position for 10 years in a row. (MT = metric tons)
Gold production in Australia took a bit of a tumble in 2016, dropping from 278 MT in 2015 to 270 MT.
US gold production dipped last year, dropping from 214 MT in 2015 to 209 MT in 2016. Most of the gold in the country was produced at more than 40 lode mines, several large placer mines in Alaska and a number of smaller placer mines in the western USA.
The USGS further notes that the 26 top operations in the country were responsible for 99 percent of its gold output.Gold production in Canada rose noticeably in 2016. Last year, the country reported output 170 MT of gold, compared to 153 MT in 2015.
Peru saw a slight increase in gold production last year, with output rising from 145 MT in 2015 to 150 MT in 2016.
South Africa’s gold production has steadily over the last several years. In 2016, production dropped to 140 MT from 145 MT in 2015.
Gold production Mexico has stayed relatively stable over the last several years, although it dropped last year to 125 MT from 135 MT in 2015.
Indonesia’s gold production increased from 97 MT in 2015 to 100 MT in 201.
Rounding out the list is Uzbekistan, which produced 100 MT of gold in 2016, down from 102 MT in 2015.
In 2015, global gold production increased by just under one percent in 2015. This is the seventh annual increase for gold production in a row, although that growth is slowing.
American mining companies face unlawful enforcement of laws by its government and quasi-government entities along with numerous obstructions in America’s production of needed natural resources. It’s a fact! One hazard felt in some active mining places that we do not face is kidnapping our miners. For national security reasons, America must produce minerals from its own country.
News from headline June 27, 2016: “RELEASE OF KIDNAPPED MACMAHON WORKERS”
Macmahon Holdings has confirmed the release of all seven of its men who were abducted near its operations in Calabar, Nigeria on June 22, 2016. Five of the men have been injured – two of them seriously – and they are receiving medical attention. The two uninjured men are also undergoing medical assessment. Arrangements have been made for the men’s safe return to their families once they receive medical clearance to travel.
During the attack on June 22,, Matthew Odok, who was driving a vehicle the men were travelling in, was killed. The kidnapped workers were three Australians, two Nigerians, a New Zealander and a South African. According to reports one Macmahon worker, mechanic Tim Croot, managed to evade capture.
Overnight a historic event took place when China, the world’s top gold consumer, launched a yuan-denominated gold benchmark as had been previewed here previously, in what Reuters dubbed “an ambitious step to exert more control over the pricing of the metal and boost its influence in the global bullion market.”
Considering the now officially-confirmed rigging of the gold and silver fix courtesy of last week’s Deutsche Bank settlement, this is hardly bad news and may finally lead to some rigging cartel and central bank-free price discovery. Or it may not, because China would enjoy nothing more than continuing to accumulate gold at lower prices.
The first Chinese benchmark price, derived from a 1 kg-contract traded by 18 participants on the Shanghai Gold Exchange (SGE), was set at 256.92 yuan ($39.69) per gram on Tuesday, equivalent to $1,234.50/ounce.
China’s gold benchmark is the culmination of efforts by China over the last few years to reform its domestic gold market in a bid to have a bigger say in the bullion industry, long dominated by London where the global spot benchmark price is currently set.
As is well known, as the world’s top producer, importer and consumer of gold, China has balked at having to depend on a dollar price in international transactions, and believes its market weight should entitle it to set the price of gold.
Thank you, shareholder for sending this historic event. Otherwise I may not have seen it.
Thanks also to zerohedge.com for your news. Speculations welcomed about the effect this will have.Shareholders will lose all (including CalPERS, who own over 2% of the stock). Looks like Wells and Bank of Nova Scotia will provide financing. The Hycroft mine will stay operating, as this is essential for any of the creditors to recoup funds. It looks like they lost (mark to market) around $95 million on currency swaps, which were necessary because of operations in Mexico/S. America. Their all-in cost for 2015 is a little over $1000 per ounce – not much room for error.
There is a ton of info on the recent form 8-K.Good point on Barrick – I am very familiar with their current debt/leverage position. The Pascua Lama project in Chile/Argentine really set them back, bad…
Sad news, cw3343. Wonder who will bail Allied out of its death. Will it become foreign owned? What about all those existing shareholders?
The bankruptcy is quite a step down for Allied Nevada. The US-based gold mining and exploration company, which holds the Hycroft gold-silver mine in Nevada and a variety of other properties in that state, reached a high of $45 back in 2011 when the gold price peaked.
Looking at how bad it got for the company, the news outlet states that Allied Nevada’s debt clocked in at $664 million as of December 31, 2014, with its assets coming to $941 million. Meanwhile, the company had less than $1.3 million in cash in November of last year; though it was able to bump its treasury up by later raising $21.5 million, by Tuesday its cash was back down at just $4.5 million.
As mentioned, Allied Nevada’s filing is in support of a financial restructuring that will allow the company to reduce its “funded debt obligations and provide [it] with additional liquidity” — specifically, it will receive a cash boost of $78 million. The majority of the company’s creditors reportedly support the restructuring, and its entire creditor and vendors are expected to be paid in full when it’s complete.
The first domino?
In addition to being heavily leveraged, many miners have had their credit ratings downgraded. Companies are heavily leveraged. Debt is becoming less and less available. Examples of miners that have received downgrades include Teck Resources and Barrick Gold downgraded in January. The miner’s debt-to-total-capital ratio was 45 percent, making its financial leverage higher than average. Its long-term debt was sitting at about US$1.3 billion.Not sure if foreign ownership will result – but RIP Allied Nevada Gold.
Among other reasons for their Chapter 11, currency swaps exposure was mentioned.
While the following in not a clip about US going to other countries, it does provide information that all is not bliss when a natural resource decides to develop a natural resource outside the United States.
Barrick Gold reported that it will suspend operations at its Lumwana copper mine in Zambia. The move follows the Zambian government’s decision to jack up royalties on open-pit mining operations in the country from 6 percent to a whopping 20 percent. the new rules will also slap a 20-percent gross royalty on revenue “without any consideration of profitability.”
The company expects to record an impairment charge of $1 billion related to Lumwana with its fourth-quarter results for this year. It will implement major workforce reductions at the mine in March, and aims to transition the mine to care and maintenance by the second quarter of 2015. While this is a small amount for Barrick, the new royalty increase eliminates about 4,000 jobs in the region.
Another billion dollar resource company agreed to a $7.5 million environmental fine. How was this environmental loss to the public calculated? Does this encourage governments to exaggerate the actual damages caused by an accident or set of circumstances beyond a company’s control? I think so.
All I ask for in California is a level playing field. Judge the Sixteen to One factually, realistically and with competent administrative personnel. Natural resources are a necessary ingredient to return prosperity. California is moving in the right direction. I’m not sure Washington D.C. understands this yet. It will because it is one fundamental economic improvement that brings the poor, the comfortable and the rich financial gain. Oh, and yes, the environment must not lose for this to take place. The upcoming year will mark a recognition of the need to encourage or at least not discourage responsible natural-resource productions. I pray for America to get the message.
This short report, below, is from a reliable source. Is it true? I only have doubts because I have not read this in a newspaper or TV or radio. I find it suspicious because it does not cite the volume. My source is “lemetropolecafe.com”. Answers appreciated because 12.5Kg is a big number time spot price for bullion.
Physical gold is being accumulated and used in exchanges
but very discretely as of now. In a recent report mentioned
in the UK Telegraph it is revealed that a record number of super-rich elite are buying gold bullion bars weighting
12.5 Kg. The report says “The gold buying secrets of the
UK come as it was recently revealed the number of 12.5kg
gold bars being bought by wealthy customers has increased
243% so far this year, when compared to the same period
last year.”I checked telegraph.co.uk and found the article entitled, “Gold hoarding secrets of the UK mapped”. The bars are worth 300,000 pounds, another big number but how many are purchased. This is a major reason for difficulties in talking price, supply and demand. This is my break from the issues of running a real gold mining company. Break over.
Mali plans to boost funding opportunities for its artisanal miners and to improve the policing of a sector that produces about a third of the country’s gold exports, officials said at the start of a mining reform meeting. Artisanal gold mining is plagued by frequent fatal accidents, smuggling and reports of child labor while environmental issues have also been caused by the lack of geographical restrictions on miners.
Artisanal mining is on the rise in Mali as neighbors including Ghana, Senegal and Burkina Faso have imposed restrictions on the sector, driving more miners into Mali. Speaking at the meeting, Abdoulaye Pona, president of Mali’s chamber of mines, and mines minister, Boubou Cisse, said the government was negotiating with banks to give miners easier access to financing for equipment and newly formed cooperatives would be supervised and revenues distributed equitably.
“With this system, the miners will no longer continue to dig holes from right to left, here and there. Mining will be done in selected corridors and at the end of the activities we will close the holes to restore the ecosystem,” Pona said. President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita, also at the meeting, called on miners to end the practice of child labor.
“We will not allow children into gold mining sites,” he said, “We have to stop this.”
Our governments (US and California) had agencies to guide and assist the mineral extraction industry. Its employees were familiar with the nuances of mining. They were responsible advocates who had the background, experiences and training to protect both the miners and non-mining consumers of our vital and precious natural resources. No longer can these public servants be found.
The agencies now concerned with minerals are operated from fear based, police based or revenue based people and policies. Laws, created by our elected citizens, have given way to regulations no longer lawful. In this process the survivors are mostly large corporations. Their stream of income and political resources carries the day.
Look at Mali, a small perhaps third world country. Its government must realize the value for producing gold. Wow, the leaders are helping the miners financially as well as assisting the actual operations. What a concept! I can only wish for America to find such leaders. Our governments have become the biggest oppressor. Consider all the minerals America requires to sustain our way-of-life. If more were produced locally, our population will be richer and safer as well. I’m sure you know why.
Group,
All I can say is *WHEW!* What a relief it is! I think we all owe Michael a big, hearty thanks for all his efforts in helping to stall this totally absurd and completely unnecessary piece of legislation.
I, for one, am optimistic that this might not come up again right away. At least not for a few years although we probably always need to be on the watch.
I might add that I am also quite optimistic on the future of the Original Sixteen to One Mine. Optimistic and becoming more so all the time!
Regards,
Fred M. CainCalifornia can thank those who commented on the dangers of putting the bill into law. I received the following email from Dennis at EnviroMine, Inc. yesterday at 2:40pm:
“It has been confirmed that Senate Bill 1270 has not made it through the appropriations committee. That means the bill is dead for this session in the Senate.
Your letters and e-mails had an impact. I will keep you posted if any other news comes up.”
Tomorrow is the date for the California Senate to move this bill forward or stop it. I sent the three senators most involved the following fax today.
The Senators are: Senator Kevin De Leon: http://sd22.senate.ca.gov /Phone: (916) 651-4022
Fax: (916) 327-8817Senate Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg: http://sd06.senate.ca.gov/ Phone: (916) 651-4006
Fax: (916) 651-4906Senator Fran Pavley: http://sd27.senate.ca.gov/ Phone: (916) 651-4027
Fax: (916) 651-4927Senate Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg May 22, 2014
Senators Kevin De Leon
Senator Fran PavleyRegarding: SB 1270
Dear Senators,
This proposed bill must not continue. The language may appear innocuous, but it will bring unwanted consequences to those in our vital mining industry. Most of the revisions are not needed to preserve, protect and enhance this necessary Californian business. It will hurt the general public, which I believe you are trying to give additional protection. It will hurt the young families eager to enter a tough blue collar well-paying job market…the life of a gold miner. It will hurt all business in rural counties where most of our valuable resources are deposit.When asked, I wrote my Sierra County Supervisor, Lee Adams the following comments:
“Lee,
Identify those underground operations today that are abusing the physical environment. Then propose a bill to address those concerns. Problems likely occurred long ago before the Surface Mining and Reclamation Act was legislated. It was needed in the 1970’s because mining experts discovered the technology to profitably extract minerals using high tonnage, open pit development. Operators today are aware of the need to restore surface excavations to a safe and nonhazardous state. The data gathered to support the need for the proposed language in this lengthy bill is both inconsistent and unreliable with evidence I have observed throughout CaliforniaThere is a most insidious, sneaky and outright fraudulent change in the proposed language. No doubt it was placed there by a hungry lawyer. It allows third parties to file lawsuits under SMARA. Similar language has cost the taxpayers billions of dollars under the water protection. This money was wasted when reviewed by careful analysis. Californians cannot open this door to needy lawyers and others using organizations as a front to make their living.”
Permit me to qualify my opinions regarding SB 1270.
Since 1983 I have been the President of the oldest gold mining company in the United States. Original Sixteen to One Mine, Inc. was incorporated in California in 1911 and has
operated mines in California since then. It is a traditional underground gold mine between Sacramento and Lake Tahoe. To even explore for minerals in California an operator must work through county, state and federal rules, regulations and standards, all of which emanate from some legislated law. Others in mining respond when asked about considering an investment in California, “Wrong zip code.”
Regulations are blamed for the hostile work environment in California as well as the mineral extraction industry. Farmers feel the same, as do too many other businesses. After years of working with the many governmental agencies, I reached a somewhat different conclusion to the regulations problem. The regulators are more the problem than the regulations they interpret and enforce. How has this happened? Government employees fear admitting that mistakes were made. In other words, they cover them up. They also react badly to overzealous fears expressed by members of the non-government sector. The time and capital burden falls on and over powers the small operators to defend these claims. The effects are much greater for them than for the large companies. This proposed language will bury the small miners. Their much needed products will be withdrawn from California’s economy. The public will be the losers as well.
California Senate Bill 1270 is scheduled for a vote on May 23, 2014. It is an unneeded change with unpleasant consequences for the public at large, taxpayers and natural resource industries. Please stop its ascension into law. Time is of the essence and I make myself available to you and your staff for details on this subject.
Sincerely yours,
Michael M. Miller, PresidentThe SB 1270 legislation moving through the California State Legislature isn’t just bad, it’s beyond horrible. This legislation needs to be amended or, better yet, killed altogether.
The environmentalist movement in this country is out of control. What started out as a good thing has turned into a monster that is hurting businesses and people.
I did some online searching on SB 1270 today and turned up this site:If you can copy that and paste it to your browser that should take you to the home web page of “Reclaiming The Sierra”. At the top of the page is a picture showing severe and probably permanent damage from hydraulic mining done over a century ago. How long has it been since any hydraulic surface mining has been done in California? This is the kind of garbage they use to persuade public opinion. The hidden message is “all mining is bad”.
I sent an e-mail to this group this morning. I doubt they will even respond but if they do I will share their response with our forum.
Underground mines operating in the state using traditional mining methods should not be made to comply with this legislation. It will probably end mining in California. Maybe that’s their intention?
If there is anyone on our forum who is a legal resident of California, please, please, PLEASE, write to your state rep and senator and urge them to consider voting against this piece of mean spirited legislation. Write to Jerry Brown, too! Since I live in the Midwest, I am at a distinct disadvantage but I might just decide to write anyway. It probably won’t do any good since I’m not a resident but surely it couldn’t hurt, either.
Copy and paste this to your browser:
http://findyourrep.legislature.ca.gov/
Regards,
Fred M. CainUnder our highest laws which is the work celebrated today, the freedom to work the Sixteen to One mine is undermined by governments’ execution of our most treasured document: the United Stated Constitution. Its administration in every department should be stamped with wisdom and virtue in compliance with our laws. Some things are wrong.
The habits of thinking in our country should inspire caution in those entrusted with its administration, to confine themselves within their respective constitutional spheres, avoiding in the exercise of the powers of one department to encroach upon another. The spirit of encroachment tends to consolidate the powers of all the departments in one, and thus to create, whatever the form of government, a real despotism. We see it with comingling federal and California water agencies and to a lesser degree the mandated rules for health and safety.
That love of power, and proneness to abuse it, which predominates in the human heart, is truth of this position. The necessity of reciprocal checks in the exercise of political power, by dividing and distributing it into different depositories and constituting each the guardian of the public weal against abuses by the others, has increased to the point of the extinction of many in our natural resource industry. To preserve them must be as necessary as to institute them. If, in the opinion of the people, the distribution or modification of governing (constitutional powers or statutory) be in any particular wrong, let it be corrected by an amendment in the way which the Constitution designates, not as it is currently. To execute or administrate them inspires caution, avoiding in the exercise of the powers of one department to encroach upon another. It is the responsibility of the People. But how will the People be informed?
A small but artful enterprising minority of the community have become the rulers. I wish I could say leaders, but their leadership ignores the best interest of the People. The public administration became the mirror of ill concerted and incongruous projects of fractional different parties rather than the work of consistent and wholesome plans sometimes garbled by common councils but modified by mutual interests. Government workers are not to blame except that for personal reasons, so many cannot strike out against the problems they see and enforce. Where are leaders for the People? Individuals have united in power as cunning, ambitious and unprincipled rulers. They are not leaders but potent engines with artificial and extraordinary force. They subvert the Power of the People which destroy the very engines which they are trusted to fuel.
My hope is greater today that the People are awake now and thoughts are appearing to expose the machinations now occurring at home and around the world. It is not confined only to the governments. Illegal behaviors are commonplace when one searches enough the documents of our great country. I am more optimistic now than when I wrote “AHEAD OF THE CURVE” almost two years ago (see below). In conversations with California and federal individuals whose job it is to regulate, I notice a change. Whether it reaches those entrusted to lead, remains a mystery to me.
Happy Birthday to the citizens and administers of our great United States.
Oh yes, our crew is working today to celebrate their right to mine and earn another day of pay. We continue to explore this world class gold deposit. Our sights are set on finding more of the natural wealth deposited here over 125 million years ago and bring it above ground for the benefit of the People.
World production figures are now available. I pondered where to place this summary and decided that this topic should continue to receive comments.
In 2012 world production of gold reached a new record (estimate 2 700 tons),
slightly higher than 2001 (previous high 2600 tons). This increase hides major changes in the structure of production costs of gold mines worldwide. In 2001, (2,600 tons) an ounce of gold was $ 271. In 2012 the price was $1,669 dollars. For 3.8% of additional production, the price of an ounce of gold rose 615%.China was the largest gold producer in 2012, with 370 tons; it has been the largest producer since 2007. Its production increased threefold since 1991 and fifty times since 1980. The second largest producer was Australia with 250 tons. Gold production in Australia was slightly higher than its low in 2008 with 233 tons but below its peak in 1998 of 312 ton. USA, third, with 230 tons, is similar to Australia. Production was slightly above the low of 2008, (223 tons) but below the peak year of 1998 (366 tons). Russia with an annual production of 205 tons was the fourth largest gold producer in the world. Despite steady growth since 1998, the Russian gold production is still below the level of the Soviet Union 80 year history. South Africa is now the fifth largest gold producer in the world with 170 tons! When I entered the gold industry, South Africa led production by a huge margin, about 1,000 tons annually.. This is an historical record. No country in the world has ever produced as much gold in a single year. South Africa lost its crown as the leading producer of gold in 2007 after a century of rule. Sixth is Peru, close to the South African production with 165 tons. Canada and Indonesia get an honorable mention.
From these eight major gold-producing countries, world gold production continues to decline. They represent more than 59% of world gold production against 92% in 1970.
The inexorable decline in gold production in South Africa, the stagnation / decline in historical producers (USA, Australia, and Canada), Peru and Indonesia lead to a radical change in the structure of production costs. The growing trend towards the fragmentation of world gold production has many consequences as, for example, a decrease in the resilience of gold mines in the lower price per ounce of gold (Translation : The mines less profitable close faster).
From 2008 to 2012 world gold production increased from 2260 tons to 2700 tons. Gold production was driven by an increase in demand and a temporary decrease in production costs due to the 2008 crisis. The world currently has a reverse situation: the price of an ounce of gold in a weak position (average annual decline in 2013) and production costs increase. Mine closure due to high production costs should initiate a further decline in world gold production.
AHEAD OF THE CURVE
The American businessman, entrepreneur and miner were traditionally ahead of the curve. What curve? That curve would be the development of America’s natural resources. We owe the high standards of our life, which have developed over three centuries to the wealth of our natural resources, the spirit of our countrymen and the hard work of those who find, harvest and deliver natural resources to the cities and rural areas of the United States. America used to be ahead of the curve, a leader in bringing new wealth to everyone in our societies.
The Sixteen to One is a vivid example of sick society. Even the most global or radical people wishing or working to eliminate the exploitation of America’s natural resources contradict themselves with their attitude to stop all mining, logging, fishing or other natural resource productivities. They advocate these suspensions without a comment on the facts that globally, people must have natural resources because natural resources are the base and foundation of life. These advocates are short sighted. America has exceeded in writing regulations to protect natural resources while much of the rest of the world containing rich useful natural resources lag far behind. Alleged rape of the earth is greatest outside America where extraction exceeds enforcement not in America where enforcement exceeds extraction.
Why do I mention the Sixteen to One as an example? With not only a strong demand for gold but also a commercial need for gold, financiers, capitalists, investors and businessmen ignore this world-class gold deposit. Philanthropists should be added to the preceding list. America is losing more than the use of its abundant, local, natural resources. The culture of logging and mining is endangered as well. Young men with the vigor of spirit and the body and mind to work in an underground mine or forest filled those jobs. If America tosses these jobs aside now, it also tosses the well being of many young men. Few “old hands” will be around to train the youth of the 2020’s on the unique skills required to bring resources to the American marketplace efficiently, and responsibly. I may not be here to see it but I know it will happen. I arrived to California’s goldfields in 1974 and benefited from the words and actions of the “old timers”. For our preservation, protection and well being, including our world class, high standard of living, America should recognize the God given abundance within these independent and united states. They are placed here for our constructive use.
Countries in South America, Asia and Africa are now ahead of the curve due to the interests of financiers, capitalists, investors and businessmen in the exploitation of their natural resources. America is on the trailing edge. What should Americans do about this?
President and CEO of the Original Sixteen to One Mine, Mike Miller, brings to light how this cutting edge mine is indeed ahead of the curve.
Depsite the ongoing (and with repeated attempts) onslaught to mis-charachterize California gold-mining, this mine and its optimism and truly GRAND historic track-record of gold production remains ahead of attempt to de-rail all mining efforts.
What curve?
There is an effort afoot to suggest that somehow, some way, through a malicious attempt sidetrack true potential, to derail all job-creation in the mining industry. Simply check the history and past entries on this forum to get up to speed.
Ahead of the Curve:
Here, the Original Sixteen to One Mine is poised to enrich California’s citizens by energizing its job-market potential. Yet….
It is no longer a question as to WHY investors are shy of stepping forth to embrace the opportunity….it is clearly evident that investors are shying away from ALL private sector investment due to excessive regulation.
I implore those of you sitting on the fence to please look closely into this potential, as an avenue to break free of the shackles regulatory government throws over our heads.
This mine is way ahead of the curve, with a rich history of gold. (I’m writing this as a concerned California citizen and one with an obvious interest in the success of this mine; and have no other affiliation other than an intense desire to see success.
I think that exposure to the
british market via the upcoming
news article is a splendid idea!!The August 4th Financial Times featured an article by Leslie Hook. She wrote, “China moved yesterday to further liberalize its gold market, increasing the number of banks allowed to trade bullion internationally and announcing measures that will encourage development of gold linked investment products. The move by Beijing’s central bank comes as the country’s investors pour record amounts of money into gold in a trend that is becoming a significant factor in global prices.”
Members of two of the strongest growth economies (India and China) have histories of holding gold as a true storage of wealth. Even without inflationary concerns, the above relaxing announced in China will likely affect the supply/demand price curves that economists love to study.
Still in the world’s richest country, gold is defined as an old barbaric treasure of the past. Who cares? I do not care how gold is defined. Percentage wise, few people actually have a modest gold position. This is unlikely to change. Nevertheless, as a gold producer operating in a gold deposit like the Sixteen to One, the price per ounce of gold is not a driving force with us or even a concern. Low- grade proponents justify an investment on present or future prices. Very uncertain exploration projects are growing and touted in diverse “investment” publications. Be careful out there!
The problem today is that most Americans are Wankers. They expect the government to take care of them. What ever happened to the days of “Please Uncle Sam, I would rather do it myself”? Could it be that true Americans are an endangered species?
Being aware of the lack of freedom and the continuous assault on those rights by an intrusive government trying to be the solution to all problems of humanity has taken away our freedom of responsibility to our selves. We as a people do we want this freedom back? We have grown complacent.
Rick, you speak for the common man. Dave, I used to be a true believer like yourself. The Constitution is methodically being dismandled, make no mistake about that. I’m hearing from respected people that the health care plan that is supposedly going to be passed tonight with more people against it, will take in money early while delaying benefits for four years. Who does this benefit? It benefits the the governement in shoring up a faltering Social Security Program as well as it injects money into a failing Medicare system.
I’m with Rick, our elected so-called public officials have sold us all down the river.
Talk about the Constitution, it has done Mr. Martin Armstrong abolutely no good. He remains in jail, with it starting with a contempt charge. Imagine being in jail for five years or so only on comtempt charges? Regardless, whether there was a REAL cause of action or not. It could happen to you.
The coviction rate in this country by federal prosecutors is nearly 98.5%. Seem high? It’s the take here that certain rights guaranteed by the Constitution have been denied in some of those cases. The high conviction rates are even in excess of the ones handed out during the Spanish Inquisition and during Hitler’s regime. Don’t permit the politicians, government or the TV do your thinking for you. Think for yourself.
If you really want to get educated, I suggest going to the http://www.martinarmstrong.org website and read all of Mr. Armstrong’s writings. Mr. Armstrong may be the smartest person on the planet. I looked at his latest hand written thoughts tonight from March 12, 2010 and here are a few excerpts:
“We are entering Phase II of the debt crisis moving now from mortgages into commercial property and headed directly in a Sovereign debt crisis. I have warned that the DOW will make new highs and I do not see a 1929 collapse in stocks. My great fear is debt. The amounts of money in bonds relative to stocks is 10:1.”
“What made the the Great Depression so great was not the stock decline, it was the 1931 Sovergeign Debt Defaults that wiped out all those who thought they were smart escaping stocks, they lost everything in bonds.”
“Do not get caught up in this Doomday stuff that stocks go to 1929 levels, so buy bonds. This is the worst possible outcome you will run into. Read Herbert Hoovers’s Memoirs on the 1931 Crisis. Then you will know what to expect and how capital really moves. You will also know more than most governments.”
Behre Dolbear just came out with its Ranking of Countries for Mining Investment, where not to Invest. Canada, Australia, Chile and Mexico where at the top. “The United States will remain a difficult country to develop new projects and could deteriorate further depending on additional new regulations and taxes”. India and Brazil also look good.
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