Company Interviews

Crux Investor

An insight into junior mining and opportunities to invest. Company Interviews, a Crux Investor show, exists to cut through the jargon, bias and bluster. Matthew Gordon, and guest host Merlin Marr-Johnson hone in on the important factors that indicate a company's strong footing for growth and success.

  1. 4小時前

    Latin Metals (TSXV:LMS) - Incoming $42M Option for Lacsha Copper-Moly Project in Peru

    Interview with Keith Henderson, President & CEO of Latin Metals Our previous interview: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/posts/latin-metals-tsxvlms-the-prospect-generator-model-few-juniors-follow-10250 Recording date: 14th August 20206 Latin Metals Inc. (TSXV:LMS) has added a third active partner-funded project to its portfolio with an ongoing agreement with Minsur, a private Peruvian mining company already in a 75/25 joint venture with Newmont on adjacent ground to cover the Lacsha copper-molybdenum porphyry project in southern Peru. Under the deal outlined by CEO Keith Henderson, Minsur can earn an initial 75% interest in Lacsha by completing 60,000 metres of drilling over six years and paying Latin Metals approximately $2.5 million in cash, a commitment Henderson estimated at roughly C$40 million in Minsur-funded exploration spending. Once that threshold is met, Minsur holds a time-limited option to acquire the remaining 25% for C$28 million which would leave Latin Metals with a 2% net smelter return royalty. Minsur separately holds a three-year option to buy 1% of that royalty for a further $20 million. Combined, Henderson said, the structure could deliver a little over $42 million in cash coming into the company. Latin Metals generated Lacsha internally, spending approximately $900,000 (CAD) on staking, mapping, geochemistry and geophysics before bringing in a partner - notably more than the company's typical $200,000-$300,000 generative budget per project, which Henderson attributed to years of incremental exploration work culminating in a stronger-than-usual technical package. Lacsha's location directly south of Minsur's existing Newmont joint venture ground gives the new partner a clear strategic rationale to test the structural and geochemical extension onto Latin Metals' claims. The Lacsha deal brings Latin Metals' total under-contract partner investment to approximately $120 million, spanning Lacsha, Cerro Bayo and La Flora (Daura Gold), and Zaha (Moxico Resources), all funded externally against a corporate budget Henderson described as flat at $3 million per year. Management is targeting further deals across the remaining pipeline including Organullo, Crosby and an Argentine sediment-hosted copper package during 2026, which it expects could push cumulative under-contract investment toward $150-180 million. Near-term catalysts sit with the Argentine silver-gold assets rather than Lacsha itself: Daura Gold's Phase II drill programme at Cerro Bayo is scheduled for Q3 2026, alongside the first drill test of the high-grade La Flora vein system, where surface sampling has returned grades as high as 82 g/t gold and 1,239 g/t silver historically. Combined partner-funded drilling across the portfolio is expected to reach approximately 18,000 metres in 2026. On financing, Henderson said Latin Metals expects roughly C$1.8 million from warrant exercises in September 2026, with warrants priced at 15 cents against a share price near 25 cents, a gap management is relying on to avoid raising additional equity capital through 2026 and 2027. As with all early-stage option structures, the eventual scale of Lacsha's payoff depends on drill results Latin Metals will not itself control, since the company does not intend to operate the project once Minsur's drilling begins. View Latin Metals' company profile: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/companies/latin-metals Sign up for Crux Investor: https://cruxinvestor.com

  2. 7小時前

    Electra Battery Materials (NASDAQ:ELBM) - Pioneer Cobalt Refinery Enters Final Construction Stretch

    Interview with Heather Smiles, VP External Affairs & Corporate Development of Electra Battery Materials Our previous interview: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/posts/electra-battery-materials-nasdaqelbm-north-americas-first-cobalt-refinery-targets-2027-start-8710 Recording date: 14th August 2026 Electra Battery Materials is constructing what will be North America's only battery-grade cobalt sulfate refinery, located in Temiskaming Shores, Ontario. The project addresses a structural gap in the continent's battery supply chain: outside of a single Finnish facility, essentially all cobalt sulfate refining capacity sits in China, leaving North American EV, electronics and defence manufacturers dependent on a supply chain they don't control. The company has secured $84 million in financing to fund construction through mechanical completion, targeted for Q2 2027, with commercial production expected later that year. That financing includes $48 million in direct government support across three jurisdictions - the U.S. Department of War, the Canadian federal government, and Ontario - reflecting what management characterises as a broader shift toward governments taking direct financial stakes in strategic midstream infrastructure rather than relying solely on private capital. Commercially, the refinery's initial 5,100-tonne annual capacity (expanding to 6,500 tonnes) is anchored by a tolling agreement with LG Energy Solution covering 60% of output. The agreement uses a collar structure, with a floor protecting Electra's margins if cobalt prices fall and a ceiling preventing LG from overpaying in a price spike - management estimates this alone could generate $30-32 million in annual EBITDA at full run-rate. The remaining 40% of capacity is not yet contracted, and management is still weighing how much market exposure to take on for that portion versus locking in further tolling arrangements. Reported expressions of interest for offtake run at roughly 2-3x the refinery's initial nameplate capacity, suggesting more demand than the facility can currently supply. Feedstock is secured through supply agreements with Glencore and Eurasian Resources Group, covering material sourced from the Democratic Republic of Congo, which produces roughly 80% of the world's cobalt. Beyond the core refinery, Electra is pursuing several growth vectors: an engineering study for a nickel sulfate refinery in the southeastern United States (addressing a similar midstream gap in a second critical mineral), black mass recycling capability, and cobalt-copper exploration assets at the Iron Creek project in Idaho's Cobalt Belt, which management is evaluating as potential future feedstock rather than near-term production. Demand-side fundamentals remain supportive: cobalt demand for lithium-ion batteries grew roughly 30% in 2025, driven primarily by EV adoption outside North America, alongside growing demand from consumer electronics and an emerging defence-sector use case. A new U.S. policy requiring domestically produced black mass to remain in-country for one year signals policymaker intent to support onshore refining capacity, though management characterises it as an early, limited step rather than a comprehensive solution. View Electra Battery Materials' company profile: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/companies/electra-battery-metals Sign up for Crux Investor: https://cruxinvestor.com

  3. 1日前

    Namibia Critical Metals (TSXV:NMI) - Partnership and $23M Earn-In Secured for Lofdal HREE Project

    Interview with Darrin Campbell, President & CEO of Namibia Critical Metals Inc. Our previous interview: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/posts/namibia-critical-metals-tsxvnmi-japan-backed-path-to-dfs-in-q2-2027-9891 Recording date: 13th August 2026 Namibia Critical Metals (TSXV:NMI) has reached a pivotal moment in the development of its Lofdal Heavy Rare Earth Project in Namibia. In July 2026, the Japan Organization for Metals and Energy Security (JOGMEC) and Toyota Tsusho Corporation completed a C$23 million earn-in commitment, roughly 18 months ahead of the original March 2028 schedule, securing a combined 50% participating interest in the project. The two partners formed TJ Namibia Rare Earths Corporation (TJNREC) to hold that interest, and JOGMEC has separately committed up to C$47.668 million (approximately ¥5.5 billion) to capitalise the new entity, funding Lofdal through Definitive Feasibility Study completion and toward a Final Investment Decision. Critically, all project funding from this point forward is structured as non-interest-bearing, non-dilutive Pre-FID Capital Funding - a mechanism CEO Darrin Campbell described as a temporary free carry that removes near-term financing risk without forcing Namibia Critical Metals to make a dilution decision until FID itself. The company retains the option to participate at up to 45% ownership or dilute to a carried floor of 21%, with management signalling a preference to retain maximum exposure given the project's economics. The economics, laid out in a December 2025 PFS, show a 13-year mine life producing 2,000 tonnes of total rare earth oxide annually, including significant dysprosium, terbium and yttrium output. A base case using moderate pricing generates a $275 million after-tax NPV and 19% IRR on $348 million of capex; a divergent case reflecting the elevated non-Chinese pricing seen over the past 18 months delivers a $748 million after-tax NPV and 35% IRR. Campbell noted current market conditions increasingly resemble the divergent scenario. Technical work continues in parallel. A 13,000-metre, 83-hole drill programme launched in June 2026 is targeting a maiden resource at the Area 5 xenotime system, the project's first deep test hole at Area 4 to approximately 800 metres for underground mining studies, and infill drilling at Area 2B. SGS has been awarded pilot-scale flotation and hydrometallurgical testwork contracts aimed at producing separated - rather than mixed - light and heavy rare earth products, which Campbell said better matches offtaker demand. A DFS completion target of Q3 2027 is intended to lead into an FID shortly after. Despite this de-risking and the depth of sovereign-industrial backing, Campbell argues the market continues to price Lofdal as an early-stage exploration story, at roughly 0.15-0.2x price-to-NAV versus 0.4-0.8x for comparable PFS/DFS-stage peers. He attributes the gap to thin liquidity, minimal institutional coverage as the company has not needed to raise meaningful capital in six years due to JOGMEC funding, and market confusion over the earn-in's dilution mechanics. Final offtake pricing terms with the Japanese consortium remain under negotiation, representing a further catalyst to watch as the project approaches FID. View Namibia Critical Metals' company profile: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/companies/namibia-critical-metals-inc Sign up for Crux Investor: https://cruxinvestor.com

  4. 1日前

    Canada Nickel (TSXV:CNC) - Federal Approval + C$21 Million Funding for Crawford Project

    Interview with Mark Selby, CEO of Canada Nickel Our previous interview: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/posts/nickels-next-chapter-tight-supply-steady-demand-and-higher-price-floors-11311 Recording date: 13th August 2026 Canada Nickel Company Inc. (TSXV:CNC) has reached a milestone that few Canadian mining developers achieve: a positive federal decision statement for its 100%-owned Crawford Nickel-Cobalt Sulphide Project, the first project to complete Canada's Impact Assessment Act process from application through to decision since the legislation came into force in 2019. CEO Mark Selby frames the approval as a de-risking event on three fronts: it differentiates Crawford from peer projects still mid-permitting when courting strategic partners; it removes a major source of hesitation for larger institutional investors who had been waiting on permitting clarity; and it strengthens Canada Nickel's standing with government funding bodies already engaging with the company. That standing is reflected in Crawford's selection as one of five projects referred to the federal Major Projects Office, the earliest-stage project among that group, and as one of three projects named to Ontario's One Project, One Process fast-track framework, alongside a Thunder Bay lithium project and Kinross's Great Bear gold project. On financing, Selby laid out a capital stack in which government-linked sources do much of the heavy lifting. Of the approximately $1 billion in equity Canada Nickel needs to build Crawford, $600 million is covered by refundable investment tax credits, and a further $100 million comes from a Samsung commitment. The company is working with Scotiabank and Deutsche Bank on an additional $100-200 million through a further project stake sale or structured offtake financing. On the debt side, a letter of intent from Export Development Canada is progressing toward a term sheet, backed by four years of dialogue with global export credit agencies, and a roughly two-month-old mandate with Scandinavian bank SB1 Markets is intended to produce a bridge facility that draws on tax credits during construction rather than after. The company closed a $20 million financing overnight ahead of this interview, taken up entirely by a single family office, and separately upsized a non-brokered private placement on  from C$15.0 million to up to C$21 million in gross proceeds, scheduled to close around August 28, 2026. Selby flagged further financing initiatives expected in October and November 2026. With funding in hand, Canada Nickel is moving into detailed engineering and long-lead procurement, targeting a construction decision by mid-2027 and breaking ground by the end of that year, a schedule that has slipped from the year-end 2026 target in Crux's earlier coverage. Seasonal construction constraints in the Abitibi region mean any further delay risks pushing activity into the following year's window. Beyond Crawford, Selby pointed to the Reid Nickel Sulphide Project, roughly 39 kilometres northwest of Timmins, where August 2026 drilling returned the highest-grade intervals reported to date: 1.01% nickel over 4.5 metres within a broader 576.6-metre interval averaging 0.29% nickel. Reid's current resource stands at 0.87 billion Indicated tonnes and 1.45 billion Inferred tonnes, part of what Selby describes as a wider Timmins Nickel District pipeline behind Crawford. View Canada Nickel's company profile: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/companies/canada-nickel Sign up for Crux Investor: https://cruxinvestor.com

  5. 1日前

    Asante Gold (CSE:ASE) - 4.6 Moz Gold Resource Base Anchors Disciplined 2026 Production

    Interview with Campbell Baird, CEO of Asante Gold Recording date: 13th August 2026 Asante Gold Corporation is working through an operational and leadership reset four months into Campbell Baird's tenure as Acting CEO, following the retirement of predecessor Dave Anthony. The company's investment case for 2026 hinges less on new catalysts than on execution against an already-disclosed plan: converting roughly $50 million of deferred or cancelled capital expenditure, combined with a narrower project focus, into the guided 275,000-300,000 ounce production range at an AISC of $3,200-$3,600 per ounce for the full year. The two operating assets are pulling in different directions operationally. Chirano has provided stability throughout 2026, delivering a consistent 10,000-11,000 ounces monthly even as Bibiani absorbed the impact of a January wall slip and an extended, costly stripping campaign in its Main Pit. Bibiani's ore has also proven more sulfidic than originally modelled, prompting a shift toward roughly 50% flotation processing and a sulfide recovery plant now being tied into the wider circuit - a process Baird estimated was roughly two months from completion. The key catalyst for H2 2026 performance is grade: Bibiani's head grade is expected to move from approximately 1.3-1.4 g/t over the past six months toward a targeted 1.7-1.8 g/t as mining progresses deeper into the Main Pit, directly underpinning the guided cost reduction weighted to Q4. On the resource side, Asante's 5 August NI 43-101 update showed combined Measured and Indicated Resources of 4.6 million ounces across both operations - effectively flat against December 2023 levels despite more than 430,000 ounces of production in the interim. Chirano's resource base grew materially (+443,000 ounces M&I since December 2023), supporting a seven-year mine life, while Bibiani's declined 17% on constrained exploration spend and open-pit depletion, even as its Main Pit is interpreted as geologically open to roughly 1,400 metres against only ~600 metres of current definition. The company frames the broader 80-kilometre Chirano-Bibiani Corridor as structurally comparable to far larger, more extensively drilled greenstone belts (Lefroy-Boulder, Abitibi), with a $23.4 million exploration budget allocated for 2026. On costs, management's own framing is notably conservative: Baird explicitly ruled out sub-$2,000/oz AISC as a credible near-term outcome, targeting below $3,000/oz only as a longer-term objective. This tempers what might otherwise be an overly optimistic reading of the company's cost trajectory, and is worth weighing against the wider sector-level cost inflation (diesel, labour, supply chain) that Baird cited as affecting gold producers broadly, not just Asante. The clearest risk flag for investors is guidance continuity: Asante's prior annual production target of 400,000-500,000 ounces remains formally withdrawn, with management stating directly it is not planning to reinstate it. The 275,000-300,000 ounce 2026 range should be treated as the only current, company-sanctioned figure. View Asante Gold's company profile: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/companies/asante-gold Sign up for Crux Investor: https://cruxinvestor.com

  6. 1日前

    TriStar Gold (TSXV:TSG) - $603M NPV, 80% Peer Discount Gold Developer Awaits Court Ruling

    Interview with Nick Appleyard, CEO, TriStar Gold Our previous interview: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/posts/tristar-gold-tsxvtsg-legal-resolution-could-unlock-100m-in-shareholder-value-8034 Recording date: 13th August 2026 TriStar Gold Inc. (TSXV: TSG) is a Brazil-focused gold developer whose sole asset, the Castelo de Sonhos project in Pará State, presents one of the more striking valuation disconnects among development-stage gold names in the Americas. The May 2025 pre-feasibility study update outlines 1.4 million ounces of probable reserves at 1.1 g/t gold, with total indicated and inferred resources of 2.5 million ounces inclusive of reserves. At the study's $2,200/oz gold base case, the project generates a post-tax internal rate of return of 40% and a post-tax net present value of $603 million against initial capital of approximately $296 million, rising to a 72% IRR and $1.35 billion NPV at $3,200/oz gold. Mining is shallow open pit with 98% recovery and no sulphides, and the deposit remains open along an approximately 19km strike of mineralised conglomerate reef. Despite those economics, TriStar's market capitalisation stood at just C$63.6 million as of end-July 2026, a valuation that puts the company at roughly $20 per ounce of measured and indicated resource against a peer median near $94/oz, and 0.02x price-to-net-asset-value against a 0.3x peer median, according to company-compiled comparables. Management attributes the gap almost entirely to a federal civil action, initiated by the Federal Public Prosecutor's Office (MPF) and Brazil's National Foundation of Indigenous Peoples (FUNAI), arguing that TriStar's state-level environmental permit should instead have gone through a federal process involving an Indigenous Component Study and formal consultation with Kayapó communities in the region. TriStar and the State of Pará dispute this, arguing the project never triggered the thresholds that would require federal-level permitting. Critically, the underlying Licença Prévia (LP) permit remains valid; courts have rejected every injunction request against it, and the case is currently in an evidentiary phase awaiting a judge's ruling. CEO Nick Appleyard has stated a target of reaching a negotiated resolution, under which TriStar would retain its permit while voluntarily completing indigenous studies ahead of construction, before the end of 2026, with the market potentially taking a further three to six months to fully reflect that outcome. In the interim, the company is planning a drill programme around the high-grade Esperança South zone, expected to mobilise around October 2026, intended to support an eventual feasibility study. Beyond a standalone build, TriStar maintains an active data room with what management describes as roughly half a dozen Brazil-based candidates plus international parties, positioning the asset as a plausible acquisition target once the legal overhang clears. The company holds approximately US$10 million in cash against 397.5 million shares issued. Learn more: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/companies/tristar-gold-inc Sign up for Crux Investor: https://cruxinvestor.com

  7. 5日前

    Hot Chili (TSXV:HCH) - 'Undervalued?' Investment Series, with Christian Easterday

    Interview with Christian Easterday, Managing Director and CEO, Hot Chili Limited Our previous interview: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/posts/hot-chili-tsxvhch-water-business-with-1b-npv-to-fund-copper-project-6917 Recording date: 10th August 2026 Hot Chili Limited (ASX/TSXV: HCH, OTCQX: HHLKF) is advancing the Costa Fuego Copper-Gold Project on Chile's Atacama coastline, positioning itself as one of only five independent (non-major-controlled) copper developers globally with a project capable of exceeding 100,000 tonnes of annual copper-equivalent production. Managing Director and CEO Christian Easterday, who has led the company since its 2010 ASX listing, argues the market has not yet caught up with the scale of the opportunity. The company's March 2025 Preliminary Feasibility Study (PFS) outlined a 20-year mine life (14 years at primary production rates), average annual production of roughly 116,000 tonnes of copper-equivalent, a post-tax NPV of US$1.2 billion, and a post-tax IRR of 19% at a long-term copper price of US$4.30/lb. Start-up capital was estimated at US$1.27 billion. The central near-term catalyst is La Verde, a copper-gold porphyry discovery acquired in November 2024 roughly 35km from Costa Fuego's planned processing hub. Extensive drilling (three rigs, with a fourth arriving) has defined a broad, high-grade mineralised footprint, and management expects a maiden resource estimate of approximately 500 million tonnes before the end of 2026. Folding La Verde into a restated Costa Fuego PFS is expected to lift post-tax NPV toward US$2 billion and post-tax IRR toward the mid-30s%, while shortening payback from roughly 4.5 years to 2.5 years and improving the project's position on the industry cost curve. On valuation, Hot Chili highlights two benchmarking metrics: an EV/lb-of-reserve multiple of roughly 3.8 cents against a peer average near 11 cents (implying a 2.9x re-rating opportunity), and a price-to-net-asset-value gap of roughly 2.3x versus recent comparable copper-sector transactions. Financing is addressed primarily through the company's Huasco Water asset — the only maritime licence with permitted seawater access in the Huasco Valley. Stage 1 (seawater supply to Costa Fuego, 500 L/s) is already funded within the existing PFS. A second maritime licence, which would unlock a larger multi-user desalination business (Stage 2: 1,300 L/s, ~US$977 million post-tax NPV) serving neighbouring major-miner projects, has been in Chile's approvals process for roughly five years and remains on track according to recent government contact, following an earlier delay tied to a change in administration. Management frames monetising this asset as a way to cover a substantial share of the project's equity requirement without heavy shareholder dilution. Additional untapped levers include uncommitted gold production (48,000-70,000 oz/year with La Verde) and roughly 40% of concentrate offtake left uncommitted outside the company's existing Glencore agreement. Glencore holds a 7.5% equity stake and an offtake agreement for up to 60% of concentrate for the first eight years of production, on benchmark terms. The company has also strengthened its board, adding Stuart Matthews (formerly EVP at Goldfields, with five major mine builds) as Independent Non-Executive Chair. Near-term catalysts include the maiden La Verde resource estimate (year-end target), a restated Costa Fuego PFS, EIA submission (targeted Q2 2027), progress on the second Huasco Water maritime licence, and an ongoing strategic partnering process. Final Investment Decision is targeted for 2029, with first production guided for 2031. Learn more: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/companies/hot-chili-limited Sign up for Crux Investor: https://cruxinvestor.com

  8. 5日前

    Aureka (ASX:AKA) - Targets Early Cash Flow to Advance Its Larger Gold Project

    Interview with James Gurry, Managing Director & Jozef Story, Exploration Manager of Aureka Gold Recording date: 11th August 2026 Aureka (ASX:AKA) is an ASX-listed gold explorer and near-term developer operating a cluster of projects across Victoria's Stawell Corridor and St Arnaud goldfield, all within a 45-minute to one-hour drive of one another. The company was reconstituted from a distressed tenement package that Managing Director James Gurry acquired for under $1 million in 2023, when gold prices were depressed, and relisted on the ASX at the end of 2024. Since the start of 2025, Aureka has drilled continuously and lifted its JORC resource base by 50%. The company's flagship asset is the 100%-owned Irvine Gold Project, which sits 16km from the Stawell Gold Mine, a roughly 5-million-ounce historical producer. Irvine currently hosts an inferred resource of 398,300 ounces at 2.59 g/t gold, following a 94,000-ounce, 36% increase to the Resolution lode announced on 18 June 2026. That increase was driven by a reinterpreted structural and geological model, led by Exploration Manager Jozef Story, that defined 11 new geological domains around the deposit. Beyond the current resource, Aureka carries Advanced and Conceptual Exploration Targets that, combined with the unchanged Adventure lode target, exceed 600,000 ounces. Recent drilling identified a high-grade structure the company calls the Tenacity Fault, which returned the project's best assay to date: 10m at 12.1 g/t gold from 413m, including 0.3m at 183 g/t gold. Rather than pursue Irvine's larger development in isolation, Aureka's near-term strategy centres on the brownfield Comstock project near St Arnaud, roughly 70km from Irvine, within a historic goldfield that produced approximately 400,000 ounces at 15 g/t. Comstock hosts a 56,500-ounce inferred resource at 1.21 g/t gold and 2.14 g/t silver, plus a 112,000 to 116,000-ounce exploration target. The company has signed a toll milling agreement with the nearby Wedderburn mill, described by management as project-agnostic and therefore usable for Irvine ore in future, and has submitted a production licence application for Comstock, targeting first ore movement within roughly 12 months. Management is guiding to first-year Comstock production of 3,000 to 7,000 ounces, an estimated A$30 million to A$50 million in revenue at current gold prices, and a targeted margin of around 50%. The stated strategy is to use Comstock's free cash flow to fund ongoing exploration at Irvine without relying primarily on dilutive capital raises, while pursuing Irvine toward a longer-term development decision that management estimates is roughly three years from a first mining licence. Aureka currently has no debt and two diamond rigs active, one on each project. Management points to valuation support from the tenement package's prior history: the same assets, under a previous owner, traded up to approximately $150 million in market capitalisation in 2020, at roughly half today's gold price, against Aureka's current market capitalisation of under $20 million. Key near-term catalysts include Comstock's production licence approval and further assay results from the Tenacity Fault and Walker zone drilling programmes. Learn more: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/companies/navarre-minerals Sign up for Crux Investor: https://cruxinvestor.com

關於

An insight into junior mining and opportunities to invest. Company Interviews, a Crux Investor show, exists to cut through the jargon, bias and bluster. Matthew Gordon, and guest host Merlin Marr-Johnson hone in on the important factors that indicate a company's strong footing for growth and success.

你可能也會喜歡