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. 4h ago

    Summit Royalties (TSXV:SUM) - Targets $15M Revenue Run Rate with New Gold Streams by 2028

    Interview with Drew Clark, CEO, Summit Royalties Our previous interview: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/posts/summit-royalties-tsxvsum-new-royalty-player-fills-sub-1b-market-gap-with-accretive-ma-9472 Recording date: 29th June 2026 Summit Royalties, a newly listed precious metals royalty company led by CEO Drew Clark, has taken a significant step in scaling its business with the acquisition of Star Royalties for approximately CAD $50 million. The transaction adds a high-grade, permitted, and currently under-construction gold stream at the Copperstone project in Arizona, strengthening the company’s near-term production profile and shifting its portfolio toward more advanced assets. Following the deal, Summit has doubled its projected cash flow to roughly USD $20 million once all assets reach full production, up from an earlier estimate of $10 million. The company is targeting a production run rate of about 4,000 gold ounces by 2028, which could generate more than USD $15 million in annual revenue at current gold prices. These projections are anchored by two key assets: the Copperstone stream and a royalty linked to a Jaguar Mining project, both operated by well-capitalized, established mining companies. This reduces reliance on speculative development and lowers execution risk compared to early-stage projects. Summit is also evolving its funding strategy. While early growth relied on equity financing, the company is now pursuing a revolving credit facility with a major bank, enabling it to use debt alongside equity to fund future acquisitions and potentially limit shareholder dilution. Management emphasizes disciplined growth, noting that over USD $250 million in potential deals have been reviewed and rejected to maintain quality and value. Insider ownership stands at approximately 12%, aligning management with shareholders. Overall, Summit Royalties is positioning itself as a rapidly growing but selective player in the royalty sector, focusing on low-risk, near-term production assets while expanding its financial flexibility to support continued portfolio growth. Learn more: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/companies/summit-royalties Sign up for Crux Investor: https://cruxinvestor.com

    14 min
  2. 3d ago

    Carolina Rush (TSXV:RUSH) - First Drill Confirmation of Copper-Gold Porphyry System at Brewer

    Interview with Layton Croft, President & CEO, Carolina Rush Our previous interview: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/posts/carolina-rush-tsxvrush-testing-deep-porphyry-potential-in-americas-first-gold-district-9470 Recording date: 1st July 2026 Carolina Rush has completed the first deep drilling program at its Brewer Gold-Copper project in South Carolina, confirming the presence of a copper-gold porphyry system beneath its historic near-surface gold mine. The program, consisting of three deep holes totaling 3,500 metres, marks a significant shift in the company’s exploration focus from shallow gold mineralisation to a larger, deeper target. Results from hole 37 provided early indications of a porphyry system, including elevated copper levels, the presence of chalcopyrite, and characteristic quartz veining. More importantly, hole 38 delivered a breakthrough by intersecting copper-gold mineralisation beneath the lithocap for the first time. The hole returned multiple mineralised intervals, including 60 metres grading 681 ppm copper and 0.24 g/t gold within potassic alteration, a zone typically associated with the core of porphyry deposits. A revised geological model, developed with porphyry expert Dr. Richard Sillitoe, suggests the system is tilted 20–30 degrees to the northwest rather than vertical. This interpretation implies that the mineralised core may lie at a shallower and more economically accessible depth than previously assumed. The project is being advanced through an earn-in agreement with OceanaGold, which must invest US$8 million by the end of 2027 to earn a 50% stake. Carolina Rush remains the operator, while OceanaGold brings funding and regional infrastructure, including its nearby Haile gold mine. With a defined near-surface resource of approximately 500,000 ounces of gold and growing evidence of deeper porphyry potential, Brewer represents a dual-opportunity asset. Assay results from the third hole are pending, and further drilling is planned to test the system along its interpreted northwest extension. Learn more: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/companies/carolina-rush Sign up for Crux Investor: https://cruxinvestor.com

    28 min
  3. 4d ago

    IsoEnergy (TSX:ISO) - Toro Acquisition Adds 75 Mlbs of Uranium to Portfolio Growth Plan

    Interview with Philip Williams. Director & CEO of IsoEnergy Ltd. Our previous interview: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/posts/isoenergy-ltd-tsxiso-sequential-build-out-anchored-by-us-uranium-restart-9432 Recording date: 1st July 2026 IsoEnergy has moved through a period of significant portfolio development, anchored by the completed acquisition of Toro Energy, encouraging exploration results in Saskatchewan, and continued technical work toward a potential production restart in Utah. Together, these developments position the company across three of the jurisdictions most favoured by uranium investors: Canada, the United States, and Australia. The Toro acquisition brought the Wiluna project into IsoEnergy's portfolio, adding three near-surface deposits containing an estimated 75 million pounds of uranium. The project's shallow depth, from surface to approximately 10 metres, and its history of federal and state permitting make it a comparatively advanced addition. Management has outlined a six-to-twelve-month plan to update Wiluna's resource estimate and economic study to current Canadian reporting standards, alongside additional infill drilling intended to improve confidence in the resource. In Saskatchewan, drilling at the Hurricane deposit's "south trend" produced results that exceeded internal expectations. An area previously modelled to contain grades of 1–1.5% uranium instead returned intersections above 10%, including a best result of 11.6%, with a follow-up hole grading 2.75% roughly 550 metres from the existing resource. Hurricane already ranks among the highest-grade uranium deposits globally, with an indicated resource of 48.6 million pounds at 34.5% uranium. The south trend results suggest that high-grade mineralisation may extend beyond the boundaries of the current resource model, and the company plans to continue testing this trend as its 20-hole summer drilling programme resumes. In Utah, IsoEnergy is evaluating a restart of the Tony M mine. A 2,000-tonne bulk sample is being processed through a beneficiation technology that has shown it can remove 75% of material volume while retaining over 90% of contained uranium in initial testing. These results will feed into an updated economic study, expected before the end of 2026, which management has indicated will inform the ultimate restart decision. Financially, IsoEnergy reports approximately $130 million in cash, providing flexibility to fund study work and exploration across all three jurisdictions without near-term reliance on external capital. NexGen Energy, an early investor in the company, holds approximately 28% of shares outstanding following dilution from the Toro transaction. Management has characterised its overall approach as sequencing three potential mines according to their individual stages of readiness: Tony M as the nearest-term production candidate, Wiluna as a three-to-five-year development project, and Hurricane as a longer-dated asset dependent on further exploration and potential collaboration with neighbouring operators. This framing reflects a broader intent to reduce the binary risk associated with single-asset uranium developers by diversifying across geography and development stage. For investors, the near-term catalysts to monitor include the Tony M economic study due by year-end 2026, further assay results from Hurricane's south trend as the summer programme continues, and progress toward updated resource and economic disclosures for Wiluna over the coming months. View IsoEnergy's company profile: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/companies/isoenergy Sign up for Crux Investor: https://cruxinvestor.com

    27 min
  4. 4d ago

    Selkirk Copper Mines (TSXV:SCMI) - Restart Developer Targets Mid-2028 Production

    Interview with Colin Joudrie, President and CEO, Selkirk Copper  Our previous interview: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/posts/selkirk-copper-tsxvscmi-high-grade-yukon-copper-restart-targets-mid-2028-production-10230 Recording date: 1st July 2026 Selkirk Copper Mines Inc. is advancing the restart of a previously producing copper-gold-silver operation, targeting first production by mid-2028. Positioned as a “restart story,” the project benefits from existing infrastructure, including a processing mill, camp facilities, and established site systems, significantly reducing the capital intensity and technical risks typically associated with new mine development. The company is focusing on incremental upgrades rather than rebuilding core infrastructure, while leveraging a substantial historical database to streamline engineering and planning. Initial drilling results have reinforced confidence in the asset. A 175-hole Phase 1 program intersected economic-grade mineralisation in 87% of holes and identified two new mineral lenses near existing workings. These findings support the company’s broader strategy to develop an integrated mining operation combining open-pit and underground sources, with a roughly equal contribution in the early years and a gradual shift toward underground production over a projected 12-to-15-year mine life. Selkirk is now progressing a 50,000-metre Phase 2 drill campaign focused on upgrading resources and advancing geotechnical studies. The program is ahead of schedule and will inform a feasibility study expected to begin in late 2026 and conclude by mid-2027. Updated economic and resource estimates are anticipated in July 2026. Production planning targets approximately 30,000 tonnes of copper-equivalent output annually, supported by by-product gold and silver credits. To fund development, the company is pursuing non-dilutive options such as offtake agreements, project financing, and a potential silver stream, while avoiding the over-leveraging and permitting missteps that affected the previous operator. With strong drilling results, existing infrastructure, and favorable metal price conditions, Selkirk aims to position the project as a lower-risk path to near-term copper production. Learn more: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/companies/selkirk-copper Sign up for Crux Investor: https://cruxinvestor.com

    25 min
  5. 5d ago

    US Gold Corp (NASDAQ:USAU) - 'Undervalued?' Investment Series, with Luke Norman

    Interview with Luke Norman, Executive Chairman of US Gold Corp. Our previous interview: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/posts/us-gold-corp-nasdaqusau-14b-npv-at-spot-fully-permitted-major-upside-9904 Recording date: 29th June 2026 U.S. Gold Corp (NASDAQ:USAU) presents a case that is relatively uncommon in the junior mining sector: a fully permitted, feasibility study-backed gold-copper project with a share structure that limits near-term dilution risk. The company's CK Gold Project, located roughly 20 miles from Cheyenne, Wyoming, benefits from established infrastructure including road, rail, and power that Executive Chairman Luke Norman argues meaningfully reduces both construction cost and timeline risk relative to more remote developments. The project's permitting status is central to the investment case. Wyoming's state-level permitting framework includes a defined objection window that closes once permits are issued, reducing the risk of legal challenges arising mid-construction which is a risk that has affected other North American projects situated on federal land or in jurisdictions with less defined objection timelines. Norman has described CK Gold as one of very few hard-rock mining developments to achieve full permitting in Wyoming in close to a century. On economics, the definitive feasibility study uses a base-case gold price of $3,250 per ounce, below the consensus estimate of roughly $3,800 per ounce cited at the time of the interview, and still produces an after-tax net present value of approximately $630 million, alongside an internal rate of return just under 30%. Copper, which contributes around 30% of the project's economics, was modelled using a price assumption that has since been exceeded by the market, suggesting the study may understate current project value. Central to management's undervaluation argument is the company's share count. With approximately 16.5 million shares outstanding which is low relative to typical junior developers, the resulting market capitalisation of roughly $260 million appears modest set against the feasibility study's NPV. Norman has attributed part of this gap to the company's Nasdaq listing, suggesting that comparable projects may be priced differently on Canadian exchanges where specialist mining investors are more concentrated. Beyond the current reserve, management points to several sources of unquantified upside: approximately 80% of drill holes extending past the existing reserve boundary showed continued mineralisation, gold remains recoverable from tailings material, and waste rock carries commercial resale value comparable to that of a neighbouring quarry operator. None of these factors is currently reflected in the feasibility study's economics. The company's financing strategy also differs from many peers. Rather than raising further equity, management has expressed a preference for debt-heavy project financing, citing the project's relatively short payback period as support for this approach as a structural distinction from junior developers whose valuations are often discounted by anticipated shareholder dilution. For investors, the opportunity rests on several dependencies: successful and timely project financing, continued permitting stability, and commodity prices holding near or above the levels used in the feasibility study. As with any development-stage mining investment, prospective investors should review the company's public filings and feasibility study documentation directly, and weigh these factors against their own risk tolerance before making investment decisions. View U.S. Gold's company profile: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/companies/us-gold-corp Sign up for Crux Investor: https://cruxinvestor.com

    22 min
  6. 5d ago

    Leading Edge Materials (TSXV:LEM) - Secures 25Yr Concession on Europe's Top Heavy Rare Earth Asset

    Interview with Kurt Budge, CEO of Leading Edge Materials Corp. Our previous interview: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/posts/leading-edge-materials-tsxvlem-heavy-rare-earth-asset-sets-production-timeline-8642 Recording date: 30th June 2026 Leading Edge Materials Corp. (TSXV:LEM) has secured a 25-year Exploitation Concession from the Swedish government for its Norra Kärr heavy rare earth elements project, an outcome the company frames as the most consequential regulatory milestone in its history. The decision follows 15 years of technical work and formal endorsements from Sweden's Mining Inspectorate, the Geological Survey of Sweden, and county administrative boards, and it fundamentally changes the nature of the investment case: Norra Kärr moves from a project defined by permitting uncertainty to one defined by financing and offtake execution. The core of the opportunity lies in the composition of the resource. Norra Kärr holds a high concentration of dysprosium, terbium and yttrium, heavy rare earths essential to permanent magnets used in electric motors, wind turbines and defence equipment, at a time when the European Union has no domestic rare earth production of its own. Independent research from Edison Group has ranked Norra Kärr third globally among comparable deposits on a dysprosium-equivalent basis and assigned the project a risked NPV10 of approximately $900 million. Investors should note this valuation is based on 2026 analysis and predates some of the more recent shifts in ex-China pricing for heavy rare earths, which have widened materially relative to Chinese domestic prices as buyers seek supply independent of Beijing's export licensing controls. Management has an updated prefeasibility study underway that is expected to incorporate current pricing. CEO Kurt Budge has been explicit about how the lease changes commercial conversations. Where prior discussions with prospective offtake partners and lenders were consistently constrained by the absence of confirmed mining rights, the company can now present Norra Kärr as a de-risked, strategically important asset. This distinction is particularly relevant given that offtake certainty has become an increasingly central requirement for both lenders and equity investors evaluating rare earth projects. The near-term catalyst path is reasonably well defined. Environmental permit preparation, including baseline data collection, is expected to take six to nine months before an application can be submitted, running in parallel with the prefeasibility study update. Management continues to target production within four years and has identified binding offtake agreements as the next material milestone, both for their direct commercial value and for the signal they send to potential financiers. The broader context is one of policy support outpacing available risk capital in Europe, in contrast to more assertive state-backed capital deployment in the United States, illustrated by transactions such as Energy Fuels' acquisition of Germany's Vacuumschmelze. This dynamic underscores both the strategic scarcity value of Norra Kärr and the execution risk that remains: no binding offtake has yet been signed, and the prefeasibility study is not yet complete.  For investors, the lease represents a genuine de-risking event, but the pace at which Leading Edge converts this milestone into confirmed financing and offtake agreements will be the key variable to monitor over the coming months. View Leading Edge Materials' company profile: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/companies/leading-edge-materials Sign up for Crux Investor: https://cruxinvestor.com

    22 min
  7. 5d ago

    Integra Resources (TSXV:ITR) - Florida Canyon Unlocks $800M Cash Flow, Fuels Self-Funded Growth

    Interview with George Salamis, President and CEO, Integra Resources Our previous interview: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/posts/integra-resources-tsxvitr-strategic-investment-year-unlocks-80-90k-oz-production-in-2027-2028-9377 Recording date: 29th June 2026 Integra Resources has released a feasibility study for its Florida Canyon gold mine in Nevada, positioning the operation as the financial cornerstone of the company’s growth strategy. The study outlines a strong economic profile, including an after-tax net present value of $601 million at a 5% discount rate and approximately $800 million in cumulative free cash flow over an eight-year mine life. Notably, the project requires no upfront capital, as the mine is already built, permitted, and operating. A key highlight is the substantial increase in the mine’s scale, with reserves rising by 78% and resources by 128%. This growth stems from 18 months of geological reinterpretation, infill drilling, improved mine planning, steeper pit slope designs, and increased use of ore crushing to enhance recovery. These changes have reshaped the understanding of the deposit, moving beyond simple grade-based models to incorporate structural and lithological controls. In the near term, operations will focus on an intensive waste-stripping campaign to access higher-grade ore zones in the Main C pits. While this phase will keep costs elevated, the company expects all-in sustaining costs to decline toward an average of about $2,300 per ounce over the life of the mine once higher-grade material is reached. Florida Canyon’s cash flow is expected to fund ongoing operations and support Integra’s broader development pipeline, including the DeLamar project, targeted for construction in roughly two years with partial debt financing, and the Nevada North project. This self-funding model reduces reliance on equity financing and potential shareholder dilution. Additionally, a 42,500-metre drilling program is underway to expand resources further, including exploration of previously underexplored areas and the historical Standard Mine target, marking the first drilling there in 15 years. Learn more: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/companies/integra-resources Sign up for Crux Investor: https://cruxinvestor.com

    17 min
  8. 6d ago

    Empire Metals (LON:EEE) - Grades Keep Rising at Pitfield: What's Next for This Titanium Giant?

    Interview with Shaun Bunn, Managing Director, Empire Metals Our previous interview: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/posts/empire-metals-loneee-australian-giant-targets-supply-gap-in-restructuring-titanium-market-8489 Recording date: 26th June 2026 Empire Metals is advancing its wholly owned Pitfield titanium project in Western Australia, positioning it as one of the largest and potentially lowest-cost titanium ore systems globally. Discovered around three years ago, Pitfield has rapidly progressed from exploration to development planning, supported by a large, shallow, and high-grade ore body. Recent drilling has further improved average grades—now estimated at roughly seven times typical mineral sands deposits—with an updated Mineral Resource Estimate expected in the third quarter of 2026. A major milestone came in June 2026 with the release of an integrated process flow sheet outlining how ore will be converted into high-purity titanium dioxide (TiO2) pigment at a single site. The process combines conventional and novel steps, beginning with scrubbing, screening, and flotation to remove up to 90% of waste material before leaching. The remaining concentrate undergoes a low-temperature sulfuric acid leach, achieving high titanium recovery rates of around 98%. The process also enables recovery of alumina from kaolin as a co-product, improving overall project economics while allowing partial recycling of reagents. Engineering and cost studies are now underway, with key decisions pending on power supply, acid sourcing, and plant design. The company aims to deliver clear capital and operating cost guidance by early 2027. Rather than competing with low-cost Chinese producers, which dominate about 60% of global TiO2 supply, Empire Metals is targeting premium pigment markets in paints and coatings, where customers pay higher prices for quality and supply security. The broader market backdrop supports this strategy. Global TiO2 demand stands at 8–9 million tonnes annually and continues to grow steadily, while Western producers face rising costs and financial pressure. With strong infrastructure access, a scalable resource, and a focus on high-margin markets, Pitfield is positioned as a potential new entrant in a tightening global titanium supply chain. Learn more: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/companies/empire-metals Sign up for Crux Investor: https://cruxinvestor.com

    29 min
4.8
out of 5
32 Ratings

About

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.

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