Copper Explorer Defines 104Mt Open Pit at .85% Copper Equivalent Contributed Opinion
Source: Bill Powers (9/29/21)
Bill Powers of Mining Stock Education profiles QC Copper and Gold’s (TSXV:QCCU – OTC:QCCUF) newly defined Opemiska copper-gold deposit in Chibougamau, Quebec.
Opemiska Deposit Overview
The Opemiska Deposit consists of 81.7M tonnes @ 0.88% CuEq of pit-constrained measured and indicated mineral resources and 21.3M tonnes @ 0.73% CuEq of inferred mineral resources. The resource is pit-constrained and contains more than 532,000 tonnes (or 1.17 billion lbs of copper and 816,000 ounces of gold) in the measured & indicated (M&I) classification and an additional 109,000 tonnes (or 240.3 million lbs of copper and 209,000 ounces of gold) in the Inferred classification. Over 82% of the total mineral resource reports to the M&I classification. Within the larger resource, the company has identified a high-grade potential starter pit of 10.6M tonnes of M&I Resources grading 1.26% CuEq. The mineral resources are using pit optimization algorithms and a 0.2% CuEq cut-off, inclusive of US$3.50/lb copper and US$1,650/oz gold prices.
Regarding this accomplishment CEO Stephen Stewart commented to Mining Stock Education that it was a “major milestone and something that we've been working on for years”…“to be able to get over that global envelope of 104 million tonnes at 0.85% copper equivalent, which equates to nearly two billion pounds of copper in the ground”…“So, we're over the moon. That's over $8 billion of gross metal value in the ground in the best mining jurisdiction in the world.”
Potential to Double the Resource
Stephen Stewart said QC Copper and Gold will aim to double the size of its approximately 2 billion CuEq pounds deposit. The Company has outlined multiple targets for expansion and discovery drilling this coming winter. These targets include extensional drilling to expand the existing Mineral Resource envelope, proximal former mines including the adjacent Cooke & Robitaille deposits, and other prospective targets along the Gwillim and Beaver Lake fault zones.
Stewart stated, “This is going to get bigger. There is no question about it.”…“Our shareholders and followers can expect us through the balance of this year and obviously 2022 to get out there and expand in and around this super-pit.”
Opemiska Catching the Eye of Producers
Opemiska is receiving interest from producers and potential strategic partners, Stewart shared. However, he is not willing to give away too much of Opemiska’s value too early:
In terms of getting interest from producers, we've had, over the past year or so, a lot of interest. Smart money, smart investors have taken notice, but also strategics. So we have shown them our database. Prior to this resource, we have had some very interesting phone calls when the resource came out. We certainly entertain interest from strategic partners, but it would have to be on the right terms. To be honest with you, all else equal, there's ample capital available to us today from institutional and retail investors. I think that's the best course for us not to get married immediately. So that's probably the route we'll take. And when the time is right, when we build the value, when we are, multiple nine figure valuation, that's when we could consider getting a dance partner, if you will.
Potential CAD$500M Valuation says Stewart
Before the release of the Opemiska resource last week, QC Copper and Gold was valued at less than a CAD$30 million. Stewart believed the company was deeply undervalued then, especially because QC Copper and Gold also owns about CAD$14 million worth of Baselode Energy (TSXV:FIND) shares. But even after a nice share price rise since the resource announcement, Stewart argues his company is still grossly undervalued and is best compared to Marathon Gold with its Valentine Gold project:
To me, the best comparable is Marathon Gold. So Marathon's got six to seven million ounces. They're bigger than us right now. They're a touch higher grade, but in the seven to eight-hundred-million-dollar market cap range. That's a bold statement from a company that's got about a CAD$30 million market cap. But when you look at the assets, we're not that far off. And so we're day one, we got a ways to go. We're going to grow this resource, but to me, that's the target. I think this thing has a $500 million valuation on it, all else equal. Well, that's the direction I'm going to take this company.
Alianza Minerals recently completed its 2021 drilling campaign at its flagship Haldane silver project in the historic Keno Hill Mining District, and the last assays of this program have been received recently. Another batch of solid results implies the company is on the right track, but is looking for a bigger prize.
Usha Resources has multiple copper, cobalt and gold properties and projects across the U.S. and Canada. Cobalt in the U.S. would be hugely desirable; Usha could find meaningful deposits of cobalt and copper. A small market cap with near-term drill results make Usha a compelling risk/reward proposition.
During Crescat Capital's Sept. 20, 2021 broadcast, Dr. Quinton Hennigh, Geologic and Technical Director of Crescat Capital, reviewed news released in the past two weeks on multiple companies in Crescat's portfolio of mining explorers.
In part two of a two-part look at investing in junior precious metals equities, Denver-based Crescat Capital CIO Kevin Smith discusses the Lassonde Curve and how he uses it in combination with Geologic and Technical Director Dr. Quinton Hennigh’s hands-on knowledge to invest in what they believe are the best opportunities in the gold and silver space.
In a Sept. 20, 2021 Crescat Capital broadcast, the firm's Portfolio Manager Tavi Costa and Chief Investment Officer Kevin Smith presented statistical evidence that China is heading toward an economic crash and its spiraling is affecting other economies around the world. The two experts also explained how Crescat Capital has positioned its funds in preparation for the likely Chinese event.
Teck Resources, a CA$26 billion company, is the second largest steelmaking coal producer in the world. In its Investor Day presentation earlier this week it reiterated the long-term strength of the seaborne coking coal market. Colonial Coal is also 100% coking coal, with two valuable projects for sale in B.C., Canada.
Sector expert Michael Ballanger breaks down market moves for the week of September 13 and discusses one of the highlights of 2021, which has been the explosive performance of the uranium space, citing companies such as Sprott Inc. and Western Uranium and Vanadium Corp, as we look toward a net-zero carbon future.
In a September 10, 2021, Crescat Capital briefing from the Precious Metals Summit in Beaver Creek, Colorado, the firm's Dr. Quinton Hennigh, Geologic and Technical Director, provided updates on 15 exploration companies of note.
In a Sept. 10, 2021 Crescat Capital broadcast from the Precious Metals Summit in Beaver Creek, the firm's Portfolio Manager, Tavi Costa, and its Chief Investment Officer, Kevin Smith, talked about the current macroeconomic environment and highlighted the opportunity in gold and silver mining equities.
Regarding this accomplishment CEO Stephen Stewart commented to Mining Stock Education that it was a “major milestone and something that we've been working on for years”…“to be able to get over that global envelope of 104 million tonnes at 0.85% copper equivalent, which equates to nearly two billion pounds of copper in the ground”…“So, we're over the moon. That's over $8 billion of gross metal value in the ground in the best mining jurisdiction in the world.”
