Noront Resources

High-grade Ni-Cu-Pt-Pd-Au-Ag-Rh-Cr-V discoveries in the "Ring of Fire" NI 43-101 Update (March 2011): 11.0 Mt @ 1.78% Ni, 0.98% Cu, 0.99 gpt Pt and 3.41 gpt Pd and 0.20 gpt Au (M&I) / 9.0 Mt @ 1.10% Ni, 1.14% Cu, 1.16 gpt Pt and 3.49 gpt Pd and 0.30 gpt Au (Inf.)

over 10 years ago

in response to JamesBay's message

My feeling, and others might disagree, is simply this:

1. The railroad is the smartest, most efficient, and most cost-effective long term solution for moving ore.

2. KWG has the claims staked and has wanted to promote the construction of a railway that all companies in the Ring could benefit from.

3. Cliffs wants a monopoly in the Ring. The last thing that Cliffs wanted was for everyone to have equal access.

4. If Cliffs supported a railroad, the government and everyone else would say, "then why don't you just support KWG and use theirs?"

5. Therefore, Cliffs had to argue the case of a different approach. And admittedly, a road is both less capital-intensive up front, and faster to build.

There are, arguably, other reasons than what I just suggested.

Ultimately, I think that Cliffs made a terrible, terrible business decision (for Cliffs) in not deciding to buy KWG out for about 25 cents a share two years ago. But in trying to nickel and dime in the short term, to save perhaps a hundred million or two, they have possibly cost themselves billions of dollars in the long term.