GS ...
My first comment is that I think the ROF has a great future. Sounds like pumping but I think there are some clear facts - chromium, nickel, copper, zinc, gold, silver, rhodium, etc. A mineralization bonanza. And we are still in the very early stages of discovery.
So when journalists write stuff, they probably know no more than we do - and probably less. The Reuters piece includes:
"Merger and acquisition activity in Canada's mining patch will heat up again, but it is tough to predict when big miners will decide the time is right."
As for me, I predict that Victoria BC will have blue skies sometime in the next month. But I'm not sure exactly when. Similar comment. Rather inane.
Second quote:
"The increasing valuation gap between the senior and intermediate producers and the junior explorers/developers suggests to us that M&A activity will likely heat up going into 2009..."
I like the word "suggest". My horoscope does the same thing.
I think the Agoracom interview yesterday with Parisotto and Hamilton of Noront should be our guide with regards to the exploration and "the short to intermediate future" of the ROF.
Noront is the 800 pound gorilla in the ROF for the forseeable future, and decisions that are made in their BOD will impact Spider Resources in one way or another. The recent proxy battle has given everyone a decent compromise.
For Neil Novak, he still has a key job in Noront management, and he is still the CEO of Spider Resources. He will be privy to key decisions within Noront, which I expect will shape his thinking for SPQ exploration.
Clearly, stating it once again, the geology of the ROF continues to be defined, and this is directly impacting how the drilling exploration will be going forward. The advance in EM technology and other mining technologies has been very strong, and this is having very positive results in the exploration of the ROF.
I expect Neil Novak has all the EM data that he needs to drill the Freewest Option, for example. I know Yellowknifer will be discussing some things with Neil (they've known each other for some time); and amongst those things, Yellowknifer is going to ask about the drilling plan going forward.
With a final reference to the Reuters piece (M&A), if you have listened to the interview with Parisotto and Hamilton, you would have heard the discussion about "majors" and potential takeovers (specific to NOT, of course). Both gentlemen commented that with the strong shareholder participation in the proxy battle, that it is unlikely that there will be any "hostile" move by a "major". And I believe it's a similar situation with Spider Resources. Therefore, no poison pill required.
So, as investors in SPQ, we know that the company has chromium, nickel, copper, zinc, and PGEs. How much? This is the question. And this can only be answered with drilling and the drill bit. Which is happening right now.
All IMHO
Snug
