Snippets from the GRZ PR.

.... The Brisas and Cristinas properties, together with the technical data with respect to the Brisas project owned by Gold Reserve, would be transferred to a Venezuelan mixed company, which is expected to be beneficially owned 55% by Venezuela and 45% by Gold Reserve. The Company is also expected to be engaged under a technical assistance agreement to provide procurement, engineering and construction services for the project. The parties would also seek, subject to the approval of the National Executive Branch of the Venezuelan government, the creation of a Special Economic Zone providing the establishment of a special customs framework for the mixed company and other tax and economic benefits.......

..... After settlement of all of the Company's obligations, substantially all of the net proceeds of the payment related to the Award and technical mining data is expected to be distributed to our shareholders.”

So the shareholders get the money and the company is better than ever before with 45% of Brisas & Las Cristinas (more gold than they started with and higher average grade as EZ liked to constantly tell us) along with the Vz government bending over backwards to help... .

Of course there is the rider that the JV requires "the successful negotiation and execution of definitive agreements".............

Quote from Leopoldo López (jailed opposition leader)

"To this end, we must restore global confidence in Venezuela as a nation that respects the law, human rights and its obligations to others. We must rebuild burned bridges with some of the world’s most respected institutions, including the World Bank, the Organization of American States and the Inter-American Court of Human Rights — not to mention dozens of countries in this hemisphere and elsewhere. Our practice of aligning primarily with the pariah states of the world must end.

Furthermore, we must demonstrate that we will stand by our agreements with other nations, foreign investors and anyone else who does business with us. The practices of arbitrarily seizing assets, reneging on agreements and withholding promised payments have turned Venezuela into the world’s most unreliable partner; changing this reality and this perception must be a top priority."

I am heartened that the present Venezuelan government and the opposition both see the need for this major reform and Maduro seems to be making this GRZ deal his poster child for this reform. Have they finally seen the light?

The opposition are just as committed on this issue of restoring international confidence and honoring contracts as Maduro now is.. It makes the deal more certain even if the government does change.

To read the Washington Post piece just do a search for the heading of this post.

Gee EZ, can't you give that story you and Chavez made up about Belanger's fictional T-Bill policy a rest by now! Even you must realise the story was never a valid criticism.

Sure they raised some cash and at times some of it was in T-Bills; just prudent money management. Better than in the pockets of the management or wasted by stupid spending decisions. This T-Bill story was promoted by Chavez in one of his tirades and picked up by Roy Carson and then by you as being gospel truth. In case you don't realise, most of what Chavez said was BS, and Roy wasn't exactly the most reliable source either. In fact Chavez's accusation was actually aimed at Crystallex and gold miners in general, not Gold Reserve.

GRZ put their spare money into Bolivar Gold in the early days, and made a nice profit when GFI took over. That was clearly an investment in gold mining in Venezuela. On their second capital raising they ordered and paid for a full 70k tpd mill which was paid for in progress payments. Sure, the balance was held in secure instruments until the payments came due, but that was just good money management. GRZ spent over $300 million directly in Venezuela in drilling and engineering and they were also smart enough to keep the expensive equipment out of Venezuela until they got a full permit. The full permit never came so they have sold and are selling that equipment.

GRZ last week did a deal with their bond holders that will settle the debt to everyone's satisfaction and with very moderate dilution, while keeping enough cash on hand to ensure the arbitration and collection of the award can proceed without any financial pressure on the company.

Why you persist is spreading Chavez's BS as if it was fact is beyond belief. GRZ and KRY ran into the same problem in Venezuela. It was called Hugo Chavez. Just because Belanger handled the situation better than Fung is no reason to keep up this charade which you have persisted with for years.

I'm sorry that KRY holders are in trouble but continually attacking GZR and Belanger is just sour grapes.

EZ - Your version of events came straight from Roy Carlson who got his knickers in a knot when GRZ refused to support his rag. At the time he bad mouthed GRZ and was the poster boy for KRY, that is, until Russoro made him a better offer... Roy Carlson's version was also repeated by Hugo in general terms aimed at all the international miners, not just aimed at GRZ.

So your whole concept is based on information from Chavez's speeches and Roy Carlson's vindictive attack. In fact GRZ put a great deal of their spare funds into Bolivar Gold and made a tidy profit when GFI took over. It wasn't in T-bills at all. It was a smart move and it paid off.

GRZ also always raised the funds they needed when the market was good, reducing dilution, and not waiting until they were out of cash and at the mercy of the Bay Street barons who prey on companies desperate for cash who wait too long to refinance.

You have confused good management with stock promotion. Brisas would have been profitable, very profitable, at todays metal prices. Las Cristinas also would have been a good mine. Both KRY and GRZ used the same engineering firms and the figures for both projects were sound. There is no point in the shoulda, coulda, attitude. Hugo Chavez was the problem for both companies. One just handled the problem better than the other.

That's all!

Hey EZ,

You have been going on about the GRZ "T bill" account for a while.. I would have thought that even you should realise by now that a few "T bills" in the Crystallex account would have meant that they wouldn't be in the jam they are now in.

If you really think that the KRY management's scheme to piss away the little money they had before they went for arbitration was smarter than GRZ's plan to keep it in reserve and allow the arbitration to be financed properly and with plenty of time and cash in reserve, then I am sorry for you. You certainly don't have a grasp of business reality.

If GRZ gets just half of their claim then shareholders can expect a $14 a share pay out. The convertable bond holders win also. GRZ intends to pay the bulk of the settlement to shareholders in the most tax efficient manner possible. No, they won't be mining in Venezuela, but they still have all the critical data in their possession (it was not required to be disclosed in detail for the permitting process) so that gives them an additional lever in settlement or even after the ICSID makes their ruling.

I'm very sorry for the rest of the patient KRY stock holders who got screwed in this deal, and hope that something can be salvaged for the stockholders. For you EZ, your continuing banging that worn out drum as to how much better KRY management managed the situation compared to GRZ's management sounds as hollow as it ever did.

There goes their excuse as to the "environmental" reasons for refusing permits for LC and LB...