renaissance's Profile
renaissance's Posts
Bullion banks try to panic gold miners into hedging, Maguire says
Submitted by cpowell on 11:17AM ET Friday, December 20, 2013. Section: Daily Dispatches
2:15p ET Friday, December 20, 2013
Dear Friend of GATA and Gold:
London metals trader and market-rigging whistleblower Andrew Maguire tells King World News today that bullion bankers, including the chairman of the London Bullion Market Association himself, are trying to frighten gold mining companies into hedging their production again. Maguire claims that recent attacks on the gold price have been undertaken partly for this purpose, meant to panic miners into dumping their metal cheaply so that the naked short positions of the bullion banks can be covered. An excerpt from Maguire's interview is posted at the King World News blog here:
http://kingworldnews.com/kingworldnews/KWN_DailyWeb/Entries/2013/12/20_LBMA_Chairman_Tells_Producers_Gold_To_Plunge_%24400_In_2014.html
CHRIS POWELL, Secretary/Treasurer
Gold Anti-Trust Action Committee Inc.
Agreed, but then, the whole industry is in the same rot, deos that mean that every companies are mismanaged ? and if they are, why take the risk of investing in anything related to this industry ? I cannot see how any company could succeed when the goods it is producing is "legally" stolen from them. It seems that nowadays trying to keep alive, a company in the mining sector, is a feat by itself.
Like some other shareholders, I think that it is taking them way too long to fine tune the processing plant, it seems that there is always an excuse "Ball mill, power outages, rainy season, etc." This said, I understand it is not easy to accomplish something in this part of the world. and they have made lots of progress. I think that the fact that the price of gold and silver are being manipulated down is keeping UC from selling what it is producing at the right price, therefore keeping the company further from being able to declare commercial production. I know that Gary said that for as long as the price of silver stays above $18, the company is making money, but making $12,$22 or $32 of profit per ounce sold instead of less than $2 profit, would obviously make it easier to achieve commercial production a lot faster. Also, if the price of silver was where it should be if it was not manipulated down, the investment in the Sprott Silver Thrust would protect the company's purchasing power a lot more than keeping it in a saving account.
Personnaly, I do not criticize the company's managment for what is happening, I criticize those that are manipulating the precious metals prices for their own benifits, while slowly killing the precious metals mining industry.
Thursday, December 5, 2013
The Curious Case for Silver
It has been a difficult year for silver investors with the metal falling by 36% year-to-date. While the Federal Reserve balance sheet continues to expand, ‘taper’ discussions by the Federal Open Market Committee have weighed heavily on the price performance of all the precious metals this year. By our calculations, over the last five years silver has a beta to the gold price of 1.5. This implies that price changes in gold are magnified in silver. Combine this with an 80% correlation in the price action between gold and silver over the same time frame and it’s easy to see that where the price of gold goes, the price of silver goes faster. As we break down the fundamentals for silver, market developments this year give rise to a curious conundrum – how can the case for silver be stronger while the price continues to languish? We begin with investor sentiment.
We use current ETF holdings and coin demand to gauge investor appetite for the metal. In both cases demand has been robust. Last month, the US Mint confirmed a record year for sales of silver coins – and we still have four weeks to go. Authorized purchasers of the coins ordered their full weekly allocation of 500,000 coins, bringing the total sales to date this year to a record 40.175 million ounces, the Mint said. That sales figure topped the previous annual record of 39.869 million ounces seen in 2011.1 Yes, the roughly 40 million ounces of silver only accounts for maybe 5% of overall demand, but it also represents a huge increase from a decade ago when it comes to investor interest in physical metal. In fact, globally, silver investment demand is up from essentially ZERO just 10 short years ago.2 Silver ETF’s continue to add to holdings as well. According to Bloomberg, holdings across all silver ETF’s have increased by 4% so far this year and 6% over the last 12 months. Compare that to gold ETF holdings, which are down 30% so far in 2013 – a shocking contrast. Silver investors have added to their positions during this price decline. However this isn’t even the biggest news in silver this year.
Last month, somewhat surprising news came out of India that roughly 130 million ounces of silver were imported into that country in just the first six months of the year. And recent data confirms this trend is continuing. Data from Thomson Reuters GFMS shows that India has continued to be a massive new buyer in the market, with India’s silver imports rising to a three-month peak in October, putting them on track to hit a record this year. Buyers there are choosing silver over gold to meet high seasonal demand. Silver imports jumped 40% to 338 tonnes in October from 241 tonnes in September, GFMS data showed. “By the end of the year, silver imports should be at 5,200-5,400 tonnes,” said Sudheesh Nambiath, an analyst with Thomson Reuters GFMS. This would be more than India’s record high purchases of 5,048 tonnes in 2008.3 For perspective the world’s silver mines produce approximately 24,000 tonnes of silver, so this new buyer is purchasing approximately 22% of world silver production compared with almost zero last year. And when you consider that approximately half the silver production is used for investment purposes, they are on track to buy 44% of the world’s mined silver available for investment. This phenomenon is unparalleled in the precious metal markets this year and represents a tectonic shift in silver market demand. One might expect a price reaction to this news, but none has been evident. In fact, silver has seen its biggest annual drop in at least three decades.
Complete article here : http://www.sprottglobal.com/thoughts/articles/the-curious-case-for-silver/
http://www.marketwired.com/press-release/kaminak-validates-heap-leach-process-at-coffee-gold-project-tsx-venture-kam-1857832.htm
December 02, 2013 08:00 ET
Kaminak Validates Heap Leach Process at Coffee Gold Project
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwired - Dec. 2, 2013) - Kaminak Gold Corporation (TSX VENTURE:KAM) today announced the results of the first phase of a comprehensive metallurgical test work program at the Coffee Gold Project, Yukon, that will provide process input data for the updated NI 43-101 Mineral Resource Estimate scheduled for completion in the 1st Quarter of 2014, which will in turn lead into the initiation of a Preliminary Economic Assessment ('PEA'). The primary objectives of the 2013 metallurgical program were to test the potential for heap leach processing of Oxide and Transitional facies at Supremo and Latte, two of the largest deposits discovered to date at Coffee, at variable crush sizes (0.5", 1.0" and 6") and to establish representative gold recovery rates from cyanide soluble gold assaying for Oxide, Transitional and Sulphide facies mineralization at various depth profiles across the Coffee deposits.
Highlights from this work include:
- Column leach gold recoveries of 90% to 92% on 1"crushed material from drill core composites of representative Oxide material from each of Latte and Supremo were achieved within 40 days.
- All of the samples leached very rapidly with 81.6% and 81.0% gold recovery after ten days leaching of the 1 inch Oxide crushed material from Latte and Supremo respectively.
- Column leach test work was conducted under simulated cold climate conditions by Kappes, Cassiday and Associates, industry leading experts in heap leach processing. Agglomeration was not required and low reagent consumption was reported.
- Bottle roll gold recoveries were not substantially increased compared to the column leach tests indicating that heap leaching is a more attractive option than agitation leaching at this stage of the project.
- Results from cyanide soluble gold assaying of representative samples from throughout the Coffee deposit compare favorably with results from column leach testing of the same sample set (see Table 4) and is being considered as a potentially quantitative method for measuring recoverable gold across all mineralized zones and to depth.
- A preliminary analysis of cyanide soluble data returned from the testing of historical drilling pulps increased the proportion of the resource classified as Oxide at Supremo from a previous visual estimate of 55% to almost 70%, with a further 20% reporting as Upper Transitional Facies. The quantity of Latte Oxide Facies is similar to the previous visual estimation of 25%, with a further 15% reporting as Upper Transitional Facies.
Fred Lightner, Director Mine Development, stated:
"The metallurgical testing results illustrate the amenability of the Coffee deposit to heap leaching, which is typically lower in capital and operating costs than other gold recovery methods. The rapid leaching kinetics, low reagent consumption, lack of agglomeration and the excellent oxide recoveries are most encouraging especially when combined with a requirement for minimal crushing. The results of our 2013 metallurgical program will provide valuable input for the Preliminary Economic Assessment."
Eira Thomas, Kaminak President and CEO commented:
"This is an important milestone for our project. Not only have we demonstrated that heap leaching represents a viable gold recovery option at Coffee, the cyanide soluble leach assay data will allow us to better map and quantify recoverable gold in the resource block model, which is in the process of being updated, incorporating the results from more than 55,000 metres of new drilling completed in 2013. Kaminak expects to complete and announce an updated NI 43-101 Mineral Resource Estimate early in Q1, 2014".
2013 Coffee Gold Project Metallurgical Test Work Program
Results of the column leach tests conducted by Kappes, Cassiday and Associates ("KCA") are summarized below in Table 1.
Table 1 Simulated Cold Climate (4 Degrees Centigrade) Column Leach Test Results
Sample
Description
Crush
Size*
inches
Head
Grade
g/t Au
Extracted
Grade
g/t Au
Gold
Recovery
%
Days Leached
Consumption
NaCN
kg/t
Supremo Oxide
1.0
1.57
1.46
92%
40
0.17
Supremo Oxide
0.5
1.44
1.34
94%
40
0.28
Supremo Oxide
0.5
1.55
1.47
95%
42
0.52
Supremo Upper Transition
0.5
1.49
1.08
73%
40
0.31
Supremo Lower Transition
0.5
1.67
0.80
48%
40
0.38
Latte Oxide
1.0
1.62
1.46
90%
40
0.19
Latte Oxide
0.5
1.54
1.38
90%
40
0.27
Latte Upper Transition
0.5
1.54
0.72
47%
40
0.46
Latte Lower Transition
0.5
1.42
0.41
29%
40
0.64
Latte Sulphide
0.5
2.37
0.13
5%
42
0.46
*Drill core composites crushed to 31.5 mm (80% passing 1 inch) and 16 mm (80% passing 1/2 inch)
**22 degree centigrade test performed at ambient lab temperature
In the oxide samples, the recoveries of 90% and above were obtained at both a crush size of 0.5 and 1 inch material. Additional test work is currently ongoing to investigate a nominal 6 inch crush size (80% passing 150 mm) for the oxide mineralization at both Supremo and Latte.
Preliminary test work reported no percolation problems; therefore, the use of cement agglomeration was not required. The column leach tests were performed at a temperature of 4 degrees Centigrade to simulate cold climate leaching, with the exception of one test at ambient lab temperature (22 degrees C) as a test control. The gold recovery difference between ambient and cold climate temperature is negligible at 1% (95% versus 94% gold recovery respectively).
All of the samples leached very rapidly with 81.0% and 81.6% gold recovery from Supremo and Latte respectively within ten days leaching of the 1 inch Oxide columns. Low cyanide consumption was reported from all leach columns.
To view Figure 1, visit the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/KAM_1201_fig1.jpg
Further images from the 2013 metallurgical test work program can be found on the Kaminak website: http://kaminak.com/projects/sections_and_maps/metallurgical_data/2013
Comparative Bottle Roll Test Work
Results from bottle roll test work undertaken on splits of the same composites utilized for column leaching are detailed below in Table 2. The bottle roll leach tests are somewhat comparable to the column leach tests. By using a fine grind, recoveries were not substantially increased over the column leach tests, indicating that heap leaching will most probably be economically more attractive than agitation leaching.
Table 2 Results of Bottle Roll Leach Tests
Description
Target
p80
Size
mm
Head
Grade
g/t Au
Extracted
Grade
g/t Au
Gold
Recovery
%
Leach
Time
hours
Supremo Oxide
0.075
1.44
1.36
94%
96
Supremo Upper Transition
0.075
1.45
1.13
78%
96
Supremo Lower Transition
0.075
1.64
0.87
53%
96
Latte Oxide
0.075
1.57
1.45
92%
96
Latte Upper Transition
0.075
1.37
0.70
51%
96
Latte Lower Transition
0.075
1.46
0.55
38%
96
Latte Sulphide
0.075
2.46
0.32
13%
96
Sample Composite Selection for the 2013 Metallurgical Test Program
All of the samples used for the column leach tests were composited from drill core consisting of a wide distribution of different drill holes and individual intervals to give a representative sample of each deposit area. Composites were selected at a head grade (see Table 1) close to the global average grade of 1.56g/t Au (base case cut-off) for the 2012 NI 43-101 Coffee Inferred Mineral Resource Estimate. Details of the metallurgical test work composite selection are provided in Table 3.
Table 3 Metallurgical Composite Selection
Sample Description
Avg. %
Fresh
Rock
Sample Type
Core
length
(m)
Number
of
samples
Number
of holes
sampled
Supremo, Oxide
3
1/2 core
150
151
16
Supremo, Upper Transition
27
1/4 core
127
130
12
Supremo, Lower Transition
71
1/4 core
112
112
8
Latte, Oxide
2
1/2 core
127
128
15
Latte, Upper Transition
35
1/4 core
101
97
8
Latte, Lower Transition
71
1/4 core
95.5
96
7
Latte, Sulphide
99
1/4 core
73
72
8
Cyanide Soluble Gold Test Work
Categorization of oxidation facies has in the past been undertaken via visual estimation of the proportion of Oxide and Sulphide, followed by the manual interpretation of surfaces and the assignment of oxide facies within the resource block model dependent on whether a block is above or below a certain oxidation surface. The oxidation profile at Coffee is variable, being controlled by the percolation of meteoric water from surface downwards and along the mineralized structures. Thus, the manual interpretation method is unlikely to be detailed enough to accurately assess the quantity and distribution of oxidation facies. In particular, the internal variability within Transitional facies material, which represents a continuum from 5% to 95% oxidized material, is not able to be modelled via the visual method. Presently, the Transitional facies is simply divided into an 'Upper' and 'Lower' zone based on ≥50% oxidized material and ≤50% oxidized material respectively.
In order to better evaluate the amenability and variability of Transitional material to metallurgical cyanide leach recovery, over 8,000 samples representing 70% of all samples above a fire assay value of 0.3g/t Au within mineralized intercepts drilled from the initial drilling year of 2010 up to and including 2013, have been subjected to a cyanide soluble assay. The cyanide soluble assays were performed by ALS Laboratories (Au-AA13 method).
The difference between the cyanide soluble assay and the original fire assay, on an individual assay by assay basis, or across composites made up of equivalent samples, may be utilized to provide an indication of the gold within the sample that is amenable to cyanide leach. By extension, it also indicates the amount of oxidation of the sample. The cyanide soluble proxy gold recovery is the percentage of the fire assay value actually reporting to the leach solution.
A comparison of the column leach test recoveries at the 0.5 inch crush size from the KCA testing program, and the cyanide soluble assays from the same samples as used in the testing composites, is presented in Table 4 below.
Table 4 Cyanide soluble gold recovery versus column leach gold recovery
Sample Description
Column
Recovery,
% Au
Cyanide
Soluble
Recovery
Ratio of
Column
Recovery to
Cyanide
Soluble
Recovery
Supremo, Oxide
94%
98.4%
0.96
Supremo, Upper Transition
73%
78.2%
0.93
Supremo, Lower Transition
48%
51.2%
0.94
Latte, Oxide
90%
91.2%
0.99
Latte, Upper Transition
47%
46.5%
1.00
Latte, Lower Transition
29%
32.5%
0.89
The strong correlation of the cyanide soluble recovery and the actual column leach test recovery indicates that cyanide soluble recovery may be a reliable method to map the metallurgical recovery throughout the Oxide, Transitional and Sulphide zones of the Coffee Deposit. Work is ongoing to test the potential for applying this methodology in future iterations of the Coffee Mineral Resource Estimate.
The oxidation profile at Coffee is generally deep, sometimes in excess of 300 meters. Furthermore, all of the mineralization at Coffee currently remains open to depth. From preliminary mineralogical examination of Transitional material at Supremo and Latte, it appears that remnant sulphide mineralization within the Supremo Transitional material has been more efficiently oxidized, and hence, gold extractions from Transitional material at Supremo are comparatively better than those at Latte.
A preliminary comparison of the cyanide soluble assay data against the 2012 NI 43-101 Coffee Inferred Mineral Resource Estimate suggests an increase in the proportion of the Supremo deposit classified as Oxide facies, from a previous visual estimate of 55% to close to 70%, and with a further 20% reporting as Upper Transitional facies. The preliminary analysis suggests the proportion of the Latte deposit classified as Oxide facies is similar to the previously modelled 25%, with a further 15% reporting as Upper Transitional Facies.
Sulphide Flotation Testing
In addition to the cyanide leaching test program, KCA also conducted four preliminary rougher flotation tests on the Latte Sulphide sample. Although reagents, grind size and flotation time have not been optimized, gold recoveries varied from 58% to 72% of the gold reporting to a rougher flotation concentrate. Additional work will depend on the future delineation and quantification of sulphide resources.
Kaminak's disclosure of metallurgical data in this press release has been reviewed and approved by Fred Lightner, P.Eng., Director Mine Development of Kaminak Gold Corporation, who serves as a Qualified Person under the definition of National Instrument 43-101. Disclosure of additional technical or scientific information in this press release has been reviewed and approved by Tim Smith, P.Geo., Vice President Exploration of Kaminak Gold Corporation, who serves as a Qualified Person under the definition of National Instrument 43-101.
On behalf of the Board of Directors of Kaminak
Eira Thomas, President and CEO
Kaminak Gold Corporation
For further information about Kaminak Gold Corporation or this news release, please visit our website at www.kaminak.com.
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Oxide Gold Recoveries of Greater Than 90% in 40 Days on 1 Inch Crushed Material
PBOC Says No Longer in China’s Interest to Increase Reserves
The People’s Bank of China said the country does not benefit any more from increases in its foreign-currency holdings, adding to signs policy makers will rein in dollar purchases that limit the yuan’s appreciation.
“It’s no longer in China’s favor to accumulate foreign-exchange reserves,” Yi Gang, a deputy governor at the central bank, said in a speech organized by China Economists 50 Forum at Tsinghua University yesterday. The monetary authority will “basically” end normal intervention in the currency market and broaden the yuan’s daily trading range, Governor Zhou Xiaochuan wrote in an article in a guidebook explaining reforms outlined last week following a Communist Party meeting. Neither Yi nor Zhou gave a timeframe for any changes.