MR: Do you have any more zinc names you'd like to discuss?

MO: Yes, Canadian Zinc Corp. (CZN:TSX; CZICF:OTCQB) is another advanced developer. Again, you can bash me over the head for the fact it's not close to infrastructure. Its Prairie Creek project is located in the western Northwest Territories, but the beauty with this one is that it's already built; there is a mine and a mill. It was built by the Hunt Brothers in the 1980s for the silver because it's a high grade zinc-lead-silver deposit but the Hunt Brothers shut it down within months of completion when silver prices crashed.

I visited the site, and the mill is still in excellent shape. For the past 10 years, the company has been working on the permitting and environmental side, as well as plans for upgrading the mine and mill. The key catalyst is for the company to receive its primary water permit that will allow the discharge of treated water back into the environment. It's a sensitive topic because the mine is within the Nahanni National Park drainage area, so its work is under a lot more scrutiny. Canadian Zinc is expecting the draft of that permit to be issued later this quarter. Once awarded, it is effectively cleared to complete the mine and bring it into production, which could be as early as 2015.

TMR: As far as an offtake agreement goes, who are the potential suitors there?

MO: I believe Canadian Zinc has been talking to metal traders and various Chinese groups. There's mercury in the concentrate, and this adds a little bit of hassle, but it's saleable. It has to negotiate a good price, but there are smelters and metals traders who would be happy to take its concentrates.

TMR: To conclude, would you go as far as to say we're coming into an era of prolonged zinc price stability?

MO: I don't think we're coming into price stability for anything in the world right now. Anything that's related to the stock market is volatile. Everyone's doing very short-term trading. You get stability with patient, long-term investors. That's not the world we're in anymore.

If you have a longer view and think that the worst of the economic crisis is over, then it's an excellent time for zinc. I think its day is coming.

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