Pelangio Exploration Inc.
Ghana – Timmins – Red Lake ● World-class Gold belts
Message: Golden Detour (The Daily Press-Timmins)
Posted By BRANDON WALKER, THE DAILY PRESS
Posted 1 day ago
The stars seem to be aligning in favour of Detour Gold Corp. Detour is planning to have a new open-pit gold mine up and running by 2012.
The company acquired the Detour Mine in August 2006 and officially met all conditions of ownership by January 2007.
Since then the firm has raised $100 million in financing and spent about $55 million on the project.
President and CEO Gerald Panneton spoke about the company's bright future as part of the Timmins Chamber of Commerce's Inside Their Business Series, held Wednesday at the Dante Club.
"What is different about Detour Gold," Panneton said, "is we have a low share count.
"Our stock may go from $9 to $8 in the same day, or from $10 to $11. The movement is very drastic however there's an intrinsic value. You don't have to have very many shares outstanding."
Panneton said very few companies look after their shareholders this way.
Detour Gold also simplified the shareholder structure to give each a more direct interest in the company.
Since 2007 the company has increased its resource base from 1.7 million ounces to about 13.2 in a detailed engineering pit design. They used $700 per ounce gold as the standard to show they can do it even when the value of gold is down.
"We don't need $800 or $900 or $1,000 to make it happen," Panneton said. "$700 will do it."
The Detour Mine is located 240 kilometres away from Timmins. Plans call for an open pit, which Panneton said will help keep it in operation.
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"There's a saying in underground mining," he said. "If you sink a shaft, 500 metres around it is economical but as you move away from the shaft you have to bring ventilation, development costs are expensive and that's why our mines sometimes suffer.
"In an open pit it's much easier," he said. "You just open the pit, go down as deep as you can. You still have parameters that need to be economic ... but it's much easier."
Open-pit mines also have other advantages. One is the amount of training workers need compared to being underground.
"The beauty ... is it doesn't take five years experience underground," he said.
"We can offer (jobs) to people who experience forestry shutdowns and take in some very highly skilled people."
Detour is targeting gold production for 2012.
Mayor Tom Laughren attended the discussion and is excited about how much potential the company brings to the area.
"It's a great news announcement for Northeastern Ontario," he said. "It's one we'll be looking forward to being part of bringing that online. From a Timmins perspective we've opened up our hand to see if there's any way we can help with permitting and meetings.
"When you look at the dollars that are going to spent on that project over the next three, four and five years, the employment and opportunities it will create for our local suppliers, it's just great news for Timmins and Northeastern Ontario."
Article ID# 1474924
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