Jim, You asked:
>> I would be interested in hearing more about the bullish case for
>> Atacama Minerals. I own a few shares of another company in the
>> Lundin stable, International Uranium.
I don't know if I can make a bullish case for Atacama - I am not that sure about it myself. When I got into this company the directors and management were different, and construction was scheduled to start in late 1996. Since then, there have been many changes that I am not sure about. For instance, I have no idea who these Lundin people are, and do not really know anything about their other companies.
The Boron annual report contains a lot of information about their deposit. If it is to be beleived (after Bre-X this sort of statement is required) it looks pretty good to me. Of course I am an Electrical Engineer, not a Mining Engineer, so maybe my opinion is not worth much :-)
Here's what I need to find out about Atacama:
- In their annual report, they indicate that US$ 900k will be spent on "Phase 1 Engineering", and $1.3 MM will be spent on their "Water development project". Is this captial spending taking place as planned? The Engineering work was to be completed by July 31, 1997 - Did this happen?
- The company was planning to negotiate a $46 MM limited recourse debt facility. They indicated that their proposal would be submitted upon completion of the engineering report. Has it been submitted yet?
I guess it's time to get on the phone to find out this information. Depending upon the answers I get, I will decide wether to buy more. I think that the time to do this is when the debt financing is announced - this would be AFTER the Due Diligence and review of the mining plan by the lender. While I may not get the best price, the risk should be a lot lower than it is now.
Regards,
John Sladek |
