I have no idea what the financing deal was, but I was shocked to find out that my order at 1 7/8 got filled!! I put it in about a week ago when the stock was close to 2 1/2 and expected it to just sit there forevermore.
Here is some info that Brian Carlson asked me to post here since he doesn't having posting priviledges anymore.
-- BJL
Date: Tue, 12 May 1998 16:40:07 -0700
From: Brian Carlson <brian@nwrain.com>
X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.01 [en] (Win95; I)
To: Bill Landis <ae954@tcnet.org>
Subject: Re: SpaceDev, NEAP, etc ...
Hey Bill,
What's going on? Have you noticed the excessive volume of Shares of SPDV
traded the last couple of days? Today 33,600 shares traded and another
25,000 yesterday. The price has been dropping, but alot of people are
buying in at this lower price. Just wondered if you had any insight on
this?
As far as my research, I've been reading alot on the topic of mining
lately. I'm currently finishing up Mining the Sky by John Lewis. And my
biggest concern/question about Spacedev's ability to make an insane
profit. Is whether or not they can profitabily bring the materials they
mine back down to Earth. At this point, none of the sources I've read
can give definative proof one way or the other. If they can't, which is
very highly possible, then there minerals must be utilized solely in
space technologies, such as Solar Powered Satellites (SPSs) or for Low
Earth Orbit (LEO) communication satellite construction. These LEO
satellites are the kind that Teledesic (Affliated with Bill Gates and
Microsoft) is in the process of launching in order to provide internet
connections 2000 times faster than current phone modems, video
conferencing, and digital, high quality cellular phone connections. So
the point of all of this is that Teledesic plans to launch 288 of these
satellites. It will cost them $10,000 per kilogram to send these up. It
would be far cheaper for them to build them up there with asteroidal
materials, given the enormus per kilogram cost to launch them from
Earth. But my concern with this is that Spacedev will be heavily
dependent on the fact that there has to be someone set up to buy and
manufacture satellites with this material in some sort of space station
industrial park. Until that sort of operation becomes closer to its
inception, Spacedev may not have a market to sell their materials to.
Satellites, such as those Teledesic will use, are only one example of
how these resources from asteroids can be used in space technologies.
But since there are half a dozen or more companies who plan to do
EXACTLY what Teledesic is doing, it would make this sort of endeavour
very, very profitable- we're talking about well over a thousand
satellites! But the problem is that those satellites are already being
built and plan to be operational by 2002 or earlier. Spacedev will not
be in position to be mining yet. So the way I see it right now Spacedev
has to be able to do one of several things: 1. Find a way to import the
materials it mines to Earth profitabily- highly unlikely. 2. Find a way
to sell the materials in space for manufacturing of satellites and other
space technologies in the near future- this will be dependent on someone
having a manufacturing operation set up in space- Highly, highly
profitable and very likely, but the question is how far in the future
will this happen?
The promising thing about Spacedev is given the nature of their
endeavour they will be able to make money in more ways than just selling
the materials they mine. As they have already proven (with the letters
of intent from university's and agencies willing to pay for their
scientific instrumentsto ride aboard NEAP) they will make a profit from
just selling the scientific knowlege they obtain from there mission, not
to mention the advertising money!!!
Later, Brian Carlson
PS -Bill could you please post this message on SI? I think it might
help facilitate a good discussion.
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