Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Pastimes : Crazy Fools LightHouse -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: ms.smartest.person who wrote (1885)	12/8/2006 10:40:03 PM
From: ms.smartest.person	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 3198

&#8362 David Pescod's Late Edition December 8, 2006 AURELIAN RESOURCES (V-ARU) $28.50 -0.80 CORRIENTE RESOURCES (T-CTQ) $4.70 -0.48 COASTPORT CAPITAL (V-CPP) $1.00 -0.01 LATEEGRA GOLD CORP (V-LRG) $1.40 -0.10 Little doubt where the action or concern was today on the junior mining markets…...once again it was centered in Ecuador. Stories based there got, once again, swacked (at least most of them did) and Aurelian which just a few weeks ago was yours for $43.00 a shares has now tumbled to $28.50 for a rather significant sell off blamed mainly because of the election of a newly elected left-wing President Lucio Gutierrez. Today, Canaccord’s Wendell Zerb writes a brief note about the temporary suspension of activities of Mirador, Corriente’s significant project in Ecuador and how the company has temporarily suspended exploration and development activities over Christmas. Zerb writes that the impact is negative and writes, “We believe this is a temporary set back at Mirador.” However, Zerb puts his $9.00 target under review, because of the unknowns! What is also known is that Ecuadorian Bonds continue to get hurt, because of concerns that the new President wants to re-negotiate the countries national debt, despite comments by Bloomberg that considering the size of Ecuadorian economy their debt is not unmanageable at all! When we catch up with Corriente’s Ken Shannon, he tells us that a lot of the problems going on are caused by NGO’s such as Green Peace or the World Wildlife Federations or other groups, that have long since decided that they didn't like mining and have fostered groups in countries around the world to oppose what mining companies may be trying to attempt! Shannon suggests that they have helped contribute to bussing people 150 miles away to protest at the Mirador site and of course concerns that there might be clashes because the locals who want jobs. Shannon tells us that the suspension, which would have been normal over Christmas anyway, just advanced a bit! They were only doing a low level of field work and looking at doing some road work at this time, but Shannon makes some other comments that make us wonder if this sell off hasn’t now reach a point where opportunity might be presenting itself. He suggests that while the new-leftist leaning President might not have been his choice to be elected, he says, that in their discussions this is not a Castro. In the meetings that they have had, the one thing the government seemed to be after was jobs, particularly in a remote location such as where Mirador is and with poverty so wide-spread and jobs would be so helpful to the local population. One stock that has held up since the election while being based on Ecuador is Coastport Capital. They had their stock run sometime ago back in May-April when their La Plata property announced some drilling results that were spectacular. One hole reported this spring ran 8.9 meters of 28 g/t AU, 280 g/t Ag, 17% zinc, 5.8 % Cu and 1% Pb. Their challenge is to find enough tonnage! Unfortunately, they gave up the rig then and quickly discovered that the most valuable commodity in the world these days for mining companies is drilling rigs! Once you let one go….it is hard to get one back. Well they finally wrangled one and company President David Patterson tells us that they are back at work at La Plata and just started drilling two weeks ago and are working on an additional 20 holes. “Yes”, he admits, that they had quite a run a while ago and he is noting the affect of the other companies today, but Coastport isn’t suffering yet at all! He suggests that he doesn’t understand why, whether it is just nervousness about the new government or its simply just too early to tell about how worried one should about the new government. Everyone, he suggests, has been caught flat footed as most had expected Alvaro Noboa to have won the election. “Its Ecuador”, he says, “and much of South America has been going through a 500 year long social experiment with democracy.” “Part of being in the mining business in this area of the world”, he suggests, “is that over a eight year mining life, one should look forward to as many as four regime changes.” “That is not always bad”, he suggests, “and asks hasn’t the best governments we’ve had in Canada been during minority governments?” He used that has an analogy to try and describe what’s been going on in Ecuador-where you have a left-wing President elected but you also have a relatively strong congress. Could this not achieve what a minority government has achieved in the past in Canada? He also suggests that much of the problem is being created by the NGO’s the Non-Government Organization that are largely funded by foreign interests and don’t mind mucking around in other countries affaires—particularly poor countries that could use the jobs. In the new reality, though, Patterson suggests that mining companies are going to have to make very certain that they don't cut corners and not violate any rules and be absolutely squeaky clean, to make sure to meet much higher standards. He also suggests that the mining community should get together to help market themselves better and accentuate all the positives of the business — how many jobs it can create, and what difference it could make to so many lives that could use those jobs……. When we ask Patterson for his favorite commodity, he picks zinc. He suggest that there is simply no supply coming anytime soon, nothing to drive the prices down and on the demand side, he jokes about people such as David Coffin and others that suggests that China’s national bird is the crane. As long as China and India keep growing and they have such a large lower and middle class that aspires to ever higher standards, demand for many metals will be there. As far gold, he just suggests that it is an emotional metal where as zinc has the fundamentals. When we ask him for some stock picks and remind him that no picking of his own stories or any conflicts and they have to be doubles…..he actually has two. One is run by a banker friend that he feels has an amazing story and is called Metals Exploration and trades on the AIM exchange in London. We are more fascinated by his other pick of Canadian Royalties, a nickel producer in northern Quebec which he feels sooner or later could be easily become a takeover and potentially a cheap one at that. We featured that story two days ago! If you would like to receive the Late Edition, email Debbie at debbie_lewis@canaccord.com

To: ms.smartest.person who wrote (1885)	12/29/2006 4:57:32 PM
From: aknahow	Respond to of 3198

ms.smartest.person You may or may not be the smartest person, but you are certainly astute. A while ago you surmised that I must have a boatload of CZZ. I believe you posted this because you picked up on the intensity and number of post made by me. Not saying you agree with my post nor condone my approach. Just saying you correctly deduced something about my holdings. In somewhat the same manner I read a lot into a companies care and attention to details like the web site and decisions like the $5 base case. A lack of intensity and desire to have the best possible web site means something. It is a negative but of course may not offset other factors of much greater importance. Allowing the consultant to use of a low ball base case, is more serious and again a negative. I have met many North Americans that have no understanding of the need for negotiation and who would rather go along to get along. I have seen people from other cultures, including third world, that understand much better, the need to not accept less than is obtainable by pressing harder on any and all issues that may impact them in the future. The Spanish say, "Quien calle, se ortega." Or he who keeps quiet surrenders.