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Gold/Mining/Energy : Canadian Warrants Only -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: onepath who wrote (2564)	2/12/2008 9:11:42 AM
From: PaperPerson	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 23088

What I found out about PDL in Finland: It is well worth reading up on the Arctic Finland platinum project now shared by our warranted little company PDL and the much bigger Gold Fields Ltd. While PDL has been acting nicely in the market, and I am happy speculating on teh stock and warrants for that reason, I did think the reserves described in Canada were a little on the thin side, frankly. So I was really trying to understand what PDL had going in Finland, where it is now earning a half-interest in something called the Arctic Platinum Project APP. I could simply not determine how big this deal was from the PDL site. I would have to say that PDL is going out of its way not to hype the Finland deal at this time. Gold Fields Ltd. also has clammed up on the subject. Try finding info on the Gold Fields site about Finland. If you find anything later than 2002, please let me know. Anyway, my curiousity peaked, I began poking around the web. What I figured out is that APP is PDL's future, and the future is very promising. This project has been kicking around for at least eight years, and consists of a lot of prospective land. While there is some high-grade at surface in one spot, the arctic environment, I suspect, made the project too expensive for the overall lower grades involved, until now. The last release I could find was one from 2002 where a Finnish company called Outokumpu Oyj and Gold Fields were celebrating the millions of ounces of indicated reserves of Platinum Group metals they had drilled out in Finland. By 2004 it is clear that Gold Fields has taken over completely, owns the project 100 percent. Then North American Palladium shows up as the new partner, a deal PDL is now earning its way into. In a nutshell, there is some high grade, a lot more low grade, and the project area is HUGE. I found this sentence in the 2003 article in Mining Journal describing O.O.'s departure from the deal: "APP was formed in March 2000 by GFL and Outokumpu, with a total 'area of interest' (AoI) of 9,590 km<2>." Just take a look at these two old clips from 2000 and 2002 and look at the NUMBER OF OUNCES being discussed and the glowing terms applied to the deposits by a Gold Fields exec. 2000 Reuters gsf.fi 2002 Outokumpu press release en.gtk.fi Same release on Gold Fields site goldfields.co.za O.O. said it sold out its half to another company in 2003. I do not have an explanation of what happened next, but a 2004 mining Journal article refers in the past tense to the former JV as being wholly owned by Gold Fields. Here is a brief extract: "Several new mining companies, including some major international companies, started exploration in Finland in 2003. In the course of the year, new updated resource figures for Gold Fields' Arctic Platinum Project (APP) in the Suhanko area in southern Lappland were announced: a total of 157 Mt at an average grade of 2.4 g/t PGM+Au (12.2 Moz contained)." Enter PDL in March 2006. $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

To: onepath who wrote (2564)	2/12/2008 11:19:00 PM
From: PaperPerson	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 23088

Onepath - That was a good selection of links for understanding the finland pdl - gfi deal. from the october 22 release, i take away the fact that they were already doing bulk sampling at three sites. The October 2007 scoping study release makes it sound like they plan a deep surface mine. It would have to be, given the tonnages being discussed. right? "Based upon this new resource estimate and combined with a revision in the throughput rate, management believes that the mineral resource could be sufficient to support a mine life of over 20 years at a throughput rate of 7.5 Mt per annum." Also, I note that the study is based on lower PM prices than those we are enjoying today, but a higher nickel price. "Capital costs for the project are estimated at US $428.8 million, indicating a positive pre-tax IRR of 23.9% using 18-month trailing average metal prices of USD$344/oz Pd, USD$1,222/oz Pt, USD$15.27/lb Ni, USD$3.26/lb Cu and USD$644/oz Au." PD was 344/oz, is 435/oz PT was 1222, is 1911. gold was 644, is now 905. Even copper is higher now. was 3.26/lb, is 3.55/lb now. Nickel, which is important to the project, unfortunately is cheaper. Was 15.27/lb then, is 12.34/lb now.