Transcript
Automated transcript · Written by software from the replay's audio. It can mishear names and figures; the replay is the record.
0:08 We're joined with Luke, like I said, for an update regarding the recent news the company announced this week. Now this is a live event, so these things happen, but please feel free to submit your questions in the chat in the bottom right corner and I'll do my best to incorporate them into the conversation. This event is also being recorded and will be available for replay shortly after the event concludes. With that, thanks for carving some time out for us, Luke. Now, this air quality permit represents the final piece of the mine operating permit puzzle for the CK Gold project. Can you help us understand the significance of this milestone and what it means for US Gold Corps development timeline? Absolutely. So we were obviously excited in April of this year when we received a permit to mine, but it was conditional and there were 3 conditions and 2 of those were met rather early in May.
1:02 So I think there was expectation, we are rife in this industry with somehow
1:09 failures or inability to sometimes close on permits. So for us to be able to reach that final milestone has been a real kind of a kudos and a handoff to George and team, as well as the state of Wyoming and their process. And the fact that there is a due process, and if you take your time and you fulfill your requirements, you are rewarded with the right to mine. And yeah, look, we all know in North America, it's a really, really challenging and tough thing to come across these things. George B., President and CEO of US Gold Corp. Thank you for joining us today. I just informed everyone about the technical difficulties and apologized on your behalf. But really, thank you for joining us. Did you have any commentary you wanted to make on the latest press release?
2:06 If you look at the timeframe, we took our CK Gold project from a standing start in September of 2020. We did 2 years of baseline studies, fauna, flora, surface water, subsurface water. You know,
2:26 we then, you know, with a local company prepared our permit application. So really to having presented that in September of 2022, you know, as Luke alludes to it, it is unprecedented really in North America to be able to obtain a permit so quickly. And that's a testament to Wyoming, a resource state, a state which relies heavily on the resource sector. And with copper and gold, the CK Gold Project, That's a nice diversification from the Coal Oil Gas Trona that they have been exploiting up to date.
3:12 Thank you for this. Luke, You jumped on without any moment to breathe. If you have a meeting, please let us know. Otherwise, we're graced by your presence, but just let us know and feel free to either 1 address the questions I have here. Yeah, no, I'm happy to stick around. Took a little break from being the booth monitor for a moment. Excellent. So my next question is, how does US Gold Corp plan to secure project finance and while maintaining its commitment to minimize shareholder dilution? I'll just open it to the floor to either. Yeah, well that, that, that, that might be right down my alley anyway. So that's obviously always been a key focus for us, actually since April. I think, you know, for us internally, we were pretty confident and comfortable with the fact that we had met all of the requirements to receive this air quality permit, but for our investors, obviously, it was not a slam dunk or a sure thing. So we've spent the last 5-6 months devising and planning our next strategy, or ultimately our strategy, which is to develop the CK Goldmine.
4:23 Now, there are a slew of things that have occurred throughout not just the engineering phase, but through the permitting phase, with additional benefits around this project. And we're exploring those right now. One of those happens to be a potential aggregate component to the project.
4:42 So that would be one way that we could utilize some of that waste material and future strip as a source of revenue towards us building this plant or this entire operation. But the other thing is there's a real shortage of concentrates out there in the marketplace right now. So we have interested parties such as off takers and people who just want to be involved in the development of the project. So we're going to focus in primarily obviously on the least dilutive source of capital that will ultimately you know lead to us developing this project? Yeah, and just to add to that, what we see, you know, a larger portion of our initial capital is associated with a concentrator that we need to put together, crushing, grinding, flotation, filter presses for the dry stack tailings. So, the suppliers of that equipment, they want to sell the equipment.
5:45 They have access to financing on good terms, and as a consequence, we would probably be looking to them as well. So I think Luke will agree, as owners
6:00 of the company, we're shareholders, we don't want to see a significant dilution. So be it equipment financing, be it some forward sales of some concentrate,
6:14 we would be putting together a financing package, which would be in not only our investors' interest but our own interest. Thank you, gentlemen. There is a question submitted upon registration. Given that the feasibility study work was suspended in March 2023, what specific updates are being incorporated into the new pre-feasibility study expected by year-end? Okay, so we, one of the concentrate off-take companies, there's a technology division within that company and
6:56 they made a very compelling argument for us to take a look at an alternative flotation technology which has been around for many years. So, you know, we moved along the path of the conventional flotation. We're taking a quick look at this additional flotation technology,
7:18 which is reported to have better recoveries, lower operating cost and lower capital cost. So from that perspective, that is something that we had to check out. So we're going to look at that. And then in addition to that, we, I think we found a better solution for our tailings management within the same footprint and then water management. So all of those things are going to be incorporated into
7:56 our feasibility study as we move forward from the updated PFS. Another question that Luke touched on, but I know someone asked it upon registration, so I'm gonna address it again, the way it was written. How does the company plan to monetize the valuable rock resource mentioned for construction materials, and what potential impact could this have on reducing overall project costs? Well, that's a really interesting point because, you know,
8:27 we're very blessed with our location being so southeast corner of Wyoming. There are a lot of contractors around there and there's a lot of construction activity up and down the Colorado front range. So as we look at that and we look at soliciting bids from mining and construction contractors,
8:54 there's been a fair amount of interest in the rock because it would play into the local market. And there is a paucity of rock in the area. We've even had folks suggesting that they'll do the mining for us
9:15 if we then give them the rock. So what we're looking at the moment is just seeing how we can best utilize that rock resource. And it initially will be mine to diminish some of our capital costs as we need a lot of aggregate for the concrete and crushed product. But in addition to that, then once we've produced what we need, we can re-permit for aggregate sales. And those aggregate sales really, and finding a beneficial use when we've
9:58 put the energy, the diesel, and the operational costs associated with that to set that rock aside to get at the Copper and Gold, how good is it to be able to put that to beneficial use? And there is, as I say, a paucity in the local market, a great demand and a lot of infrastructure around us. So we're working and had interest from a number of different parties, and I think that would be consummated with some kind of agreement as we decide upon the mining contractor and a construction outfit.
10:45 Thank you, George. Now that the permitting hurdles are cleared, what are the key catalysts and critical path items investors should watch for as you move toward the final investment decision? We understand the updated pre-feasibility study is expected by year end. What other milestones should we be tracking? Yeah, look, I think the, you know, our pre-feasibility study, which is in the public domain at the moment is a bit of a little long in the tooth. So obviously bringing that pre-feasibility study up to date, determining the final configuration of principally the flotation and the tailings management will then give folks the insight as to what the value of the project is.
11:36 We will move immediately into finishing up the feasibility study, having determined those last 2 projects or possibilities, and I think you can expect that feasibility study as soon as the first half of the coming year. We will be advancing the steps associated with financing the project and probably hiring some advisors associated with that. I think those are all the activities associated with the development project that we will keep the investment community updated upon.
12:26 Excellent, thank you. Apologies, EK in the chat, He was asking a question directly at Luke about the conference. If he jumps on, we'll ask him again. But that's it for the questions, George. Thank you so much. Do you have any closing remarks before we sign off for today? No, Luke. I think that we've been very gratified by the reaction that we've seen as we've completed our permitting. We've got a robust project for Copper and Gold. We look to be able to capitalise on the potential of the ROC resource. That's going to be a win-win for both our investors, but also the state because we'll be paying a royalty to the state on the ROC sold.
13:18 So, as we bring that in, we see ourselves as being one of the few shovel-ready projects out there and delivering into what appears to be a bull market on Copper and Gold. So it's always best, it's always nice to be buoyed by a rising tide. So with that, stay tuned. I think there'll be some good news coming up soon. We'll be looking forward to the future updates. George, thank you so much for doing this and thank you for asking the questions everyone and being patient with us. You
