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Q
What factors do you believe will influence the decision to construct the Donlin Gold mine?
ANOVAGOLD believes that Donlin Gold is advancing Does NOVAGOLD have the capacity to wait for
at a time when gold is re-emerging as a safe haven
in the climate of uncertainty with respect to the long-term strength of the US dollar and the future
of the world economy as a whole. At the same time, gold producers around the world continue depleting their gold reserves and with that, their endowments (which are shrinking) are also becoming lower grade. In addition, with fewer discoveries, particularly in stable geo-political jurisdictions, gold companies need to deal with issues related to real and/or de-facto expropriations of their assets in risky jurisdictions. These trends are not new and they can certainly produce an environment for a perfect storm for projects such as Donlin Gold. A federally permitted large high-grade open-pit project located in a geo- politically favorable mining jurisdiction, advancing up the value chain, can be increased in value substantially under that scenario. That’s when Donlin Gold
partners would make a construction decision. In an environment where escalating gold prices would yield a healthy return on investment and higher share prices would reduce the cost of capital to build the mine. The outcome should be a win-win for all concerned.
some confluence of these circumstances to take place? Definitely yes. The company is on a clear
path of taking Donlin Gold up the value chain with funds it has available. With $167 million in the bank, NOVAGOLD has sufficient financial resources to carry out all of its planned work and fulfill its other financial obligations. The result should be a better, more valuable project ready for a construction decision in a much more favorable macro-economic environment than we have today. It is reasonable to expect that the company’s share price could be higher than it is now in such circumstances, and that there would be ample opportunities for other forms of attractive project financing to be available. That would be the time to make a construction decision.
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“In a world where miners are depleting reserves and average gold mine grades are falling, we see Donlin as a unique asset – waiting for the right gold price and investor environment for its joint venture owners to press go!”
John Bridges, J.P. Morgan Analyst, October 4, 2018 Q3 report