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Gold and copper prices are sitting near 10-year highs fueled by financial turmoil, monetary policy and recession fears, which are generating exciting opportunities among junior mining stocks.
Whether it’s the pandemic, the Russia-Ukraine war, or rising inflation and the numerous U.S. bank failures that resulted because of it, investors have had ample reasons to flee to safe-haven assets like precious and base metals over the past three years.
This has propelled gold near US$2,000 per ounce from a decade low of about US$1,000 and re-ignited demand for strategically positioned explorers, which still offer value plays according to historical relationships with interest rates and the price of gold.
Copper has performed similarly well, currently sitting at US$3.76 per pound from a decade low of US$1.71. Besides holding the promise of hedging against inflation, much like gold, the metal has also benefitted from the rapid expansion of the electric vehicle (EV) market.
According to The Assay, an EV can require 3.5 times the copper of a similarly sized internal combustion engine (ICE) passenger vehicle, with that ratio only expanding with size. This is because copper is essential to every major EV component, including motor, inverter and wiring. An electric bus, for example, may require up to 16 times the copper of its ICE counterpart. Add to this Statista’s projection that global EV revenue will grow at a CAGR of 10.07 per cent between 2023-2028, resulting in a US$906.70 billion market, and the blue-sky prospects for copper explorers become clear.
Gold and copper’s moment in the spotlight is part of a larger trend that has seen the mining sector raise about 71 per cent of capital on the TSX this year as of May 2023. To potentially capitalize on further momentum – which may prove lengthy should inflation remain above the Bank of Canada’s 2 per cent target – here are three junior mining stocks whose accretive news flow made the rounds across our readers this week:
Pan Global (TSXV:PGZ) reports near-surface copper-tin mineralization at Romana West
Pan Global Resources announced visible copper and tin intersections from the initial two drill holes at the high-priority Romana West target on its Escacena Project in Spain.
Results indicate the continuation of copper and tin mineralization to the west of the La Romana discovery.
Mineralization now extends over approximately 1.2 kilomertres of strike and remains open to the west towards the historical La Romana mine workings.
An ongoing 25-to-30 drill hole campaign (approximately 6,000 metres) began in June to delineate the western extent of near-surface La Romana mineralization.
The company is expanding geophysics, geochemistry and geological surveys in the area.
President and CEO Tim Moody spoke with Coreena Robertson about the news.
Pan Global shares are down by 10.81 per cent year-over-year (YoY) and up by 32 per cent over the past five years.
Vanstar Mining (TSXV:VSR) reports winter drilling results from Nelligan
Vanstar Mining released the first assay results from the 2023 diamond drill program on its Nelligan joint venture project (IAMGOLD (TSX:IMG): 75 per cent, Vanstar: 25 per cent).
Five drill holes in the eastern extension of the Nelligan deposit and two exploration holes testing targets in the southeastern portion of the property yielded highlights of:
- Hole NE-22-202
- 3.76 g/t Au over 9 m from 42 m depth, including 29.10 g/t Au over 0.5 m
- 6.97 g/t Au over 5.2 m from 100.5 m depth, including 31.9 g/t Au over 0.7 m
- 1.63 g/t Au over 11.7 m from 202.6 m depth
- Hole NE-22-204
- 2.49 g/t Au over 11.3 m from 43.7 m depth
- 10.53 g/t Au over 4.5 m from 120 m depth, including 28.6 g/t Au over 1.5 m
Drilling to date – 3,381 m of a planned 10,000 m – demonstrates that gold mineralization extends along strike to the east of the Nelligan deposit.
Approximately 5,000 m of infill and extension drilling in the central and western parts of the Nelligan deposit, as well as 1,500 m of exploration drilling to evaluate other targets will soon follow once Quebec fire bans are lifted.
The Nelligan Gold Project hosts indicated mineral resources of 2 million ounces of gold and inferred mineral resources containing 3.6 million ounces.
President and CEO JC St-Amour joined Coreena Robertson to discuss the news.
Vanstar shares have gained 2.86 per cent YoY and 260 per cent over the past five years.
Northstar Gold (CSE:NSG) samples high-grade copper
Northstar Gold released high-grade results from a surface sampling program from the historic Cam Copper Mine on its flagship, wholly owned Miller Property near Kirkland Lake, Ontario.
Cam Copper houses a satellite high-grade copper system 2.4 km from the Allied Gold Zone, the advanced, near-surface, bulk-tonnage alkalic gold-telluride exploration target being explored by the company.
Nineteen surface grab samples near Cam Copper produced high-grade copper assays between 0.99 and 31.8 per cent copper. The weighted average grade of the 19 samples was 14 per cent copper. The samples collectively weigh 43.39 kg and contain massive to semi-massive sulphides (including massive chalcopyrite and bornite).
The samples verify historic reporting of a 1955 shipment of 346 tons of underground ore that produced 43,411 pounds of copper at a Noranda smelter at a recovered grade of 6.3 per cent.
Northstar is preparing to drill test the down-plunge extension of the Cam Copper massive sulphide zones and is currently planning to explore for similar high-grade zones along strike to the southeast through ground truthing and sampling of surficial geophysical anomalies.
CEO Brian Fowler spoke with Coreena Robertson about the news.
Northstar Gold shares have shed 55 per cent YoY and almost 86 per cent over the past five years.
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This is sponsored content issued on behalf of Pan Global Resources, Vanstar Mining Resources and Northstar Gold, please see full disclaimer here.