Company Interviews

Interview with Keith Boyle, Director & CEO of New Found Gold
Our previous interview: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/posts/new-found-gold-tsxnfgc-producing-now-pine-cove-the-critical-path-12056
Recording date: 13th October 2026
New Found Gold Corp. (TSX: NFGC | NYSE-A: NFGC) has reported preliminary third quarter 2026 results from its Hammerdown Gold Mine in Newfoundland and Labrador, the first quarterly figures since the mine declared commercial production on August 19, 2026. Hammerdown produced 4,863 ounces of gold and sold 6,035 ounces at an average realized price of US$4,310 per ounce. Mill feed grade averaged 2.76 g/t and recovery 85%.
The results sit just below the quarterly equivalent of the company’s life-of-mine run rate of 20,000 to 25,000 ounces per year at an AISC of approximately US$2,500 per ounce, during the final stages of ramp-up. Mined material is reconciling to within 5% of the resource model, and recoveries have improved from the high 50s at start-up to the mid-80s set out in the economic study. A permanent crusher and sorter is scheduled for substantial completion by the end of 2026, with commissioning in the first quarter of 2027, and is expected to reduce crushing costs and deliver higher-grade feed to the mill.
The Pine Cove Mill is being converted to a Gravity-CIL circuit in parallel with production, with completion targeted for the fourth quarter of 2027. Management expects the new circuit to improve Hammerdown recoveries by around five percent, and plans to apply to expand capacity from 700 to 1,400 tonnes per day following the Queensway environmental assessment release. The mill work forms the critical path for first Queensway feed, scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2027.
New Found Gold held approximately C$167 million in cash at September 30, 2026, against C$70 million in debt, and management describes Queensway Phase 1 as fully funded. Queensway is planned to produce 70,000 to 100,000 ounces per year initially, rising to 175,000 to 200,000 ounces per year after expansion. An updated Queensway technical report is expected shortly.
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Interview with Dan James, CEO of Prospective Resources
Recording date: 13th October 2026
Prospectiva Resources (TSXV:PSVA) is a newly listed, Brazil-focused copper-gold explorer whose investment case centres on a single question: can a historically drilled copper discovery be reframed and expanded into a commercially relevant VMS deposit within roughly 18 months?
The asset is the São Francisco Copper-Gold Project in the Borborema Province of northeastern Brazil. Yamana Gold discovered it in 2019 from an outcropping rock-chip sample of about 5% copper and followed up with thousands of rock and soil samples, 5,900 metres of diamond drilling and a 29 line-kilometre IP survey. The project passed to Pan American Silver in 2023 and was never actively marketed. Prospectiva acquired 100% in January 2026 on staged terms. The initial payment has been made, a US$350,000 payment is due early in 2027, and a US$3 million payment falls due only on reaching 1 million ounces gold equivalent. A 1% NSR royalty applies.
Prospectiva’s contribution is interpretive. CEO Dan James says Yamana gathered high-quality data but never put a structural or mineral-system model in place. With input from technical advisers, the company now classifies São Francisco as a VMS system in which folding has concentrated mineralisation into a fold hinge. That gives drilling a clear vector. Because VMS deposits tend to cluster, it also raises the possibility of further deposits nearby. A fixed-loop EM survey shows a strong correlation between conductors and historical intercepts, and those conductors outline a target corridor of roughly 3 km.
The current programme of about 2,500 metres is fully funded. It is designed to fill 200-metre gaps between historical holes, confirm the link between conductors and mineralisation, and step out along the trend. Six holes had been completed by mid-October, with assays expected imminently. A follow-up programme of about 5,000 metres is planned for early 2027, bringing total drilling to roughly 13,000 metres. Management believes this could support a maiden resource around mid-2027, targeting a 5 to 10 million tonne core at 1% to 2% copper with gold and silver credits. James benchmarks that against recent VMS acquisitions of deposits of around 15 million tonnes. Low drilling costs of about C$300 per metre help stretch the company’s capital.
The risks are clear and largely time-bound. Prospectiva raised about C$3.6 million on listing and will need further funding early in 2027, so near-term results will shape the terms of that raise. No metallurgical testwork has been done, though James says assay data shows no deleterious elements of concern and preliminary results are expected early in 2027. Management does not intend to build a mine, which points to an eventual sale or partnership as the exit path.
Two regional gold projects, Pico do Jabre and Desterro, receive 10% to 20% of exploration spending. Recent rock chips returned up to 9.72 g/T Au and 6.09 g/T Au respectively. These offer optionality but are secondary to São Francisco.
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Recording date: 8th October 2026
September exposed a widening gap between commodity prices and resource equities. Most commodities rose over the month, yet every major resource-linked equity index fell. In this Compass episode, Samuel Pelaez and Derek Macpherson of Olive Resource Capital (TSXV:OC) argue that this dislocation stems from macro forces rather than deteriorating fundamentals, and that it is creating entry points in high-quality, liquid producers.
The macro pressures are significant. Fed Chair Kevin Warsh signalled a renewed focus on inflation at Jackson Hole, and the September rate hike was followed by markets pricing in a high probability of several more. Long-term bond yields are rising in both the US and Europe, with France prominent. Elections are approaching in the US, Spain and France. Energy prices remain high, which Macpherson attributes mainly to limited Western refining capacity. Equity market gains are concentrated in semiconductors and AI-related technology, while investors seeking commodity exposure increasingly use futures, leaving mining equities behind even as copper trades near record levels.
Operational results have not been the problem. Pelaez noted strong Q3 production updates from several producers, with little share price response. K92 Mining reported another strong quarter on the day of recording, and Macpherson said the company has now passed one million gold-equivalent ounces produced.
Olive is responding with patience. The fund holds about 10% cash and is adding gradually, mainly to names it knows well. It expects better prices before US Thanksgiving, possibly helped by selective tax-loss selling, and aims to be almost fully deployed for the January rally it has captured in most of its five years.
The fund's current priority is its liquid book. In copper, it holds Ivanhoe Mines, which it views as owning one of the world's best copper mines and one of its best PGM mines, and Ero Copper, whose Furnas project Pelaez believes the market is not valuing. In PGMs, it holds Valterra Platinum, the largest primary PGM producer. It uses Albemarle for lithium exposure and K92 Mining for gold. A recently built energy sleeve includes Freehold Royalties, Woodside Energy and GeoPark, covering royalties, LNG and upstream growth respectively.
The core argument is about how to express a commodity view. Macpherson contends that investors do not need to buy small, illiquid explorers to gain PGM, lithium or precious metals exposure. Large producers offer revenue protection, liquidity and the ability to change course quickly. Smaller names tend to gain more later in a cycle, once leadership broadens, and Olive holds some for company-specific catalysts.
Macpherson and Pelaez see producers becoming more active earlier in the capital structure. Kinross Gold and Alpayana closed a C$47.1 million financing in Aquitaine Metals, an Olive holding, leaving the French gold explorer with about C$92 million in cash. Kinross has also backed Sun Valley Minerals in Uruguay. These serve as validation that helps juniors in jurisdictions less familiar with mining.
For investors, the key watch-items are the path of Fed policy and long-term yields, any narrowing of the gap between commodity prices and equities, and whether seasonal weakness provides the entry points Olive expects before year end.
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Interview with Bart Jaworski, CEO of Group Eleven Resources
Our previous interview: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/posts/group-eleven-resources-tsxvzng-ballywire-germanium-grades-jump-on-new-assays-11918
Recording date: 13th October 2026
Group Eleven Resources has added 270 metres to the 1,600-metre high-grade strike at its Ballywire discovery in Ireland, a 17% increase. The step-out hole, the first on a new drill fence, returned nearly 6.5 metres of 7.9% zinc-lead and 14 g/t silver. That included close to 3 metres of 11% zinc-lead and a 1-metre core grading 22% with nearly an ounce of silver. Copper-silver mineralisation also appeared beneath the zinc horizon. Ballywire sits about 20 kilometres from Glencore’s Pallas Green deposit.
About 420 metres away, a second step-out into undrilled ground intersected 30 metres of nearly 4% zinc-lead. That interval included 7 metres of 10% zinc-lead with more than an ounce of silver. The drill rods became stuck at 421 metres, so the hole only touched the start of the underlying copper-silver zone. Elsewhere, hole 61 extended copper-silver mineralisation 120 metres down dip, with 7.7 metres of about an ounce of silver and 0.8% copper.
Taken together, CEO Bart Jaworski says the results significantly de-risk the southwest trend the company first identified in March.
The broader thesis rests on scale. So far, the discovery covers only one of four gravity anomalies along a 6-kilometre trend. Possible northern and southern parallel trends add further upside, as does copper consistently showing up beneath the zinc. Jaworski describes the deposit as a hybrid of classic Irish zinc and the copper-silver style of the past-producing Gortdrum mine. He argues this setup reduces metallurgical risk, because the metal zones are naturally separated and there are no oxides.
Funding is in place. A C$12 million bought deal in April underwrites a fully funded 70,000-metre, four-rig programme over two years, with about 51,000 metres at Ballywire. Sixteen holes are currently in progress. Management expects to decide on timing for a maiden resource estimate within 12 to 18 months. Metallurgical work and germanium economics are additional catalysts still ahead.
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