Ann: Business Update, page-95

One thing that pisses me off about the RedLake transaction is for every one million new ounces discovered we have to pay Newmont 20 million dollars. I think it was for the first 5 million ounces which is a hell of a lot of ounces and another 100 million dollars siphoned off our balance sheet. That would take 20 years if EVN were lucky to find it. I will be dead and buried by then. At the time of the transaction Jake talked about working closely with Newmont on potential JVs etc. but I have never heard a mention about further discussions at all.
I believe it’s a status symbol for a mining company to have a mine elsewhere in the world and it looks like Red Lake is just that. Not much of a status symbol now. Red Lake is similar to Northern Stars Pogo gold mine in Alaska which was very costly to turn it around. It is still not where Northern Star expects it to be producing cheaper gold ounces. The Red Lake transaction at the time was promoted as the bargain of the century. EVN was eventually going to produce over 500,000 ounces in 5 years time. Really! No exciting drilling results have come from this camp as well so Newmont will be waiting awhile to collect their first 20 big one’s. I say start drilling the Battle North’s old tenements and make Newmont wait.
In hindsight now not a good deal at all and if Jake cannot turn this around as promised seeing a $6.00 share price again will be years away.
Hopefully he can do as he says. He has had the keys for the last 2 years so he now feels he can make it work. But at what cost.