Maybe I am incorrect about the name. But this where they drilled at least 2 holes. See below.
All the pollution from the drill rigs is still there. In fact there is quite an amount of pollution from last years drill program around the place.
TBH I couldn't be bothered stopping to check them out, but those pins are more or less in the correct position.
It is amazing with this latest imagery on GE shows you though, how much CXO has disturbed the landscape over the last couple of years. To be fair to CXO they did in fact clean up most their drilling sites from last season, but they left quite a few un-remediated too. Increase the contrast a bit and you can really see where they have operated the rigs during their tenure.
FWIW, that's right beside the site of this year's Kamfari. The Kamfari Krew left the place immaculate. Except for a few cigarette butts, and an awesome stainless steel barbecue you would not know they were there 2 days later.
Those Kamfari dudes should be in charge of site rehabilitation. Oh wait... this is a FIFO low cost operation... silly me for thinking CXO would spend any money in the local community.
And that's a big question about this proposed operation. CXO will be hoping the NT government charges them a peppercorn environmental bond for rehab. Depending on how good are the donations to Alf Leonardi and the ALP, and also given the NT governments of all flavours are generally extremely generous when it comes to garnering environmental bonds out of no-cap quarrying companies, they may well get what they want.
They sort of complied with the conditions set out in their ancient MMP for the exploration phase (which is on their website still I think). I do know there are people agitating for a very high bond (due to the historical problems with abandoned mines), and the conditions upon which they close, rehabilitate, and move on from this Grants project.
Still Core Lithium Ltd is a limited liability company where all the shareholding of the directors is held inside proprietary limited companies and family trusts. Probably a few deeper layers of that nonsense too.
My limited (get it?) understanding of this corporate structure, which Blair the project manager assured myself is all very standard, means that Core Lithium Ltd could possibly be run into the ground, while the assets (like ELAs and MLs) can be quietly transferred to other entities. And if I understand correctly you are all investing in a publicly listed entity called Core Lithium Ltd.
Ltd mining companies historically go broke to socialise the true costs and problems of their operations, all the while privatising the assets and profits. The problem with this strategy is that often the retail investors are also taken out.
For you investors, assuming a reasonable (or better) bond and also some strong regulation/conditions around closure and rehabilitation simply means more upfront costs, more running costs during operation and afterwards.
And should Core Lithium Ltd follow the well trodden path of many no cap quarrying operations to this "privatise profits - socialise costs" business model, then all you lose is your investment. But those of us that live here, we get 70 years (EIS projection. Probably much more) of environmental damage, degraded landscapes, biodiversity loss, pollution, social and economic disruption etc etc.
I am sure the directors of CXO are operating in good faith, with the best intentions, and they truly believe in their mission that they are doing something
righteous for the planet (lithium), developing mining technology that doesn't pollute past the mining lease, are really working hard to pay their taxes royalties and live up to their (known unknown) commitments to a better environment, all the while making sure you mob and of course the other investors, get filthy riche, while they paved Cox Peninsula Road with gold (and lithium).
I have seen all of this before with the debacle of Compass Resources Ltd (CMR) and their Brown's Oxide Project.
You can google that. Try adding these terms : Gordon Toll, Coffeehouse Group, Hunan Multi-ferrous Company, Territory Resources Pty Ltd
So when CMR finally hit production, and the share price was 'pumping' at over A$5 within weeks or less it crashed. Some people made a lot of money in those weeks. Many more people lost a lot of money, and quite a few of them were local who brought the dream.
The similarities between the Brown's Oxide project and the CXO Grant's project are uncanny. The scope of the project, the promise, the capital required, the EIS's (almost cut and paste), plant requirements etc etc. It's an amazing coincidence.
But the coincidence doesn't stop there, the corporate structure and playing of the ASX is nearly identical.
Once the dust settled on CMR which finished trading at 15c before being deregistered the following events/changes happened.
- A major Chinese base metals conglomerate (Hunan) was relieved of quite some investment. They walked away I think, older and wiser.
- Many, many small stock holders lost out big time.
- Many small/medium business' invested to provide services, and suffered.
- Most/all of the assets (MLS, ELA, ELs, the plant, etc, etc) ended up in private ownership (Territory Resources PL).
- A polluting mine that was supposed to run forever and make us all awesome has been shut ever since.
- All of the environmental obligations have been scrapped as far as I know.
- That mine is still polluting today (East Finniss River, AMD, radium, radon etc) because they don't spend any money on it.
- Many locals are just left with another failed project, more pollution, worse economics, and so forth.
The only people who won from the CMR debacle were a shady bunch of directors and a few large shareholders in cloaking mode.
Everyone else got screwed big time.
Most of what happened with CMR was legal, depending on your interpretation and precedents of the law.
Somethings haven't changed.
- The corporate regulatory and ASX environment
- The NTG environment management, and mining management systems
This CMR story could all easily happen again. There is nothing legislative or regulatory stopping it.
I am not saying it will happen with CXO, nor am I disparaging the directors, however the similarities between the two projects are unusual and I encourage all holders to do a bit of due diligence, and apply some critical thinking around whose best interest the directors, and the NT government are working for.
Except for the location of your recent drill holes below (which are correct), everything above may be complete bullshit, wild unsubstantiated rumour and shameless innuendo, or indeed the mindless ravings of an eco, green nimby who wants to destroy the industrialised system as you know it.
Or maybe, maybe... its just some (albeit colourful) local knowledge and history from someone who has been living in these areas for over 20 years. This information may guide your research and hopefully serve you well in the future.
(20min delay)