With the weather delays and the projects banking up, I have a...

With the weather delays and the projects banking up, I have a big couple of weeks. So quick and simple.

I agree with you that water should be not issue in the short term and no chance EQR can be profitable this financial year.
So, I will stick with Saloro for now.

"Are you suggesting that EQR would be better off with the Saloro tungsten production being removed from the market and them not owning it, 'than them owning it?"

Yes Yes and Yes Who else was going to buy it. Kevin said if they divert some of their tungsten concentrate from apt to fe it would be positive for apt concentrate price. Shareholders have been massively diluted. All of the Oaktree cash and more has been poured into Saloro to get it to this point and they have 3 months to work out what to do with the 40+ million debt.

Although I think the distraction away from MC at a critical time is the biggest cost. Scottm said they were looking at this for 12 months before. Do you think that the 350t crusher that was 12 months late and delivery 11 months ago would still be sitting in a shed and they would not have been stripping the high bench's last year, If they had not bought Saloro.?

"I assume most EQR shareholders would strongly disagree."

What are you basing that on? Looking at the share chart since the purchase suggest differently.

"The obvious way to “see” Saloro making real profit is an increase to the tungsten price."

Yes but as Mr kleinhempel pointed out and lots of other source's, demand remains flat and as per Scottm post the current price is still lower than a few months ago.

"According to the quarterly Saloro had free cash flow from its operations of $1.5m"

Yes Again, But they said that about MC last quarter and I showed it was down to good accounting. Thinking the same here and it would does not include things like $800k interest, their share of corp cost and ongoing capex etc. So again, if you normalize it Saloro is still running at a loss. Add to that, it needs to generate enough profit to pay the $40+ millions in loans. Before it will add any value to EQR shareholders.

"My understanding is this 10% of ore (or at least 50% of the 10%) was previously discarded as waste before the ore sorters were installed."

That not my reading of the mine plan. They stop processing it to offset the mine production / grade drop in year 3.

"Yes they want more ore sorters"

That is because as the mine head grade drops, they need to put more through the sorters to try and maintain the gravity plant head grade. Which takes us back to my main point before. The Ore sorters do not seem to be having the same effect on the mine ore as they are at MC or the Saloro HGS. This is the biggest area to produce a step change in MTU's produced and I am not seeing it.

"Both mines have serious expansion options"

What serious expansion plans are there at Saloro. My reading of the quarterly is that the mining / crushing and gravity plant are all running very well and are at about name plate. The gravity plant feed has only increased by 5 % over the last 3 Quarters. The improvements will now be incremental, and I think will be offset by the drop in head grade.