Even CHN as I understand it is still hiring rigs. There will be...

Even CHN as I understand it is still hiring rigs. There will be few rigs to buy ATM and they will be expensive.

If you employ crews directly then you have to pay them every working day of every week.

Im sure hiring is industry standard for a reason. It must be much cheaper.

IF a massive discovery is made, thats when those kinds of things may become economic and be considered i.e. buying your own rig.

We can't put the cart before the horse.

Another potentially pressing expense may be the need to 'Buy the farm".

"IF" commercial minerals are discovered its easiest and best to buy the land the discovery sits on.

Don't ask me the current acre or hectare rate as I think it will have risen slightly with the looming bumper cropping season for WA (a lot of the East Coast looks like having a poor crop because of mice and one or two other things).

But I know at the time I did some mental calcs and thinking CHN paid about double the going agricultural acre rate.
(paying in script and cash...their farmers will have killed it on the script part especially).

MAN have locked in a deal contingency at a considerably higher acre rate again to CHN.

Farmers know mining companies will, (or have to) pay more for the land than other farmers will.

So this land aint cheap anymore and it aint getting any cheaper ATM...good seasons put land price up a tad.

(Anyone who wants to work out Rural Land price just go to Real Estate Websites and plug in the rough location.

And look for big farms for sale, don't look at a hobby farm of 5 hectares and multiple by that.

Remember asking price is usually over achieved price).

Long story short we may have a farm or part farm to buy (IF, remember if we find commercial minerals) so buying drill rigs won't be high on the wish list anyway.

But good to think ahead and think laterally..