"Appian Capital Advisory, headed by former JPMorgan banker Michael Scherb and Verne Grinstead, raised $375 million from investors a year ago to target mining assets. They've completed four investments to date, deploying about 25 percent of the fund, Scherb said in an interview. He's seeking to have deployed 60 percent to 70 percent by the end of this year.
"This year is going to be a very, very active year," he said. "This is a fantastic time to build a mine because real costs are going down, there is availability of drill rigs, you have machinery."