Gold Projects

I read with interest the recovery and redirection of APC away from potash and towards gold.
I can echo the shareholders joy at the strategic change of direction.
As gold continues to burble around $2,640/50/oz, every gold project around the world is looking more healthy how should APC go about sifting through and courting potential targets?

Buy a producing mine....not really an option for a junior stock with no track record.
Buy an exploration target...obvious route but saddling the Company and investors with 5-10 years of uncertainty.
Buy a restart with prospects...immediate shareholder value through acquiring an asset that should produce cashflow within 12 months.
There are a number of targets around. One of the ones I favour is Tucano Gold. I received this from the team recently.
https://us21.campaign-archive.com/?u=913996f1596246c3d20908d1e&id=572b543c37

I was sent this by another investor who commented that you couldn't buy the steel in the operation at Mina Tucano, Brazil for the current market cap. It reminds me of people bleeting on about housing shortages when there are so many vacant properties...it just doesn't add up. So why do listed companies favour going the exploration route rather than investing in an asset that has a track record of producing 110,000oz/pa...a previously Australian owned mine that would sit well back on the ASX.