News: SBM St Barbara Says Total Group Gold Production For FY23 Of 260,368 Ounces, page-50

Agree with your sentiments mate. I've just bought back in after jumping ship over a year ago, prior to which I had been a long term holder (and long term sufferer).

Now that they are debt-free and have substantial cash, they are in a prime position to rebuild the company. I wasn't a great fan of Simberi, although I don't doubt that there is potential to make substantial profits there, and I was even less of a fan of Atlantic, which I hope that they will sell. It's quite possible that Atlantic can be redeveloped utilizing much of the existing infrastructure and tenements, but I would be happier leaving that to the next owner, and putting the sale proceeds into an Australian asset.

There are several smallish Australian gold explorers with already proven resources in the ground and with potential growth but which are short of cash to develop their assets, and SBM could swallow up one or two of these smaller players or a producing company and get into production in Australia. They could still be earning income from the current mines while going through the sale process of the overseas assets and looking at potential purchases onshore.

They do have sufficient cash to buy a smallish producing Australian asset without selling their existing mines, but I would prefer to see them sell both Atlantic and Simberi and put the proceeds towards acquiring a significant Australian producer. At least with no debt and adequate cash at bank they now have options which were not available to them previously.

If the price of gold goes up to a level which many people are predicting it will go, sovereign risk in overseas countries is likely to become a major problem for foreign companies producing gold in those countries. Nationalisation of gold mines owned by foreign companies is likely to become the norm in many countries if gold becomes the de facto international currency.