I had a 30 minute or so chat with the Company secretary Mihir...

I had a 30 minute or so chat with the Company secretary Mihir Dave tonight...

Seems a very genuine and likable guy.

I basically relayed the general feel of the market...and me in particular regarding the rather clumsy approach to the "seeding" and apparent suppression of the stock...and whilst he agreed there might have been a better way...might still be a better way...their is a long term advantage for all shareholders.

lol...so far, I am thinking...tell me something I haven’t heard from every other company rep.

Anyway, I did push him on this somewhat and was able to gain a better understanding of the likely dynamics at play.

According to Mihir, the suspension after the initial changeover was due to the fact the company register did not meet ASX minimum shareholder spread requirements, as such they distributed some 3-4m shares in the 15-20c range in what effectively became a seed investor entry for some...this was done off-market.

He suspects some of these people may well be selling down to lock in profits in the face of the company's current seeding of the free-float attempts.

I suggested this would not be happening if the "seeding" was better handled in the first place...to which he reluctantly agreed, suggesting the reactions on our market to such things are different to the Indian exchange where Arun has significant market support form shareholders.

I suggested the problem here is that even genuine longer term investors were having stop-loss events kicking them out of the stock...obviously not a desirable outcome.

I suggested a "trust" issue was developing given current activities...to which he agreed communication of their intentions may be a better approach.

He was adamant the company does not want to force the price lower, to which I suggested their actions did not support their sentiment. I also suggested they were leaving the stock open to downwards manipulation given the rather constant pressure they were applying via negative sentiment, and indeed physical selling...to which he replied this was worth mentioning to the board.

He went on to suggest institutional concern over the lack of liquidity...comments which have prompted their desire to rectify this and utltimately lead to the current seeding process.

Again I suggested alternative approaches and asked if they would be interested if an off-market transfer? He agreed they might be, that such an approach might address market concerns...might be the better way...something they will now look at.

I quizzed him on Elouera...how they intended to pay for it...and whilst not in a position to comment, he did say debt funding was the preferred course...on the back of the current guarantee from the parent company. Activities surrounding Elouera are largely at the behest of BHP, with various joint release agreements affecting what can be said and when...when they have something to say and can say it they will.

Red tape and various authority sign-offs impacting, but should all be over and done with by end August (ish)...after which production for GUJ can commence relatively quickly, as they have suggested in previous announcements.

I delved into the merger idea with INR...to which I got a surprising result...a very strong...

"I cannot comment on that"...lol

Ah ha...I smell something here, time to go for the kill...but easy does it...lol...mmm...change the subject.

"By the way, congratulations on INR...seems the market liked it?"

"Yes, we are happy not to see the usual stag spike and subsequent sell-down...as many may have expected...we are very much happier with an easy does it approach."

I suggested my concern with INR was the "single project" tag, which may well limit institutional interest, to which he suggested it was a valid point and one very much on the minds of the parent an under consideration going forward with an expedited effort.

I suggested such views obviously were considered as a forward business model for both INR and GUJ, to which he suggested the parent intended to establish a significant footprint in the years ahead.

I suggested GUJ's Elouera Avondale combination was an obviously attractive synergy...and that frankly, I would not be the only one in the market making this connection to INR, an attraction perhaps viewed with a sooner rather than later resolution... from the market and indeed company's corporate perspective in rleation to the INR institutional support.

He suggested yes, I was not the first to make the connection due to the obvious attraction…but that he was "definitely not in a position to comment at this stage".

lol..."...at this stage"...???

When pressed if would he be in a position to comment on this in say a couple of months time, he laughed…and suggested such things were out of his hands.

lol...there is a real benefit of direct discussion like this, when conducted on a mutual level…and the specific nuances that one can detect.

Anyway, I asked about Tasmania, to which he suggested he imagined the market would be updated shortly, but couldn't comment further.

We discussed a few things, including current coking coal laoding and transportation...then got back to the seeding process...

I suggested the market needed to feel a floor had been reached…to which he suggested such things are not in their hands, but alternatives to current methods have been discussed…in the meantime he suggested the market will need to make it’s own mind up about the merits of the company, it's assets, and the directors…Arun Jamatramka in particular.

He volunteered that he had in fact had invested heavily, by his standards, and with his own money, in both GUJ and INR, based on the fact that in some 10 years or so since listing on their home exchange, Gujurat NRE shareholders were up some 126 times their initial investments. He said he has advised many friends and family to also invest…and suggests he has no concerns in the slightest about the current short-term influcences.

He feels the parent company’s basic business model is to repeat their home listing results on our exchange.

There was plenty more discussed…if I remember I will post it.

As for today's activity...interesting trading today as it pushed into dead-mans territory…but bounced back nicely with apparent defensive bids? Options pretty much maintained their premium, in fact increasing it somewhat towards the close.

We may well have reached the bottom?

Cheers!