EXS shareholders would be interested to learn that at the presentation by Charlie Sartain in Brisbane last week of his comment that Ernest Henry Xstrata was looking at opportunities with juniors in the region to help bolster mill feed as the project transitioned to underground mining. As Michael Anderson has said before he views their commitment to the underground project as a major catalyst to a potential deal with Exco having removed the uncertainty over their own future and longevity.
In light of the above, I am sure that Michael will be taking things forward very shortly with a view to getting back around the negotiating table. As he has also said before the standalone, with or without a partner, is always there as our fallback and EXS certainly are of the view that it can be a robust project; however, the economics of the Xstrata scenario are potentially so compelling that EXS simply owe it to shareholders to give it every chance to succeed.
EXS Price at posting:
23.5¢ Sentiment: Buy Disclosure: Held
