McEwen Mining’s president discussed innovation, why the company has not cut back on exploration and why more young people should consider a career in mining.
Ian Ball spoke with MINING.com in early March while he was preparing to meet shareholders before the Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada convention. McEwen Mining is gold and silver miner miner operating in the Americas. The company was founded by mining legend Rob McEwen, the founder and former Chairman and CEO of Goldcorp. McEwen Mining’s stated goal is to qualify for inclusion in the S&P 500.
While miners cut back on exploration expenses during the drop in commodity prices last year, Ball said McEwen Mining’s (NYSE:MUX) programs were kept in place since the company believe that is how it would ultimately out-perform its peers. He pointed to the company’s Gold Bar project.
“In Nevada we have a property package near Barrick’s Cortez Mine, which is the world’s largest gold mine, and we are exploring there on a consistent basis,” said Ball.
Ball says exploration is a high risk, high return practice, but when the company has the world’s biggest gold mine on your door step, the company will keep exploring.
“If you look at the history of this industry whether it is Gold Strike for Barrick or Red Lake for Goldcorp, [exploration] has been one of the few ways you can generate real wealth for investors is through organic growth and that comes through exploration.
If you cut your exploration you just become a cash flow and people can easily quantify that, discount it and you are just a function of the gold price.
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