The S&P/TSX Venture Composite Index retreated by 23.9 points or 4% over the Nov. 14-18 trading session to end at 575.88.
Among only a handful of value gainers this week was Cornerstone Capital Resources, which added 42¢ to close at $4.25 per share. SolGold in October agreed to acquire all the outstanding shares of Cornerstone it does not already own by way of a court-approved plan of arrangement. The merger of Cornerstone and SolGold is expected to strengthen the ability of the combined group to create value for shareholders by consolidating ownership of the Cascabel Project along with a robust portfolio of other projects, primarily across Ecuador. In April, the companies said results of a new pre-feasibility study indicate that the Cascabel joint venture in northern Ecuador is expected to be a top 20 South American copper-gold mine.
Leading in losses this week was Sigma Lithium which closed $6.70 lower at $39.49 per share. Lithium stocks were hit hard in the trading week. Goldman Sachs revised its lithium forecasts for the years ahead, and lithium spot prices fell slightly from slowing Chinese EV demand. Established lithium-focused companies suffered losses between 5% and 15% on the day before the report was released, all because EV sales slowed slightly earlier than expected as Chinese EV subsidies approached completion. On Nov. 18, the company said it was accelerating construction activities, including completing the run of mine wall and structural steel for all four areas of the crushing plant for the Grota do Cirilo project in Brazil. The project includes a state-of-the-art, green-tech processing plant that uses 100% renewable energy, 100% recycled water and dry-stack tailings. The project also represents one of the largest and highest-grade hard rock lithium spodumene deposits in the Americas. Sigma Lithium remains on track to initiate commissioning of the crushing plant by year end, planning to commence commercial production in April 2023. The project is expected to generate significant free cash flows in the second quarter of 2023, as one of the lowest-cost producers of battery-grade lithium concentrate.
Pure Gold Mining saw the most shares changing hands on the TSXV board this week with 39.7 million shares traded. The embattled company said on Nov. 14 it won’t complete a prefeasibility study on the PureGold mine in Red Lake, Ont., by year-end as previously planned. PureGold had to place its namesake mine under care and maintenance in October, as it failed to secure funds to keep operations going, despite increasing production and cash flow. It has filed for creditor protection from the Supreme Court of British Columbia, having considered its cash position, debt repayments and forecasted revenue. While under creditor protection, PureGold would consider all available transactional and restructuring options with a goal of maximizing value for the company and its stakeholders, the TSX-V- and LSE-listed company said. The PureGold mine will remain on care and maintenance and the management of the company will remain responsible for day-to-day operations, under the oversight of KSV.
Pure Gold Mining must be held responsible for misleading the investors and must return their money.