Register for free to join our community of investors and share your ideas. You will also get access to streaming quotes, interactive charts, trades, portfolio, live options flow and more tools.
Register for free to join our community of investors and share your ideas. You will also get access to streaming quotes, interactive charts, trades, portfolio, live options flow and more tools.
I have a few questions into Jim, will pass on any response if/when received:
Questions:
1.) Has the Elk Creek Project production scale testing ‘infrastructure’ been set up yet? If not, when is this expected to be completed?
2.) Has production scale testing begun yet?
3.) When can shareholders expect an ‘interim update NR’ regarding the status of production testing? Or will the next update be provided when the testing is completed and the FS is updated?
4.) Given the highly reported urgency in getting CE/REE mining up and running and producing in the US, is L3, as Niocorp’s testing contractor, working multiple shifts, i.e. day, night, 3 shifts per day and/or weekend shifts- to accomplish/complete the production testing for the Elk Creek Project and ultimate movement to finance closure? Or is it a single 8 hour , mon-fri - daily shift?
5.) Is the FS being incrementally updated concurrently with the results of production testing, or does the FS get updated at the end of the testing?
6.) Can you please provide any general/ballpark or best practice comparison estimates on the time it will take to update the FS report once the prod testing has completed?
7.) In a previous response to one of my questions, you stated that financial package meetings are ongoing with interested finance parties ( even while the L3 bench/production scale testing is happening in the background). Pls. clarify to help me understand how meetings with potential financier(s) are in progress without the requisite results of the production scale testing results. Isn’t any possible financing terms (and progress on the financing front) now dependent on the values i.e., i.e., cost numbers, production quantities, production costs, additional revenue contribution, etc. etc…. that come from the production testing results? Or perhaps financing meetings can be done using ‘hypothetical testing numbers, that are based on very educated engineering estimates, that would of course be updated with ACTUAL quantified test result(s) numbers when testing is completed .
NCT
Well even tho there are meetings, and more meetings and task forces and gubmint panels and experts and boards etc etc... ad nauseaum, it appears that it is getting so much attention now, that not even the Gub-mint can turn a blind eye and disregard the emergency warnings and bells and red flags!!
Hopefully we are getting closer and closer to a 'Call for Action' and with our production testing wrapping (hopefully soon? 1 month? 2 months? 3 months? then the timing could not be better and the 'planets and stars are aligned perfectly'...... the perfect storm for NIO, if we execute!!!
Gitttt-errrr Dunnnnnn!!!! says the cable guy...
Just Do IT!! says Nike, while they use slave labor to 'Do it'
'Build Back Better' - as everything is breaking.... don't get me started
NCT
Watchin' Peaky Blinders- It's a real 'corker' ..... we need Thomas Shelby on our side! :)
Yadda
Yadda
Good analogy Chico!
I lived in Iceland for a couple years, during some months the sun would not come out.... we had to keep the faith that the sun would indeed be back if we waited long enough.... it seemed like forever, there was lots of darkness, we passed the time ........
this stock reminds me of that experience......
then one day the sun peeked out....
and lo and behold, bright sun... keepin' the faith based on all of the positive indicators, including a major development just the other day when sleepy, barely cognizant POTUS signed the DPA for Critical minerals last week.... the stars COULD NOT be better aligned..... just a matter of waiting for the prod test results in combination w the FS update....
tick tock tick frickin' tock.....
Mouse running up clock......
YADDA YADDA YADDA
BLAH BLAH BLAH
TGIF
Peaky Blinders'
NCT
Bravo Chico!
Another Rembrandt! never get tired of your comprehensive summarizations that lay out status so well!
Big THANKS!!
NCT
It does make one pause, the fact that NIO still hasn't received financing after all of these iterations and revisions- but yet the officers of the company are working/on boards for multiple companies ..... hmmmmm.....
Wonder if they would have been able to recognize the highly probable value add of REE's and done the REE analysis/revenue quantification and re revised FS long ago- if their focus/committment had been laser focused on 'all things NIO' instead of diffused in many directions across many companies.....
Just wondering......hmmmmmmm
I would just be happy with more insight into the timeline on production testing of REE's, nothing top secret about disclosing industry averages or best practice timeline comparisons, etc.... to provide loyal shareholders with SOME IDEA whether we are in another 3-6 month 'circling pattern' over the airport- waiting to land! Just throw the peasants a bone every so often ...... gettin' tired of chewing on this same old pork chop bone out here..... chomp chomp.......
NCT
Reflexively reflecting on what coulda been........ but still optimistic about what can be.....
Thanks Putz- good points all! apples and oranges comparison it appears...
Thanks Chico!
ILuka shares moved up only 9% on financing news after lining up A$1B ($749M) from the Aust Gubmint, i sure hope we get a MUCH BIGGER pop than 9% when NIO announces financing news....
NCT
Chico-
WE NEED ONE MORE Senate Committee hearing!!! before the next one and the one after that.... This should DEFINITELY highlight the importance of Critical Minerals, the last 50 reports i guess were not convincing enough! We need more tasks forces too.... we MUST get to the bottome of this says the gubmint 10 years late.... This sounds like a 'Critical supply sourcing situation' says the stumbling, bumbling, fumbling Gub-mint!!!
Sheeeeez
Have a clue.....
NCT
SpecialK- fair point.. i agree with you mon ami!
PM- respectfully, who cares who that guy in the conf rm is.... maybe he was a facility maintenance worker (wearing a suit no less) who just ducked his head in to ask if the temperature in the conf rm was at a comfortable level.... or maybe he was the CEO of a company who is discussing an acquisition.... or or or......
Do you really think that Jim is going to be able to divulge this information, when everything betwn all parties is under strict NDA, we can't get a general timeline on the production scale testing, so we are essentially in a quasi 'Quiet Period' as it sits......
But, by virtue of our puzzle assembling skills' we know where things sit and it is essentially a waiting game (without guidance on the length of the wait) until the results of the prod testing are announced (oh and the FS update).... let's hope that in keeping with the stated gubmint urgency (witnessed by DPA execution) of critical minerals - that NIO has people working multiple shifts/around the clock to finish these requisite tasks.... because as the last 80 reports/commissions/task forces have revealed- THE DOMESTIC MINING AND PROCESSING OF REE/CE'S IS OF IMMEDIATE URGENCY!!!!
GO NIO..... 2 OR 3 SHIFTS as necessary! whatever it takes to respond to this urgency!
NCT
Good point Nebraskan..... I had forgotten about that 45 day requirement.... this is good!
NCT
Not to pile on here, but i too found it counter intuitive that we would be looking for a cornerstone investor for $25M, as there is probably a VERY SMALL probability (approaching 0%) that any investor/bank/financier is going to invest a single dollar unless and until they know that the entire project is being financed and the mine will be built.
Why would anyone assume the role of 'initial investor' or 'cornerstone investor' and take the chance of lending $25M and not getting their money repaid because the mine never gets financed and doesn't get built (and becomes operational). The mine would need to be operational to create revenues to repay any of the lenders of any traunch(s)...
So... it only stands to reason that the entire financing package (or very close to the total needed) would have to be secured before any construction would begin....
I scratched my head every time an 'initial investor' or 'cornerstone investor' was mentioned.... It just does not appear as a logical step/ sequence in the financing process.... it seems misleading....
All IMHO....
Production scale testing phase- duration.... 3 months? 6 months? 1year?
Time required to update FS 2022:- 3 months? 6 months?
I do not think it would be in violation of any safe harbor/NDA violation, etc... to provide general industry best practice standard timelines on these projects... just need to caveat and asterik and write in legal-ease indemnification clauses all over the place to CYA.....
Let's go NIO......
NCT-
Thanks Chico!
More and more and more good news.... piles of documents, gubmint epiphanies, sleepy joe emergency declarations, committees, task forces, compelling data...
Yadda, Yadda, Yadda... Yadda...
Just a matter of time now....
Any week/month/quarter/year.... we are going to get financing!
Yes we are.... no really, we are.... no doubt about it.... seriously... just be patient... and more patient.....
Let's GO NIO!!!!
Chugga Chugga Chugga Chugga Chugga......
The lil train that could...
NCT-
Duke by 2.... planets aligned..... Coach K Swan Song.... blah blah...
" Gettin' tired now, I think I'll take a nap" - Forrest Gump
PM- Yeah we'll see, i just used June as a guideline, i am well aware of moving timelines here in Nio-ville.....
I too was introduced to NIO by MNGA about 3 1/2 yrs. ago (he was a busy guy it appears, a recruiter of sorts! :) ).. anyway, I didnt know him but he was very bullish on NIO and based on him meeting all the management and being at the annual meetings and all, was quite sure it would pop VERY soon, as in within weeks...... I was naive, actually thought he had more insight into the happenings, but it turns out, nope, he knew nothing more than the average retail 'Joe six pack' investor on the board here..... which is actually reassuring in that we certainly don't want to think that anyone is getting unannounced information from back channels.
Anywyay, I'm sure MNGA is still here on the board- under a different name/handle and is reading this very message!
As for the other stock pick recco PM, thanks, but per my last msg., i am going to stay put here with my position..... i have a feeling that once the L3 production testing is done (and it sounds like they are working on the FS in paralell and will just have to plug in the numbers when they are produced, plus, i think the NIO engineering group (which i do believe is industry top notch) knows already (within a small deviation) what the numbers are going to be.... it is just a matter of proving it in testing prod scale testing and populating the requisite FS once available.... i can see all of that happening within 3 months (plus or minus)..
Anyway,
GLTA,
Yadda,
Eyes wide open....
Go Duke! go coach K !
ok ok ok ..... fine..... i will once again re re re set expectation ( for financing and 'uplift'/ to June'ish timeframe, when the REE production testing and FS will be completed (hopefully) at least that's the latest rev....
But if this doesn't happen in June' ish, then I'm going to take my 500 shares of NIOBF and move on..... to greener pastures..
Yaddda,
NCT- patience beyond human comprehension...
Maybe they should have asked for a special waiver on a 2 or 3 year air permit extension.... that might cover it..
Frustrated might be the understatement of the decade.
PM- sorry, didn't mean to paint you as a tree hugging, spotted owl, endangered frog enviro wacko- :) and i do agree, yes indeed there are many other places mining (outside the US) and trashing the environment (on the other end of the spectrum) and that is shameful.... but i think NIO is in the right spot geo-politically and ducks are in a row.... and now it is TIME TO MAKE SH#T HAPPEN! i.e., strike while the iron is hot...
Yaddda-
NorCal Tommy
PM- you are a centrist like Al Gore is a centrist.....
Nobody is suggesting we trash the planet and god knows we have mountains of regulations already in place to ensure that environmental damage is minimized by industry..... in fact, one could argue that the main reason we are in this dilemma with REE/CE supply line single sourced emergency- is because our policies, dictated by the extreme enviro crowd, have prevented the US from RESPONSIBLY mining and processing domestically, the regulations and policies have been so punitive and China has taken FULL ADVANTAGE of the situation over the past years....
Under the pretext of climate change the world is going to change drastically and we are seeing that play out now with the extreme wing of the left holding us ransom regarding energy dependence and their misguided worship of green energy that is nowehere near being able to sustain the grid's energy load (currently at ~13% of sustaining country's energy load, with estimates of only 20% by 2050). We are seeing a president that is not factoring in the incredible peril of being dependent on bad actors around the world for oil.... and we see Russians agression in Ukraine are financed by the worlds dependence on their oil. Our very own cognitively struggling president managed to utter the words "ONE WORLD ORDER" 3 times in an international speech the other day...... UGH .... Get ready for our country's sovereignity and culture to be sacrificed on the ESG alter- with all sorts of unintended consequenses......
The good thing about NIO is that the story plays well in both the wacked out enviro green circles AND in the more moderate Responsible energy (Drill at home) crowd..... no matter which party is in office, we will desperately need these elements ... and it appears that even the pres and his merry band of climate extremists are willing to let mining/processing- of course with mountains of regulation) happen inside the U.S. - because they know that without domestic mining, their super aggressive EV manufactiring projections will never come true!! It seems to me we are in a very sweet spot.....
***Disclaimer/Safe Harbor***** This is just IMHO of course......
Don't get me started!!!! :) :D
YADDDDDDDDDA
NCT- not too opinionated or anything...
Nebraskan- HAHAHA!! how did i know that you would be the first to reply! haha.... that is funny...almost 'Pavlovian'.... i knew that i was serving you up a 70 mph fast ball right down the middle on that one! or maybe a REE curve as Chico might say!
LET's GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO NIO...... let's show the investors what 10 years of permitting and planning and renewing and re planning and re testing and bench and production scale testing can GET 'EM!!!
I know it's been said many times, many ways but at the risk of being rereredundun-dant... "LET'S GITTTTER DUNNNNNNNNNN"!!!!!!!!
FULL DISCLOSURE:
-No animals were hurt during the creation of this post
- I was at home on Jan 6th, 2021
- No mail in ballots are stuffed in my filing cabinet awaiting next election
-I approve of this message
NCT-
But the news is not necessarily 'Imminent', I did not say Imminent, nobody is saying 'imminent'... ok, just wanted full disclosure on that point!
NCT- getting restless and bored...... resorting to semantic word parsing..
Blah Blah.....
ZZZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
The Big news will probably be announced any hour/day/week/month/quarter now..... it is close/pending/ approaching/forthcoming/in the offing...
Is everyone ready??
I shore AM !!!!!
REE Curve/Slider on the way......
Let's get this mine built before we are all working in sweat shops for China...
NCT- Yadda Yadda
Hehehe..... yes, right, they managed to get baseball going.... now the ball is in our court....
GO NIO!!
MB- Thanks for posting! that is VERY good to know... and a a key piece of information indeed, as it answers many posters questions about the timing of the Air Permit update....
Yadda,
Dominos are falling in line.... ducks are lining up...... albeit SLOWLY but surely...
NCT
Pls. see response from Jim S regarding my question relative to today's PR:
Q] Can you please provide any ballpark estimate on timeline for creating a demonstration scale plant and the measuring of targeted REE’s? are we looking at months or quarters ( rought estimate only)?
Jim's Response:
"In answer to your question below, we are not in a position at this point to provide such estimates, although the demonstration plant is expected to begin operation in April. The demonstration plant will confirm metallurgical performance and recoveries for the rare earths, which have been established through bench-scale testwork on our ore as well as numerical modeling. In addition to the chemical and metallurgical test work to be done in the demo plant, a good deal of additional work will need to be done in order to update all necessary parts of our 2019 Feasibility Study to integrate rare earths into the Project, including a new economic model detailing the expected financial performance of the Project.
Notwithstanding this, our project finance efforts are continuing on multiple levels".
thanks PM, those pilot plant operation specs are encouraging, 3-5 days of testing in some of those legacy examples. The part about 'constucting' the pilot plant is what may have thrown me off, i was thinking it may have been an onerous timeline... i.e., months to construct and measure... i could be wrong here, and probably am way off.... i don't have the background in this industry to even hazard a guess...
I have sent an inquiry to NIO PR / Jim S., will pass on any feedback i receive...
Thanks!
NCT
PM or anyone with background- Do we have any ballpark estimate on the timeline for pilot plant construction and testing? are we starting another 3 month or 6 month timeline? any feedback welcome...
NCT
It kinda feels like a prom date i had in High School..... things just kept looking better and better with every beer, similar to things looking better and better with every news release with NIO.... but just like the prom date analogy, i'm really hoping to move to the ACTION stage instead of the incremental multiple one after another- NIO Potential stage(s) ......
Tik Tok Tik Tok......
Mouse got tired of running up the clock....
ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
All great questions Chico and probably many folks have the same concerns.. Does anyone (with mining/construction background) have any idea the scope and timeline to build a 'Demonstration Scale Plant' and conduct the testing?? I too thought this Dem Plants was already under way per the January press release...
It sure seems like there is always a new Gantt/Pert chart project item that pops up RIGHT BEFORE a potential financing event...
Hmmmmm...... wondering if we are looking at months or quarters to get the Demonstration Plant built and testing done.....
NCT- Scratching head (and other body parts).....
re re then resetting calendar.....
No Disclaimers:
One helluva birthday present indeeeed!! and a life changing present for many of us on the board here!
GO NIO!!
PM- good point....Anything and everything is on the table and 'in the realm' at this point..... i just long for the day that we can narrow down the infinite possibilities to a finite subset that portends action and movement and the long awaited start to the construction.... and the removal of the red shovel from the cellophane...
It is curious that still we have no indication of an air permit extension filing..... hmmmm please forgive me for allowing my imagination to be aerobically exercised, but might that be a 'dot connection' aka 'puzzle piece' right there.... i mean, far be it for me to get out in front of the skis on this stuff but things seem to be coming to a head here.....
One can only hope.....
Yadda Yaddda freakin' Yadda.....
No Disclaimer necessary on this post...
NCT- getting antzy..... sensing something YUGE!!
agree 10,000%, gubmint studying and analyzing and more studies and bills and committees and and and...... blah blah blah... hot air and pandering politicians without the best interest of the country in mind.
There is NO WAY we should wait a day for gubment cheez (money), however if they could structure some sort of gubment funding that would offset Debt/Equity funding that they get from private sector... so in other words, go ahead with private funding... and then if we can secure some govt grants during the 3 yr. construction phase that would offset the total loan (while not slowing any of the momentum of the project down)- then that might be a win, as long as we are not beholden to the govt for onerous reporting and thousands of additional regulations and stipulations on the free money!!
The govt money ALWAYS comes with strings and stipulations ...... of course Jim S and team are well aware of all of this...
NCT-
Weekend...... phew..... ahhhhhhhh
"Hoping for financing this year" MS says at the 1:45 mark in the preso.....
Heck! how about we are hopeful for financing this MONTH or this QUARTER!!!
i know i know.... safe harbor.... legal disclamers........yadda yadda......
patience..... patience... exhale...........ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
arghhhh
Putz- if the price of Titanium keeps rising like this, in addition to changing the words around to highlight titanium, they may also want to consider changing the name of the company to TITcorp.... just a thought... :D
NCT- just poring over all the possibilities..... dang!
Corp- I must say that you certainly don't have the bar raised very high at $1.00 post financing news..... With all of this waiting and nail biting and hand wringing, i think most of us were hoping for at least $2.00 !!
Actually, now that all of this hard work has been taking place in the background ( i.e., REE anaysis and reporting, updating FS, ESG compliance, etc. etc... yadda
I would really hope we would be rewarded by an initial SP surge to at least $3-$5 upon Financing news released, and then as word spreads and the stock is on more large investors/institutional radar(s) over the following 3-5 months, then I don't think a SP in the neighborhood of $6-$10 would be infeasible...
All just my humble opinion.....
NCT- waiting patiently in front row with other faithful investors, seeing very positive signs of incremental progress....many important pre req boxes being checked....ducks are forming in rows....sh*t is happening, albeith much slower than anyone would like, but hey- the pyramids weren't built overnight........
ZZZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
BM- love the cable guy.... we could use the cable guy going to Washington to crack the whip and slap a few of the fossilized politicians in the gub'mint..... and then he could come to the mine kick off party (hopefully late spring)in his signature flannel beater shirt and perform for us at the Elk Creek Elk's Lodge.... would be a fitting return to his home town area!
'Git er Dunnnnnnnnnnnn'
NCT
CritM3- HAHAHA! the applications for our magic powder are endless.....
Here's everyone at the mine financing & construction commencement party...
much longer in the teeth but very happy!!!
https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=https%3A%2F%2Fcolorfuldayevents.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2015%2F12%2Fold-people-party.jpg&imgrefurl=https%3A%2F%2Fcolorfuldayevents.com%2Faged-makeup-effect%2F&tbnid=sUoEGXjtkJNcLM&vet=12ahUKEwi2o5Om0qr2AhUTJn0KHaA4C50QMygeegUIARDrAg..i&docid=gL3R6D0tyKGl2M&w=960&h=648&q=old%20person%20birthday%20party&hl=en&ved=2ahUKEwi2o5Om0qr2AhUTJn0KHaA4C50QMygeegUIARDrAg
Thanks ScAndy-good catch.... watching it now.... very interesting summary and leaves no doubt that we ARE adding REE's to the portfolio. I hope institutional investors are a target market for this briefing.
The worldwide demand for these materials and NIO revenue numbers are highly compelling to say the least.
NCT
does Scott have a twin brother?