Redfern’s John Greig predicts strong showing for base metals

Among Canada’s notable mineral deposits of recent years is the Tulsequah Chief property in British Columbia, owned 40% by Redfern Resources and 60% by Cominco Ltd. Three years of underground drilling, 1988-90, at the property has produced a preliminary reserve estimate of more than six million tons of high-grade polymetallic mineralization with a gross value of about $225 per ton. “Redfern is involved entirely in exploration,” President John Greig, 49, tells The Northern Miner in a recent interview. “Tulsequah Chief is our most important asset.” Although the company’s projects are in North America, it is interested in acquiring properties of merit in any country where the laws are favorable and the jurisdiction is politically stable.

Redfern aside, Greig is a founder, director and officer of Sutton Resources, Cumberland Resources and International Vestor Resources. The trio has exploration programs in Newfoundland, Ontario, British Columbia and the western U.S.

Raised in Montreal, Que., Greig graduated from McGill University with a B.Sc. degree in 1964. “Two years prior to entering university, I worked for an insurance company, which convinced me that I would not be fulfilled shuffling paper at a desk,” says Greig. “I knew I would need to be involved in a more creative field.” He might have inherited his love for geology from his mother, who had a passing interest in the subject.

In 1964-67, Greig worked with Cominco, mainly in western Canada. In 1970, he received his M.Sc. from the University 0000,0503 of Alberta. He stayed in Edmonton, Alta., working for International Vestor till 1978 when he moved to Vancouver, trading the snow for rain. He is now divorced and has one daughter, aged 17.

The scarcity of venture capital has hurt the junior miners, says Greig. “There are other factors that are not recession- related, such as increased burden of paperwork, government and regulatory, higher costs of financing and reductions in flow- through incentives.”

Referring to the recession, Canada’s political changes and environmental requirements, Greig says, “This is a time of uncertainty in the industry.” He, however, does not think metal prices will be depressed to the same extent as in the mid-1980s. “Demand for base metals in particular should be strong throughout most of the 1990s.”

Redfern is reasonably well prepared for the uncertainties in the coming year, he adds. “We have sufficient cash flow from oil and gas to cover more than our overheads, we have substantial working capital and we are debt free.”