TSX Venture posts small gain, Oct. 14-18: Novo Resources, New Pacific Metals, BonTerra, Cobalt 27

The S&P/TSX Composite Index rose 0.30% to 542.43 during the trading week. Spot gold finished at US$1,489.60, up 80¢.

Novo Resources jumped 33¢ to $2.80. The company recently reported positive coarse gold recoveries from a bulk sample at its Egina project in Western Australia, and said the results “further confirm” its view that “surface gravels covering the vast erosional terrace at Egina have the potential to host a gold deposit.” Three bulk samples collected next to Trench 4 yielded 337.2 grams of coarse gold nuggets from 222.2 cubic metres of lag gravel, the company reported on Oct. 9. In addition, the bulk sample contained a single gold nugget weighing 86.3 grams, “the largest yet recovered from the 2019 field season,” the company said. Bulk sampling was undertaken across a 48-metre-wide, nugget-rich zone within a broad topographic depression, or swale, identified by ground-penetrating radar. The company says it will continue to trench and bulk sample until year-end.

Pan American Silver’s decision to participate in a $15-million, bought-deal offering to keep its 16.79% pro-rata interest in New Pacific Metals sent the junior’s shares up 29¢ to $4.59. Silvercorp Metals also said it would participate in the financing to keep its stake in the company at 28.93%. The offering is expected to close on Oct. 25. New Pacific Metals owns the Silver Sand project in Bolivia, the Tagish Lake gold project in the Yukon, and the RZY project in Qinghai province.

A gold zone discovery at BonTerra Resources’ Moroy project, 225 km northeast of Val-d’Or, sent the junior’s shares up 21¢ to $2.33. Highlights from recently completed drilling in the new zone, called M4, returned 18.09 grams gold per tonne over 4 metres in drill hole 19-158, 18.39 grams gold over 3 metres in 19-161 and 11.09 grams gold over 11 metres in 19-166. The Moroy deposit has measured and indicated resources of 111,000 contained oz. gold within 667,000 tonnes grading 5.17 grams gold per tonne, and inferred resources of 55,000 contained oz. gold within 396,000 tonnes grading 4.32 grams gold.

Cobalt 27 Capital’s shareholders approved an arrangement under which Pala Investments will acquire 100% of Cobalt 27’s issued and outstanding common shares (beyond the 19% that Pala already owns). Under the deal, Cobalt 27 shareholders will receive total consideration of $5.92 per share, which consists of $4 in cash, plus one share of Nickel 28 Capital Corp., with an implied value of $1.92 per share. Cobalt 27 holds an 8.56% joint-venture interest in the Ramu nickel and cobalt mine, and manages a portfolio of 11 royalties. Cobalt 27 also owns physical cobalt and a cobalt stream on the Voisey’s Bay mine. Shares of Cobalt 27 Capital fell 7¢ to $4.41.