West Vault Mining Summary (2025)
- Projects: Hasbrouck and Three Hills (Nevada)
- Ownership: Acquired from Allied Nevada in 2014
- PFS (2023):
- Production: 70,000 oz/year for 8 years
- Capex: $66M
- After-tax IRR: 80% at $2200 gold
- Development Plan:
- Phase 1: Three Hills (shovel-ready, 12-month build)
- Phase 2: Hasbrouck (18-month build)
- Combined Reserves: ~725,000 oz (175K TH, 550K Hasbrouck)
- Strong exploration potential with high-grade intercepts
- Status:
- Development on hold, waiting for higher gold prices
- Burning ~$1M/year (conservative spend)
- Cash: ~$2.5M
- Announced share buyback: up to 3%
- Additional Assets:
- 60% interest in 11 Nevada properties (300K acres, from Newmont/Rubicon)
- 25K acres in Quebec (between two 4Moz deposits)
- Market Cap: ~$43M (fully diluted) — very low for a near-term 70K oz producer
- Risk/Reward:
- Upside: 10x potential at $4000 gold if mine built and extended
- Risk: May sell project instead of building
Insiders/Ownership:
- Sun Valley Gold: 46%
- Ruffer: 17%
- Eric Sprott: 5%
- Konwave AG: 3%
- Management/Insiders: 1.5%
- Total Insider Ownership: ~70%
CEO Quote (2/18/2025):
“We see building Hasbrouck as a viable way to unlock value, but we’re cautious of being a single-project company. Our market cap must be significantly above initial capex before we build — to allow room if things go wrong.”
Key Assumptions
- Annual Production: 70,000 oz
- Mine Life: 8 years (likely to extend with exploration)
- Gold Price: $4,000/oz
- AISC (All-in Sustaining Cost): Assume $1,200/oz (to be conservative)
- Free Cash Flow (FCF) per ounce = $4,000 - $1,200 = $2,800
- Annual FCF = 70,000 oz × $2,800 = $196,000,000
- Valuation Multiple: 10x–15x FCF (common for miners with solid assets)
- Market Cap Range:
- Conservative (10x): $1.96B
- Optimistic (15x): $2.94B
- Shares Outstanding (FD): ~70 million (estimate)
- At $4,000 gold, West Vault Mining could be worth:
- $28.00/share (10x FCF)
- $42.00/share (15x FCF)
- Current stock price is under $1, so this is a potential 30-40x return if the mine is built and production is realized.
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