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Augusta Gold Corp. (CSE: G) (OTCQB: AUGG) (FSE: 11B)

Augusta Gold Corp. (CSE: G) (OTCQB: AUGG) (FSE: 11B)

Augusta Gold Corp. (CSE: G) (OTCQB: AUGG) (FSE: 11B) (the "Company"), formerly Bullfrog Gold Corp., is a Delaware corporation engaged in the acquisition, exploration and development of gold and silver properties in the United States. The Company controls strategic lands with established 43-101 compliant resources in one of the most exciting gold exploration areas in the United States. The Bullfrog Gold Project ("Project") includes a lease/option on much of the lands where Barrick Bullfrog Inc., a subsidiary of Barrick Gold Corp., produced more than 2.3 million ounces of gold and 2.49 million ounces of silver from 1989 to 1999. The Project is located within the prolific Walker Trend about 125 miles northwest of Las Vegas, Nevada.

Project Highlights

  • The Company initially acquired 79 unpatented claims and two patents in mid-2011 and has since staked, leased, optioned, or purchased lands that now total 5,250 acres. Via a 2015 lease/option with Barrick, the Project includes the northern one-third of the Bullfrog deposit where most of the current resources in the Bullfrog mine area occur, along with their interest in the Montgomery-Shoshone deposit which gave the Company 100% control.
  • In mid-2017, a NI 43-101-compliant report by independent mining consultancy Tetra Tech Inc. estimated measured and indicated ("M&I") resources of 624,000 ounces of gold and 1.73 million ounces of silver at average grades of 0.70 g/t and 1.93 g/t, respectively. The expansion plans of these two pits were based on a $1200 gold price, use of heap leach processing, and also included 110,000 ounces of inferred gold resources averaging 1.20 g/t. Barrick used conventional milling to process an average gold grade of 3 g/t.
  • The established resources and exploration potential of the Project are strongly supported by a large data base obtained from Barrick, including detailed information on 155 miles of drilling in 1,262 holes in the Bullfrog mine area.

Gold Rush in the Bullfrog Territory

The area around Beatty, Nevada has now attracted AngloGold Ashanti, Kinross Gold, Corvus Gold, Coeur Mining as well as the Company and Waterton. In this regard, Northern Empire Resources Corp's property located a few miles east of the Project was acquired by Coeur Mining in October 2018 for C$117 million, implying a valuation of C$134/oz of inferred resources. As of today, the Company is trading at a significant discount to the valuation at which Northern Empire was purchased (http://nnw.fm/9NaaN), thereby highlighting the Company's value proposition for investors.

Augusta Gold Corp. is focused on enhancing shareholder returns by concurrently advancing Project development and performing exploration drilling programs on several targets identified by the Company.

Secured Financing for 2020 Operations

Augusta Gold Corp. raised C$2 million in January 2020 through a private placement of shares priced at C$0.13/share plus a one-half warrant exercisable within two years at C$0.20 on a full warrant basis. The raise was carried out primarily to fund a drill program that started on May 1 (http://nnw.fm/6nZ0m) and was completed on June 6, 2020. The Company subsequently intends to conduct a preliminary financial analysis and complete further drill programs to advance the Project and add value. The financing was subscribed by several influential shareholders, including a former director of Northern Empire, who handled the sale of the company to Coeur Mining, and Eros Resources, the management of which has been involved with several high-profile mining projects and sales in the past.

Gold Prices estimated to remain elevated in 2021

Gold prices demonstrated a remarkable run in 2020, rising to greater than $2,070/oz in August. Global central banks carried out 144 interest rate cuts in 2020, reducing their rates by a cumulative 5,035 basis points (http://nnw.fm/jzZt0). Meanwhile, the IMF has estimated that global governments have introduced fiscal support measures amounting to over $9 trillion since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic (http://nnw.fm/Or9rI). The resulting weakness in the U.S. dollar and eventual inflationary pressures stemming from these measures prompted Credit Suisse to recently hike their gold price forecasts for the coming year.

Management Team

David Beling, CEO, President and Director

David Beling is a Registered Professional Mining Engineer with 55 years of diverse experience in areas such as engineering, development, permitting, construction, financing and management of mines and plants and the building and growth of several corporations. His initial employment included 14 years with Phelps Dodge, Union Oil, Fluor, United Technologies, and Westinghouse, followed by 41 years of senior management and consulting with 25+ U.S. and Canadian mining companies. In 2006-2007, he spearheaded an IPO, successfully drove equity raises totaling C$112 million and grew that Company's market capitalization to $460 million. Beling has served on 14 boards since 1981, including three mining companies distinguished by the TSX Venture Exchange as top-10 performers.

Alan Lindsay, Chairman of the Board

Alan Lindsay is an entrepreneur and businessman who has founded seven companies within the mining and pharmaceutical industries, including Anatolia Minerals Development Ltd., Uranium Energy Corp., Oroperu Mineral, Strategic American Oil and AZCO Mining. Lindsay also developed the strategic vision for the 2011 acquisition and placement of the Project from NPX Metals into Augusta Gold Corp.

Kjeld Thygesen, Director

Kjeld is a graduate of the University of Natal in South Africa and has 48 years of experience as a resource analyst and fund manager. In 1972, he joined James Capel and Co. in London as part of its highly rated gold and mining research team before subsequently becoming manager of N. M. Rothschild & Sons' commodities and Natural Resources Department in 1979. In 1987, he became an executive director of N. M. Rothschild International Asset Management Ltd., before co-founding Lion Resource Management Ltd., a specialist investment manager in the mining and natural resources sector, in 1989. Thygesen has been a director of Ivanhoe Mines Ltd. since 2001 and served as investment director for Resources Investment Trust PLC from 2002 to 2006.

Tyler Minnick, CFO and Director of Administration & Finance

A registered member of the Colorado Society of Certified Public Accountants with over 24 years of experience within the fields of accounting, auditing, and administrative services. Minnick has been engaged with the Company since mid-2011 and previously worked in the finance department of MDC Holdings/Richmond American Homes, one of the largest residential construction companies in the United States.

Investment Considerations
  • The Bullfrog Gold Project is located in Nevada, the world's most attractive mining jurisdiction, according to the Fraser Institute (http://nnw.fm/M33ak).
  • M&I gold resources were independently estimated at 624,000 ounces, with a further 110,000 ounces of inferred resources
  • Barrick Gold produced approximately one million ounces of gold from the lands now controlled by Augusta Gold, terminating operations in 1999 when gold prices fell below $290/oz.
  • On May 29, 2020, the Company was valued at $39 in terms of market cap /oz of M&I gold resources, a steep discount relative to the $130+/oz for which Northern Empire was sold in 2018 (now NYSE: CDE) and Corvus (TSX: KOR) is currently valued using similar resource estimation criteria.
  • The Company recently completed a private placement of primary shares in January 2020, raising C$2.0 million. The proceeds will be used to complete work commitments necessary to purchase the Barrick lands and further its exploration and development activities.
  • The Company is well-positioned to capitalize on the growth in demand for gold, as well as the recent positive price action within the precious metals space.
  • Augusta Gold Corp. was featured as a key recommendation in Nick Hodge's Early Advantage newsletter on May 28, 2020, an influential investment newsletter highlighting high-potential small-cap companies.
Additional Resources

Company News & Data

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