The one-time hockey pugilist fought his way to legend status by building the Quebec landing gear company into a global juggernaut
There comes a time when people know it’s time to take a different path. The crossroads for Gilles Labbé appeared in the corners of Quebec hockey rinks in the mid-1970s, when the rangy, 1.9-metre left winger, with a goal scorer’s touch in junior hockey’s top tier, kept bumping into goons. “Bums,” he recalled, ones with beards and mayhem in mind.
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“If you remember, in those days, the Philadelphia Flyers were winning the Stanley Cup,” he said, referring to the notorious squad nicknamed the Broad Street Bullies. “Every team had a goon or two, and these guys will not fight the five-foot-guys, so I was going to the corner, not touching anybody, and then a big guy with a beard and all that would rub his glove in front of me and I’d have to fight him.”
Labbé played along with hockey’s pugilistic rituals for a few years, but he understood his odds of making the big league were growing increasingly long, while his enthusiasm for getting slugged in the kisser was lacking. In other words, he needed a plan B, and going to university to become an accountant proved to be it.
“At the end of the day, I think it was a good decision,” he said.
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Was it ever. Earlier this year, the now 68-year-old was found rubbing shoulders at a gathering of aerospace all-stars at the Living Legends of Aviation awards in Salzburg, Austria. Think of the Oscars, only applied to airplanes and such, and you get the idea. It is in this arena that Labbé would emerge as an elite global player.
The trip to Austria was to collect an “aviation industry leader” award bestowed upon a hockey guy who grew up to be a legend in landing gear manufacturing, a vital piece of technology most travellers never pay much attention to, at least between landing and take-off.
But the technology is at the core of Labbé’s company, Longueuil, Que.-based Héroux-Devtek Inc., which employs about 2,000 people worldwide, has 15 facilities, generated $630 million in revenue in fiscal 2024, and makes and designs landing gear for big-name commercial and military customers.
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“There is not one large OEM in the world that builds airplanes or helicopters that we don’t do business with,” he said.
That business includes working on special projects for the United States Air Force that are so secret that Labbé doesn’t know what planes he is providing the landing gear for look like.
The name Héroux may ring a bell among space exploration history buffs. Héroux built the landing gear for the Apollo 11 lunar mission, but by the early 1980s, it was languishing beneath the corporate ownership of Bombardier Inc.
Labbé was witness to the inertia as the 29-year-old head of the finance department, but he saw potential when he looked around the place. He had no money, and arguably no sense, but he had the idea that he and his manager, Sarto Richer, who likewise had no money, should borrow $10 million from the bank and buy Héroux from Bombardier. The rest, as they say, is landing gear manufacturing history.
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Within nine months of closing the deal, the company’s order backlog had grown tenfold to $150 million. Forty years and several acquisitions later, Héroux-Devtek’s customers include Airbus SE, Lockheed-Martin Corp., Boeing Co. and, yes, Bombardier, together with several branches of the American and European militaries.
Of course, the entrepreneurial road, from two guys getting a bank loan to the international awards circuit, was not straight. At points in between, it was racked by turbulence.
One of the early hiccups, Labbé said, was convincing the big players, such as Lockheed-Martin, to ditch their tried-and-tested landing gear supplier and award a contract to a Quebec-based manufacturer, which led to his No. 1 rule for entrepreneurs: If a potential customer says “no” nine times, go back and pitch them a tenth. If they say no again, call back and try to arrange another meeting.
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“The most important thing as an entrepreneur is you need to be resilient, and I don’t give up easy,” he said. “A ‘no’ from a customer is only a delayed ‘yes.’”
But even signing lots of customers initially doesn’t guarantee they will climb aboard the next time. That leads to lesson No. 2 for aspiring entrepreneurs: business can’t always be counted on to be good.
Héroux-Devtek went on a tear for the better part of a decade after Labbé took over. But then the Berlin Wall came tumbling down and the company’s military business took a nosedive. The end of the Cold War coincided with the onset of a recession in the early 1990s, and commercial aviation contracts became equally scarce.
To make a fraught situation even worse, Héroux-Devtek’s employees went on strike. A company that had only known profit under Labbé’s leadership started to lose piles of money.
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“I have never met an entrepreneur who hasn’t had to overcome a problem,” he said.
The solutions were neither pretty nor fun. People lost their jobs. The company went into survival mode, but contracts eventually started coming back. Times improved, Héroux made some key acquisitions and rebranded as Héroux-Devtek.
By scaling up, Labbé had more resources at his disposal and a bigger international footprint, leading to another one of his entrepreneurial lessons: To swim with the big fish, you are going to need to grow beyond Canada and establish an international presence.
“Size matters, meaning the more size, when things get tough, the more resources you have to manage through those times,” he said.
Where growth ultimately became tricky for the company was shopping for American aerospace outfits trading on U.S. stock exchanges at a greater multiple than Héroux-Devtek had on the Toronto Stock Exchange.
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The accountant couldn’t buy something he couldn’t afford and that his shareholders wouldn’t agree to anyway.
In order to gain access to the type of capital required to keep growing, Héroux-Devtek in July announced it was being bought by a New York private-equity player, Platinum Equity Advisors LLC. The $1.35-billion deal pays Héroux-Devtek investors $32.50 a share, a 28.4 per cent premium, and is expected to close at the end of March.
Labbé will remain in his current post as executive chairman, as will the rest of the senior management team.
“We want to be able to continue to grow the business, and so I look at the deal as a new beginning,” he said.
The old hockey player hosted a 50th anniversary party for some of his former teammates in Montreal not long ago. The gang, as hockey players do, quickly reverted to their wisecracking, dressing-room ways of yore and pinned their host with a new nickname.
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“The guys started calling me ‘The Legend,’” Labbé said and then laughed.
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The legend’s parting lesson for budding entrepreneurs is rooted in the game he grew up playing and left after one too many pokes in the nose: Great players can win a game by themselves, but “great teams win championships.”
Put another way: To get ahead in landing gear, or anything else, you need to build a great team.
• Email: joconnor@postmedia.com
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The UK government has emphasised the importance of ‘levelling the playing field’ for responsible companies to mitigate environmental, social and governance (ESG) risks affecting the mining and processing of minerals needed for the energy transition. Yet there is little research into the levers available to the UK to realise this ambition. This paper examines the UK’s role as a financial and trading hub for the mining industry, and a centre of sustainability and international development expertise, assessing how far these have been, and could be, leveraged to improve standards.
The paper finds that the UK has yet to establish a strong policy programme to promote ESG standards. Notably, the government is not yet working to leverage the benefits brought by the confluence of the UK’s position as home of the City of London, its status as host of the London Metal Exchange (LME), its expert sustainability community, and its international development expertise.
London remains an attractive place for mining companies to access financial and other professional services, with ESG an ever-higher priority for UK-based investors. Yet public listings are declining, with significant risk perceived on the potential for ‘knee-jerk reactions’ by domestic investors. A lack of action to resolve this tension risks undermining both the UK’s sustainable sourcing ambitions and its role as a financial hub for mining.
Meanwhile, the LME has global reach, and its standards are a benchmark for transactions worldwide. Efforts have been made to engage with the sustainability agenda, but action is constrained by the LME’s need to compete with rival exchanges that have not imposed responsible sourcing rules.
In parallel, with a range of world-leading research institutions and consultancies, the UK enjoys unrivalled ESG expertise, as well as an established international development record. While the UK government retains the capability to directly support ESG initiatives in mineral-rich developing countries, it does not currently prioritise this.
Across all these areas, the UK has yet to engage actively with China – the dominant player in the transition minerals sector – to a sufficient extent. Key options remain unexploited around domestic UK standards and regulation; direct bilateral engagement with China; and work with Chinese companies operating in official development assistance (ODA)-eligible countries.
To realise the potential of the levers available to advance ESG standards for transition minerals, this paper makes the following recommendations:
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Following the successful completion of its previously announced plan of arrangement, Osisko Mining Inc. announced that Gold Fields Limited acquired all of Osisko’s issued and outstanding common shares through Gold Fields Windfall Holdings Inc., its 100 % owned Canadian subsidiary.
This premium transaction represents a strong and near-term outcome for our shareholders and is reflective of the truly world-class nature of the Windfall Project. In the span of nine years, we’ve transformed Windfall into one of the largest and highest-grade gold development projects globally, and this transaction is a testament to the extraordinary entrepreneurial effort of the Osisko Mining team.
John Burzynski, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Osisko Mining Inc.
Burzynski added, “Gold Fields is a globally diversified senior gold producer with an impressive track record of successfully building and operating mines. As our (now former) joint venture partner at Windfall, Gold Fields knows the asset well and understands the significance of the strong relationships that we have built in Québec with all of our stakeholders. Moreover, Gold Fields share our core principles of operating in a safe, inclusive and socially responsible manner. They are well suited to take Windfall into production, and we wish them all the best going forward.”
Under the terms of the arrangement, each former Osisko shareholder holding shares before the effective date is entitled to C$4.90 per share. The Ontario Superior Court of Justice issued a Final Order approving the arrangement on October 22, 2024, and the arrangement took effect on October 25.
Former Osisko registered shareholders are reminded to complete, sign, and return the letter of transmittal to TSX Trust Company, the depositary for the arrangement, along with the share certificate or DRS advice for their shares to receive the consideration they are entitled to under the arrangement.
The consideration owed to former non-registered shareholders under the arrangement will be deposited directly into their brokerage accounts. Non-registered shareholders with questions about the process for receiving their consideration should contact their broker or intermediary.
The shares are expected to be delisted from the Toronto Stock Exchange within two business days of closing. Osisko also plans to apply to the relevant securities authorities to cease being a reporting issuer and to end its public reporting obligations. Following the completion of the arrangement, all of Osisko’s directors and senior officers have resigned from their positions.
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Published Oct 28, 2024 • 7 minute read
NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION TO UNITED STATES NEWSWIRE SERVICES OR FOR DISSEMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES
TORONTO — Sherritt International Corporation (“Sherritt” or the “Corporation”) (TSX:S) today announced an update on its operations in Cuba following the nationwide power outage that began on October 18, 2024 (please refer to Sherritt’s press release dated October 21, 2024 titled “Sherritt Provides an Operational Update”). Despite the power outage and adverse weather from the tropical storm that occurred shortly after, Sherritt maintains its 2024 guidance ranges.
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The Moa nickel mine and all Energas S.A. (“Energas”) facilities returned to full operating capacity on October 27, 2024. Following the power outage, the Moa nickel mine was operating at a reduced capacity of 50% to 60% with power sourced from the mine site’s own power generating capabilities. Despite this, there was not a material impact to mixed sulphides production. Moreover, the Corporation’s refinery in Alberta had strategically built-up feed inventory earlier in the year, ensuring reliable feed throughput for finished nickel production. At Energas, operations had partially resumed by Saturday, October 19, 2024 although some temporary disruptions continued due to the complexities involving the power grid. Energas was instrumental in assisting to restore power to the Cuban national grid. The Energas facilities, which are comprised of two reliable combined cycle plants, generate low-cost electricity from domestically sourced natural gas and are among the lowest carbon emitting power sources in Cuba.
Throughout the nationwide power outage, all environmental protection and safety activities at sites in Cuba continued uninterrupted, and there were no environmental incidents or injuries reported among personnel.
About Sherritt International
Sherritt is a world leader in using hydrometallurgical processes to mine and refine nickel and cobalt – metals deemed critical for the energy transition. Sherritt’s Moa Joint Venture has a current estimated mine life of 25 years and has embarked on an expansion program focused on increasing annual mixed sulphide precipitate production by approximately 20% of contained nickel and cobalt. The Corporation’s Power division, through its ownership in Energas S.A., is the largest independent energy producer in Cuba with installed electrical generating capacity of 506 MW, representing approximately 10% of the national electrical generating capacity in Cuba. The Energas facilities are comprised of two combined cycle plants that produce low-cost electricity from one of the lowest carbon emitting sources of power in Cuba. Sherritt’s common shares are listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol “S”.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains certain forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements can generally be identified by the use of statements that include such words as “believe”, “expect”, “anticipate”, “intend”, “plan”, “forecast”, “likely”, “may”, “will”, “could”, “should”, “suspect”, “outlook”, “potential”, “projected”, “continue” or other similar words or phrases. Specifically, forward-looking statements in this document include, but are not limited to, statements regarding, the Corporation’s 2024 guidance.
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Forward-looking statements are not based on historical facts, but rather on current expectations, assumptions and projections about future events, including commodity and product prices and demand; the level of liquidity and access to funding; share price volatility; production results; realized prices for production; earnings and revenues; global demand for electric vehicles and the anticipated corresponding demand for cobalt and nickel; the commercialization of certain proprietary technologies and services; advancements in environmental and greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction technology; GHG emissions reduction goals and the anticipated timing of achieving such goals, if at all; statistics and metrics relating to Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) matters which are based on assumptions or developing standards; environmental rehabilitation provisions; environmental risks and liabilities; compliance with applicable environmental laws and regulations; risks related to the U.S. government policy toward Cuba; and certain corporate objectives, goals and plans for 2024. By their nature, forward-looking statements require the Corporation to make assumptions and are subject to inherent risks and uncertainties. There is significant risk that predictions, forecasts, conclusions or projections will not prove to be accurate, that the assumptions may not be correct and that actual results may differ materially from such predictions, forecasts, conclusions or projections.
The Corporation cautions readers of this press release not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking statement as a number of factors could cause actual future results, conditions, actions or events to differ materially from the targets, expectations, estimates or intentions expressed in the forward-looking statements. These risks, uncertainties and other factors include, but are not limited to, uncertainty in the ability to accurately forecast the timing of operations operating at full capacity following the power outages of the Cuban national grid, security market fluctuations and price volatility; level of liquidity and the related ability of the Moa Joint Venture to pay dividends; access to capital; access to financing; the risk to Sherritt’s entitlements to future distributions (including pursuant to the Cobalt Swap) from the Moa Joint Venture, the impact of infectious diseases, the impact of global conflicts; changes in the global price for nickel, cobalt, oil, gas, fertilizers or certain other commodities; risks related to Sherritt’s operations in Cuba; risks related to the U.S. government policy toward Cuba, including the U.S. embargo on Cuba and the Helms-Burton legislation; political, economic and other risks of foreign operations; uncertainty in the ability of the Corporation to enforce legal rights in foreign jurisdictions; uncertainty regarding the interpretation and/or application of the applicable laws in foreign jurisdictions; compliance with applicable environment, health and safety legislation and other associated matters; risks associated with governmental regulations regarding climate change and greenhouse gas emissions; risks relating to community relations; maintaining social license to grow and operate; risks related to environmental liabilities including liability for reclamation costs, tailings facility failures and toxic gas releases; uncertainty about the pace of technological advancements required in relation to achieving ESG targets; risks to information technologies systems and cybersecurity; identification and management of growth opportunities; the ability to replace depleted mineral reserves; risk of future non-compliance with debt restrictions and covenants; risks associated with the Corporation’s joint venture partners; variability in production at Sherritt’s operations in Cuba; risks associated with mining, processing and refining activities; potential interruptions in transportation; uncertainty of gas supply for electrical generation; reliance on key personnel and skilled workers; growth opportunity risks; the possibility of equipment and other failures; uncertainty of resources and reserve estimates; the potential for shortages of equipment and supplies, including diesel; supplies quality issues; risks related to the Corporation’s corporate structure; risks associated with the operation of large projects generally; risks related to the accuracy of capital and operating cost estimates; foreign exchange and pricing risks; credit risks; shortage of equipment and supplies; competition in product markets; future market access; interest rate changes; risks in obtaining insurance; uncertainties in labour relations; legal contingencies; risks related to the Corporation’s accounting policies; uncertainty in the ability of the Corporation to obtain government permits; failure to comply with, or changes to, applicable government regulations; bribery and corruption risks, including failure to comply with the Corruption of Foreign Public Officials Act or applicable local anti-corruption law; the ability to accomplish corporate objectives, goals and plans for 2023; and the ability to meet other factors listed from time to time in the Corporation’s continuous disclosure documents.
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In addition to the risks noted above, factors that could, alone or in combination, prevent the Corporation from successfully achieving the benefits from expansion opportunities may include, without limitation: identifying suitable commercialization and other partners; successfully advancing discussions and successfully concluding applicable agreements with external parties and/or partners; successfully attracting required financing; successfully developing and proving technology required for the potential opportunity; successfully overcoming technical and technological challenges; successful environmental assessment and stakeholder engagement; successfully obtaining intellectual property protection; successfully completing test work and engineering studies, prefeasibility and feasibility studies, piloting, scaling from small scale to large scale production; procurement, construction, commissioning, ramp-up to commercial scale production and completion; unanticipated cost increases; supply chain challenges and securing regulatory and government approvals. There can be no assurance that any opportunity will be successful, commercially viable, completed on time or on budget, or will generate any meaningful revenues, savings or earnings, as the case may be, for the Corporation. In addition, the Corporation will incur costs in pursuing any particular opportunity, which may be significant. Readers are cautioned that the foregoing list of factors is not exhaustive and should be considered in conjunction with the risk factors described in the Corporation’s other documents filed with the Canadian securities authorities, including without limitation the “Managing Risk” section of the Management’s Discussion and Analysis for the three and six months ended June 30, 2024 and the Annual Information Form of the Corporation dated March 21, 2024 for the period ending December 31, 2023, which is available on SEDAR at www.sedarplus.ca.
The Corporation may, from time to time, make oral forward-looking statements. The Corporation advises that the above paragraph and the risk factors described in this press release and in the Corporation’s other documents filed with the Canadian securities authorities should be read for a description of certain factors that could cause the actual results of the Corporation to differ materially from those in the oral forward-looking statements. The forward-looking information and statements contained in this press release are made as of the date hereof and the Corporation undertakes no obligation to update publicly or revise any oral or written forward-looking information or statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable securities laws. The forward-looking information and statements contained herein are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20241028234003/en/
Contacts
For further information, please contact:
Tom Halton
Director, Investor Relations and Corporate Affairs
Email: investor@sherritt.com
Telephone: (416) 935-2451
www.sherritt.com
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(MENAFN– GlobeNewsWire – Nasdaq) KELLOGG, Idaho and VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Oct. 28, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Bunker Hill mining Corp. (“Bunker Hill” or the “Company”) (TSXV:BNKR | OTCQX:BHLL) is pleased to announce that it has received a non-binding Letter of Interest (“ LOI ”) from the Export-Import bank of the United States (“ EXIM ”) for a debt funding package of up to $150M with a loan term of up to 15 years.
The funding will enable the Company to expedite the development of the 2500tpd Bunker 2.0 expansion project (the“ Expansion Project ”) coincident with restarting the mine and strengthening the balance sheet.
”We are thrilled to announce this first step in a potential partnership with EXIM to rapidly expand Bunker Hill’s contribution to US domestic production of critical zinc and silver,” said President and CEO, Sam Ash.“In the face of competition from China, Bunker Hill is proud to play its part in strengthening the US metals supply chain and creating new US mining jobs within the disadvantaged Shoshone County of Northern Idaho.”
Figure 1 – Bunker Hill Staff and Contractors standing inside the 1800tpd processing plant in Kellogg, Idaho
BUNKER HILL 2.0 EXPANSION PROJECT
Coincident with the planned restart of the operations at 1800tpd in the first half of next year, the company intends to conduct extensive drilling from the underground and surface of previously identified exploration targets. This will be complemented by detailed engineering studies designed to support a ramp-up to 2500tpd operations under the previously announced Bunker Hill 2.0 Concept.
The first step on this path will be to issue an updated resource and reserve report in Q1|25, followed by further exploration conducted underground and at the surface. As key milestones are completed, the Company will update the market and its strategic partner on the evolution of this concept and its supporting resources.
Figure 2 – Bunker Hill 2.0 Expansion Concept
The Bunker Hill 2.0 expansion concept is designed to significantly increase the rate and efficiency of the mining and processing of the Quill-Newgard ore zones and subsequently enable access to the deeper, higher-grade silver galena veins being mined from the lower levels of the mine when the mine closed in 1981.
The LOI from EXIM does not represent a financing commitment and is a preliminary step in the formal EXIM application process. The debt financing is subject to the satisfactory completion of due diligence, the negotiation and settlement of final terms, and the negotiation of definitive documentation. There can be no assurance that the debt financing will be completed on the terms described above. The Company will update the market upon reaching a definitive agreement with EXIM for funding support.
The Company expects to submit a formal application to EXIM by the end of 2024.
ZINC, SILVER AND THE US CRITICAL METALS LIST
Zinc has been included in the US Critical Metals list since 2022, while silver is being reviewed now for the 2025 list by the United States Geological Survey (“ USGS ”). Both are metal inputs to the energy transition, the ongoing upgrade to critical national infrastructure and to domestic re-industrialization. Zinc for its ability to galvanize steel, and silver for its reflective and electrical and thermal conductive properties.
The 2022 list was created based on directives from the Energy Act of 2020, which indicates that at least every three years, the Department of the Interior must review and update the list of critical minerals, update the methodology used to identify potential critical minerals, take interagency feedback and public comment through the Federal Register, and ultimately finalize the list of critical minerals.
The Energy Act of 2020 defines a“critical mineral” as a non-fuel mineral or mineral material essential to the economic or national security of the U.S. and with a supply chain vulnerable to disruption. Critical minerals are also characterized as serving a necessary function in manufacturing a product, the absence of which would have significant consequences for the economy or national security.
ABOUT THE EXPORT-IMPORT BANK OF THE UNITED STATES
EXIM is the official export credit agency of the United States of America. EXIM is an independent Executive Branch agency with a mission of supporting American jobs by facilitating the export of US goods and services.
As published in its 2023 Annual Report, EXIM currently has exposure to US$1,476.7B in lending across 148 countries worldwide. The default rate across the portfolio is 0.98%, reflecting the high standards of credit required to obtain EXIM financing. Furthermore, EXIM’s charter requires that it supplement and encourage, not displace, private capital.
The EXIM Make More in America Initiative (“ MMIA ”) was developed in response to President of the United States Executive Order 14017 on American Supply Chains and provides U.S. manufacturers new access to capital to fill critical supply chain gaps, and was approved by EXIM’s Board of Directors in April 2022. MMIA’s objective is to unlock financing for U.S. manufacturing and close critical supply chain gaps, especially in sectors critical to national security. Under MMIA, EXIM can make the agency’s existing medium- and long-term loans, loan guarantees, and insurance programs available to export-oriented domestic projects such as Bunker Hill.
The China and Transformational Exports Program (“ CTEP ”) was established through a December 2019 Congressional reauthorization of EXIM’s charter. Under CTEP’s mandate, EXIM is authorized to help US exporters facing competition from China and to ensure that the US continues to lead in crucial strategic areas critical to national security, including renewable energy, storage and efficiency. CTEP supports the extension of EXIM loans, guarantees and insurance at rates and on terms and other conditions, to the extent practicable, that are fully competitive with rates, terms and other conditions established by China.
ABOUT BUNKER HILL MINING CORP.
Under Idaho-based leadership, Bunker Hill intends to restart and develop the Bunker Hill Mine sustainably to consolidate and optimize several mining assets into a high-value portfolio of operations centered initially in North America. Information about the Company is available on its website, , or within the SEDAR + and EDGAR databases.
On behalf of Bunker Hill Mining Corp.
Sam Ash
President and Chief Executive Officer
For additional information, please contact:
Brenda Dayton
Vice President, Investor Relations
T: 604.417.7952
E: …
Cautionary Statements
Neither the TSX-V nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX-V) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.
Certain statements in this news release are forward-looking and involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Such forward-looking statements are within the meaning of that term in Section 27A of the Securities Act and Section 21E of the U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, as well as within the meaning of the phrase ‘forward-looking information’ in the Canadian Securities Administrators’ National Instrument 51-102 – Continuous Disclosure Obligations (collectively,“ forward-looking statements ”). Forward-looking statements are not comprised of historical facts. Forward-looking statements include estimates and statements that describe the Company’s future plans, objectives or goals, including words to the effect that the Company or management expects a stated condition or result to occur. Forward-looking statements may be identified by such terms as“believes”,“anticipates”,“expects”,“estimates”,“may”,“could”,“would”,“will”,“plan” or variations of such words and phrases.
Forward-looking statements in this news release include, but are not limited to, statements regarding: the Company’s objectives, goals or future plans, including the restart and development of the Bunker Hill Mine; the achievement of future short-term, medium-term and long-term operational strategies; the Silver Loan; the Company receiving TSX-V approval for the Silver Loan and the issuance of the Warrants and the Warrant Shares; and the timing and advancement of additional tranches of the Silver Loan and additional Warrants. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from such forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, those risks and uncertainties identified in public filings made by Bunker Hill with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the“ SEC ”) and with applicable Canadian securities regulatory authorities, and the following: the Company not receiving the approval of the TSX-V for the issuance of the Warrants and the Warrant Shares; the Company’s inability to raise additional capital for project activities, including through equity financings, concentrate offtake financings or otherwise; the fluctuating price of commodities; capital market conditions; restrictions on labor and its effects on international travel and supply chains; failure to identify mineral resources; failure to convert estimated mineral resources to reserves; the preliminary nature of metallurgical test results; the Company’s ability to restart and develop the Bunker Hill Mine and the risks of not basing a production decision on a feasibility study of mineral reserves demonstrating economic and technical viability, resulting in increased uncertainty due to multiple technical and economic risks of failure which are associated with this production decision including, among others, areas that are analyzed in more detail in a feasibility study, such as applying economic analysis to resources and reserves, more detailed metallurgy and a number of specialized studies in areas such as mining and recovery methods, market analysis, and environmental and community impacts and, as a result, there may be an increased uncertainty of achieving any particular level of recovery of minerals or the cost of such recovery, including increased risks associated with developing a commercially mineable deposit, with no guarantee that production will begin as anticipated or at all or that anticipated production costs will be achieved; failure to commence production would have a material adverse impact on the Company’s ability to generate revenue and cash flow to fund operations; failure to achieve the anticipated production costs would have a material adverse impact on the Company’s cash flow and future profitability; delays in obtaining or failures to obtain required governmental, environmental or other project approvals; political risks; changes in equity markets; uncertainties relating to the availability and costs of financing needed in the future; the inability of the Company to budget and manage its liquidity in light of the failure to obtain additional financing, including the ability of the Company to complete the payments pursuant to the terms of the agreement to acquire the Bunker Hill Mine complex; inflation; changes in exchange rates; fluctuations in commodity prices; delays in the development of projects; and capital, operating and reclamation costs varying significantly from estimates and the other risks involved in the mineral exploration and development industry. Although the Company believes that the assumptions and factors used in preparing the forward-looking statements in this news release are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on such statements or information, which only applies as of the date of this news release, and no assurance can be given that such events will occur in the disclosed time frames or at all, including as to whether or when the Company will achieve its project finance initiatives, or as to the actual size or terms of those financing initiatives. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, other than as required by law. No stock exchange, securities commission or other regulatory authority has approved or disapproved the information contained herein.
Readers are cautioned that the foregoing risks and uncertainties are not exhaustive. Additional information on these and other risk factors that could affect the Company’s operations or financial results are included in the Company’s annual report and may be accessed through the SEDAR+ website ( ) or through EDGAR on the SEC website ( ).
Photos accompanying this announcement are available at
MENAFN28102024004107003653ID1108826364
This way of thinking about a company’s value isn’t necessarily new. Ray Kroc, the founder of McDonald’s, is said to have once asked a group of MBA students to tell him what business they thought he was in. They volunteered that he was in the hamburger business. He countered that, “My business is real estate.” Similarly, Baker describes HBC primarily as “an investment company at the crossroads of real estate, operating companies and digital companies.”
Similarly, Canadian Tire is typically thought of as a retailer, but its ecosystem is more complex than most people may appreciate, as their suite of assets extends beyond their most recognisable store. Over time, the firm’s acquisitions of Mark’s (formerly Mark’s Work Wearhouse), Party City, the Helly Hansen apparel brand, and SportChek have allowed the firm to combine assets in retail, automotive and gasoline, financial services and specialty brands, enhancing the firm’s retail footprint and strengthening its market position across multiple sectors.
The company is also known for its paper Canadian Tire money, first introduced in 1958, an early cash rewards loyalty program. Using its own pseudo-currency made the store feel like a board game come to life and was extremely popular. Today, Canadian Tire money is digital, and the Canadian Tire Bank has been licensed under the Banking Act since 2003. Canadian Tire Financial Services is a subsidiary of the company and now offers credit cards, insurance products, and other financial services. So, is Canadian Tire a bank, an insurer, or a retailer? It’s all of the above. And this plays a significant role in driving loyalty, measured by the frequency and amount that the consumer spends through their Triangle Rewards program, which replaced Canadian Tire Money in 2018.
Investors can even invest in Canadian Tire’s collection of real estate holdings through a REIT (real estate investment trust) through the Toronto Stock Exchange. The REIT owns the buildings and land that Canadian Tire (and other of its retail brands) lease from them. The contracts stipulate that the REIT is entitled to annual rent increases.
The collection of these assets and subsidiaries creates a mutually reinforcing flywheel for the business. It also complicates the definition of Canadian Tire’s relevant marketplace. How should an analyst account for the gas stations and convenience stores owned by Canadian Tire Petroleum, where people collect points and other incentives through Triangle Rewards? Or PartSource, the specialty automotive parts retailer owned by Canadian Tire? The same question is raised with Mark’s (clothing and footwear), SportChek (sports apparel), Helly Hansen (outdoor apparel) or Party City (party supplies). The more diverse holdings a company has, the more difficult it can be to value the company.
Overly simplistic calls for more competition miss this critical point and simplify an increasingly complex set of economic questions. More and more companies are moving from competing within industries to competing to accumulate vast ecosystems of assets. Trying to put companies into neatly defined buckets or industries misses the point. Commerce is a complex web of relationships among many different stakeholders. Just when you think you’ve wrapped your mind around it, a company can shape-shift and confound a rigid sectoral definition.
Companies increasingly want to insert themselves into every aspect of our daily lives, enveloping us in their ecosystem. As we go about our daily lives, everything we do becomes a cash-out opportunity, and we transfer a bit of our paycheque to a monopolist or oligopolist. Industries, be gone. We are the asset.
Excerpted from The Big Fix: How Companies Capture Markets and Harm Canadians by Denise Hearn and Vass Bednar. Copyright 2024. Reprinted by permission of Sutherland House Books.
At the close in Toronto, the S&P/TSX Composite gained 0.42%.
The best performers of the session on the S&P/TSX Composite were Algoma Steel Group Inc (TSX:ASTL), which rose 7.48% or 1.02 points to trade at 14.65 at the close. Meanwhile, Energy Fuels Inc. (TSX:EFR) added 5.14% or 0.44 points to end at 9.00 and Alimentation Couche Tard Inc (TSX:ATD) was up 3.86% or 2.76 points to 74.19 in late trade.
The worst performers of the session were International Petroleum Corp (TSX:IPCO), which fell 4.51% or 0.75 points to trade at 15.87 at the close. OceanaGold Corporation (TSX:OGC) declined 3.69% or 0.15 points to end at 3.91 and CES Energy Solutions Corp (TSX:CEU) was down 3.44% or 0.27 points to 7.59.
Falling stocks outnumbered advancing ones on the Toronto Stock Exchange by 499 to 430 and 107 ended unchanged.
Shares in Algoma Steel Group Inc (TSX:ASTL) rose to 52-week highs; rising 7.48% or 1.02 to 14.65.
The S&P/TSX 60 VIX, which measures the implied volatility of S&P/TSX Composite options, was up 1.18% to 11.17.
Gold Futures for December delivery was up 0.01% or 0.30 to $2,754.90 a troy ounce. Elsewhere in commodities trading, Crude oil for delivery in December fell 5.29% or 3.80 to hit $67.98 a barrel, while the January Brent oil contract fell 5.36% or 4.05 to trade at $71.58 a barrel.
CAD/USD was unchanged 0.01% to 0.72, while CAD/EUR unchanged 0.17% to 0.67.
The US Dollar Index Futures was up 0.02% at 104.16.
China’s moves to boost its control of the mining and refining of rare minerals used in advanced technology are intensifying.
At the beginning of October it tightened restrictions on foreign companies and chipmakers that buy rare earth metals and other minerals refined mainly in China, ordering exporters to provide details of how shipments of rare earth metals are used by Western supply chains.
And a state-owned company is acquiring greater ownership of the last two foreign-owned rare earth refineries in China, according to a report by the New York Times, following restrictions imposed on exports of antimony, gallium and germanium, all of which are used in the making of computer chips.
They have also moved to cover up news about domestic rare earth mining and refining by calling such information state secrets, it said, noting that two managers in the sector had been sentenced to 11 years jail for revealing details to foreign citizens, amid claims it is trying to conserve a scarce resource.
Canadian company Neo Performance Materials, which is listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange, is the longtime owner of the last two refineries in China not run by local firms, and one of them in Wuxi, near Shanghai, dominates production of dysprosium, a heat-resistant and expensive material used in chip capacitors.
Neo said recently it will sell an 86% stake in the Wuxi refinery to Shenghe Resources by the end of the year, the NYT report said, noting that China’s Ministry of Land Resources holds the biggest stake in Shenghe. Its other refinery, in Zibo, will be closed, although its CEO said the group would still sell to foreign firms for a further five years.
Read the full report: The New York Times.
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