b'FEATUREis tied to the world market, and unpredictable events, such as the ongoing war in Ukraine, can really disrupt the marketsometimes its tough to navigate. Mourre thinks its important to stress that these projects were previous assets owned by major companies that were explored and developed in the past. And now they have a second life because the junior companies like ours can be more nimble, with lower overhead and operating costs. So SPC Nickel is providing another chance for these projects to contribute valuable assetsan important aspect of the story in todays economic climate.With critical metals like nickel, these proactive supply-and-demand actions are what we need to see more of. As a result, assets that were once dormant are now back online. The big companies for opportunities to grow and buildtype is open-pit mining, where thegot to where they are because they SPCNickel.mineralization is close to the surfacebuilt large deposits that support their and you blast rock out of the groundmassive infrastructure, but costs are Prior to issuing its initial publicand form a big pit. That techniquemuch higher. Smaller mines can mine offering, SPC Nickel was a privateis much cheaper, which is why werethings that are lower grade or just too entity, when Mourres role at the timeevaluating an open-pit mining optionsmall for a major company to invest in, was both president and explorationfor both of our new properties. And theMourre says. manager. I may be stating the obvious,fact that theyre both side by side isIts clear that economies of scale but the role of a CEO is very differentespecially attractive. The main depositprovide opportunities for the juniors. in a public company. Unfortunately,is no longer separated by propertyMourre adds, We can be more theres no operating manual andownership or boundaries, so open-pitaggressive and more adaptable to a the responsibilities are completelymakes good economic sense. variety of different projects. We have different. For one thing, shareholdersa small employee base that handles have input and frequently voice theirMARKET TIMING the exploration activities, and we opinionswhich is both positive andThe mining industry is tightlyrely on contractors to complete work challenging. Ive gained a whole newinterwoven with the world market,outside of our capabilities. Then we can level of respect for anyone who takesmeaning lots of ups and downs thatexamine the results quickly and make on the responsibility. are out of ones control. Mourre says,fast decisions in the best interests of As for having a nose for miningEveryone in the resource businessthe shareholders.opportunities, Mourre says, You certainly become aware of potential investments when youre working in Sudbury. This current project surfaced in 2016 and we jumped on itafter doing the requisite due diligence, ofcourse.Another element in the decision to invest was the near-surface aspect, meaning the exploration could be advanced much quicker because the minerals are closer to the surface. Mourre says, A near-surface resource simply means you dont have to drill as deep. And Sudbury is famous for its deep underground mining, with shafts sometimes as deep as 2.5 to 3.0 km. These are very deep mines and a lot more expensive. The other common 8 ONTARIO PROSPECTOR SUMMER 2023'