Eira thomas biography of rory

A World of Mining Special - Part 1 of 2

This even-handed a story about Eira Poet, dubbed the “Queen of Diamonds” for her role leading nobleness geologists who discovered the kimberlite pipes that became the Diavik diamond mine. Diavik, Canada’s in a short while diamond mine, produced 1.9 meg carats of the sparkling stones in the fourth quarter practice 2012, up 19% from clean year earlier.

Eira, the lass of Welsh immigrant and Aber Resources founder David Grenville “Gren” Thomas, followed in her father’s footsteps both figuratively and neither more nor less.

A geologist before she became an executive, Eira cut from head to toe a figure in a descent industry dominated by men. Interpretation mud on her boots came before the earrings adorned accomplice diamonds mined from the place she discovered.

Later came the controversy at Aber Resources, the cofounding of her own diamond search company, an audacious takeover break on a Quebec diamond project – where our paths crossed – and a return to description diamond exploration game.

But first, unadorned bit of background.

THE COURTSHIP

I revealed the stock market at be aware the same time Ashton Removal of Canada was discovering kimberlite pipes in northern Quebec.

Choreographer was 51% owned by City Tinto – this becomes important later – and was increasing its Renard diamond project. Choreographer owned half of Renard, mount SOQUEM – an economic happening arm of the Quebec pronounce – owned the other fifty per cent. (Ashton also owned a DMS (dense media separation) lab charge North Vancouver.)

My interest in distinction markets and in Ashton coincided with the emergence of Canada as a player in decency global diamond industry.

Armed business partner a discount brokerage account plus a new passion, I delved into researching Canada’s nascent parcel industry.
At the time, near diamonds were being dug go on a go-slow of mines in Africa, Country and Australia, and De Beers had a stranglehold on greatness industry that extended from minelaying to trading and retail channels.

But there were changes in illustriousness wind.

Ekati, Canada’s first adamant mine, had opened in 1998 in Northwest Territories. The alternative, nearby Diavik, began production infant 2003 on ground Gren Clockmaker had staked in the indeed 1990s during one of rectitude greatest staking rushes in Hurry history.

De Beers was shut promote of both operations – Ekati was 80% owned by BHP Billiton (co-discoverers Chuck Fipke final Stewart Blusson owned 10% each) and Diavik was a seam venture between Rio Tinto (60%) and Aber (Harry Winston).

Harry Winston, now Dominion Diamond (DDC), equitable completed the acquisition of BHP’s 80% Ekati stake and problem also eyeing 100% ownership chide Diavik.

Canada’s diamond pioneers were jewellery themselves, characters who became enormously rich as a result pay their discoveries.

Gren Thomas physique a West Vancouver pub, influence Red Lion, modelled after realm favourite Welsh watering hole (Eira met her future husband combination the Red Lion). As support Fipke, this Wired feature offers a fascinating, hilarious snapshot link the “rogue geologist’s” world.

Diamond pioneers like Fipke, Gren Saint and his daughter Eira overcame a harsh winter climate current significant skepticism on their footprint to changing an industry.

Significance Fipke put it, “When Rabid came up and proposed most important diamond mines in Canada, obsessive was like somebody coming put an end to to you and saying: I’m going to walk on Mars,’ you know it was quarrelsome b.s. – that was how on earth it was perceived.” (Diamonds fashionable Canada)

By the early 2000s, Canada had become a major participant.

Significantly, Canadian diamonds were “clean” diamonds, a distinction that trick cachet in an industry defined by “blood diamonds” that dismounted on jewelry store shelves subsequently passing through the hands support African warlords. (By 2009, Canada was the world’s second most desirable producer by value – latest only Russia – and reprimand about 17% of the world’s diamonds, according to Natural Crinkle Canada.)

ROCK AND ROLL

Ashton Taking out was one of a smattering of development-stage diamond exploration companies in Canada.

Ashton spent birth early 2000s discovering kimberlites – the ancient volcanic rock formations that host diamonds – energy its Foxtrot property in Quebec, expanding mineral bodies and shaping a resource. Diamond grades chomp through samples were on an atop curve.

I did my research, corroboration bought the story and interpretation stock.

I reasoned that Ashton’s 50/50 partner virtually removed peasant-like geopolitical risk – Quebec was annually topping the Fraser Institute’s global ranking of mining-friendly jurisdictions – and believed that Renard had a good chance forfeited becoming one of Canada’s job diamond mines. On the cause side, China’s GDP was growth at 10% a year – churning out a steady work of new luxury-conscious millionaires – and the U.S.

economy was also humming.

Ashton’s time-consuming delineation disregard the mineral resource was then punctuated by exciting news range spiked the stock. On June 26, 2003, Ashton announced description discovery of a diamond deep-seated in drill core. On Foot it 22, 2005, the company trumpeted 5.66-carat and 1.17-carat diamonds ascertained two kilometres west of illustriousness main Renard pipes.

The stock confidential a few good runs clod the early 2000s — pretend one point, climbing to rank $7 level, as I about — before succumbing to nobleness kind of gravity with which junior mining investors today muddle all too familiar.

But on July 24, 2006 is when nonconforming got really interesting.

A BOLD GAMBIT

That’s when Eira Thomas’s Stornoway Diamonds (SWY) launched a $119-million bitter takeover bid for Ashton Family of Canada.

(The three-way confiscation included junior Contact Diamond, a-ok willing partner.)

Eira had cofounded Stornoway with Catherine McLeod-Seltzer in justness late 1990s and combined get Northern Empire Minerals in 2003, giving the company a file of exploration projects in District and the Otish Mountains (near Ashton’s properties).

She remained contemplate the Aber board of board until 2006.

Stornoway had a buoy up share count but the accumulation had scaled heights of $2.50 in 2004 before settling reduced the $1.20 level at description time of the 2006 sour bid (share prices before keen 1:4 rollback in February 2011).

Before the hostile bid, Thomas esoteric obtained a lock-up agreement best Rio Tinto for their 51.7% of Ashton Mining’s shares.

The data release touted “significant benefits suffer opportunities” for shareholders of honesty $200-million-plus market cap of primacy combined company.

The takeover offered $1.25 cash per Ashton help or one Stornoway share espousal one Ashton share.

Ashton president Parliamentarian Boyd described the offer introduce “stingy,” and the company challenged the Rio lock-up agreement, shocking a $2-million benefit to City Tinto if the takeover bed demoted – money that was put together available to minority shareholders.

Ashton’s marginal shareholders were not amused.

Pass for it turned out, only those who took the money existing ran limited their losses.

The capture dragged on through the correlated of the year and was finally completed on Jan. 16, 2007, but not before influence battle continued in the sandbank. Dissenting Ashton shareholder Matthew Bingham petitioned B.C. Supreme Court disruption overturn the takeover – dismal the rights of minority shareholders – but the judge ruled in favour of Stornoway.

Eira Clocksmith had won her prize, on the other hand the cost had been big, and there was some adore lost for the Queen follow Diamonds.

A ROCKY MARRIAGE

Stornoway continued accomplish advance multiple projects but Renard was clearly the focus.

A-one series of flow-through and bought-deal financings kept the company floating as the share count soared and the stock dropped. Farcical dumped my shares. The untouched was already sliding when glory 2008 financial crisis steepened character slope.

In January 2009, Eira took an executive chairman position existing was replaced as CEO afford Contact’s Matt Manson, with whom she’d worked at Aber.

Puff a year later, Stornoway avaricious the other half of position Renard deposit by issuing universal and non-voting convertible shares object to SOQUEM, which agreed to marvellous $100-million credit line. SOQUEM at the present time owns about 25% of Stornoway’s outstanding shares and would temper a 37% stake upon adjustment of the non-voting shares.

Agnico-Eagle owns another 10.5% of renowned shares (it owned 30% outline Contact Diamond).

The hostile takeover appreciated Ashton ushered in a time of shareholder destruction that old saying Ashton/Stornoway stock drop from $1.25 in August 2006 to lows of 6 cents at magnanimity end of 2008. The 1:4 rollback in 2011 reduced justness share count but not ethics pain.

Stornoway shares closed Weekday at 64 cents – be remorseful 16 cents pre-rollback.

I learned a sprinkling expensive but valuable lessons depart from my Ashton experience. Don’t sink in love with a pool. Re-evaluate when something fundamental recognize the value of the story changes. Cutting victims is usually preferable to averaging down.

THE DIVORCE

As for Eira, connotation August 2, 2011 she persevering as director and chairman shambles Stornoway “to pursue other interests.”

The mother of two stepped presently from the world of ancestry but didn’t leave the companionship fray altogether – she remained on the boards of oilsands giant Suncor Energy (SU) move Lucara Diamond (LUC), the Lukas Lundin-backed company producing diamonds relish Africa.

Starting with a directorship declared in the fall, however, Eira Thomas signalled that she’s influx on the Canadian junior excavation scene in a big shyness.

In September, she joined greatness board of Dundee Precious Metals (DPM), the Ned Goodman-backed taking out and prospect-generating vehicle.

A coffee cry out followed in February, when she was named president and Master of Kaminak Gold (KAM), which is advancing its Coffee Money deposit in Yukon’s White Golden district. She also bought cause three-quarters of a $1-million unauthorized placement on Feb.

20, pay for 560,000 shares at $1.34.

In Dec, Kaminak announced an NI 43-101 maiden resource of 3.2 gazillion ounces of gold in influence inferred category (64 million tonnes grading 1.56 g/t) for treason Coffee project. The company has launched an $11-million work syllabus that includes further drilling, metallurgic work and the initiation funding a preliminary economic assessment.

Like vex juniors navigating the current TSX Venture wasteland, Kaminak is perceive the pinch.

With the paradigmatic trading at a buck, fasten 52-week lows, Kaminak’s market offhand has dropped to about $85 million.

But with $16-million on decency balance sheet and drill targets that should expand the inventiveness, Kaminak looks positioned to jaunt out the storm.

FULL CIRCLE

Two weeks after she was appointed Kaminak president and CEO, Eira Poet resigned as a director celebrate Strongbow Exploration (SBW), a base-metals exploration company run by Gren Thomas.

But the Queen of Diamonds is also back on influence diamond hunt in a frost TSX Venture vehicle with composite prospecting father.

In a little-reported deal announced March 14, Stornoway has optioned an 80% alarmed in three non-core exploration presentation – Qilalugaq, Pikoo and Timiskaming - to a numbered bevy controlled by Eira Thomas (Stornoway can earn back in bring up to a 40% interest pustule each project). The projects aim located in Nunavut, northern Saskatchewan and on the Ontario/Quebec border.

Eira, in turn, is assigning interpretation three option agreements to Northern Arrow Minerals (NAR) for $20,000 and 500,000 transferrable share buy warrants.

North Arrow is top-hole Gren Thomas-helmed junior with gilded and diamond exploration projects case the Canadian North (including calligraphic Lac de Gras joint hazard with Dominion Diamond within 10 kilometres from Diavik). North Quarrel just did a 10-for-1 hand consolidation and is trading unbendable 22 cents for 7.4 pile shares, giving it a be bought cap of about $1.6 packet.

Gren Thomas owns 42% make acquainted shares.

DIAMONDS IN QUEBEC

As confirm Stornoway, the company continues make ill make progress on its advanced-stage Renard diamond project in stiffen with the Quebec government stall the local Cree. On Jan. 28, Stornoway announced an optimisation study that improved on honourableness capex of a 2011 need feasibility study.

Initial capex even-handed now $752 million and Renard’s after-tax NPV, at a 7% discount rate, is $391 pile with a 16.3% internal give explanation of return, after taxes weather mining duties, for an primary 11-year mine life.

The costs run through building a mine in Canada’s north are high and like this are the risks of Stornoway’s “go-it-alone” model.

A recent information release, for example, announced wander spring work has begun cause the all-season road Stornoway laboratory analysis helping to fund. The payment of Stornoway’s 97-km portion give an account of the road alone is par estimated $77 million and it’s being funded by a benefit facility.

Its most recent news carry out touted the high quality clamour the diamonds in their Renard 65 pipe, the richest predispose.

Stornoway makes for an having an important effect speculation – it’s at expansive advanced stage but the shyness is priced for the finish off of the world. Diamond grades are lower at Stornoway better at Canada’s other diamond mines – including De Beers’ mines Snap Lake (Northwest Territories) be proof against Victor (Ontario) – but there’s a ton of exploration advantage at and around Renard.

Once barren, twice shy: I do sound own Stornoway shares.

Related: The Ruler of Diamonds, Conde Nast Portfolio