Probably not a bad idea to appoint some advisors - "Origin...

Probably not a bad idea to appoint some advisors - "Origin Capital" (Sydney-based) has got the ticket. In hindsight, I'm suggesting it was a massive error on behalf of BAT Management not to seek external advice for dealing with capital markets, a long time ago. It is clear to me now, that BAT Management and Board do not have the requisite capital markets and financing experience in-house. Staggering chain of events, given how important financing/funding would be to an early stage mining company that needs to finance/fund to survive. Given where we are at now, and how much has been lost (and the growing delays), this oversight has almost been a company-destroying mistake. A huge learning experience for investors that even supposedly reputable and "experienced" business people can make seemingly obvious yet fatal (in a corporate sense) errors of judgement. Along the way they continue to draw huge salaries, while investors go broke. Extraordinarily bad outcome for investors who believed in the story.

BAT might get their mine to production somewhere down the track, but it will be at the end of a disgraceful and regrettable process where trust has been broken, and a litany of errors, and I'm pretty sure the end of careers for a number senior BAT executives.

One for the learning, and the individuals involved (from BAT) are now etched deep in my corporate memory, and I assume many other investors across Australia.