I appreciate you speaking to them on my behalf - I hope they...

I appreciate you speaking to them on my behalf - I hope they will formally address my concerns in an official announcement, otherwise it's nothing more than the same lip service we've been getting for the past 12 months. I have heard it said before that Hamish has no intention of another CR, although I suspect that may have also come from HC.

GMC need more money. That's an undeniable fact. Today's research report mentions an Asian Investor Promotional Roadshow scheduled for this quarter, so I think it's safe for shareholders to assume we're in for more dilution - whether it's in the form of more shares being issued or a % of the project given away is the question.

It may be possible to raise the necessary funds through exporting untreated ore, but I am becoming more and more doubtful over GMC's ability to source enough manganese. They only need to sign an MoU with suppliers to fulfil one of the vesting conditions for their performance rights, and they've been unable to do so. I don't doubt they'll secure a "binding" agreement eventually, but how reliable and consistent that supply will be is another question. It could also take a year or more of exporting Mn ore at $100-$150/tonne margins to raise the funds to complete construction, which would blow their production timeline out of the water.

I'm not sure how many have read SRK's Review of Manganese Prospects and Deposits in Indonesia, commissioned by GMC's previous board in October 2015, but it is not overly encouraging. At that time, there was only one JORC-compliant manganese mine in Indonesia, on Romang Island, 500km northeast of Kupang. This mine was previous owned by ASX-listed Robust Resources, before being taken over in late 2014 by a subsidiary of Salim Group, Indonesia's largest conglomerate. From what I can tell, the mine has been inactive ever since - or at least I can't find any recent information on it.

In the report's conclusion, SRK made the following recommendations:

Given the clear lack of available data of manganese mineralisation, SRK recommends further investigation be carried out, focusing initially on West Timor; in particular, developing relationships with owners of mine/ production IUPs may facilitate information exchange and potential upside synergies for the smelter. (IUP = permit to conduct a mining business)

There is less information available about Mn mineralisation activities in East Timor, and GMC should consider a reconnaissance fact-finding mission to evaluate the potential mineralisation and the stage of development projects.

GMC may consider more direct involvement with third parties, where deposits are very close to progressing to either a mineral resource estimate and/or pre-feasibility stage. This can include providing advice with respect to best practices for drilling, quality control/ quality checks, sampling protocols, metallurgy, and development of mineralisation models.

SRK also commends compiling an informal register of artisanal workers who may be able to stockpile and supply GMC with Mn ore. However, this would be fraught with difficulty, including health and safety, taxation, etc. It may also require GMC to invest in the artisanal mining, by way of additional capital equipment.

Almost 2 years on, and still no supply secured.