An interesting thread to catch up on now as things elsewhere...

An interesting thread to catch up on now as things elsewhere kept me away from the market.

I agree with a lot of what you say Esh but the thing that stands out to me is that this is JW saying that the market cannot or will not price RSG properly, as it is (the entire RSG which is the Syama potential with its attendant development/execution risks in Mali and the Ravenswood boring Tier 2 asset requiring more funds but with the long mine life) then he wants to change the perception of what RSG is. So if the market can't price assets and companies correctly then the demerger/spinoff or sale of an asset is the way to force the issue....i.e. If you don't like the way the game is progressing - do something to change the "rules."

As you suggest - the cash sale option of Ravenswood is there, but even a lot of the interested parties aren't exactly swimming in cash, but some of their share prices are sky-high in valuation so that opens up the other possibility of cash and scrip offers.

I would think that EVN would be the natural party interested in Ravenswood, at the right price, as they have a good and long history in the area and experience running long life low grade gold mines and we know that Jake Klein from EVN is a big fan of the natural advantage of AUD denominated gold mines, thats why Jake has shown no interest in Africa or elsewhere. Agree with you that Ravenswood doesn't have the "knockout sex appeal" of a Pogo so the transaction (if it happens) will be at a realistic price.

I guess it goes back to what attracted each individual investor in RSG in the first place, for me it was the combination of the boring low grade long-life in a safe jurisdiction of Ravenswood along with the very high potential of Syama in a slightly riskier jurisdiction - in other words - for me it was a fundamental value pick.

For others - Ravenswood is just a big cash and management drag, and probably for other people they might consider Syama as a bridge to far in their execution and jurisdictional risk profile. I think everyone agrees that Sudan and Egypt are pure frolic at the moment...