Mike Kachanovsky, aka 'Mexico Mike' from his Investor's Digest of
Canada column, highlighted Avino Silver & Gold Mines in a recent
interview with Streetwise Reports. In this exclusive interview
with The Gold Report, Mike discusses historical changes in the
gold-to-silver price ratio, shrinking supply, and what to buy.
Mr. Kachanovsky is a consultant providing analysis of junior mining and
exploration stocks. His work is published on a freelance basis in
a variety of publications, including the Mexico Mike column in
Investor's Digest of Canada. Mike is a founder of the website
www.smartinvestment.ca , which serves as an online community for the
discussion of all topics relating to junior mining stocks.
I thought you would be interested in reading his comments on Avino
Silver & Gold Mines. These are provided below.
Regards,
David Wolfin
President & Director
Mr.. Kachanovsky's Comments:
TGR: You have been following Avino Silver & Gold Mines Ltd.
(TSX..V:ASM) (OTCBB:ASGMF). What is your feeling about that investment
play?
MK: Yes, and I am also a shareholder of Avino. I actually went
to visit their mine about a year ago, and I am very excited about the
company for a number of reasons. Avino is interesting because it's one
of the few companies that was active all the way back to before the
mining law in Mexico was revised. They were a minority owner of their
project, the Avino Mine, which I believe is in Durango, Mexico.. And
even after the contraction of the mining industry in the '90s, and the
subsequent recovery, Avino maintained that interest. Currently, they
own about 86% or 87% of that project. So, they're one of the few
companies that has been active with an unbroken ownership interest in
Mexico through the bad years and now into the good years.
I also like the fact that it's been very stable in its share structure.
If you look at most of the junior mining stocks through the last 10
years, those that survive that long, many of them continue to issue
stock every year or two just to raise enough funds to keep them going.
Eventually, the number of shares in circulation expands to the point
where there's much less value per share for individual shareholders.
Avino has held the line very well. They've got a strong balance sheet
with no debt and several million dollars in the bank; and they have
increased their ownership of their core assets. They remained active on
the exploration side and discovered new ore bodies, and they also have
infrastructure on site (an actual mill that was formerly operating).
They have worker facilities, an office, administration, a shop, and
rolling stock and spare parts�all of which a mine needs to have in
order to function. Many of these assets are very expensive and, in some
cases, difficult to secure in the current market. So, companies that
already have these things in place are much stronger than they appear.
So, Avino is another one of those companies that trades very cheaply
and has a very small float. Therefore, I believe, there is that much
more leverage for upside for their shareholders when the company has to
produce. I believe they're going to be in production within the next
six to eight months. They've gone through the permitting work to get to
the point where they're able to recommence production. I believe
they're discussing with smelters now or companies that can off-take
from their production, and they will be able to make a decision very
soon in terms of getting back into operation.
Avino is also focusing on a brand new discovery area, the San Gonzalo
deposit. It's very near surface, very high grade. They've got the
permitting to go in and start mining that on a small-scale basis.
Eventually, when they get back up to speed, they'll de-water the old
workings of the old underground mine and advance a new tunnel
underground to link up with the new San Gonzalo mine and other outlined
targets. That's when they will be able to get back into full-scale
production.
Their mill has a capacity of about 1,500 tons per day. When they
restart operations in the next few months, their objective will be from
maybe 250 to 500 tons a day. So, it will be a much smaller operation
but it will be economic and cash-flow positive for them.
To see the entire interview
click here:
www.TheAuReport.com/cs/user/print/na/2684
This press release contains certain forward-looking statements.
Investors are cautioned that certain statements in this release are
"forward-looking statements" and involve both known and
unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors. Such uncertainties include,
among others, certain risks associated with the operation of the
company described above. The Company's actual results could differ
materially from expected results.
|