Company Interviews

Interview with Daniel Henao, CEO of Mineros S.A.Our previous interview: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/posts/mineros-sa-tsxmsa-undervalued-investment-series-with-daniel-henao-10231Recording date: 29th September 2026Mineros S.A. (TSX:MSA) is a gold producer with more than 50 years of operating history in Latin America. It is listed in Colombia, on the TSX and on the OTCQX. For most of its life it was largely unknown to North American and European investors. That began to change after its 2021 TSX listing and, more decisively, after Sun Valley Investments became controlling shareholder in 2025 and installed new management. CEO Daniel Henao says the shares have since risen from about 60 cents to about $10, a roughly 15-fold move that is unusual for a producer rather than an explorer.The operating base has two assets. Hemco in Nicaragua combines underground mining with partnerships with local miners, and it is where the new team has found the largest gains. Higher gold and silver recoveries, a $25 million processing expansion expected to add about 30,000 ounces, and better grade control have driven a guidance increase to 220,000-240,000 gold equivalent ounces for 2026. First-half AISC of $2,348 per ounce sits below the guided range of $2,370-$2,470. Management wants Hemco to approach 200,000 ounces a year before Porvenir.The Nechí alluvial operation in Colombia has produced gold for more than a century. It uses gravity recovery with no chemicals and runs on hydroelectric power. It produced about 90,000 ounces last year and holds roughly 2.2 million ounces in reserves and resources. Henao sees scope for 30-40% more production, subject to government approvals.Growth is funded internally. Mineros holds about $230 million in liquid assets, including roughly 40,000 ounces of gold bullion, and carries almost no debt. That covers the $206.8 million initial capital for Porvenir in Nicaragua. At $3,150 gold, the PFS shows a 37.9% after-tax IRR, a $460 million NPV and about 70,000 ounces a year. Major permits are in hand, two minor permits are expected by year-end, and a construction decision is targeted for the first quarter of 2027. The plant is designed at 2,000 tonnes per day with scope to double. Mineros is drilling about 85 kilometres in the district this year at around $100 per metre, roughly a quarter of what peers pay, using its own rigs.Two larger options sit beyond Porvenir. Tolima in Colombia carries a historical estimate of about 28 million ounces from AngloGold Ashanti, which Mineros has not verified as a current resource. Development depends on community engagement, supported by Colombia's works-for-taxes mechanism. La Pepa in Chile's Maricunga belt holds about 2.5 million ounces. A PEA targeting 100,000-150,000 ounces a year is due early next year.On Henao's figures, annualised EBITDA of about $500 million against an enterprise value near $2 billion implies about four times EBITDA. The company presentation cites 2.5 times. Neither includes value for Tolima or La Pepa. Key risks are gold-indexed partner costs, peso strength, jurisdictional exposure and the open-ended Tolima timeline. Catalysts to watch are the final Porvenir permits, the construction decision, the La Pepa PEA and progress towards 300,000 ounces a year.Learn more: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/companies/mineros-saSign up for Crux Investor: https://cruxinvestor.com/subscribe

Interview with Paul Chawrun, COO of i-80 Gold Corp.Our previous interview: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/posts/i-80-gold-tsxiau-capital-raised-construction-underway-to-gold-production-by-2027-9498Recording date: 29th September 2026i-80 Gold Corp. (TSX:IAU) is a Nevada-focused gold developer and producer that aims to become a mid-tier producer through a hub-and-spoke model. Three underground mines and, later, a large open pit oxide project are planned to support a central processing facility at Lone Tree. Chief Operating Officer Paul Chawrun said the company has spent the past year turning a plan the market saw as complex into a series of completed milestones.The financing phase is complete. i-80 raised more than $1 billion through equity, a royalty, convertible notes and a gold prepay facility, and held $464.6 million in cash at 30 June 2026. The company has expanded its technical teams and begun operational readiness work for Lone Tree.Granite Creek Underground is the first asset with declared reserves. The September 2026 feasibility study set an initial reserve of 557,000 oz at 7.87 g/t, supporting about 8.5 years of mining and average output of 75,100 oz per year from 2028 to 2032 at AISC of $1,915/oz. Grade is lower than in the 2025 PEA because the highest-grade zones lie further out in the deposit. Chawrun pointed to two sources of upside not included in the study's costs. Screening removes about 20% of waste and lifts head grade by roughly 20%. Improving ground conditions from dewatering should also allow throughput to rise towards 1,000 tonnes per day. Inferred resources have historically converted at a ratio of one-to-one or better, and the deposit remains open.Lone Tree is the economic hinge of the strategy. Sulphide ore currently goes to a third-party processor at a payability factor of 55% to 60%. Bringing it in-house should lift average recovery to around 87%. The refurbishment, estimated at roughly $430 million, is on schedule. Chawrun noted labour cost pressure that remains within contingency. The filtration plant is targeted for October 2027, first gold pour for Q4 2027 and autoclave processing of sulphides from 2028.Archimedes at Ruby Hill is due to deliver first gold in Q4 2026. Its oxide ore leaches well at both low grades of around 2 g/t and high grades of 7 to 9 g/t. That gives i-80 the choice of continued heap leaching or processing high-grade oxide at Lone Tree while building a sulphide stockpile.Mineral Point is the growth engine. The PEA outlined around 280,000 gold-equivalent oz per year at AISC that Chawrun now places at $1,200 to $1,400/oz. The project includes a large silver resource that adds 15% to 20% to margin. A drilling campaign of about 155,000 metres is expected to feed a pre-feasibility study around mid-2027, with management targeting a reserve of about 5 million oz. Permitting is planned to begin late in 2026, with production around 2031. The roughly $1 billion capital cost is expected to be funded without new equity.For investors, near-term watch-items are Archimedes first gold, Lone Tree construction progress and Granite Creek grade reconciliation. The Mineral Point pre-feasibility study is the larger catalyst. Key risks include dewatering, construction costs, permitting timelines and the gold price assumptions underpinning the non-dilutive funding plan.View i-80 Gold's company profile: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/companies/i-80-goldSign up for Crux Investor: https://cruxinvestor.com/subscribe

Interview with Lon Shaver, President of Silvercorp Metals Inc.Our previous interview: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/posts/silvercorp-metals-tsxsvm-undervalued-investment-series-with-lon-shaver-10671Recording date: 29th September 2026Silvercorp Metals Inc. (TSX:SVM, NYSE American:SVM) has spent years as a profitable silver producer in China whose valuation reflected the market's discomfort with single-jurisdiction exposure. That is changing. The company is now building two mines outside China, and President Lon Shaver believes the resulting multi-jurisdictional profile can change how investors view the business.A fatal accident at a coal mine elsewhere in China prompted a national safety review after an investigation found criminal negligence by mine management and complicity by some local officials. Silvercorp proactively shut its mines to conduct an internal review. Ying restarted and ran at about 60% of targeted throughput in August, rising to close to 90-100% by the end of September. Shaver called it a one-time event and declined to update guidance. Strong zinc prices and improved zinc treatment and refining charges should help offset lost output. These conditions reflect lost lead-zinc production in China that has left smelters short of concentrate. All production is sold domestically in RMB, which has strengthened against the US dollar.The first growth asset is El Domo, a copper-gold project in Ecuador. Construction is in its final push toward July 2027 commissioning. Two unusually wet rainy seasons have consumed some schedule slack, but contractors capable of deploying large crews have kept the target alive. The mill equipment is in transit. Shaver estimates El Domo will add about $200 million in annual revenue, a little under half from copper, compared with a Chinese run-rate he put at about $550 million. The capital cost is $284 million. Wheaton Precious Metals is providing a $175 million stream, about half of which has been drawn. Shaver cited a two-to-three-year payback at $3,350/oz gold and $5/lb copper.The second growth asset is in Kyrgyzstan. Silvercorp paid an effective $150 million for a 70% controlling interest in a resource of around 6 million ounces of gold. The asset was previously advanced by London-based Chaarat Gold, which spent heavily before its lenders foreclosed. Shaver views the asset as poorly marketed and misunderstood. After closing in January and regaining site access in May, Silvercorp has prepared heap leach pad and crushing plant areas, completed a camp and started pit stripping. First ore on the pads is targeted for later in 2027. Phase 1, budgeted by Shaver at about $160 million, has a roughly four-year life that he believes could be extended by two years or doubled. Its cash flow is intended to help fund Phase 2, previously scoped at 200,000-230,000 ounces a year for 18 years.Silvercorp's strategy is to pair lower entry prices in less contested jurisdictions with staged development that limits capital at risk. The company is also building a redeployable construction team and remains open to acquiring production.Key risks are execution across two simultaneous builds, weather in Ecuador, perceived jurisdictional risk in Kyrgyzstan and further regulatory change in China. Investors should watch Ying's return to full output, any revised guidance, the remaining Wheaton tranches and first gold in Kyrgyzstan.View Silvercorp's company profile: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/companies/silvercorp-metalsSign up for Crux Investor: https://cruxinvestor.com/subscribe

Interview with Andrew Cox, President & CEO of Rio2 Ltd.Our previous interview: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/posts/growth-stories-winning-teams-that-know-how-to-find-gold-get-it-out-of-the-ground-9290Recording date: 28th September 2026Rio2 Limited (TSX:RIO) has made the leap from developer to dual-asset producer in 2026. It brought its Fenix Gold Mine in Chile's Atacama region into production and acquired the Condestable copper-gold underground mine in Peru in February. The transition has not been smooth. President and CEO Andrew Cox detailed how two exceptional winter storms disrupted Fenix during its ramp-up year.Fenix is a high-altitude heap leach operation designed to stack 20,000 tpd and produce around 100,000 ounces of gold a year. Production rose from about 4,500 ounces in Q1 to about 9,000 ounces in Q2, and the mine averaged its 20,000 tpd target in early July. A mid-July storm then dropped around one metre of snow over five days, followed by a second storm on August that delivered around two metres. Cox described the season as something like two 20-year events in three weeks. Each storm halted stacking, and the leach pad was buried during the second event.As a result, Rio2 now expects around 40,000 ounces for 2026, down from the 60,000 ounces the company regarded as its success case. Formal guidance remains withheld, and the company warns that unseasonal snow may persist through December. Commercial production nonetheless remains on track for Q4.The operational signals beneath the headline shortfall are more encouraging. Freezing on the leach pad, which affected several cells in May, has been resolved with double-layer covers. Fenix recently stacked a record 30,000 tpd over two days, and Cox expects sustained 20,000 tpd operation from October, with 25,000 tpd by year-end described as an attractive goal. Mining has expanded from Fenix South into Fenix Central, with access to Fenix North under way. Ore is also arriving wetter than modelled, at around 4% moisture rather than 1%. That cuts added water needs by about 30% and could allow up to 30% more tonnes on the same water budget, a potential lever for the 2027 plan.Condestable provides a steadier base. The mature IOCG mine produces about 25,000 tonnes of copper equivalent a year, around 80% of it from copper. Its EIA modification to lift throughput from 8,400 tpd to 10,000 tpd was approved last month. Rio2 is finalising engineering for 12,000 tpd plant capacity at an estimated cost of around $50 million, with construction planned from the second half of 2027 and ramp-up in the second half of 2028. A 16,000-metre surface drilling programme around two historic open pits is under way, with 17,000 metres more planned for 2027 and a maiden surface resource targeted for late 2027.Further optionality comes from the Fenix expansion BFS, which awaits the selection of a water provider expected within about a month, and a Yukon tungsten project with a 2,000-metre drilling permit for 2027. Investors should watch for the commercial production declaration, the water provider decision and the BFS. The key risks are weather through December and execution on the expansion programme.View Rio2's company profile: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/companies/rio2-limitedSign up for Crux Investor: https://cruxinvestor.com/subscribe

Interview with Peter Wilson Tagliamonte, CEO of QGold ResourcesRecording date: 29th September 2026Q-Gold Resources Ltd. (TSXV:QGR, OTCQB:QGLDF) is a junior gold developer whose principal asset is the Quartz Mountain Gold Project in eastern Oregon. The company acquired the project from Alamos Gold, which held it for more than a decade without advancing it to a mining study. Alamos now holds 10% of QGold. According to CEO Peter Tagliamonte, the deal includes annual anniversary payments of around C$4 million.The resource stands at 2.01 million ounces Indicated and 494,000 ounces Inferred. In April 2026, QGold published the project's first mining study, a PEA prepared by Kappes, Cassiday & Associates. At a 24-month trailing average gold price of US$3,265 per ounce, the PEA estimates an after-tax NPV(5%) of US$1.71 billion and an after-tax IRR of 55.2%. Initial capex is US$290 million and payback is 1.8 years. Production averages 135,400 ounces a year over a 14-year mine life, at cash costs of US$1,010 per ounce and AISC of US$1,216 per ounce.The project's strongest physical feature is its geometry. The deposit sits under low rolling hills, giving a life-of-mine strip ratio of 0.65:1. The CEO describes the strip ratio in the early years as near zero. That compares with ratios of three to five, or higher, at many open-pit gold mines.Development will be staged. An oxide cap, which the CEO says contains about 45% of the ounces, will be mined first through a heap leach operation lasting four to five years. Cash flow from that phase is intended to fund the grinding and flotation circuit needed for the deeper sulphide material. That sulphide phase would run for roughly nine more years.Management intends to skip a feasibility study for the oxide phase. It plans to move directly into basic and detailed engineering, relying on decades of metallurgical test work. Off-the-shelf equipment, including track-mounted Sandvik crushers and standard ADR plant designs, is meant to compress the timeline. Tagliamonte sees a path to oxide production within two to three years. The sulphide phase will go through a full feasibility study.Tagliamonte's record is central to the investment case. He led companies that built Jacobina in Brazil, advanced Sulliden's Peruvian project, and built three mines in Nicaragua that helped found B2Gold. His technical team has worked with him since the 1990s.On permitting, the company reports good engagement with Oregon's DOGAMI and the US Forest Service. It has hired a retired 30-year Forest Service veteran as environmental and permitting manager. Tagliamonte expects the project to join the federal FAST-41 programme soon, but this has not been confirmed. The Forest Service approved the Angel's Camp exploration programme in April 2026, and work began this summer. QGold also holds the Mine Centre project in Ontario. Grab samples there returned up to 600 g/t gold, and channel assays are pending.Key watch-items are the financing plan for the US$290 million build, progress on detailed engineering, any FAST-41 designation and Angel's Camp results. Skipping feasibility for phase one could save time. It also concentrates execution risk on the engineering team.Learn more: https://www.cruxinvestor.com/companies/q-gold-resources-ltdSign up for Crux Investor: https://cruxinvestor.com/subscribe