Ly Emu Small Discussion Threads

[suits you] 03/3/2011 22:49

Dupont, same theme as BOC



and Mexichem

[suits you] 03/3/2011 21:24

FWIW, notice Honeywell mentioned as one supplier. Honeywell had contract with Sallies. Cut a long story short, Sallies made an error in price and terminated. Honeywell sued, won the case and ended up with Sallies shares as settlement. These were the shares MMS bought from Honeywell last year.







Sallies now in the hands of new management, "a different beast " was mentioned, wonder if Honeywell is on the list of newly agreed contracts.

[suits you] 03/3/2011 20:50

lol dreggs

No dream, just about, refrigerants R125 & R134a (key product and blend component in HFC products)

"Global inventories low. Our suppliers have indicated that market prices look likely to triple due to lack of availability of raw materials and high capacity utilisation ratios"–

[dreggspicker] 03/3/2011 19:12

can't beat some hot oats in the morning... ;+}

[trop] 03/3/2011 19:05

happens when you have your oats early morning !

[dreggspicker] 03/3/2011 18:59

I might have dreamt the "tripling of price" because I have read the BOC letter again and there is no mention of it. There must have been something strong in my porridge this morning!!

[dreggspicker] 03/3/2011 08:38

Great letter there from BOC suits, I especially like the "prices my triple" bit!

FWIW, Glebe mines and caverndish mill derbyshire is going to close as it has been bought by the Mexicans and will be filled in.The customers will be supplied by the mines in Mexico.
150 direct jobs will go in a poor job area. DISGRACEFUL!!
There is many millions of top quality fluorspar with all the plant in action, they were forced to sell the stuff at a very low price just to make other parts of the group look like they are making more profit, how mad is that!

[suits you] 02/3/2011 22:28

Just a reminder, Firebird Management LLC Presents at Mines and Money Hong Kong 2011, Mar-22-2011 through Mar-25-2011

[suits you] 02/3/2011 21:32

Looking very good here. Would appear Passin and Firebird have correctly judged the future market conditions for fluorspar. Remember posting on here some time ago about a presentation made by Passin entitled " The great acid grade fluorspar squeeze " or something similar. Will see if I can find it.

edit, think it was more on the lines of "great hydrofluoric acid squeeze"

Anyway interesting letter from BOC

[suits you] 26/2/2011 22:28

Attendees,

MMS ( Firebird) , KFC, Sallies, Canadian Fluorspar and could Mongolia Mineral Resources be Firebird's Mongolian investment, doubt it is Mongolrostsvetmet LLC

[suits you] 25/2/2011 21:19

A good read

[suits you] 21/2/2011 22:27

It seems obvious from recent articles, that MMS ( or perhaps we will have a new name) will become the vehicle to hold Firebird's Fluorspar interests.

So what of Zinc & Lead?

Possible answer, reverse zinc and lead assets into the clean shell, that Sallies could/would be, once assets are transferred to MMS. Then re list Sallies in SA, with Linnell ( who is a South African) as CEO or Chair.




All pure speculation but this statement from fin24.com article intrigues me,

"Whether the share will remain listed remains uncertain – particularly if Maghreb manages to get its stake above the 90% level. Linnell is non-committal, although saying: "We haven't decided what to do with the Sallies listing but I'd point out that the black empowerment shareholdings are at the level of the subsidiary operating companies."

As I have mentioned before and comfirmed by Linnell above, the BEE shareholdings are in the individual Witkop and Buffalo subsidiary co's which are owned by Sallies, they do not hold Sallies shares.

You cannot have MMS own a 100% of Sallies and it remain listed, the stock could not be traded for starters and against all the rules. So again pure speculation but my guess, whether it is for zinc and lead or something else, Firebird have something in mind for the shell that Sallies would be.

No doubt all will be revealed eventually, in the fullness of time.

[suits you] 20/2/2011 22:12

Don't think this has been posted.

Firebird consolidates fluorspar interests
Feb 10 2011 00:00

SECRETIVE UNITED STATES hedge fund Firebird Management has moved to consolidate its direct control over fluorspar producer Sallies, which is being taken over by London Stock Exchange-listed Maghreb Minerals. Firebird is the major shareholder in both Maghreb and Sallies, and Maghreb's chairman – well-known South African mining businessman Richard Linnell – has just stood down, to be replaced by Firebird executive Nicholas Davidoff.

Linnell, who will remain on the Maghreb board, tells Finweek: "This is a Firebird play. I have lots of other things to do and Nicholas is now going to run Maghreb. I'll sit on the sidelines and offer advice."

Firebird owns 56% of Maghreb and 67% of Sallies. Firebird took control of Sallies in October 2009 after receiving a 73% acceptance of its offer to take out shareholders at 18c/ordinary share. Sallies remained listed only because Firebird failed to obtain the 90% take-up required to enforce the compulsory acquisition of the balance.

Maghreb holds 12 exploration permits in Tunisia in areas of known zinc/lead/barite/fluorite mineralisation and where it's been carrying out drilling work at the Zriba fluorspar prospect. This work has now been suspended "in light of the security situation in the country".

In September last year Maghreb bought 11,4% of Sallies from Honeywell International for US$1,2m in cash and, in December, Maghreb announced it would buy Firebird's 67% stake in Sallies ordinary equity, which took Maghreb's total holding in Sallies to 78,3%.

Maghreb is also buying Firebird's holding of Sallies' debentures, with payment for both the ordinary and debenture shares in Maghreb equity. The deal is subject to a fundraising by Maghreb to bring in $10m for extra working capital. Once the transaction is completed it "will trigger a mandatory offer to the Sallies' minorities in terms of the rules of the JSE Ltd".

Linnell comments: "London-listed Maghreb is viewed as a better vehicle to hold Firebird's various international fluorspar interests. Firebird's concept is to consolidate a meaningful chunk of the fluorspar business. A list of assets has been identified but it wouldn't be wise to identify any of them at this early stage."

One of the assets that has been identified so far is the Kenya Fluorspar Company (KFC), which owns a mine at Kimwarer in Kenya. Maghreb has taken a 20% stake in the company – again through buying it from Firebird for the issue of Maghreb equity.

Both the Sallies and KFC operations are currently on care and maintenance but Maghreb has agreed to lend $8m to Sallies to restart operations at the Witkop Mine.

Sallies' price has moved up from below 10c immediately prior to the 24 December announcement that Maghreb was taking control, to around 16c currently. That compares with a five-year high of 147c set in 2006.

Whether the share will remain listed remains uncertain – particularly if Maghreb manages to get its stake above the 90% level. Linnell is non-committal, although saying: "We haven't decided what to do with the Sallies listing but I'd point out that the black empowerment shareholdings are at the level of the subsidiary operating companies."

What Linnell could usefully do – in his new role as an independent director of Maghreb – is enlighten Davidoff about the difference between a private hedge fund and a listed company. Davidoff can keep silent regarding privately owned Firebird but he does have a responsibility to keep the minority shareholders of listed Sallies – and now Maghreb – informed. That's something Davidoff doesn't want to acknowledge, judging by his performance as chairman at the Sallies AGM last December. Getting comment from Davidoff was like pulling teeth as he "stonewalled" questions, giving nothing away.





Have pasted the story as sometimes fin24 needs subscription

Obviously last December Davidoff could not say anything that was share price sensative at the Sallies AGM.

Once again, will say that IMO, more to come, than we know at the moment.

" This is a Firebird play "

[cockney sparrow] 18/2/2011 12:44

Any ideas when this will start trading again?

[godolphin] 18/2/2011 08:40

Sallies trading at 26c

[borisimo] 17/2/2011 19:28

Having done a bit of 'dredging' through some previous mails, this one stood out as interesting.....especially the last couple of sentences.

--------------------------------------------------

NOTE OLD POST - DATE 2 AUGUST 2009

mistermagoo1969 - 22 Aug'09 - 08:00 - 1293 of 4239

From another bb

So the company is in trouble you have just completed a study on your main asset and it comes up "not today boys unless you do a bit more drilling or those metal prices rise a bit"!
So in March after this bad bit of news they talk to an institutional investor to further support the company with the markets already predicting metal price increases. The institutional investor sees this as a "No brainer" and offers up a cool half a million but with the basis of conversion to preference shares.
The obvious questions:

Why would institutional investor take the risk?
Why award the share options if all was so bleak?
Were the share options awarded with knowledge of ongoing discussions with potential JV partner/buyer?
With a 30th Sept deadline looming are we about to get the news that i suspect?

We already know that the project is now more than feasible - the study tells us this! And no more drilling needed as this would only enhance the project dynamics.

So Tunisia an extremly promising politically stable country will be a very attractive prospect for an industry major.

Oh and that institutional investor willing to pump up £0.5m as a convertible loan happens to have their co founder James Passin sitting on the board of directors at Mahgreb!!!

I could be wrong on this but it does look ready for lift off with the RNS.


I was intrigued by the 24% holding and why they had it.

Firebird are a significant investor of Flourspar mining companies around the globe. Anyway what do Firebird own?

Canada Fluorspar TSX - CFI 18.88% holding July 09
Kenya Fluorspar - significant minority investment Dec 08
Sallies Fluorspar - Takeover bid Aug 09 following 63% holding





Fin24.com has previously speculated that Firebird - which also owns strategic stakes in Maghreb Minerals (an AIM-listed mining company with fluorspar rights in Tunisia) as well as Mongolian fluorspar interest.
At this stage of the commodity cycle, it may well suit Firebird to hold its fluorspar interests under a single listed entity.

[suits you] 16/2/2011 22:17

Think trying to place a potential valuation, is currently like saying, how long is a piece of string.

Value of Zinc/Lead and to that matter Fluorspar in ground in Tunisia has so far been ignored by the market. Said many times before forget about Zinc and Lead except for some value by a outright sale or JV. James Passin will be in no rush to dispose of Zinc/Lead until the price is right.

We will in effect overnight once the deal is done move from being just an exploration co, to producer, with all the mine infrastuctures, etc etc. This hopefully will light up some value by the market from the in ground resources in Tunisia, like an oil Co, pumping oil and having further reserves.

Until we have a view of the Admission document or have further info on the deal for the last remaining shares in Sallies, then we have no info on expected total shares in issue.

When I spoke about a possible surprise a few posts back, is was not that Witkop would reopen, think that was a given when MMS supplied the loan.

However would not surprise me to see some other deal added. We will see.

[borisimo] 16/2/2011 21:23

suits you

Its good to blow your own trumpet occaisionally...so you go right ahead. In the mean time I will check what you said about potential valuation of MMS on an RTO and /or JV.

I think that is the next question for us now, what is this going to do on relist and what will it be worth in a year. I tried to do some valuations based on the resource estimates for Tunisa alone, and the answer came out about $4 a share so I assumed I must have not accounted for some debt/costs and as a result got an inflated number. (So before I get bashed for ramping I think that figure is VERY wrong).

That was 6 months ago so now we are in a different place. I expect a rise on relist of some amount but no idea what.

PS I first bought in on 26/03/09 and have added along the way.

[borisimo] 16/2/2011 21:19

suits you

Its good to blow your own trumpet occaisionally...so you go right ahead. In the mean time I will check what you said about potential valuation of MMS on an RTO and /or JV.

I think that is the next question for us now, what is this going to do on relist and what will it be worth in a year. I tried to do some valuations based on the resource estimates for Tunisa alone, and the answer came out about $4 a share so I assumed I must have not accounted for some debt/costs and as a result got an inflated number. (So before I get bashed for ramping I think that figure is VERY wrong).

That was 6 months ago so now we are in a different place. I expect a rise on relise of some amount but no idea what.

PS I first bought in on 26/03/09 and have added along the way.

[dreggspicker] 16/2/2011 20:53

suits, I have held since 2007 and added along the way,when Firebird came on board, don't know if that counts....

[suits you] 16/2/2011 20:26

Not to blow my own trumpet, but what the heck will do anyway, worth a look from 995 onwards, all that I had forecast back in 2009, has eventually happened.


suits you - 3 Aug'09 - 14:27 - 995 of 4233 edit


croots

As frustrating as this further delay is, rising Z&L is all to the good but I am still of the opinion that a JV deal on BJ is not their priority. If we look at when the original details of the 500k were announced back in March a date of 30th of June was given for EGM. One could imagine they had calculated whatever they were planning, could be completed within time frame. If there was no further matter on the agenda back in March, they could have just announced an EGM to rubber stamp loan conditions and end of. What they could not have guaranteed since March and relied on for an EGM in June was such a rise in Z&L would take place. This has to be considered as an added bonus. However not necessarily for a JV but increased Net Present Value. ie MMS's value ps is now worth more, going into a Corporate event.

Not sure if you agree but I still think Corporate action is on the cards which for one reason or another could not be completed before the August break, hence a delay into September. ( after St Leger day and all that)

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Any of the old regulars of that time still around?

Croots, Still Waiting, Pugg1ey, Ricartoni ? Still holding or sold up?

[dreggspicker] 16/2/2011 14:07

the mines and plant around Eyam Derbyshire, or even weardale,lots of potential up there, big untapped vein deposits, not in a national park...who knows...

[godolphin] 16/2/2011 13:41

Another snippet, more or less the same stuff but has this little statement at the end:
"Firebird's concept is to consolidate a meaningful chunk of the fluorspar business. A list of assets has been identified, but it would not be wise to identify them at this early stage," the company reasoned.

So, more assets? KFC, CFI, Mongolian?