Papua Mining has been drilling in Papua New Guinea for six years and has some exciting prospects, according to Chief Executive David Price. He says the company is looking to grow aggressively—possibly in partnership with a larger player.

Papua Mining’s David Price. Source: WBG

‘Papua New Guinea is a very well-endowed country for natural resources. I don’t think that is any secret. Everybody knows that.

‘Along with the challenges of the terrain, most of the hindrances of exploration and success of exploring is the will to be able to get into the jungles, do the hard work, get bitten by mosquitoes, and find the deposits.’

CEO David Price says Papua Mining has been exploring in the island of New Britain for the last eight years.

‘Six years ago the company listed on the London Stock Exchange with an initial public offering.’

‘I’m very positive about where we can take the company and the projects in both PNG and Australia.’

Listing

Price, who was appointed CEO and Managing Director of the company in late 2017 following its acquisition of Australian miner, BGM Investments, says six years ago the company listed on the London Stock Exchange with an initial public offering (IPO).

The purpose was to raise capital for exploration in PNG for copper and gold.

‘You can grow a company organically with the projects that you already have.’

The company has 343 million shares on offer and has a market capitalisation of £2.83 million (K12.44 million).

The share price has been volatile over the last year and is currently trading at 0.82 pence, about half its July 2017 level.

Growth

Papua Mining operations.

Price acknowledges that Papua Mining is small but says he is looking to grow the company, and sees two ways to do that.

‘You can grow a company organically, with the projects that you already have.

‘We have been drilling our projects in Queensland during the wet season in PNG and we have had very good success at finding gold, copper and silver.

‘The second way to grow a company is to acquire other projects.

‘We are actively looking for new projects in Papua New Guinea.

‘We have identified a very large prospect, a very big target, in New Britain which is possibly beyond our budget because we are a micro cap company.’

World class deposits

Price says the company has drilled 11,000 metres of core over the last eight years in its Papua New Guinea projects ad believe the company is looking in the right place.

‘We have spent over £20 million in Papua New Guinea exploring in New Britain. There are some world class deposits surrounding us.

‘You have Wafi Golpu, which is the focus of attention for development at the moment. You have got Lihir. You have got Porgera.

‘The real risk in Papua New Guinea that I see is what I call accessibility risk.’

‘Everybody knows these deposits, they are indeed world class. We are right in the middle of it.

‘We have about 500 metres of core of very strongly altered rock with sulphides through it. It is very close to a very big porphyry system.

The grades are low, but we are excited by what we see in our core. There is a lot more work to do to find the economic core to this system.’

Price says the projects will require ‘a lot of money’ and are ‘perhaps beyond the financial restrictions that a micro-cap can generate.’

He says he is looking for ‘big brother’ to come in with the company. Papua Mining has three projects in Australia, he says.

Accessibility

Price describes the sovereign risk of Papua New Guinea and Australia as ‘virtually zero’.

‘The real risk in Papua New Guinea that I see is what I call accessibility risk.

‘Are you prepared to send people up the creeks, up the ridges, doing the hard work? If you are prepared to commit to that, you will be successful.’

Price says the company’s Tripela project has ‘massive sulphide’ over a large area.

‘We are very close to a system but we are yet to find an economic portion of the system.’

He says the company’s Mt Visi target has ‘very high grade samples, with 4 per cent copper at surfaces.’

Price says this is a new discovery. ‘We are very excited. It spells opportunity for the company; we believe these projects have a very good future.’