Canada Unearthed: The Canadians are Coming, the Canadians are Coming

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Our Canada Unearthed column wraps the news driving mining and exploration stocks listed in Canada, mostly on the TSX and TSX.V.

Remember Novo Resources (ASX:NVO), the Canadian company that surged to outrageous highs after claiming the discovery of ‘watermelon seed’ shaped nuggets in the Pilbara may prove it contained ‘conglomerate gold’ once linked geographically to South Africa’s legendary Witwatersrand Basin?

Investors lost interest and Novo became a more conventional gold miner with the Nullagine gold project, previously in the hands of Millennium Minerals, which it operated until last year alongside its Beatons Creek conglomerate gold deposit before mothballing the operations.

Now backed by De Grey Mining — owner of the 9.5Moz Hemi discovery and ironically a company which before that discovery stirred on the conglomerate gold excitement of late 2017 — the C$61m capped Novo has raised $7.5 million to quote its CHESS depositary interests on the ASX, giving it listings in both Canada and Australia.

On its first day of trade Novo climbed 20% to 24c in what was an incredible start to ASX trade for a gold miner in the current landscape.

But it isn’t the only ressie stock from the land of mooses, moose pasture and James Bay (the lithium rich inlet in Quebec, not the mid as all hell English singer) taking flight for the ASX, following in the footsteps of companies like C$1.5 billion capped lithium explorer Patriot Battery Metals (ASX:PMT).

Forget the Russians, the Canucks are coming

Aussie mining expert Sherif Andrawes, BDO’s head of global natural resources based out of Perth, says the Canadians are making a mad dash right now to access capital on the Australian bourse.

The accounting and professional services firm has its fingers on the pulse of the IPO world, and Andrawes says an increasing number of dual listings are banging on the doors of its Spring Street offices.

“It’s a really good question and one that I’ve been trying to figure out myself. In our office alone, we’ve got five we’re working on — TSX companies coming to the ASX looking to do that by the end of the year,” he told Stockhead.

“I’m not sure whether they’ll get there or not. I don’t know.

“There’s no common reason, but I think the main thing (is) it must be around, they go where the money is, they go where the value is and they must be feeling unloved in Canada.”

Nor are all the assets in Australia, where Novo has cultivated relationships with Australian brokers and investors for over five years.

“Some of these assets are in other continents and so it’s not just the proximity of the assets,” he said.

“It’s really about value and I think as ever there’s a trade off between price and value and also complexity of compliance.

“I think compliance in Canada has always been hard and everyone knows that, but the ASX is a bit of a lighter touch in some respects. But the value must be good at the moment.”

Going where the money is

Some TSX and TSX-V companies have made tracks for Australia because of the deep mining knowledge (and pockets) in the country of Crocodile Dundee, where we know more than just what a knife is.

Patriot, for instance, came to the ASX seeking a capital market with entrenched knowledge of lithium and the EV metals game, with around half of all lithium raw materials produced by companies operating in Australia.

Now the owner of one of the 10 largest spodumene discoveries worldwide at its Corvette property in James Bay, Patriot has courted fame in Australia also with the installation of former Pilbara Minerals (ASX:PLS) MD Ken Brinsden as its non-exec chair.

While that may be part of it, Andrawes says the rush of Canadians looking for a second listing in Australia is spread across multiple commodities.

“They’re in gold, they’re in rare earths, they’re in other things as well, and I guess we do have expertise in those here in Australia too. So maybe it’s partly that,” he said.

“And to be fair, all these companies we’re looking at are at the lower end of the market.

“In Canada, I think to get the attention you have to be bigger. Maybe that’s one thing.
Whereas in Australia some of our juniors are smaller than what the juniors are in Canada.”

TSX and TSX.V Winners & Losers

Here’s how TSX and TSX.V-listed mining and exploration stocks performed last week:

Scroll or swipe to reveal table. Click headings to sort. Best viewed on a laptop.

Stocks missing from this list? Email [email protected]