Exploration and Pandemic Prevention: We’ve Got This, Folks!

COVID-19 has been horrific for so many around the world. On the other end of the spectrum, for many it also feels like ground-hog day, waking up in self isolation, social distancing and in quarantine with little that has changed from day to day. Reading the horrific headlines about sickness, loss of life and the human and economic toll of this pandemic has been a gut-wrenching roller-coaster ride ranging from hopeful to apocalyptic. And all the while, in the back of most people’s minds, the lasting thought: I wonder what this changes for us all, long term? What are the long-lasting societal effects of COVID-19? What’s going to be materially different about life and commerce once we get out of this? And you know, deep down, the answer your sub-conscious mind might be playing back like a skipping record is the answer: “Everything. Everything changes from here on.”  More on that later.  As a CEO, my first and foremost priority always is the health and safety of all members of the extended Integra family, and most importantly our teams in Vancouver and on-site at DeLamar, and the people of Jordan Valley where we operate. It’s even more important during this global pandemic. 

At Integra Resources, we have been lucky.  At this time, none of our employees are experiencing symptoms and we have no confirmed cases of COVID-19 amongst our Integra family and we are counting our blessings.  We implemented a number of pandemic response procedures early to keep our people safe and healthy and are doing what we can to help combat COVID-19. Honestly, some were grateful that we took the measures that we did, when we did. Others also grateful but perhaps wondering if we were too draconian in our temporary spread prevention measures. Time will answer this question, I’m sure. 

On the corporate end, we got back to basics, ensuring that we tweaked and lowered our fixed costs and focussed on our strong C$28 M treasury and balance sheet to ensure we not only survive but stay in fighting form. With the added time that we all have, we ran some excellent internal company webinars for our entire group, to learn more about how we conduct engineering studies, how the metallurgy on the project works in detail as well as exploration webinars to focus the team in on where we are going to look next for our next big discovery on DeLamar.

One thing is for sure: this pandemic and everything that has come with it has allowed everyone, including yours truly, to do lots of thinking and reading. And I am firmly in the camp that for many who have the luxury of time and who don’t have a ticking clock of financial unwinding facing them, this downturn will actually lead to a lot of good. It will be a great reset, a great re-think of game-play, a great opportunity to rethink growth strategies and to actually execute on many excellent plans that we would not have ordinarily allowed ourselves the time or bandwidth to do in a normal world of circumstances.  

We are actively supporting our communities:

In early April, Owyhee County in southwest Idaho -  where our project is located - experienced its first positive COVID-19 case. The County currently has 8 COIVD-19 cases. The state of Idaho has nearly 2,000. We are actively working with local residents and businesses to help mitigate the impacts and spread of COVID-19. In partnership with the Lions Club and the Jordan Valley High School, we have set up a grocery delivery service for the elderly and higher risk residents who otherwise would have to travel into more densely populated areas like Boise to shop for essentials. In an effort to encourage local business, we areproviding gift cards for local restaurants conducting take out food services. These gift cards are being given to those who need them in the community.  In support of the Idaho and Oregon food banks and the incredible dairy farmers of Idaho, we will be donating dairy products to food banks in Owyhee County from dairy producers who are currently having to dump excess milk due to drops in demand from the restaurant business. 

Reading the news these days is upsetting but seeing the ways in which our industry is supporting their local communities is really powerful and inspiring. We’ve seen a lot of incredible initiatives from many of the major mining companies too. Fellow junior miners, I’d love to hear how your companies and teams are supporting your communities around your projects. I am sure we could all benefit learning from one another as we navigate these unpredictable times.

Here’s how we’re moving forward:

Exploration is probably one of the best suited fields where social distancing is practiced almost as a religion. If you think about it, part of being in the exploration game is really embracing the socially distanced lifestyle – mapping in the bush, rock sampling, conducting geophysics, drilling in remote areas….many explorationists, by their very nature, are solitary types who don’t mind their own personal company and the solitude of being in the field, mostly alone or in very small groups. I am one of these people, an extroverted introvert if you will…it’s a thing. Click here to read about it.

Anyway, this is why exploration works well under pandemic prevention measures, probably more so  than many other careers.

We’re able to continue exploration efforts safely and with very limited human-to-human interaction. For example, lets look at the process of conducting a drill program:  the drillers drill in the outdoors at a distance from one another. The driller delivers the core box to the core tech and then walks away. The tech lays out the core and completes their studies and walks away allowing the geologist to step-in and log on their own. The geologist logs the core and measures out their samples and then walks away. The cutter receives the core and cuts it, puts it into a sample bag and then walks away. And then finally, the core is shipped to the assay labs (the lab: another place where social distancing can be practised safely). The same process is duplicated in field mapping, geophysics or virtually most other field exploration functions.

As for our engineers and environmental specialists, they are working on reports and studies remotely, unimpeded by COVID-19. Samples are in columns leaching away, unimpeded by pandemics. The environmental team overseeing water treatment is monitoring from computers. The environmental study team for the feasibility study is accessing site only as needed for baseline studies. All easily done using social distancing.

Our exploration business is one of the best businesses there is for social distancing. As States throughout the U.S. start to open, including Idaho in early May, Integra will continue to monitor the situation and continue to take precautions to ensure the health and safety of all of our employees until COVID-19 is in our rear-view mirror.

So, getting back to the part on “how has everything changed” and what does this all mean for the markets going forward?  In my view, along with others such as GMI(click here to read the GMI take), the fallout on the economy will be like a 3-act play:

• Act 1: The panic which is the liquidity phase.
• Act 2: The hope, which is the correction phase. 
• Act 3: The insolvency, the savage phase that changes everything, including the system itself. 

I believe that we are still in Act 1. While there has been some spectacular market recovery as a result of fiscal stimulus, the full narrative of the economic repercussions of COVID-19 has yet to play out in the headlines. There will be so much economic wreckage to sort through over the months and years to come. Everything will change, including the system itself.

In my 30 years in the business, I’ve never seen a better set-up for gold or a better investment case for gold and gold equities. The economic pain of the COVID-19 pandemic is real and though we will pull out of it eventually, the pain and sad fallout will be lasting. Unprecedented stimulus is being injected into our global economies (a record $5+ trillion dollars worldwide by last count) and at a rate faster than ever seen before, and it will continue well into the future. It’s a perfect storm for gold, in a sense this is what the gold bugs live for – money is being printed, currencies are being devalued (all currencies, not just the USD), short phase of deflation on some “things” followed by a rapid phase of inflation to come as a result of lots of money chasing fewer goods and services. Add to this, a scarcity of gold in the ground, especially in tier one jurisdictions such as Canada and the US and the table appears set for a sustained precious metals market. Stay tuned on this topic, I have more to share…coming soon to a computer screen near you. 

I want to say thank you to the Integra team, our project partners and the citizens of Jordan Valley for taking all safety protocols seriously and closely following public health recommendations. We know that every small step could make a big difference against COVID-19. The battle isn’t over yet, but things are getting better and will continue to head in the right direction. 

Things are changing constantly. But we will overcome all of this. Remember, tough times don’t last but tough people do! Spartan mothers used to tell their warrior sons about returning from battle, “either come back with your shield – or upon it.” Also, one Spartan King said regarding the importance of the shield (I’ve paraphrased here) “…the other armours they put on is for their own protection, but the shield is for the common good of the whole line.” Don’t drop those shields, everyone! Learn to fight and win, with your shield firmly in place.

Be safe, be positive and be well. 

George

P.S. – The Spartans had a real way with words. Check out Lacaenarum Apophthegmata by Plutarch for a collection of Spartan sayings.