Rick Van Nieuwenhuyse · CEO and director of Contango Silver and Gold (NYSE American / TSX: CTG) — Alaska and northern BC direct-ship-ore gold/silver producer-developer. A company executive talking his own book.
Contango Silver and Gold (formerly Contango ORE; merged with Dolly Varden Silver — now trades as CTG on NYSE American / TSX)
CEO's own book (now CTG): 30% of Kinross-run Manh Choh as a quasi-royalty funds direct-ship-ore growth at Lucky Shot, Johnson Tract and Kitsault toward ~200k oz gold-eq + 5 Moz silver/yr — debt-free by end-2027, on only 33M shares for per-share leverage to gold/silver.
Operator of the Manh Choh JV (70%) and owner of the Fort Knox mill that Contango's direct-ship-ore model depends on — praised as "spot on" against cash-flow guidance; no view on the shares.
In one line: A builder-operator's pitch for his own company: skip the mill-and-tailings decade by shipping high-grade ore to someone else's permitted mill, fund the pipeline from a Kinross-operated JV treated like a royalty, and keep the share count tiny so gold and silver moves land per share. Every appearance so far is a Contango-sponsored segment — management's view, not an independent one.
Direct-ship ore is the whole model. Manh Choh (30%, Kinross 70%) reached production quickly on little capital by trucking ore to Fort Knox; Lucky Shot, Johnson Tract and Kitsault are designed the same way. His DSO test is a 5–10 year mine plan at 10–12 g/t, fully permitted, with a named toll mill — not a bulk sample (2026-SEP-14).
Permitting is engineered, not endured. No tailings facility ("the most controversial" piece), underground "quarry" permits, development routed through non-acid-generating host rock for clean water — the route around the Lassonde curve's 5–10 year valley of death. FAST-41 works for Johnson Tract (permits by May 2028) but needs to be written into law.
Growth path: ~60k → ~200k gold-equivalent oz/yr plus 5 Moz silver/yr in five years; Manh Choh 40–45k oz in the 2026 low year, ~75k oz in 2027; Lucky Shot feasibility H2 2027; Johnson Tract production ~2030–31; Kitsault the silver engine (65 Moz and growing); a mill purchase for the two sulfide deposits under negotiation.
Balance sheet discipline: hedges removed, ~$47M debt, planning at $3,700 gold, ~$160–170M free cash flow at $4,000 in 2027, debt-free by end-2027.
Valuation frame: not P/E — the JV as a quasi-royalty plus each project valued as a self-funded junior; only 33M shares outstanding versus 300–500M at peers.
Transcripts
One dated page per appearance — each has its stock table, talking points, and the saved transcript. Newest first.