Skip to main content

Frank Giustra: This Is a Forever War. Own Gold and Copper

Mining Network Sep 15, 2026 37:50

Summary

Frank Giustra argues a forever war with Iran plus a NATO-Russia standoff keeps energy costly, feeding inflation, currency debasement, and gold demand.

Sanctions on Russian reserves pushed China and the BRICS toward a parallel, gold-backed settlement system he expects to entrench gold in monetary architecture.

Copper faces a supply shock from decades of underinvestment and falling grades just as AI, defense, and grid demand rise, so prices must go higher.

His junior screen is size, grade, location, and politics: buy early and large, then hold, because majors must acquire scarce quality copper deposits.

With US debt beyond repair, he holds hard assets: locked-up shares in Copper Giant and Aris Mining's high-grade Segovia gold operation.

Key points on Aris Mining Corp

  • Giustra says his Colombian gold company Aris Mining, which he helped create six or seven years ago, is positioned to become the country's biggest gold producer, with roughly 500,000 ounces expected on a run-rate basis this year (as of September 2026) rising toward 1 million ounces once two more mines enter production over the next four to five years.
  • He cites 20-year mine lives and says the Segovia mine grades about 11 grams per tonne, which he calls the second-highest grade of any operating gold mine in the world.
  • He says he is simply holding on as the share price has gone from $3 to $30, arguing that a long mine life plus grade means there is no reason to trade the position.
  • He presents Aris as the template for his gold advice: own assets with size, grade, and long mine life, and be patient.

Key points on Denarius Metals

  • Giustra says that he and Denarius together own about 30% of Copper Giant and have agreed to lock up their shares to see the project through.

Key points on Outcrop Silver & Gold

  • The video's sponsored segment describes Outcrop Silver's Santana project as one of the highest-grade primary silver projects globally, with an updated mineral resource estimate of 58 million silver-equivalent ounces, about 73% of them silver, in the indicated category.
  • The segment says the company now has a clear pathway toward more than 100 million high-grade silver-equivalent ounces within discovered veins and exploration targets.
  • It cites initial metallurgical testing with recoveries over 96% through a simple gravity and flotation circuit that requires no cyanide, and says the company is advancing toward a PEA to support a rapid development timeframe.
  • The segment notes strong local community support, a newly elected pro-mining national government in Colombia, and existing infrastructure including paved road access, power lines, and available water, with the shares listed on the TSX as OCG.

Frank Giustra's takeaways

  • Top takeaway Giustra's core call as of September 2026: buy gold first and copper second, because war, inflation, and currency debasement will destroy paper assets — own tangible, scarce assets with size, grade, and location, and hold on.
  • He argues the US-Iran conflict is a 'forever war' with no deal possible: Trump will likely escalate after the 2026 midterms, Iran believes it has the upper hand after shutting the Strait of Hormuz, striking Gulf bases, and bombing the Saudi east-west pipeline, and a ground invasion would need occupation forces the US does not have.
  • He claims the US fiscal position is beyond repair — a $40 trillion debt pile growing by about $2 trillion a year with rising interest costs — and that China holds far more gold than its disclosed roughly 2,300 tonnes, possibly 10,000-20,000 tonnes, to back a BRICS parallel settlement system in which yuan surpluses can be converted to physical gold via the Shanghai Gold Exchange and offshore vaults.
  • On copper he sees a supply shock from 30 years of underinvestment, falling grades and output at big mines, and Western hoarding colliding with demand from AI data centers, NATO rearmament toward 5% of GDP, and a $5 trillion US grid refurbishment by 2050, pushing copper well above its roughly $6.50-per-pound level and forcing majors to buy juniors.
  • Asked in September 2026 how far along the cycle we are, he says this one will be bigger than 2001-2011 and estimates roughly four to five years before a possible global implosion — which would hurt copper but send gold, in his words, 'through the roof.'