Lion One Metals ($LIO | $LOMLF): Tuvatu Gold Mine Production, High-Grade Drilling & Mill Expansion
Investor TV Sep 15, 2026 30:44
Summary
Refinancing of Lion One's $25.8M NABARI tranche gives the company a 4-month runway to year-end to secure alternative funding.
A 4.2m intercept at 715 g/t gold near existing workings ranks among the highest-grade holes tracked globally in 2026.
Mill throughput expansion to 650 to 700 t/day by mid-2028 could push AISC (All-In Sustaining Cost) below $2,000/oz.
Management sees roughly 35,000 oz/year as achievable by late 2028 at 5-plus g/t head grade and 700 t/day throughput.
Fed rate expectations turning dovish alongside geopolitical de-escalation sets up a constructive year-end backdrop for gold.
Don Durrett's takeaways
- Top takeaway The guest argues Lion One is a high-risk/reward producer, not an explorer — at 12.5 cents US the risk/reward looks compelling if management can creatively clear the $25M December debt wall via private equity, hedge funds, or a JV partner, with gold at about $4,400 making strategic interest more likely.
- The guest expects an S&P correction to drag gold down before year-end, then a rip higher — he forecasts gold above $5,000 by the end of 2026.
- On the macro, the guest thinks the Fed has zero probability of raising rates this year despite a likely hot CPI print, prioritizing growth and bond-market stability; he watches only the S&P 200-day moving average (~7,200) and wants the gold-to-S&P ratio at 0.70 versus 0.57 today.
- The guest flags the 715 g/t intercept as a unicorn hole — top three of the year on Mining Hub — and notes the hole also ran 6,500 g/t over 0.445 m with the remaining intercept still grading 12.48 g/t, which he says could lift mill head grade from 5-5.5 g/t toward 6 g/t.
- The guest is also bullish on the copper angle — copper at an all-time high adds prospectivity to the caldera drilling Lion One is restarting.