Strathcona has was hired to oversee Pretium’s bulk sample program. The purpose of these programs is to get a better idea of the amount of gold contained in a deposit since the gold distribution may be erratic and drilling samples very little of a deposit.
Strathcona has inexplicably resigned from the project. This is a massive red flag for me. In my opinion, Strathcona has a very good reputation as Graham Farquharson’s work is famous for uncovering the Bre-X fraud. He has also continued to attack John Felderhof over his involvement in the fraud. (Felderhof remains a free man, his children are reported to be millionaires, and has never been convicted. I agree with Farquharson’s assessment.) His company strikes me as having high integrity. I was surprised that Strathcona would work with Pretium in the first place since Pretium’s quality control checks were consistent with fraud (see my previous post). It wouldn’t make sense for Pretium to hire Strathcona if fraud was occurring because Strathcona’s engineers are smart and have integrity. Now I’m less confused and strongly believe that the red flags are too big to ignore.
Here is Pretium’s press release:
Strathcona Mineral Services Ltd. (“Strathcona”), which had been engaged as the independent Qualified Person to oversee and report on the 10,000-tonne bulk sample for the Program, has resigned from the Project.
