PDAC 2014 Wraps Up

Written by Mark Fields, President & CEO

We have returned from another Prospector and Developers Association of Canada Conference, the annual PDAC, and it was as usual 4 days of hectic activity. Here are various thoughts and observations on this year’s convention.

• The attendance was 25,122, down from last year’s 30,369;
• Prime Minister Harper attended, the first time a Prime Minister has done so;
• Federal Cabinet Ministers Joe Oliver and John Baird were also in attendance;
• The New Brunswick Minister of Energy and Mines Craig Leonard was in attendance and met with Dave Martin and myself to discuss Geodex’s activities;
• The traffic by our booth compared to last year was down on Sunday and seemed about equal the other days;
• The weather was cold and snowy, causing the delegates to diligently seek out the PATH indoor Toronto pedestrian walkways rather than venturing outside;
• Dave Martin from New Brunswick, Mark Fields from Vancouver and David Buckle (one of our independent directors) all attended;
• Our focus on tungsten and particularly tin was well received;
• There were spots available for booths in the Investors Exchange hall, after many years of a lengthy waiting list;
• The mood could be summed up as guardedly optimistic as far as the juniors go, however the last several difficult years have taken a significant toll.

Dave Martin at PDAC 2014 before the doors opened on Sunday, March 2nd

Dave Martin During PDAC 2014, Monday, March 3rd

Dave Martin and I will be following up over the next few weeks on the meetings, discussions and contacts we had over the course of the conference.