Arizona Gold & Silver Inc (TSX-V:AZS, OTCQB:AZASF, FRA:A9J0) earlier this week appointed Yale Simpson as a director, with the long-time company advisor highlighting an accelerating drilling programme at the Philadelphia Project and Evolution Mining’s involvement as important validation of the asset.
Simpson told Proactive that joining the board represented a “natural transition” after advising Arizona Gold & Silver for several years. His work with the company has focused largely on communications, press releases and messaging, alongside some technical input.
The Philadelphia Project remains a particular focus for Simpson because of parallels he sees with his previous experience in South America.
Simpson recalled involvement in a significant high-grade discovery in Argentina. The company behind that project was subsequently acquired for $440 million, while the project ultimately entered production and is now held by Pan American Silver.
Reflecting on Philadelphia, Simpson said: “This is kind of the same beast. Throw the drills at it. Let’s just see how big this thing can be.”
An immediate potential catalyst is the pace of exploration at Philadelphia. Simpson said the level of work being undertaken was “kind of an order of magnitude more than it’s been”, particularly in terms of drilling.
He added that Arizona Gold & Silver was looking at sourcing another drill to have two operating on the project. If implemented, the additional drilling capacity could increase the amount of exploration work being completed as the company seeks to establish the scale of Philadelphia.
Simpson also pointed to the involvement of Australia’s Evolution Mining as what he considered the project’s biggest validation.
Drawing on his own experience working for major miners, Simpson said Evolution had carried out due diligence on the jurisdiction, management and project. He also highlighted that Evolution’s deal was completed at a premium to the market.
Simpson stressed that his interpretation was that Evolution’s involvement reflected expectations for a potentially larger project.
“I can talk all day, but action is, why did they come in? What are their expectations?” Simpson said, adding: “My view is they expect this to be much bigger.”
The pace and results of ongoing drilling, the potential addition of a second drill and continued involvement from Evolution Mining therefore represent key developments to watch as Arizona Gold & Silver advances Philadelphia.