pershing gold investor presentation
TRANSCRIPT
Pershing Gold Corporation
An Emerging Nevada Gold Producer
Reopening the Relief Canyon Mine
Discovering New Gold Deposits
November 2012
1
Forward-looking Statements
This presentation contains forward-looking statements. These statements relate to future events or our future
financial performance and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause our
or our industry's actual results, levels of activity, performance or achievements to be materially different from any
future results, levels of activity, performance or achievements expressed, implied or inferred by these forward-
looking statements. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terminology such as “may,”
“will,” “should,” “could,” “would,” “expects,” “plans,” “intends,” “anticipates,” “believes,” “estimates,” “predicts,”
“projects,” “potential” or “continue” or the negative of such terms and other comparable terminology.
These statements are only predictions based on our current expectations and projections about future events.
You should not place undue reliance on these statements. Actual events or results may differ materially. In
evaluating these statements, you should specifically consider various factors, including the risks outlined under
“Risk Factors” in our reports filed with the SEC. These and other factors may cause our actual results to differ
materially from any forward-looking statement. We undertake no obligation to update any of the forward-looking
statements after the date of this presentation to conform those statements to reflect the occurrence of
unanticipated events, except as required by applicable law.
Cautionary Note to United States Investors Regarding Estimates of Measured, Indicated and Inferred Resources:
We use certain terms in this presentation, such as “measured”, “indicated” and “inferred resources”, that are
defined in Canadian National Instrument 43-101; however these terms are not recognized under the U.S. SEC
Industry Guide 7. US investors are cautioned not to assume that any or all of measured, indicated or inferred
resources are economically or legally mineable or that these resources will ever be converted into
reserves. “Inferred mineral resources“ have a high degree of uncertainty as to their existence and it cannot be
assumed that all or any part of an inferred mineral resource will ever be upgraded to a higher category. U.S.
investors are urged to consider closely the disclosure in our Form 10-K and other SEC filings. You can review
and obtain copies of these filings from the SEC’s website at http:www.sec.gov/edgar.shtml.
2
Management Team
Stephen Alfers -- Executive Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer
Stephen D. Alfers became PGC’s Executive Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer in March 2012. Prior to accepting this position with Pershing
Gold Corporation f/k/a Sagebrush Gold, Ltd., Mr. Alfers was with Franco-Nevada Corporation (NYSE:FNV) where he served as Chief of U.S. Operations
from 2007 until the end of 2011. Before joining Franco-Nevada Corp, Mr. Alfers was President and CEO of NewWest Gold Corporation, where he
developed a large portfolio of promising Nevada gold properties including Long Canyon, Sandman, and Northumberland. A well recognized authority in the
U.S. Mining Law, public land law, and mining transactions, Mr. Alfers’ career includes twenty years of experience as a partner in several prestigious mining,
oil and gas, and natural resource development law firms where he specialized in representing large, international mining and oil and gas clients. In his capacity
as a mining law expert, Mr. Alfers has advised the United Nations, foreign governments, and Congressional committees. Mr. Alfers has extensive experience
in developing and executing corporate financing arrangements, complex mining transactions, mergers and acquisitions, and in directing legal and government
affairs.
Eric Alexander – Vice President Finance and Controller
Mr. Alexander became PGC’s Vice President Finance and Controller in September 2012. Prior to joining Pershing Gold Corporation, he was the Corporate
Controller for Sunshine Silver Mines Corporation, a privately held mining company with exploration and pre-development properties in Idaho and Mexico.
He was also the Corporate Controller for Golden Minerals Company (successor to Apex Silver Mines Limited), a US and Canadian publicly traded
international mining company with operations and exploration activities in South America and Mexico. In addition to working in industry he also held the
position of Senior Manager with the public accounting firm KPMG LLP, focusing on mining and energy clients. He has over 23 years of corporate,
operational and business experience. Mr. Alexander has a B.S. in Business Administration (concentrations in Accounting and Finance) from the State
University of New York at Buffalo and is also a licensed CPA.
Larry Hillesland -- Vice President Exploration and Development
Mr. Hillesland became PGC’s Vice President of Exploration and Development in February 2012. With over 30 years of experience, Mr. Hillesland has
played a key role in the discovery of several gold systems (McDonald Meadows/Keep Cool in Montana and Nixon Fork in Alaska, Candamena in northern
Mexico, and adding indicated ounces to Kinross’ Kupol Project in Russia). He also defined the 1 billion pound leachable copper deposit at Hanover
Mountain in New Mexico. Mr. Hillesland has a B.S. in Geology from the University of Idaho and a Master’s degree from Oregon State University.
David Rector -- Vice President - Administration and Finance Treasurer and Director
David Rector has served in general management roles and directed the business operations of a number of gold mining companies during the past 35 years
such as Universal Gold Mining Corp, Nevada Gold Holding, Inc. and Standard Drilling, Inc. He is experienced in all of the facets of public company
governance and process in the US. Mr. Rector presently sits on four Board of Directors for US public companies and chairs or is a member of several audit
and compensation committees. He has worked for a Fortune 500 Company as well as serving in senior general management roles for several small to mid-size
organizations during the past 25 years.
3
Expert Team Implements Resource Expansion
and Fast-Track Mine Reopening Strategy
• Assembled team of well known, highly-regarded mining
experts with the complete suite of business, geologic,
legal, environmental and engineering skills to expand
the resource and achieve fast-track project reopening
• Steve Alfers – Executive Chairman, CEO & President
• Larry Hillesland – VP Exploration & Development
• Tim Janke – Mine Reopening Manager
• Debra Struhsacker - Permitting and Government Relations
• Robert Casaceli – Sr. Geologist & Geophysicist
• Stephen Tibbals – Plant Engineer
• Bill Houston – Landman
4
Share Structure
SHARE STRUCTURE
Shares Issued and Outstanding* 256,619,445
Warrants** 12,222,188
Stock Options Outstanding*** 35,298,000
Total fully diluted shares as of September 30, 2012 304,139,633
5
*Common Shares outstanding as of September 30, 2012.
**All vested as of September 30, 2012.
***31,712,267 vested as of September 30, 2012.
Relief Canyon: An Exciting Nevada Gold
Mine Reopening Opportunity
6
• Acquired Relief Canyon Mine and heap leach processing
facilities out of bankruptcy in August 2011
• Newly refurbished
processing facilities
are fully permitted
• Poised for accelerated
mine reopening with
limited capital
requirements
• Situated in an under-
explored part of
Nevada with
significant discovery
potential
Dominant Land Position
7
Relief Canyon Year 1 Progress Milestones
• Consolidated lands surrounding the mine
• Eliminated property boundary constraints that limited past mine development
• Expanded landholdings to cover more than 25,000 acres (39 sq mi)
• Completed drilling 127 RC and core holes (61,083 ft/18,648 m)
• Developed a breakthrough exploration model
• Discovered two previously unrecognized mineralization styles
• New model will guide future exploration and expand the resource
• Discovered new mineralization in the previously mined main breccia mineral zone
• Should expand previous operator’s resource of 248,000 indicated & inferred gold ounces
• Used sophisticated geophysical surveys to find new mineral exploration targets
• Recommissioning the fully built and permitted heap leach gold facilities
• Hired team of highly experienced exploration and mining professionals
8
Uniquely Positioned to Become Nevada’s
Next Gold Producer
• The fully permitted and built heap leach processing facilities
present unique opportunity for fast-track reopening
• Relatively low capital investment required to start producing
gold from this property
• Unlike our peer companies, PGC faces lower risks and
uncertainties associated with raising capital, prolonged
permitting, and building a new mine and processing facilities
• 2011 – 2012 drilling results expected to expand previous
operator’s indicated and inferred resource of 248,000 oz gold
• Ideally situated to replicate Allied Nevada’s redevelopment
success at Hycroft
9
Relief Canyon Mine and State-of-the-Art
Heap Leach Gold Processing Facility
10
• Relief Canyon Mine • 3 open-pit mines with intermittent gold production since
1984 of approximately 140,000 ounces of gold
• Current indicated & inferred resource of 248,000 oz gold
• New NI 43-101 compliant Technical Report expected to expand this resource to 600,000 – 750,000 projected ounces in Q4 2012
• Initial target gold production of 50,000 oz of gold per year
• Target start-up date - 2014
• Ready-to-operate Heap Leach Facility • Equipment tests to begin in Q4 2012 for
recommissioning
• Initiating design and permitting work to add a gold refinery
• Able to process oxide gold ores from other properties
• State and federal permits in good standing
Strategic Property Consolidation Provides
Control Over 25,000 Acres (39 Sq Mi)
11
• PGC controls claims and private lands surrounding the mine
• Mine can be expanded in all
directions
• Previous owners were landlocked which impeded mine development
• Lands include wholly-owned claims and claims and private lands leased from Newmont
• PGC owns over 700 claims in the Pershing Pass area
• Includes numerous untested mineral targets
• Controls substantial portion of Pershing Gold & Silver Trend
NEVADA PACKARD MINE
SOUTH RELIEF PROJECT
Relief Canyon and Other Humboldt Range Mines
are Aligned Along Major NNE-Trending Fault
• The Humboldt Range hosts many
gold and silver mines and deposits:
• Relief Canyon, Rochester, Florida
Canyon, Spring Valley, Willard-
Colado, and Standard
• Historic production plus existing
resources exceeds 8,800,000 oz
gold and 178,500,000 oz silver
• 140,000 oz historic production at
Relief Canyon
• Humboldt Range mines of diverse
ages are aligned along the Black
Ridge Fault, a major NNE-trending
range-front fault
• Relief Canyon, NV Packard,
Rochester, and Spring Valley
• Fault appears to be a long-lived
conduit for mineralization
12
Development and
Resource Expansion Drill Holes
13
Completed 127 RC and core holes in and around the Relief Canyon mine site from August 2011 through September 2012:
• Completed 3 drill programs
• $5.3 million in exploration costs
• 61,083 ft/18,648 m drilled
• 15 piezometer holes
• 4 exploration holes tested 3 geophysical targets
• Assay results pending
Newly Discovered Mineralization will
Expand the Relief Canyon Resource
• Drilled 127 RC and core holes in and around the mine from August 2011 to September 2012
• 61,083 ft/18,648 m
• Completed drilling south of the mine (60+ drill hole program)
• Drilling expands mineralized zones in all directions around the existing pits
• Should significantly increase previous operator’s 2010 indicated and inferred resource of 248,000 oz gold (Mine Development Associates)
• MDA’s 2010 resource based on 591 historic drill hole database
• Roscoe Postle Associates USA, Ltd. expected to prepare a new NI 43-101 compliant Technical Report in Q4 2012 to incorporate 2011 – 2012 drilling results
14
Step-out holes outside of the existing pits have
discovered Main Breccia Zone Mineralization
beyond the current resource boundary
New Exploration Model Greatly
Enhances Future Discovery Potential
• New model identifies three different mineralization styles
• Main Breccia Zone – explored and mined in the past
• Feeder Zones – new discovery not in current resource (higher grade than MBZ)
• Lower Zone – new discovery not in current resource (higher
grade than MBZ)
• Significant breakthrough in understanding the deposit and mineralization controls
• Will help identify future high-priority drilling targets to expand the resource
15
2011 – 2012 drilling refines understanding of the
Relief Canyon deposit and reveals two previously
unrecognized styles of mineralization
Selected Drilling Results from 2011 and 2012
RC and Core Drilling Campaigns
Drill Hole Width (ft) Au (opt) Mineralization Style
SBG11-D04 100 0.042 Main Breccia Zone
SBG11-D01 44 0.035 Lower Zone
SBG11-D05 including
53 5
0.067 0.345
Feeder Zone
SBG11-D07 80 0.045 Lower Zone
SBG12-D02 38 0.075 Main Breccia Zone
SBG12-D03 including
55 5/5
0.125 0.428/0.642
Lower Zone & Feeder Zone
SBG12-D04 309 0.014 Main Breccia Zone & Feeder Zone
RC12-015 177 0.012 Main Breccia Zone
RC12-027 123.5 0.015 Main Breccia Zone
RC12-028 146 0.016 Main Breccia Zone
16
Drilling discovers gold beyond the current pit boundaries Drilling discovers Feeder Zone and Lower Zone mineralization styles
• These newly recognized mineral zones are a breakthrough discovery *All of the results from these drilling programs will be posted on the Company’s website.
Geophysical Surveys Discovered New
Mineralized Systems Outside of the Mine
• Sophisticated site-wide geophysical surveys to locate buried targets • CSAMT
• IP/Resistivity
• Gravity
• Magnetics
• Discovered Pershing Packard and South Relief hydrothermal systems
• Drilling confirms hydrothermal
alteration and mineralization
• Identified crustal-penetrating structures
• Possible conduits for mineralizing fluids
17
Strategic Partnership with Coeur
Rochester - Our Neighbor to the North
• Coeur purchased 10,937,500 shares of PGC stock in June 2012 private placement
• Synergies along northern boundary • Coeur’s Nevada Packard
Mine to the north
• PGC’s Pershing Packard Property to the south
• Nevada Packard and Pershing Packard may be part of the same mineral system
18
Drilling in North Pit at Relief Canyon looking north at
Coeur’s Nevada Packard Mine
Pershing Gold:
A Unique Nevada Gold Opportunity
• Poised to become Nevada’s next gold producer through fast-track reopening of the Relief Canyon Mine and heap leach facilities
• Path to production requires relatively modest capital investment
• Limited exposure to risks, delays and uncertainties compared to many other start-up projects
• Facility is scalable at relatively low capital cost to process ores from expanded Relief Canyon resources or nearby discoveries
• Fill toll heap leach processing niche for ores from third-parties with viable discoveries but no processing facilities
• Aggressive drilling programs lead to rapid resource expansion
• Expect previous operator’s resource to increase from 248,000 ounces indicated and inferred to 600,000 – 750,000 ounces
• New NI 43-101 compliant Technical Report expected to be prepared in Q4 2012 by Roscoe Postle Associates USA, Ltd. of Denver
• New mineral systems already discovered at Pershing Packard and South Relief
• Company focus in the under explored but highly prospective Pershing Gold and Silver Trend in the Humboldt Range in Nevada
19
Pershing Gold Corporation
1658 Cole Boulevard, Building 6, Suite 210
Lakewood, CO 80401
720.974.7248
E-mail: [email protected]
www.pershinggold.com
20