Mt. Emmons (or Red Lady) is the bowl just outside of Crested Butte that has long been a center of controversy, due to the strong belief that there are large deposits of Molybdenum within its confines. There is good news for townspeople seeking to keep a potential mine at bay. The price of molybdenum has plummeted and oversupply is seen for the next five years. After trading at $30 in 2007, the spot rate is currently around $9.50 with overproduction seen to exist through at least 2017. Thompson Creek owns the mining rights to Red Lady, and they have actually been halting mining activities at some of their other mines that are less controversial and have already been in production.
So, for now, it seems like any talk about mining Red Lady is just hot air or Thompson Creek positioning itself for a deep pocketed partner. They are still responsible for paying for the water treatment facility, which runs about $1,8 million/year, and that can't be seen as a great investment by its shareholders, though it's of the utmost importance to our town's drinking water. Maybe a deal could be worked out to buy or trade their mining rights (like the swap proposed last year) and make the threat of a mine a thing of the past.
So, for now, it seems like any talk about mining Red Lady is just hot air or Thompson Creek positioning itself for a deep pocketed partner. They are still responsible for paying for the water treatment facility, which runs about $1,8 million/year, and that can't be seen as a great investment by its shareholders, though it's of the utmost importance to our town's drinking water. Maybe a deal could be worked out to buy or trade their mining rights (like the swap proposed last year) and make the threat of a mine a thing of the past.
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