Rusoro (RML.v) to close August 1st?

That what this report in Venezuelan press says this morning, anyway. Here's a direct translation of how it kicks off:

Rusoro Mining May Close in August

Monday, 20th June 2011, 00:00, María Alejandra Ceballo

Tumeremo: The present and future of families in the municipalities of Roscio, El Callao and Sifontes that depend on jobs connected to companies  associated with the Rusoro Mining consortium are in doubt.

According to José Manuel Rivas, on-site security supervisor for the Rusoro group, accompanied by security officer Miguel Pérez and contractor Pedro Romero, the mining operations of the consortium may close down operations on August 1st because since March the company has not received any authorization to sell gold overseas, violating the resolution Nº 10-07-01 emitted August 11th 2010. The men say that a functionary of the Venezuelan Central Bank (BCV) named Elí Sánchez told the company that while he was in office at the BCV no more overseas gold sales would be permitted.

Also, the company employees explained that the sale of gold to international markets is vital in order to acquire and renew the equipment used in the gold's extraction, as well as being the resources needed to invest in diverse social projects.

Continues here

Inside Christmas with the Canadian Crew

A quick rundown of cool "quick let's file it while nobody's looking" inside transactions over the Christmas period.

Here's top of the pops, Rusoro (RML.v): Makes you want to burst into the Cat Stevens oldie 'Father and Son', doesn't it?

Rusoro Mining Ltd. (RML)						As of December 27th, 2009
Filing Date	Transaction Date	Insider Name	Ownership Type	Securities	Nature of transaction	# or value acquired or disposed of	Unit Price
Dec 26/09	Dec 23/09	Agapov, Andre Vladimir	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	11 - Acquisition carried out privately	53,428,167
Dec 26/09	Dec 23/09	Agapov, Vladimir Pavlovich	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	11 - Disposition carried out privately	-53,428,167

Next up is Exeter Resources (XRC.to) (XRA) and CFO Cecil Bond had himself a wonderful Christmas time:

Exeter Resource Corporation (XRC)						As of December 27th, 2009
Filing Date	Transaction Date	Insider Name	Ownership Type	Securities	Nature of transaction	# or value acquired or disposed of	Unit Price
Dec 24/09	Dec 21/09	Bond, Cecil Robert	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	10 - Disposition in the public market	-65,000	$7.960
Dec 24/09	Dec 18/09	Bond, Cecil Robert	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	10 - Disposition in the public market	-81,000	$7.820
Dec 24/09	Dec 16/09	Bond, Cecil Robert	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	10 - Disposition in the public market	-100,000	$7.650
Dec 24/09	Dec 16/09	Bond, Cecil Robert	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	10 - Acquisition in the public market	260,000	$1.200
Dec 24/09	Apr 12/05	Bond, Cecil Robert	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	00 - Opening Balance-Initial SEDI Report
Dec 24/09	Dec 16/09	Bond, Cecil Robert	Direct Ownership	Options	51 - Exercise of options	-260,000	$1.200

Moving on to MAG Silver (MAG.to)(MVG) and HEY WOW! WHAT A SURPRISE! It's another round of bare-faced shameless self service from the management crew:

MAG Silver Corp. (MAG)						As of December 27th, 2009
Filing Date	Transaction Date	Insider Name	Ownership Type	Securities	Nature of transaction	# or value acquired or disposed of	Unit Price
Dec 24/09	Dec 15/09	Rubenstein, Jonathan A.	Direct Ownership	Options	50 - Grant of options	7,715	$6.320
Dec 23/09	Dec 15/09	Harris, Jody Lynn	Direct Ownership	Options	50 - Grant of options	20,000	$6.320
Dec 23/09	Dec 15/09	Colterjohn, Richard Mark	Direct Ownership	Options	50 - Grant of options	7,774	$6.320
Dec 23/09	Dec 15/09	Carlson, Eric	Direct Ownership	Options	50 - Grant of options	6,602	$6.320
Dec 23/09	Dec 15/09	Megaw, Peter	Direct Ownership	Options	50 - Grant of options	8,203	$6.320
Dec 23/09	Dec 15/09	White, Derek Christopher	Direct Ownership	Options	50 - Grant of options	14,971	$6.320
Dec 23/09	Dec 15/09	Neal, Gordon	Indirect Ownership	Options	50 - Grant of options	32,883	$6.320
Dec 23/09	Dec 15/09	MacInnis, Daniel Thomas	Direct Ownership	Options	50 - Grant of options	8,379	$6.320
Dec 23/09	Dec 15/09	Jones, R. Michael	Direct Ownership	Options	50 - Grant of options	11,855	$6.320
Dec 23/09	Dec 15/09	Hallam, Frank	Direct Ownership	Options	50 - Grant of options	34,761	$6.320

Now B2Gold (BTO.to) and the mysterious Robert Shaw at it again:

B2Gold Corp. (BTO)						As of December 27th, 2009
Filing Date	Transaction Date	Insider Name	Ownership Type	Securities	Nature of transaction	# or value acquired or disposed of	Unit Price
Dec 24/09	Dec 24/09	Shaw, Robert Peter	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	10 - Disposition in the public market	-1,900	$1.220
Dec 24/09	Dec 24/09	Shaw, Robert Peter	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	10 - Disposition in the public market	-18,100	$1.210
Dec 24/09	Dec 23/09	Shaw, Robert Peter	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	10 - Disposition in the public market	-10,000	$1.150
Dec 24/09	Dec 23/09	Shaw, Robert Peter	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	10 - Disposition in the public market	-30,000	$1.140
Dec 24/09	Dec 23/09	Shaw, Robert Peter	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	10 - Disposition in the public market	-35,000	$1.110

And to wrap up, Avalon (AVL.to) and Robert Anderson just can't seem to take Jim Dines' advice about his own stock....way of the world, I suppose:

Avalon Rare Metals Inc. (AVL)						As of December 27th, 2009
Filing Date	Transaction Date	Insider Name	Ownership Type	Securities	Nature of transaction	# or value acquired or disposed of	Unit Price
Dec 27/09	Dec 22/09	Andersen, Robert James	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	47 - Disposition by gift	-2,500	$2.670
Dec 27/09	Dec 21/09	Andersen, Robert James	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	10 - Disposition in the public market	-5,000	$2.940
Dec 27/09	Dec 18/09	Andersen, Robert James	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	47 - Disposition by gift	-2,500	$2.810
Dec 27/09	Dec 18/09	Andersen, Robert James	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	47 - Disposition by gift	-2,500	$2.810
Dec 27/09	Dec 16/09	Andersen, Robert James	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	10 - Disposition in the public market	-2,700	$2.950
Dec 27/09	Dec 16/09	Andersen, Robert James	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	10 - Disposition in the public market	-7,300	$2.940
Dec 27/09	Dec 16/09	Andersen, Robert James	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	10 - Disposition in the public market	-5,000	$2.930

Rusoro Mining (RML.v); we REALLY don't like late filing of insider trades, vlady

Man attacked by vampire bat

Hey, Agapov you dumbass...you know the best way of getting rid of any shady business family talk around you and your company? DON'T ACT LIKE A SHADY BUSINESS FAMILY.

Here below are the insider transactions filed by Vladimir Agapov yesterday (oh wow...today's Thanksgiving too...hoping we wouldn't notice, you diphead?). They go back to a veeeery late filed September 8th and are all sales. In total the dude has blown out one million, four hundred and fifty-nine thousand shares of Rusoro (RML.v) and only now decides to inform the public. WTF? They add up to CAD$769,000 in gross receipts, by the way. All direct ownership shares too, so the sell orders could only have come directly from you.

This humble corner of cyberspace slaps avoid like the plague on this stock as from today. Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice.............

Insider name: Agapov, Vladimir Pavlovich
Issuer name: Rusoro Mining Ltd.
Nature of transaction	Number	Price	Trans date	File date
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-5000	0.4700	08/09/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-75000	0.4600	09/09/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-100000	0.4500	10/09/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-20000	0.4600	14/09/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-20000	0.4600	14/09/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-20000	0.4600	14/09/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-20000	0.4600	14/09/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-20000	0.4500	14/09/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-7000	0.4700	14/09/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-20000	0.4600	15/09/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-20000	0.4600	15/09/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-20000	0.4600	15/09/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-20000	0.4600	15/09/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-20000	0.4700	15/09/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-20000	0.4700	15/09/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-20000	0.4600	15/09/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-2000	0.4800	15/09/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-20000	0.4600	15/09/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-20000	0.4800	16/09/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-20000	0.4900	16/09/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-20000	0.4800	16/09/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-20000	0.4800	16/09/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-20000	0.4800	16/09/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-20000	0.4800	16/09/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-20000	0.4800	16/09/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-20000	0.4900	16/09/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-20000	0.4600	17/09/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-8500	0.4600	17/09/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-8500	0.4600	17/09/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-4000	0.4600	17/09/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-10000	0.4700	17/09/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-8000	0.4700	17/09/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-22500	0.6000	16/11/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-8500	0.6000	16/11/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-40000	0.5900	17/11/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-40000	0.5900	18/11/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-40000	0.5800	18/11/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-40000	0.5900	18/11/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-40000	0.5800	19/11/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-40000	0.5800	19/11/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-40000	0.5900	19/11/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-40000	0.5800	19/11/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-40000	0.5800	20/11/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-40000	0.5800	23/11/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-40000	0.5700	23/11/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-40000	0.5800	23/11/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-40000	0.5700	23/11/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-80000	0.5700	23/11/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-80000	0.5700	24/11/2009	25/11/2009
10 - Acquisition or disposition in the public market	-80000	0.5800	24/11/2009	25/11/2009

Rusoro Mining (RML.v): Brent Cook shows his integrity

Last Friday evening, Brent Cook of Exploration Insights was the guest for the whole hour on BNN's Market Call evening show. I featured the re-run video in this post on Saturday as essential viewing for mineheads and a lot of you clicked through (if you haven't seen it yet, go have a look...you'll learn loads).

However I got a lot of feedback on the part where Cook commented on Rusoro Mining (RML.v) as he said the company was connected with Russian mafia. Well I laughed about it over my Saturday coffee and then mailed Brent Cook to say that I think he got that one wrong. From what I hear, other people with greater gravitas than I also thought it was a bit heavy. So it was impressive to see Brent Cook stand up yesterday and say "hey guys, I was wrong". In a world of overstuffed egos, kudos is again deserved by Cook for having the fortitude to admit his mistake publicly. I've been given permission to reproduce the extract from his letter to clients yesterday and here it is.

Before moving on to this week’s belated letter I need to rectify a statement I made on Friday’s BNN Market Call Tonight show regarding Rusoro Mining (RML.TSX)

To the best of my knowledge, there is no Russian mafia involvement or connection with Rusoro: I was wrong. According to the most recent information circular, the significant Russian shareholders in Rusoro are Andre Agapov (8.9 million shares), Vladimir Agapov (59 million shares) and Peter Hambro (~6.1 million shares). These are legitimate businessmen and companies.

In retrospect, had my foot not been so much quicker than my mind, this is what I should have said regarding why we are not invested in Rusoro:

Although Rusoro is an obviously undervalued gold company with measured and indicated resources of about seven million ounces and another seven million in the inferred category, I do not see a clear way forward that benefits shareholders: i.e. takes the share price up. There are too many variables and risks that are beyond our ability to understand and predict in Venezuela. This uncertainty is a very strong headwind that I believe will keep outside investors from re-rating the company for quite some time. An investment in Rusoro implicitly assumes that you trust the Venezuelan government (Hugo Chavez at the moment) to play fair with shareholders.

Venezuela has been, shall we say, less than fair in their appropriation of natural resources. In 2007 they nationalized the last foreign company’s participation in an oil field. In the mining sector, Gold Fields and Hecla experienced sufficient national and local government impediments and bureaucracy at their gold projects to convince them it was best to leave. Their departure benefited Rusoro who legally acquired the Choco deposits from Gold Fields and, Isidora from Hecla. RML has subsequently been able to work through the issues and turn those operations around. Rusoro is now the “company of choice” for the Venezuelan government, as evidenced by their joint venture on the Isidora mine.

Elsewhere in Venezuela, Crystallex (a 26-cent stock with reserves of 16.8 million ounces of gold) was denied a mining permit and is awaiting an appeal. Gold Reserve, the other foreign mining company operating in Venezuela, is contesting the revocation of a key permit by the government on their Las Brisas gold deposit. Both companies are effectively dead in the water at the hands of the government.

It just remains for me to say that, as a subscriber to Exploration Insights, I would recommend this high quality newsletter to all. Nobody does the world of rocks as well as Cook. Nobody. For more info, click through here. I state that I stand to receive no sort of renumeration whatsoever from recommending Cook's services to you, it's simply a case of reco'ing a quality service to make you into a better mining investor.

UPDATE: for those of you tuning in from V-Headline, please be clear that Roy Carson is a two-faced lying dickhead of the first order.

Break Out the Vodka, the Permit Is Here Komrades!

Rusoro (RML.v) has just been handed its exploitation permit for the Increible 6 project that's due online next year (via the CVG title holder)....and will now be online next year thanks to this news. Interestingly, to this author's knowledge the Venezuelan government has just handed out its one and only mining permit for the year 2009 (so far, at least).

Thus while the Capitalists of Toronto and Spokane moan and whine and stamp their little feetsies, the nastyman Commies get their way and can mine their gold. Socialism is the best form of kapitalism, komrade.

Blinis and Cristal served, the end.

VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwire - Sept. 11, 2009) -RML - News; "Rusoro" or "RML") is pleased to report that the Company has received the exploitation permit from the Ministry of Basic Industry and Mines (MIBAM) to begin mining at the Increible 6 gold deposit in the Bolivar State mining region in south eastern Venezuela. The Increible 6 is located approximately eight kilometres from the Company's Choco 10 Mine and Mill where ore from the Increible 6 will be processed.

The permit was duly issued to the Corporacion Venezolana de Guayana (CVG) the governmental entity which is the legal holder of the Increible 6 mineral title. General Mining de Guayana, a 100% RML owned Venezuelan subsidiary, has a leasing contract with the CVG for 20 years from the date of the exploitation permit and is legally entitled, as formal leaseholder, to perform all the activities authorized by the permit. It is the only exploitation permit approved this year in the Venezuelan mining sector. Rusoro Mining Ltd., (TSX VENTURE:

The Certificate of Exploitation was published in Venezuela's Official Gazette on September 9th, 2009. With this Exploitation Certificate the Company can now complete the final step required for the start of mining which is the receipt of the Permit to Affect Natural Resources from the Ministry of the Environment. The permitting process remains on track for production from Increible 6 in 2009.

Rusoro's 100% owned Increible 6 deposit is host to 1,587,000 ounces indicated (23.5 Mt @ 2.11g/t Au) and 1,100,000 ounces inferred (17.5 Mt @ 1.95g/t Au) (see News Release - Nov. 15, 2007), which Rusoro has advanced through discovery, delineation and now development. The resource estimates for Increible 6 are detailed in a technical report dated November 14, 2007, revised and updated February 14, 2008, titled "Technical Report on the Increible 6 Property, Bolivar State, Venezuela".

Increible 6, along with Choco 10, was the subject of a scoping study (PA), which highlighted the production expansion alternatives for the future (see News Release - May 19, 2009). The positive PA was completed by Micon International Limited, and evaluated the viability of a major expansion at the Choco Mine and Mill and which incorporated the nearby Increible 6 gold deposit. The PA is detailed in a report dated June 2, 2009 and titled "Technical Report on the Preliminary Assessment of the Expansion of Production at Choco 10, Bolivar State, Venezuela". The PA outlined favourable economics for a significant expansion from 135,000 oz Au/yr (2009 guidance) to over 500,000 oz Au/yr at a cash cost of US$331/oz Au over the life of mine (LOM). The PA is preliminary in nature, and includes inferred mineral resources that are considered too speculative geologically to have the economic considerations applied to them that would enable them to be categorized as mineral reserves, and there is no certainty that the preliminary assessment will be realized. See news release (May 19, 2009) for a summary of the basis for the PA and a listing of the qualifications and assumptions made by the qualified persons.

Revealed! Rusoro CEO André Agapov's secret double life!

YOU BE THE JUDGE!

Reader 'SM' sent over a link to this post on Stockhouse by Lexluthor2. Lex says:

I can swear this either him or his younger brother in the video playing the guitar.

Well Lex, on further investigation IKN can confirm your smart observation. Indeed, the guitarist in the band Los Colorados is in fact André Agapov, CEO and head honcho of Russky-Canucky-Venezuelan..y gold mining company Rusoro Mining (RML.v). So sit back and enjoy the multi-talented Agapov as he rocks da house on this cover version of Hot'N'Cold by Kate Perry.

Fabulous stuff, André, we're proud of you.

Icebergs ahoy!

PI Financial Corp has still got its foot firmly on the Rusoro PPS, but this morning's action looks like melting a large chunk of the iceberg that's suppressed the stock. Here's today's early morning action and "59" is still squatting on that ask.

	09:38:12	V	0.46	+0.025	10,000	1 Anonymous	59 PI	K
	09:32:17	V	0.46	+0.025	2,000	124 Questrade	59 PI	K
	09:31:35	V	0.465	+0.03	10,000	79 CIBC	59 PI	K
	09:30:58	V	0.46	+0.025	500	124 Questrade	89 Raymond James	K
	09:30:34	V	0.46	+0.025	500	124 Questrade	59 PI	K
	09:30:34	V	0.46	+0.025	100,000	2 RBC	59 PI	K
	09:30:34	V	0.46	+0.025	100,000	2 RBC	59 PI	K
	09:30:34	V	0.46	+0.025	75,000	2 RBC	59 PI	K
	09:30:34	V	0.46	+0.025	74,500	2 RBC	59 PI	K

09:30:00	V	0.46	+0.025	300	89 Raymond James	33 Canaccord	E
09:30:00	V	0.46	+0.025	25,500	2 RBC	33 Canaccord	K
09:30:00	V	0.46	+0.025	100,000	2 RBC	33 Canaccord	K
09:30:00	V	0.46	+0.025	75,000	2 RBC	33 Canaccord	K

DYODD, dudes, as Venezuela exposed gold stocks aren't for the faint of heart.

Dear Mr. Belanger.....

....you should have taken the Russky offer, dude.

Hey, remember at the beginning of the year when Gold Reserve (GRZ) shareholders were celebrating the fact that they'd rebuffed the Rusoro (RML.v) hostile bid? It was about the same time as when GRZ was trading in the U$1.10 range.

Here's Reuters' report guaranteed to loosen the bowels of anyone silly enough to still believe the tosh that comes from Doug Belanger's mouth and be long GRZ. Expect to win it back through the courts now, do you? 'Scuse me while I stifle a giggle or twenty-seven.

Venezuela denied a request by a subsidiary of Canadian mining Gold Reserve to extend a grant in the Brisas gold project, informed the Ministry of Basic Industries and Mining through the Official Gazette that circulated on Monday.

Moreover, the resolution declared extinct on the granting mineral rights in (Gold Reserve’s) El Pauji concession for exploration and exploitation of gold and diamonds in southern Latin America .

The ministry claimed that Gold Reserve "is not solvent with the Republic," it proceeded to not renew the grant, which expired on July 20, 2008.