Spotlight 🔍 U.S. Gold Corp.

U.S. Gold Corp. offers a shovel-ready,
value-heavy golden opportunity in 2025

• U.S. Gold’s flagship CK Gold Project is one of North America’s only fully permitted gold-copper projects, offering significant investor upside.
• The company aims to monetize 40 million tonnes of waste rock from its CK Gold Project as aggregate, with an estimated pre-tax value of $330 million. Additionally, a study planned for 2025 could reveal a significantly larger aggregate resource.
• With a tight share structure, strong leadership team, and some of the industry’s most reputable institutional investors onboard, U.S. Gold Corp. is well financed as it aims to complete a bankable feasibility study by mid-2025.

As gold prices continue their upward climb, investors are increasingly focusing on exploration companies that excel in three pivotal areas: location, leadership, and leverage.

Over the past year, at our CEM conferences, resource companies demonstrating strength in these critical benchmarks have attracted substantial capital inflows and unlocked new growth opportunities.

One such standout is U.S. Gold Corp. (NASDAQ: USAU), a Wyoming-based company that exemplifies the powerful trifecta of strategic project locations, a seasoned leadership team, and a significant opportunity to leverage its core assets.

This past November, U.S. Gold Corp. achieved a significant milestone for its flagship CK Gold/Copper project, receiving approval for its air quality permit from the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality (WDEQ).

This permit marks the final requirement tied to the mine-operating permit granted to the CK Project earlier in April 2024. The other two prerequisites — the project’s reclamation bond and the Wyoming Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit — had already been fulfilled.

“We're now one of the only juniors on the planet with a fully permitted, shovel-ready gold/copper project that has not been developed,” said U.S. Gold Corp. Chairman and Co-Founder, Luke Norman.

“We are on track to be the next 100,000+oz /year gold-copper producer,” he said.

U.S. Gold Corp. is currently progressing three key projects.

The CK Project in Wyoming

The CK Project, originally known as the Copper King Mine, is situated on state and private land in Laramie County, Wyoming, approximately 20 miles west of Cheyenne. Covering around 1,120 acres (equivalent to 2 square miles), the property is owned by U.S. Gold Corp.

Acquired from Energy Fuels in 2014, the CK Project features a large-tonnage gold-copper deposit with Proven and Probable reserves totalling 1.48 million ounces of gold equivalent. This includes 1.11 million ounces of gold and 280 million pounds of copper, with significant potential for expansion both at depth and laterally.

A pre-feasibility study conducted in 2021 outlined a 10-year mine life, with an average annual production of 108,500 oz. of gold equivalent, including 135,300 oz. per year over the initial three years. Over the mine’s lifespan, total production is projected at 248.8 million lb. of copper and 1.02 million oz. of gold.

The study also highlighted strong project economics, featuring an after-tax net present value (5% discount) of $266 million and an internal rate of return of 33.7%. Initial capital expenditures are projected at $221 million, with a payback period of just two years. An updated PFS on the CK Project is expected in early 2025.

The Keystone Project in Nevada

The Keystone Project, located in Nevada's world-renowned Cortez Trend, is a Carlin-type gold exploration initiative. The Cortez Trend has been one of the most productive gold mining regions globally, contributing over 245 million ounces of gold in the past 50 years. The Keystone property spans 20 square miles and is 100% controlled by U.S. Gold Corp., marking a significant consolidation of an entire district on the Cortez Trend. The project exhibits geological characteristics similar to those found in some of North America’s largest and most productive mines in the area. Despite its promising location, the district had never been systematically explored using modern, model-driven techniques, until U.S. Gold Corp. acquired and consolidated the land package.

The Challis Gold Project in Idaho

The Challis Gold Project is a high-potential gold exploration property located approximately 47 miles southwest of Salmon, Idaho, and 12 miles southwest of Revival Gold's Beartrack Project. Historical (non-current) resource estimates under the NI 43-101 framework suggest approximately 313,825 ounces of gold at a grade of 1.22 g/t gold. The Challis Gold Project is surrounded by several notable mining areas, including the Stibnite gold project, Beartrack gold project, Delamar silver-gold mine, Coeur d'Alene silver-zinc-lead mines, Black Pine gold mine, and Thompson Creek molybdenum mine. These nearby operations underscore the significant mining potential in the region, making Challis Gold a promising addition to U.S. Gold Corp.'s portfolio.

Creating value from waste, U.S. Gold Corp. is more than metals

U.S. Gold Corp. has identified a significant opportunity to monetize waste rock from its CK Project by selling it as aggregate products. With excellent infrastructure, proximity to major markets and high-quality rock suitable for uses such as railway ballast, this initiative could transform what is currently waste into a valuable by-product.

Out of 59 million tonnes of waste rock projected over the 10-year mine life, about 30 million tonnes could be sold as aggregate. At a conservative net margin of $11 per tonne, this represents a potential pre-tax value of $330 million. Even under a modest sales scenario of 1 million tonnes per year, the project could yield an NPV of $160 million, while larger-scale operations of 3–3.5 million tonnes annually could increase the NPV to $246 million.

Two strategies are under consideration: integrating aggregate sales as a by-product to offset metal production costs, potentially reducing all-in sustaining costs by $100–$300/oz, or establishing aggregate sales as a separate business. This could involve partnerships or outright sales, generating upfront revenue to fund the mine's development and reduce equity dilution.

With the potential for long-term aggregate operations extending beyond the life of the mine, this initiative enhances the project's economic viability and underscores its strategic value.

Additionally, the company is looking at an opportunity to repurpose the mined-out pit as an additional water storage reservoir for the City of Cheyenne. This alternative would lower post-closure costs, enable further sales of material as aggregate, and support the growing water needs of Cheyenne's expanding population.

U.S. Gold Corp. — A Top Pick for Florida Breakout

U.S. Gold Corp. was honoured as a Top Pick at CEM’s 8th Annual Florida Capital Event, highlighting its exceptional investment potential in the gold and copper mining sector. During the event's signature Investor Breakout Exchange, attendees were particularly impressed by the company’s innovative waste-rock monetization plans and the CK Project — one of the rare fully-permitted mining projects awaiting development. 

Stock Information NASDAQ: USAU

1. As of market open on Monday January 6, 2025
2. As of market open on Monday November 18, 2024 after being selected as a Top Pick at the CEM Florida Capital Event

After U.S. Gold Corp. was named a Top Pick at the 8th Annual Florida Capital Event, I had the opportunity to connect with the company's Chairman and Co-Founder, Luke Norman, for this exclusive Spotlight Q&A.

With gold prices rising and attracting more investor interest, what makes U.S. Gold Corp. better prepared for growth compared to its competitors?

“The CK project is positioned to be Wyoming’s next producing mine, adding gold and copper production to the state’s resource portfolio.

At a time when there are very few permitted projects in the pipeline ready to meet the growing demand for gold and copper production, we're one of the only juniors on the planet with a fully permitted project that has not been developed.

Our projects are in mining-friendly jurisdictions, with well-defined legislation and good infrastructure.

For instance, the CK project is only 20 miles east of Cheyenne and about 25 miles west of Laramie, giving us easy access to a qualified and enthusiastic workforce. So, we don’t have to deal with costs associated with building work-camps and holding on to additional machinery…this helps minimize costs associated with development of a mine.

There are also significant areas of upside and opportunity building upon our waste rock potential.

The waste rock is a highly marketable, highly valuable source of aggregate in Wyoming and nearby Colorado. It's attracted a lot of attention towards the project, from construction companies, from aggregates companies, from concrete companies. So, the value in CK goes well beyond just the copper and gold components now.

For those not so bullish on the gold cycle our copper component offers diversification of the asset.

Given where we are now, there is a lot of interest from a M&A (mergers and acquisition) perspective, but the key value proposition for us now is moving CK towards production.”

What is the company’s current financial position, and how does its leadership team contribute to its success?

“We recently wrapped up a $10.2 million non-brokered raise, which brought in some well-respected veterans from the mining industry. Moreover, several of our major long-term shareholders increased their positions — a clear vote of confidence and strong shareholder support.

With this funding, U.S. Gold Corp. is well financed for the next two years and well-positioned to advance the development of the CK Project.

One unique aspect of our company is our tight share structure. We currently hold around $12 million in cash with just over 12 million shares outstanding, and we’re exclusively listed on NASDAQ.

We’re also seeing continued validation of our efforts. High-calibre investors like Eric Sprott, Terra Capital, and Phoenix Gold have come on board, helping to expand our international exposure.

Our leadership team has a lot of skin in the game, holding significant ownership in the company. We’re committed to securing the right project financing while keeping dilution to an absolute minimum for our fellow shareholders.

George Bee, our President and CEO, has had a stellar career advancing world-class gold mining projects across eight countries and three continents, working with both major and junior mining companies. Notably, George spent 16 years with Barrick Gold, one of the largest names in the industry.

Robert Schafer, one of our directors, is the past president and board member of PDAC (Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada). He’s a professional geologist with over 35 years of international experience discovering mineral deposits.

As for me, as Chairman, I bring over 20 years of experience in venture capital markets, having raised close to $300 million for both public and private companies.

Another of our directors is Johanna Fipke, a partner at one of Canada’s top national law firms. With over two decades of experience, she specializes in advising clients in the mining industry.

Together, we’ve kept our project simple and streamlined, which has led to expedited permit approvals and growing investor interest.

This approach is a rarity in today’s mining sector, where a lack of funding for exploration and overwhelming permitting challenges have made it tough to get new projects off the ground.”

What’s 2025 looking like for U.S. Gold?

“After having pulled off a fully permitted project without a huge amount of fanfare, 2025 is shaping up to be a busy year for us at U.S. Gold Corp.

With growing investor interest and, of course, subject to suitable financing, our goal is to get the CK Gold Project into development by the end of 2025. We’re well-funded to hit our next big milestones, starting with an updated Pre-Feasibility Study in early 2025, followed by the final Feasibility Study.

As we move through this process, we’ll be looking closely at different technologies and opportunities to optimize development and production costs.

One of the big upsides of the CK Project is the aggregates component — it’s a huge opportunity. That said, aggregates are a massive business, and we don’t really see ourselves as major players in that space. Instead, we’d like to bring in the right partner to help access and capitalize on the aggregate potential while we focus on developing the gold and copper deposit.

Looking ahead, the CK Project is in a strong position to take advantage of favourable commodity prices for gold and copper, which are projected to remain robust in 2025.”

Our View

1. Fully Permitted CK Gold Project
   U.S. Gold Corp.'s flagship CK Project stands out as one of the few fully permitted, ready-to-build gold-copper projects worldwide that remain undeveloped, making it an ideal candidate for near-term production and significant investor value. Such assets are rare outside the portfolios of producing companies, positioning the project as both an attractive funding opportunity and a potential takeover target. The company is aiming to complete a bankable feasibility study by mid-2025, with growing optimism around its ability to secure financing and raise the necessary capital to bring the project into production.

2. Innovative Waste Rock Monetization Strategy
   U.S. Gold Corp. has identified a substantial opportunity to monetize waste rock from the CK Gold Project by selling it as aggregate products. With excellent infrastructure and proximity to major markets, this initiative could transform waste into a valuable by-product. Approximately 30 million tonnes of waste rock could be sold as aggregate over the mine's life, potentially generating a pre-tax value of $330 million. This strategy enhances the project's economic viability as any upfront payments on an aggregate deal could help lower the amount of equity financing needed for the mine development capital expenditures.

3. Strategic Project Locations in Prolific Mining Districts
   In addition to the CK Gold Project, U.S. Gold Corp. owns two promising assets in highly prospective regions: the Keystone Project in Nevada and the Challis Gold Project in Idaho. Both projects offer significant exploration potential. Once the CK Project begins generating cash flow, the company will be in a much stronger position to unlock the value of these earlier-stage assets and advance their development.

The Investor Breakout Advantage

Our Investor Breakout Spotlight Features are based on the Top Picks and Outstanding Performers at CEM conferences, which are held seven times a year. These invite-only summits serve as the meeting ground for North America’s most influential investors and industry-leading issuers, who participate in a day-long series of one-on-one meetings.

At the end of each event, after over 1,000 meetings have taken place, investors gather for the Breakout Exchange forum to identify their Top Picks and Outstanding Performers.

Next Stop: Bahamas 

Mark your calendars! 

AlphaNorth Capital Event
January 17 – January 19, 2025

The 11th Annual AlphaNorth Capital Event is your unmissable gateway to groundbreaking investment opportunities in 2025 and beyond. Set against the breathtaking backdrop of the newly renovated Atlantis Resort in Nassau, this event will feature curated one-on-one meetings that give capital market players direct access to insights from cutting-edge companies across critical sectors.

Warm Regards and Happy Investing,
Fabian Dawson