G20 close their wallets

G20 close their wallets
The chase by Marty Cej:

The dialogue in last night's winner for Best Picture at the Oscars was more riveting than what emerged from the G20 meetings over the weekend. Finance ministers from the world's "leading economies" told Europe that it must put up more of its own money if it hopes to get more cash from the rest of the world. The statement was a relatively straightforward exhortation to Germany to drop its opposition to a bigger bailout fund and to contribute more for the benefit of the union. The finance ministers and central bankers who attended the meeting – setting the groundwork for a conference of G20 leaders in the weeks ahead – told Europe that they would be willing to throw more money at the IMF but that the IMF cannot be a substitute for a stronger, effective firewall and that the IMF can't move forward anyway without a clear plan for Europe by Europe. In short, the week begins where last week ended.

European stocks are lower and U.S. stock index futures are pointing to early declines in the wake of the G20's communiqué. Investors are also pointing to the rally in crude oil as an excuse for Monday's declines in Asian and European stocks, though the oil rally started back at the beginning of October. Oil is up more than 40 percent since October 4 and needs to stay near the top of our news agenda. Mike Mazar, energy services analyst at BMO Capital Markets, joins us at 10:10 am Eastern to talk about the best opportunities in the sector.

Warren Buffett sent his annual letter out to Berkshire Hathaway shareholders this weekend, apologizing for getting the bottom of the housing market wrong and insisting that the board had found the right guy to lead the company once he steps down, only Buffett wouldn't name the Next in Line. Buffett continues to insist that stocks are the way to go and that they will perform better than bonds, gold or any other investment this year. He also says single-family homes are relatively cheap and recommends that first-time buyers step into the market now and lock in a 30-year mortgage for next-to-nothing. This week sees a raft of housing data, starting with today's pending home sales for January, then the Case-Shiller U.S. home price index Wednesday and mortgage applications due out Thursday.

Today marks the beginning of the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. Among the keynote speakers this week are the CEOs or Chairmen of Nokia, Cisco, Vodafone, Spring Nextel, Google, Ford Motor Co., Ebay, Best Buy, China Mobile, Alcatel Lucent and Deutsche Telekom. Among our focuses this week is the relevance of Research In Motion, as in, is it relevant any more.

Bank of Montreal kicks of Canadian bank earnings season tomorrow, followed by RBC and TD on Thursday.

Today also marks the trade deadline for the NHL. Fingers are crossed in the BNN newsroom that the Toronto Maple Leafs will be traded for an NHL hockey team.

TSX Leader Board

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Symbol	Name	Last Trade	Change	Volume	Related Info
UUU.TO	URANIUM ONE INC.	3.3110:24AM EST	0.10 (3.12%)	4,781,129	Chart, Profile, More
FBK.TO	FIBREK INC.	1.2410:20AM EST	0.05 (3.88%)	3,512,100	Chart, Profile, More
BBD-B.TO	BOMBARDIER INC., CL. B, SV	4.8310:24AM EST	0.04 (0.82%)	2,597,310	Chart, Profile, More
SU.TO	SUNCOR ENERGY INC.	36.9010:25AM EST	0.51 (1.40%)	2,064,528	Chart, Profile, More
AIM.TO	GROUPE AEROPLAN INC	12.2810:23AM EST	0.18 (1.49%)	1,513,564	Chart, More
CLL.TO	CONNACHER OIL	1.0810:19AM EST	0.04 (3.85%)	1,309,190	Chart, Profile, More
IMG.TO	IAMGOLD CORP	16.2710:25AM EST	1.23 (7.03%)	1,097,478	Chart, Profile, More
ELD.TO	ELDORADO GOLD	15.1110:25AM EST	0.25 (1.68%)	1,059,398	Chart, Profile, More
DHX.TO	DHX MEDIA LTD	0.999:58AM EST	0.02 (1.98%)	1,019,214	Chart, Profile, More
CNQ.TO	CDN NATURAL RES	38.0710:25AM EST	0.37 (0.96%)	1,004,849	Chart, Profile, More
LUN.TO	LUNDIN MINING CORP.	5.1510:24AM EST	0.08 (1.58%)	975,628	Chart, Profile, More
MFC.TO	MANULIFE FIN	12.4910:25AM EST	0.02 (0.16%)	917,612	Chart, Profile, More
DML.TO	DENISON MINES CORP.	1.9610:24AM EST	0.00 (0.00%)	902,504	Chart, Profile, More
RMP.TO	RMP ENERGY INC	2.5210:24AM EST	0.01 (0.40%)	889,885	Chart, More
CNE.TO	CANACOL ENERGY LTD	1.0510:07AM EST	0.01 (0.96%)	756,575	Chart, More
YRI.TO	YAMANA GOLD INC	17.7310:24AM EST	0.17 (0.95%)	737,536	Chart, Profile, More
PDN.TO	PALADIN ENERGY LTD.	2.0410:21AM EST	0.01 (0.49%)	706,866	Chart, Profile, More
BXE.TO	BELLATRIX EXPLORATION LTD	5.3710:21AM EST	0.08 (1.51%)	704,790	Chart, Profile, More
K.TO	KINROSS GOLD CORP.	11.2310:24AM EST	0.19 (1.66%)	660,641	Chart, More
TLM.TO	TALISMAN ENERGY INC.	14.1510:25AM EST	0.10 (0.70%)	637,169	Chart, Profile, More
G.TO	GOLDCORP INC	48.4610:25AM EST	0.89 (1.80%)	608,628	Chart, Profile, More
SPB.TO	SUPERIOR PLUS CORP.	7.1610:25AM EST	0.26 (3.77%)	577,415	Chart, Profile, More
L.TO	LOBLAW CO	34.8110:25AM EST	0.44 (1.25%)	549,205	Chart, Profile, More
GUY.TO	GUYANA GOLDFIELDS INC	7.1310:25AM EST	1.27 (15.12%)	537,224	Chart, Profile, More
LAM.TO	LARAMIDE RESOURCES LTD.	1.0610:20AM EST	0.09 (9.28%)	522,247	Chart, Profile, More

BNK-T, BNK-L Mark Hodgson VP Talks To Canaccord's Pescod

AN INTERVIEW WITH MARK HODGSONVP BUSINESS DEVELOPMENTWITH BANKERS PETROLEUM(As of February 15, 2012It was a while ago that we were offto Albania and saw first-hand thesize of Bankers Petroleum’s heavy oilproject there. The first sight isawe-inspiring as oil is everywhere(on the roads, the ditches) andthere are hundreds upon hundredsof old Chinese and Russian der-ricks as far as the eye can see.

Inbetween the antique Russian andChinese technology is new equip-ment helping to clean up a bit ofthe mess and hopefully more effi-ciently extract the oil.Time to get caught up as a new resource and production re-port was just released and it brings up a few questions…Wego to VP Business Development Mark Hodgson for an update:

David Pescod: Mark, this production number for the pastquarter of just over 14,000 barrels a day is a bit of a disap-pointment to followers of the company. We’ve heard rumorsof problems getting people with the right skills and equip-ment over there. What should we know about that and howsoon do you expect to see 20,000 barrels a day?Mark

Hodgson: With 5 drilling rigs operating full time we arenow able to drill 10 horizontal wells per month which meansproduction is certainly on its way. In 2010 and 2011 we grewproduction by 50% and 30% respectively, and we are target-ing similar growth in 2012 and over the next several years.Skilled industry professionals are in fact difficult to findwithin the country so we recruit heavily from Alberta for bothour technical and operations teams.

Competition, as you know, is fierce for skilled heavy oil workers within the prov-ince, but we do feel that the combination of the opportunity towork on rotation in Southern Europe, the excitement of work-ing with such a work class asset, and also the options, allmake for an attractive employment package, and that is re-flected in the growth we have seen in quality staff over thepast few years. Equipment challenges relate mostly to leadtime as most of our supplies are based in other countries.That said, the proximity to the coast makes it quite easy tobring equipment in and out of the country.

DP: The reserve/resource report bounces out numberslike 200 million and 400 million barrels - numbers that mostjunior or intermediate oil companies would only dream of.But for the followers of Bankers, we dream of billions.What should we know about the numbers and how much ispotentially recoverable?

MH: That is the great thing about this field David, not onlydo we keep finding new applications of existing westerntechnology that enhance the recovery, but we also keepfinding more oil! As of this year we see an incremental 1billion barrels of contingent resource that we can begin toconvert into reserves, and the best part is, it is all extract-able using off the shelf technology from heavy operationshere in Canada.

DP: Abby Badwi and members of the senior mgmt teambrought Rally Petroleum in Egypt to a certain point andthen sold it. The suggestion by many is that a big com-pany, sooner or later, will take over Bankers and with big-ger resources, will be able to increase production quicker.Where does that thought sit currently?

MH: I think Abby puts it best when he refers to this field asthe field of dreams. “Build it and they will come” he says,and he is right. Patos-Marinza is the biggest onshore oilfield in Europe, and when developed to peak production itwill be one of the largest suppliers of heavy oil to the re-gion for years to come. We are certainly making amazingstrides in terms of delineating the prize, but we still see somuch potential. The big players will come eventually, andwhen they do, we will be looking out for the best interest ofour shareholders, be it a corporate sale, a joint venture, ortaking more time to see the proper value recognition re-flected in the transaction. In the meantime we are buildingthis company like we will be there for the next 25 years.

DP: Albania being in Europe may have issues these days.Any concerns being in Europe that we should be aware of?

MH: Albania is a member of NATO and has applied to theEU, however it has a very isolated economy with the pri-mary industry being farming. It has very little sovereigndebt and as such has stayed out of the kind of troubles wesee elsewhere in the region. Investment in the country isexpanding at a rapid rate as are government tax revenuesthrough the reemergence of industries like the oil sector.

We feel lucky to be in such a stable region, and are pleased with the forward thinking of the Albanian govern-ment with their open policy towards foreign investment.

DP: Shell have just farmed into some of the exploration blocks of your neighbor in Albania, PetroManas. What doesthis mean for Albania and for Bankers?

MH: It is obvious great news to see Shell back in the country. Shell was the first company to license our Block F ex-ploration concession. We wish the new partnership every success in their high impact exploration campaign just tothe east of Patos-Marinza. For Albania, this is a significant event because it really paves the way for more interestfrom other large players. For Bankers this will definitely be a relationship we look to build on, be it through partner-ship on gas usage, or potentially larger infrastructure projects.

DP: What are your thoughts on what next for oil prices and a stock pick that wouldn’t be a conflict of interest?

MH: Most people are aware of the key factors effecting oil prices in general over the past few months. First is tighten-ing supply from OPEC (by that I mean that Saudi and Libyan production increases seem to have been absorbed by themarketplace), you can add to that the risk of a supply shock around some sort of escalation of conflict in Iran.

Second is the effect of the Euro zone crisis on global growth and subsequent demand. Third is the how a US election year andresults will effect foreign policy and impact points 1 and 2!From where we sit, we also keep a close eye on the WTI-Brent differential because all of our sales are priced off Brent.

All indications from new production coming on near Cushing seems to point toward that differential staying strong inthe months to come. It makes what we are doing in Europe all the more attractive.As for a stock pick, I’d have to say Porto Energy.

Joe Ash and the team have got some great exciting wells coming up,and with the shares down to $0.15 from their $1.00 IPO, the risk/reward is more compelling than ever.

DP: Thank you very much Mark!

Takeovers the Path to Golden Returns: Sascha Opel

Sascha Opel, publisher of one of Germany's most popular commodity newsletters, looks at the economy with rose-colored glasses. He sees the end of the Euro crisis and sees Asian growth as the engine pulling the world out of its economic malaise. He finds the path to golden returns in gold and silver companies likely to be taken over and in this exclusive interview with The Gold Report, he's not afraid to name likely targets.

The Gold Report: It's been four years since you told The Gold Report that gold was beginning the process of re-establishing itself as money.
Sascha Opel: We are in the middle of this process. Many people and even central banks have added gold to their portfolios or balance sheets as they realized that no paper currency is 100% safe anymore. The Greek haircut has made it clear to investors that even European government bonds are not safe havens. The money went into German and U.S. bonds. But what happens in the next few years with growing debt in these countries?

For me, what is still most important is unlike bank, corporate or government bonds, gold has no risk of failure. Bonds have to pay interest to the investors who take the risk to lend the money. If you own gold you are completely independent from any government or any other institution in the world. You are out of the modern financial system. You don't owe anyone anything. Since 2008 it as been clear: gold is the only safe haven.

You can find many, many potential takeover targets, such as
exploration or development companies. Alacer Gold Corp. (ASR:TSX)

Source

ALACER GOLD ANNOUNCES 23% INCREASE OF HIGGINSVILLE MINERAL RESERVE ESTIMATE TO 875,000 OUNCES

See The CEO On BNN:

http://watch.bnn.ca/the-street/january-2012/the-street-january-11-2012/#clip598805

Alacer's Higginsville at 7.9 Mt of 3.5 g/t Au P+P


News Release


Mr. Edward Dowling reports

ALACER GOLD ANNOUNCES 23% INCREASE OF HIGGINSVILLE MINERAL RESERVE ESTIMATE TO 875,000 OUNCES

Alacer Gold Corp. has issued updated mineral resource and reserve estimates for its Higginsville gold operations in Australia. The mineral reserve estimate has increased by 164,000 ounces (net of mining depletion over 18 months) to 7.9 million tonnes at 3.5 grams per tonne gold, containing 875,000 ounces, as detailed in the related table.

MINERAL RESERVE FOR HIGGINSVILLE OPERATIONS AS AT DEC. 31, 2011

Proven Probable Total reserves
Tonnes Grade Ounces Tonnes Grade Ounces Tonnes Grade Ounces
(kt) (g/t) (000s) (kt) (g/t) (000s) (kt) (g/t) (000s)

Trident underground 595 5.0 96 3,108 4.5 447 3,703 4.6 543
Chalice underground - - - 1,049 4.3 144 1,049 4.3 144
Fairplay underground - - - 139 6.4 29 139 6.4 29
Open pits - - - 2,704 1.7 151 2,704 1.7 151
Stockpiles (*) 282 0.8 7 - - - 282 0.8 7
Total 877 3.7 104 7,000 3.4 771 7,877 3.5 875

Note: Rounding differences will occur. The above estimate is based on a gold price of
$1,350 (U.S.) per ounce.

(*) Includes satellite and Trident low-grade stockpiles.
Edward Dowling, president and chief executive officer of Alacer, stated: "This updated Higginsville reserve is the culmination of extensive drilling and other work since July, 2010. The net increase of 164,000 ounces is quite significant considering that the Higginsville gold operations produced more than 230,000 ounces of gold during the 18 months to December, 2011.

"The increased reserves are largely due to down-plunge extensions of the Trident orebody. The Trident reserve was about 500,000 ounces when mining started four years ago, more than 500,000 ounces have now been produced from Trident, and the Trident reserve remains more than 500,000 ounces.

"It is important to note that the measured and indicated resources for Trident and Chalice total a combined 5.7 million tonnes at 4.9 grams per tonne gold, containing 895,000 ounces. Further drilling should progressively convert more resources to reserves as well as continuing to extend both resources. These efforts take time, but we are excited about the likelihood of additional high-margin ores as demonstrated by the recent high-grade discovery at Corona within the Higginsville line of lode.

"An increasing proportion of Higginsville feed should be high-grade ore from underground mines following the ramp-up of Chalice ore production later this year. This will take Higginsville a long way towards the target of processing 1.5 million tonnes per annum at a head grade of 4.5 grams per tonne gold, thus producing approximately 200,000 ounces per annum."

The primary components of the net reserve increase of 164,000 ounces since the previous (July, 2010) estimate are:

Despite Trident being the predominant ore source for Higginsville, the Trident underground mineral reserve increased by 47,000 ounces largely as a result of additional ounces in the Artemis and Helios lodes, partially offset by mining depleting the Western zone, Apollo and Athena lodes.
The Chalice mineral reserve increased by 26,000 ounces and reflects the identification of the new lodes in the footwall to the main Olympus lode. The grade has decreased slightly due to additional drilling and conversion to reserves of resources up dip of the Olympus lode.
The updated estimate includes a maiden Fairplay underground mineral reserve of 29,000 ounces. This relatively high-grade reserve would potentially be accessed from the floor of the planned Fairplay pit.
Systematic evaluation of existing mineral resources has increased open pit mineral reserves by a total of 79,000 ounces, predominantly from the Pluto, Musket, Mitchell and Vine deposits.
The updated mineral reserve was estimated at a gold price of $1,350 (U.S.) per ounce, compared with $1,200 per ounce for the July, 2010, mineral reserve.
The Higginsville mineral resource was previously stated at July 1, 2011. This previous estimate has been adjusted to reflect mining depletion totalling 61,302 ounces over the six months to Dec. 31, 2011. The updated estimate is in the related table.

Source

EnCana sheds assets

EnCana sheds assets
The chase by Noah Zivitz:

EnCana's efforts to navigate languishing natural prices top our agenda this morning. Mitsubishi has signed up as a 40% joint-venture partner in EnCana's Cutbank Ridge assets in the Montney for the tidy sum of $2.9 billion. But let's not mistake that as a sign EnCana is plowing full-steam ahead to develop projects. CEO Randy Eresman says it is "abundantly clear that a continued reduction of drilling activity will be required to restore market balance." So EnCana is slashing capital spending to 37 percent below last year's levels.

We'll need to hear what a move like this could mean for gas prices, if others will follow, and explore whether EnCana has other JVs lined up. Oh yes, it looks like earnings came in a little shy of expectations. Paul Bagnell has the early file. We've got reaction from portfolio managers at 10:30 and 11:40.
Price pressures are intensifying in Canada. The loonie added to its gains after Statistics Canada reported the consumer price index advanced 0.5 percent in January. The Bank of Canada's closely-watched core index was a tick above the BoC's target. In a note to clients, BMO says today's CPI is "payback time" after prices were surprisingly low in late 2011. All told, it doesn't look like this will prompt a shift in strategy for the central bank. But we need to consider how Canadians will cope when facing rising prices.

As the world turns in Greece, we await meetings taking place Sunday and Money when eurozone finance ministers meet to determine Athens' fate. Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti says he'll be in close contact with his German and Greek counterparts over the weekend. I'd like to hear if the sudden resignation of Germany's president will distract Chancellor Merkel from crisis talks. We're hoping to get Finance Minister Jim Flaherty's perspective on the situation just before 11am ET.

While macro talk dominates, we're not losing sight of today's compelling stock stories. Fairfax Financial logged a $771 million loss late yesterday on investment and underwriting losses. CEO Prem Watsa says Fairfax won't back off its equity hedges because the company is "very
concerned" about the economy.

When Watsa talks, investors listen. And there'll be a whole lot of listening to do at 8:30 when Watsa presides over Fairfax's conference call. We'll track it closely.

We're also waiting for earnings from Brookfield Asset Management, Enbridge and Cott. Enbridge boss Pat Daniel joins us at 3:20 to talk numbers and Northern Gateway.
We've got a jam-packed data docket. We're also looking at U.S. CPI data. And we'll get Canadian and U.S. leading indicators this morning, too.

The BNN Source