The Vancouver investment conference 2015 fails to sparkle

Due to it being the first major mining investment conference of the year, the Vancouver Cambridge House Resource Conference acts as a bell weather for the coming year.

If this runs true to form in 2015, then we are in for another very dull year!

Upon arriving at the conference, the first indication is the escalator test, when you peer down from a great height from the top of the escalator to the assembled people below queuing to gain entry to the show.

This year, at 10.30 am, as I glanced down where the queue would normally be, there was nobody!

So you can imagine my shock, when entering the show, to discover there were hundreds of people milling around the stands and a vibrant atmosphere prevailing! Upon closer inspection, the great majority were wearing suits, which, in laid back casual dress Canada, suggested more ‘trade’ than investors!

And so it came to pass, with booth holders complaining that the great majority of people visiting their stands were either industry related (unemployed geologists et al) or IR related, but hardly any investors! The mining industry has spawned an industry within an industry, and nowhere was it so apparent than this Vancouver show!

The question most stand holders were asking is where were the investors?

The answer was, quite simply, in very short supply!

The show was full of people looking for commercial opportunities, but investors were few and far between!

And this despite the huge “no soliciting” signs displayed everywhere!

Companies that caught the eye were rare, Scorpio Gold, in production were one, Fission Uranium, Uranium Energy Corp., and producer B2Gold Corp., (which would be a play on the price of gold recovering), were a few that did.

 

In this particular instance, one wonders whether the 9,400 mile round trip involving nearly a day in the air, and an energy sapping and sleep depriving 8 hour time difference was justified?