Crystallex Intl (AMEX: KRY) - 500 Beiträge pro Seite

[peter.wedemeier1]

Long Position eröffnet.

peter.wedemeier1

[peter.wedemeier1]

Bounced weg von der Trendlinien Unterstützung und sitzt auf der 200 day MA. Spekulativ Micro Gold.

[Leh007]

Hi folks ,

KRY soll angeblich den Zugriff auf Las Christinas in
Venezuela (10 Mill.Unzen) bekommen.
Wer weiß mehr darüber ??

Leh007

[peter.wedemeier1]

Persönlich ich denke, es ist eine sehr gute Sache, das KRY gerade gemeint worden ist in dieser offiziellen CVG Nachricht. KRY ist viel weiter als wir jemals in der Vergangenheit gedacht haben und wer die Zeit kennt (eine Woche/Monat/Jahr/Dekade) wir könnten enden oben mit einem Teil oder dem ganzen Teil von LC.

[peter.wedemeier1]

Crystallex US$400 million Las Cristinas Projekt

Crystallex International Corporation

Der Sprecher für die Venezuelanische Energie and Minen Kommission hat gesagt, "Crystallex’s angebotene US$400 million Las Cristinas Project wirg geben großen Impuls für die Regionale and Nationale Ökonomie."

[Kommentar: Sieht si aus wie ein positives feedback]

http://www.crystallex.com/interior.asp?p=20&s=20

[Leh007]

Hi ,


Gold Reserve und Vannessa haben aber auch noch ein paar
Trümpfe in der Hinterhand !

MFG

Leh007

[peter.wedemeier1]

Die Fundamentals sehen sehr gut aus!
Dort gibt es einige gute Nachrichten. Der Goldspotpreis ist über $317,-. Dieses macht die Minenoperationen sehr profitabel.
Die Technik sieht gut aus!
Der normale Investor sollte helfen durch seine Kaufaktivitäten den Kurs wieder auf $1,65 - 1,75 zu heben.

Langfristig: Strong Buy!!!

peter.wedemeier1

[hpoth]

Von der künftigen Goldproduktion sind 28% über einen Zeitraum von 5 Jahren vorwärst verkauft worden.Weitere Terminverkäufe sind nicht mehr in der Planung.
Die Gewinnentwicklung wird im wesentlichen durch das Mega-
Projekt Las Cristinas in Venezuela beeinflust.Geschätzte
Reserven 11,8 Mio Unzen Gold.
gruß hpoth

[peter.wedemeier1]

Crystallex International besitzt Bolivar Goldfields, die Albino 1 Konzession, und das Lo Increible Project angesiedelt in Venezuela. Seine Revemin Mill verarbeitet ore von allen den Venezuelanischen Minen. Venezuela`s Las Cristinas ist eine von Süd Amerika`s reichesten Gold Feldern.

Crystallex International ist auch Gold Mine und entdeckt für Gold and operiert Minem in Uruguay`s Minera San Gregorio, und besitzt 65% interest in dem Mineiro Projekt in Brasilien.

Crystallex hält ungefähr 4.8 million unzen in Ressourcen and Reserven.

gruß peter

[peter.wedemeier1]

Könnte den Trend umkehren. Zeichen von etwas bullishem in dem Chart...zuletzt für ein paar Tage irgendwie.

peter.wedemeier1

[peter.wedemeier1]

[konradi]

CRYSTALLEX REPORTS RESULTS FOR SECOND QUARTER 2002


VANCOUVER, BC –AUGUST 30, 2002 -- CRYSTALLEX INTERNATIONAL CORPORATION (KRY on TSX and Amex) today reported that its revenue for the second quarter ended June 30, 2002 was C$12.0 million, compared to C$13.7 million for the 2001 second quarter. The Company reported a loss of C$3.2 million or C$0.04 per fully diluted share in the 2002 second quarter compared to income of C$464,814 or C$0.01 in the prior year’s second quarter. Total gold production in the second quarter 2002 was 23,532 ounces, compared to 27,358 ounces produced during the previous year`s second quarter. Second quarter 2002 gold production included 16,841 ounces from San Gregorio and 6,691 ounces from the Revemin mill.

The Company maintained gold production at its San Gregorio operation in Uruguay at the same level of last year’s second quarter and experienced a five percent reduction in operating costs due to higher mill throughput, lower manpower levels and improved mill availability. However, pioneering operations to level the floor of the La Victoria open pit in Venezuela, resulted in lower-grade feed material to the Revemin mill. Although the mill processed thirteen percent more material than in the first quarter, the lower grade and the reduced recovery rate resulted in less ounces being recovered. This resulted in a combined cost per ounce of US$264,
which is still lower than the 2002 first quarter’s cost of US$270, but higher than the 2001second quarter’s US$237.


Second Quarter Highlights

· Revenue C$12,016,372
· Net loss C$(3,224,756) or C$(0.04) per fully diluted share
· Operating Cash Flow C$(0.06) per share
· Gold production 23,532 ounces
· Cash Cost to produce US$264 per ounce
· Average price per ounce realized US$327 per ounce
· Larger production drill acquired for La Victoria in late June
· New 3,000 TPD jaw crusher to be installed at Revemin in September
· Tomi underground mine reaches 146 metre elevation and is collared at 174 metre elevation
· First development ore extracted from Tomi underground grading 5 to 7 grams per tonne.
· First phase of Revemin mill expansion scheduled for completion in November
· Albino 1 underground mine infrastructure nearing completion
· Discussions with the Venezuelan government aimed at favorably resolving Cristinas 4 & 6 issues continued.

For the first six months ended June 30, 2002, revenue was C$23,319,319. The Company had a net loss of C$4,404,159 or C$0.05 per fully diluted share. This compares to first half 2001 revenue of C$28,598,365, and net earnings of C$889,779 or C$0.01 per fully diluted share. During the six-month period, the Company produced 47,409 ounces of gold compared to 53,240 ounces in 2001. Of the 53,240 ounces of gold in 2002, 33,286 ounces (approximately 63%) was from Uruguay and 14,123 ounces (approximately 37%) was from the Revemin Mill in Venezuela. Crystallex`s President and Chief Executive Officer, Marc J. Oppenheimer, said that during the second quarter, the Company made very good progress in fine tuning its operations. “We are putting the final touches on our “pioneering” activities at La Victoria, after which we anticipate increased tonnage and higher-grade material. We expect to begin accessing the high-grade main orebody at the Tomi underground mine in October and later this year we will commence pre-production mining activities at Albino. In addition, the first phase of the Revemin mill expansion is scheduled for completion in November. By the fourth quarter of this year we expect to be processing, from several sources, more high-grade material at increased recovery rates and a commensurate reduction of operating costs.”

“We are further encouraged by the fact that these activities are being completed at a time of strengthening gold prices,” Mr. Oppenheimer added.

URUGUAY

San Gregorio: The Company recovered 16,841 ounces of gold at its San Gregorio operation during the 2002 second quarter, nearly the same as the 16,903 ounces processed in second quarter 2001. Gold recovery increased to 92 percent and tonnes milled, with one less mill operating day, increased two percent to 3,224 tonnes per day. Total operating costs at the San Gregorio operation were lower due a 25 percent reduction in consumables and a decrease in manpower. This resulted in a seven-percent lower operating cost per tonne milled for the second quarter 2002 versus that of 2001.

VENEZUELA

La Victoria: During the second quarter, “pioneering” activities in the hard rock portions of the La Victoria open pit effectively reduced the amount and grade of feed material that could be processed at the Revemin mill. A portion of the ore contained high levels of oxygen consuming materials that lowered the recovery rate to 76 percent from the previous quarter’s 90 percent. Steps are currently being taken to address this issue and return recovery rates to previous levels.

Tomi: The decline at the Tomi underground mine has been collared at 174 meters and development ore has already been extracted and processed at the Revemin mill. This ore graded at between five grams per tonne and seven grams per tonne. An additional 1,000 tonne stockpile is currently on hand to be used as feed for the Revemin mill. The Company expects to reach the main orebody in October with mining of ore anticipated in the 14 grams per tonne range commencing in November, 2002.

Material grading eight grams per tonne also was mined from a small pocket in the Milagrito deposit of the Tomi open pit mine. This deposit has not been explored yet for underground potential.

Albino 1: The Company is continuing to build the infrastructure for the underground operation at Albino 1 and plans to commence pre-production mining activities in the 2002 fourth quarter.

Revemin mill: In the second quarter 2002, the Revemin mill processed 98,871 tonnes, a thirteen-percent increase over the first quarter 2002. However, the reduction in grade and recovery rate resulting from the switch from saprolitic material to hard rock and from the “pioneering” activities at La Victoria, lowered mill performance.[/b9 As a result gold production was 6,691 ounces in the second quarter 2002 compared with 7,432 ounces in the first quarter.

The first phase of the mill expansion that will raise throughput to 1,800 tonnes per day is scheduled for completion by November, 2002. A new 3,000 TPD 38”x 48” jaw crusher will be installed by the end of the third quarter along with larger capacity screens, agitators and pumps. Additional grinding capacity will be achieved with the addition of a second ball mill, which will be installed in early fourth quarter.

Cristinas 4 & 6: The Company believes it continues to make progress with the Venezuelan government toward the resolution of the issues regarding the Cristinas concessions in Venezuela and is optimistic about the outcome.

Hedging: In order to protect the Company against declining gold prices, the Company has used gold forward sales and gold calls sold to hedge production. The gold program implemented pursuant to the loan arrangements with the banking syndicate provides downside protection for a portion of Crystallex’s planned production. This gold hedging program was entered into pursuant to the Company’s project financing with its banks while still providing the Company with significant leverage to future gold price increases. The Company believes that the commodity price has an upward bias to it and that firming should continue to be a factor. Accordingly, the Company will continue to maintain a flexible position with regard to enjoying the upside of the gold price movement, while protecting its balance sheet during periods of depressed prices. Given the Company’s view that the commodity price has based, coupled with the low interest rate environment, Crystallex reduced gold forward sales contracts from the high point in first quarter of approximately 312,000 ounces to approximately 281,000 ounces as of the end of the second quarter.
The Company will continue such reductions by delivering production into its positions. Additionally, as a percentage of reserves and resources, the forward sales percentage will decrease as the Company continues to increase its reserve/resource base.

About Crystallex:
Crystallex International Corporation is an emerging intermediate gold mining company operating as well as developing new mines in Venezuela and Uruguay.
Crystallex’s strategy for growth is to develop its portfolio of producing properties as well as to diversify geographically by investing in producing or near-production
projects and by exploring properties of merit in other areas.

Financial results for the three and six months periods are reported in the attached table.



On Behalf of the Board:

Marc J. Oppenheimer, President & CEO


For Further Information:
Contact: A Richard Marshall, VP at [phone] or Andrea Boltz at [phone]


To receive previous Company releases: [phone] ext.114620
Visit us on the Internet: http://www.crystallex.com


Note:
This news release may contain certain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the United States Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included in this release, including, without limitation, statements regarding potential mineralization and reserves, exploration results, and future plans and objectives of Crystallex, are forward-looking statements that involve various risks and uncertainties. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the Company`s expectations are disclosed under the heading "Risk Factors" and elsewhere in documents filed from time to time with The Toronto Stock Exchange, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission and other regulatory authorities.

The Toronto Stock Exchange has not reviewed this release and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.

[peter.wedemeier1]

Las Cristinas an Crystallex übergeben. Gemäß Reuters wurde Crystallex gewählt um die 11 Millionen Unzen von Las Cristinas, in Venezuela zu minen. Einzelheiten werden noch bekannt gegeben. Extrem gute Nachrichten für das Unternehmen. Diese Nachrichten wurden am Freitag nach Börsenschluß veröffentlicht.

peter.wedemeier1

[konradi]

Hallo Peter -

prima Nachrichten, - damit könnte unsere Rechnung aufgehen !!

konradi

[konradi]

Hier ist die ganze Meldung :


Canadian Press / Saturday, September 07, 2002

CARACAS (AP) - Venezuela`s government has chosen Canadian gold producer Crystallex International Corp. to operate four tracts of the 12-million-ounce Las Cristinas gold mine.
The details of the agreement with Crystallex will be defined soon, the state mining holding company, CVG, said in a statement Friday.
"After completing the necessary technical evaluation, construction of the mine should begin," said CVG president Francisco Rangel said.
The operator will process up to 40,000 tonnes of material per day once production begins, he said.
Production is expected to begin within two years, the company`s vice-president for corporate development, Richard Marshall, told Dow Jones Newswires on Saturday.
A smaller Canadian gold miner, Vannessa Ventures Ltd., still claims it has rights to operate the mine after it paid Placer Dome Inc. $50 last year for its share of the Minca partnership, which owned the concession. Placer retained a right to return to the deal.
But CVG, which owned the remainder of Minca, has dismissed the claim.
Placer Dome suspended construction of the mine in 1999, citing low gold prices. In June 2000, it wrote off its $116-million investment.
Crystallex reported last month it lost $3.2 million in the second quarter as revenues and gold production fell.

konradi

[siam123]

#13,

warum verlor CRYSTALLEX INTL dann nachbörslich

1.48 - 0.14 (8.64) - 0.21 (12.43)

fast 13 % auf 1,48 $ ?


mfG,

siam123

[peter.wedemeier1]

@konradi

Eine sehr gute Nachricht! Nicht wahr?

peter.wedemeier1

[peter.wedemeier1]

Note the brilliant strategy of KRY and CVG !!!

Since all the long and ugly legal disputes have involved the MINERAL RIGHTS to Las Cristinas, CVG came up with a contract that keeps the MINERAL RIGHTS in the hands of the State (Venezuela), but pays KRY to simply operate all mining activities.

VVV and PDG now have no legal grounds for a challenge !

[peter.wedemeier1]

Reuters Company News
Venezuela awards gold mine contract to Crystallex. (KRY)
Friday, September 6, 8:12pm ET.
By Pascal Fletcher (Before I read anything, I alway look at the time - 8:12pm ET.)
CARACAS, Venezuela, Sept.6 (Reuters)-Venezuela`s state industrial holding CVG said on Friday it had selected Canadian miner Crystallex International Corp.(KRY) to operate the Las Cristinas gold mine in the southwest of the country.
Past exploration has shown that the mine, located in the Venezuelan state of Bolivar, has proven and probable reserves of more than 11.8 million ounces of gold. It is believed to be one of the world`s top five undeveloped gold resources.
Luis Felipe Cottin, President of Crystallex de Venezuella, said construction work at the mine would take some 18 months.
He added the Las Cristinas project would be the flagship of the company`s development operations in Venezuela.

[peter.wedemeier1]

Gratulation an alle Longs. Für Crystallex beginnt morgen ein neues Kapitel. Nun ist KRY positioniert, um zu den großen Big Playern unter den Goldproduzenten aufzuschließen. Die Longs, die bei der Stange gehalten haben werden nun belohnt.

peter.wedemeier1

[peter.wedemeier1]

SPOKANE, Wash., Sep 8, 2002 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Gold Reserve Inc. (GLR.A)(GLDR.OB). On Friday, September 6, 2002, the Corporation Venezolana de Guayana ("CVG") announced that they have selected Crystallex International Corporation to negotiate an operating contract for their Las Cristinas property, which is adjacent to Gold Reserve`s Brisas property.

According to Gold Reserve, there has been considerable legal and political controversy surrounding the Las Cristinas project and the Company is pleased to see CVG take action to move the Las Cristinas project forward.

Gold Reserve has long advocated that the two projects should be combined to achieve the most favorable economics. From information related to both properties it is now clear that Brisas/Las Cristinas is one large tonnage low grade gold copper deposit measuring some 5 km long and half a kilometer wide containing well over 20 million ounces of gold and over 2 billion pounds of copper.

Last year INGEOMIN, the technical division of the Venezuelan Ministry of Energy and Mines (MEM), completed an analysis of the economic, social, and environmental impact of the combination of the two projects into one mega project that would be the second largest gold mine in Latin America and the sixth largest in the world. INGEOMIN concluded from their analysis that "the most rational way to exploit this important gold deposit was as one single large project that would optimize the economic and social benefits, while minimizing the environmental impact."

The Company has discussed this mega project with the MEM, Ministry of Planning, and the CVG and received very favorable responses. General Francisco Rangel, President of CVG, was quoted last year saying, "CVG`s intention is to unify the ore bodies of Las Brisas and Las Cristinas to carry out a macro-mining project that will allow the generation of sustainable employment and development in this zone; we are talking of approximately 3,500 direct jobs. With this initiative, Venezuela would have the second largest mine in Latin America and the sixth in the world."

Gold Reserve is committed to the development of the mining industry of Venezuela having invested over $70 million in its Brisas project. The Company will await the finalization of the operating contract for Las Cristinas and expect to discuss with the parties the potential to develop the combined gold project in the most rational and economic way possible. On a stand alone basis each project has been projected to have operating costs of approximately $150 per ounce (net of copper credits). The Company`s extensive work on the combined project indicates that operating costs could be dramatically lowered to approximately $110 per ounce. There would be similar savings in the capital costs per ounce as well. The area between the two current pit designs would add additional reserves and since the orebody is open at depth the economies of scale would also allow for a deeper pit adding more ore reserves, extending the mine life.

Gold Reserve`s Brisas project in southeastern Venezuela (using current gold prices) contains a current resource of 9.9 million ounces of gold containing proven and probable reserves of 6.7 million ounces of gold and 871 million pounds of copper. The company has approximately US$13 million in cash and no debt. With 23.6 million shares outstanding this amounts to 0.28 ounces of gold reserves per share, which is one of the highest in the industry. The market currently capitalizes the ore reserves at approximately US$4.25 per ounce in the ground net of cash.

[peter.wedemeier1]

#16

No after hours trades have been reported for this security!!!!!

[peter.wedemeier1]

September 8, 2002
CRYSTALLEX AND VENEZUELA TO DEVELOP LAS CRISTINAS - Company welcomes government announcement


TORONTO, SEPTEMBER 8, 2002 - CRYSTALLEX INTERNATIONAL CORPORATION (symbol KRY on TSX and AMEX) President and CEO Marc J. Oppenheimer welcomed the selection of Crystallex by the Venezuelan government Friday to develop Las Cristinas, believed to be one of the largest undeveloped gold projects in Latin America and the world .As a result of this decision, all legal requirements including title, possession, and mining rights will be brought together so that development of the Las Cristinas ore-body can take place.

"This is a historic moment for our Company and our shareholders," said Mr. Oppenheimer. "We are pleased to have been selected and look forward to beginning work on the project. We also salute our shareholders who have steadfastly stood by our Company as we patiently sought to obtain possession of this property in a legitimate and lasting way."

Late Friday in Caracas, Venezuela`s state industrial holding company, Corporacion Venezolana de Guayana (CVG) announced that its Directors had "approved the signing of an operating contract with the Canadian company Crystallex for the development of the Las Cristinas gold deposit." In a statement released following the Board meeting, CVG President Francisco Rangel Gomez said Crystallex was chosen to operate the project because it offered the best prospect for a rapid development and start-up of the mine.

"The selection of Crystallex to develop Las Cristinas acknowledges that the company has the experience, capability and the long-term commitment to Venezuela to build a sustainable project that will benefit the Venezuelan economy and in particular the people of Bolivar State where Las Cristinas is located," added Mr. Oppenheimer. "The CVG is a large and important Venezuelan government corporation. We are very proud to be developing this property with the CVG."

Crystallex started mining operations in Venezuela`s Kilometre 88 in 1994 and is the only international company to have constructed and operated a producing industrial mine at Kilometre 88. Today, the Company has operations in all three of Venezuela`s major gold producing districts and has invested more than US$120 million in Bolivar State where the Cristinas concessions are located. The Company is currently mining gold and, at the same time, developing two new mines in this region.

About Crystallex:
Crystallex International Corporation is an emerging intermediate gold mining company operating as well as developing new mines in Venezuela and Uruguay. Crystallex`s strategy for growth is to develop its portfolio of producing properties as well as to diversify geographically by investing in producing or near-production projects and by exploring properties of merit in other areas.

[peter.wedemeier1]

VHeadline.com: Sunday, September 8, 2002.

Crystallex vice president A. Richard Marshall says that gold produdtion through each of the phases could increase to approximately 500,000 troy ounces per year.

"The fact is that Crystallex has clear rights and concession titles that are believed to be bankable...we have a management team with a proven track record...we already has registered title to half of the entire project
(LC4&6). Although several other companies had approached the CVG, Crystallex was the only company that could present a comprehensive development project with bankable goals to the satisfaction of the CVG and the Venezuelan Legislature... remember, that we have been here in Venezuela for over a decade and have put a number of projects into successful production."

[peter.wedemeier1]

Long-winded trajectory
... the Las Cristinas Saga
report © by VHeadline.com Editor Roy S. Carson

VHeadline.com : Sunday, September 8, 2002 -- Looking back on the long-winded trajectory of the Las Cristinas Saga, the drama began in May 1986, when Inversora Mael C.A. received the rights to Las Cristinas 4 & 6 from Ramon Torres, who had himself received the titles, just a month earlier from Jimmy Angel`s widow, Dot Culver de Lemon to whom the original registered titles had been granted in February 1964.

In 1988 Mael began a lawsuit after the then Ministry of Energy & Mines (MEM) refused to publish notice of the transfers of the gold concessions. In January of the following year (1989) a petition to renew the titles was refused by the MEM and in February and March the MEM administration sought unilaterally to extinguish both concessions.

Nevertheless, in May 1991 the Supreme Court (CSJ) ruled that the Torres-Culver de Lemon transfer had been perfectly legal and ordered the MEM to publish due notice in the Gaceta Oficial, which it neglected to do.

Just a month later, in June 1991 the CVG formed a joint venture partnership (Mineras Las Cristinas-MINCA) with Canadian miner Placer Dome (PDG) to explore and mine Las Cristinas 4, 5, 6 and 7 while it entered into settlement over the illegal infringement of Mael`s rights in direct defiance of the CSJ.

In October 1996 the Supreme Court again confirmed the validity of the transfers to Mael of the Las Cristinas 4 & 6 gold concessions and agains ordered the Ministry of Energy & Mines (MEM) to publish the statutory notice in the Gaceta Oficial ... that order was again met with a blank refusal.

By March 1997, Crystallex International (KRY) had come on the scene and bought Mael for $30 million based on the two previous Supreme Court rulings and a series of legal opinions.

In April 1997 the CSJ (for a third time!) ordered official publication of the notice of transfer between Torres and Inversora Mael while Mael began a process of legal actions to remove unilateral MEM edicts and to re-establish Mael`s ownership in due accordance with the law.

Obviously upset over the Ministry`s continued refusal to obey its direct order to publish the legal documents in the Gaceta Oficial, the Supreme Court in May 1997 took the extraordinary step of publishing the notice of transfers of Las Cristinas 4 & 6 to Mael in Venezuela`s official legal bulletin, thus giving it power of law.

In January 1998, Placer suspended construction work at Las Cristinas, and again in August 1999 claiming that it needed to get the best possible terms to finance the remainder of the project.

The enacting of the 1999 Mining Law in September 1999 immediately called into question the legality of the CVG-issued mining contracts with Placer Dome and in May 2000 the CSJ (now renamed the Supreme Tribunal of Justice-TSJ) readmitted Mael`s claims relating to the 1991 settlement agreement and confirmed Mael`s legal standing.

In July 2001 with only hours to go before the final-final-deadline. and with funeral bells already tolling on MINCA, Vannessa Ventures (VVV) made a "johnny-come-lately" assault on the debacle, claiming that it had bought Placer Dome`s 70% interest in Las Cristinas for just US$50.

Later details dragged out of obscurity in the ensuing melee show that PDG had secured a back-in right and that Vannessa was also claiming 95% of the multi-$ million project they`d bought for just fifty bucks...

But ... in November 2001 the CVG terminated the MINCA contract and moved to recover the real estate with a finally flung rescinding of MINCA`s copper concessions thrown in for good measure in March of this year.

All that, however, is now consigned to history...

[peter.wedemeier1]

The time for words is over ...
the time for work has begun
VHeadline.com guest editorial © by James L. Ebersohl

VHeadline.com : Sunday, September 8, 2002 -- Congratulations ... to the people of Venezuela, President Hugo Chavez Frias and Major General (ret.) Francisco Rangel Gomez on the one side and, on the other, congratulations ... to Crystallex International`s Robert Fung and Marc Oppenheimer.

Congratulations for the tireless efforts of everyone involved.

After years of skirmishes, rather than having two sides, we now have a unified deal to develop the Las Cristinas goldmine. We have no sides now, just a team and this is a huge advantage for all concerned.

Finally, another economic sector that has basically been lying dormant for years shall be revived and contribute to the economic health of all Venezuelans.

This is such a major event for all concerned that we will not forget "where" we were when we first heard the news.

For my own part, I received a cell phone call while eating a pizza ... another Crystallex shareholder, John Hodgman, called to say that he had just seen the announcement and asked could it finally be true ... he wanted to make sure that he was not merely dreaming.

The first part of the Las Cristinas saga has continued for what seems like an eternity, and he had not allowed himself to believe anything positive since before June, 1998.

It `s difficult for the North American, myself included, to comprehend the multi-faceted changes that have had to be completed before this new partnership could be begun. There were time limits to follow and new laws to write. Venezuela`s National Executive, the Legislative and the Judiciary all had to be convinced that this partnership was and is in the best interests of Venezuela.

They did ... and, obviously it is.

Some have just celebrated a the Judaic New Year ... but this is the beginning a new era in Venezuelan gold mining and a new beginning for thousands of under-privileged workers and their families in Venezuela`s Bolivar State.

Congratulations to all parties for not giving up ... the new CVG-KRY deal is a giant leap forward for the people of Venezuela and now that the rhetoric is finalized, it`s time to get down to the serious business of actual development and to get working.

The time for words is over ... the time for work has begun.
In this I have no fear since this new team, both sides, is not afraid to work.

[peter.wedemeier1]

Details emerging as Crystallex International
is chosen to operate the Las Cristinas mine
report © by VHeadline.com Reporters


VHeadline.com : Sunday, September 8, 2002 -- Venezuelan Guyana Corporation (CVG) president, Major General (ret.) Francisco Rangel Gomez announces that the rights to mine the Las Cristinas project have been granted to Crystallex because it offered the best proposal for the rapid start-up of the mine.


The area is believed to hold gold reserves of over 11 million ounces and is located in the Sifontes Municipality of Bolivar State.

Crystallex is expected to invest $500 million in the development of the mine which will process 40,000 tonnes of ore per day, once it is fully operational.

The project, which is believed to be the fifth largest undeveloped gold mine in the world, will take about 18 months to get up and running.


Crystallex de Venezuela president Luis Felipe Cottin says "up until now we have invested $200 million in Venezuela and the country is our major operational center."

" From our point of view we have conducted business successfully in the region and it shows our confidence and interest in the country."

[peter.wedemeier1]

All systems go, go, go...
after more than a decade of nothingness
exclusive report © by VHeadline.com Reporters

VHeadline.com : Sunday, September 8, 2002 -- Following the official Venezuelan Guayana Corporation (CVG) announcement on Friday evening, Crystallex International Corporation (KRY) says that subject to a final feasibility study, gold production from reactivation of the Las Cristinas goldmine could proceed to begin production within 18-24 months from the start of construction.




An initial core group of trained employees at KRY`s other Venezuelan projects will be expanded rapidly through on-the-job training in what is being described as a series of aggressive development plans for Las Cristinas after more than a decade of virtual abandonment.




Crystallex vice president A. Richard Marshall says that gold production through each of the phases could increase to approximately 500,000 troy ounces per year. He adds that Crystallex`s solid relationships with major commodity banks, its in-depth understanding and long-term commitment to Venezuela and its proven ability to finance opportunities, even in a weak gold market, have been strong factors in the Venezuelan Guayana Corporation (CVG) decision which sees reduced operating costs and the generation of better cash-flows than previous owners.




The Canadian based mining corporation says its strategy for growth is to develop a portfolio of properties to take advantage of "shared infrastructure" where Crystallex` involvement with Las Cristinas is part of a "hub and spoke" model with a central million facility in the El Callao region which will receive ore feed from KRY`s Lo Increible concession and from Albino once the latter comes into production.







Marshall forecasts possibly another $500 million investment in the Las Cristinas project besides its control of three other gold camps at El Callao, El Dorado and Kilometer 88.

Getting down to the nitty-gritty of the Crystallex-CVG project, Marshall says it is in full accord with Venezuela`s 1999 Mining Law and is not administrative. While Placer Dome may have had trouble in the past, this decision should ensure Crystallex smooth development of the massive project which, for the first time in Venezuela`s mining history, brings together the mining rights, clear concession titles and possession in one entity under the law.

"All three branches of the Venezuelan government have been involved in the process ... Judicial, Legislative and Administrative ... complying with all constitutional and legal requirements and binding on this government and all subsequent constitutional Venezuelan governments. Crystallex took considerable time to obtain this project and we believe it would be upheld if challenged in any court ... we don`t want the Las Cristinas project just to have it, we want to develop it."

"The fact is that Crystallex has clear rights and concession titles that are believed to be bankable ... we have a management team with a proven track record ... we already had registered title to half of the entire project (LC4&6). Although several other companies had approached the CVG, Crystallex was the only company that could present a comprehensive development project with bankable goals to the satisfaction of the CVG and the Venezuelan Legislature ... remember, that we have been here in Venezuela for over a decade and have put a number of projects into successful production."

Is this the end of the Las Cristinas Saga?
Has the screenplays list of credits
(...and discredits) begun to roll?
Crystallex VP Richard Marshall seems to believe that its time for VVV to fold their tents and melt away into a Charlie Chaplin sunset. "Our circumstances are vastly different ... this announcement is based on law ... it is in accordance with the Venezuelan Mining Law."




Most importantly, Marshall assures: "we don`t want to Las Cristinas project just to sit on our hands ... we want to develop and work it!"

[Sovereign]

Ja, Crystallex ist schon ein "Schätzchen"....was meint ihr, wer heute morgen in Berlin noch ein paar Aktien "nachgeordert" hat...

[peter.wedemeier1]

Venezuela awards gold mine contract to Crystallex
Reuters, 09.06.02, 7:06 PM ET

CARACAS, Venezuela, Sept 6 (Reuters) - Venezuela`s state industrial holding CVG said Friday it had selected Canadian miner Crystallex International Corp. <KRY.TO> to operate the Las Cristinas gold mine in the southeast of the country.

"The directors of the Corporacion Venezolana de Guayana ... approved the signing of an operating contract with the Canadian company Crystallex for the development of the las Cristinas gold deposit," a CVG statement said.

The Venezuelan state holding had considered bids from several foreign mining firms after President Hugo Chavez`s left-wing government this year resumed state control of the mine, billed as one of the most promising in Latin America.

Another Canadian company, Vannessa Ventures Ltd. <VVV.V>, has been involved in a long-running legal dispute with the Venezuelan government and CVG over what it says is its rightful claim to develop the deposit.

Copyright 2002, Reuters News Service

[peter.wedemeier1]

Mon Sep 9, 2002
Vannessa Clarifies Las Cristinas Position

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

VANCOUVER, B.C. SEPTEMBER 9, 2002 -- Vannessa has received a number of inquiries with respect to reports published by Reuters, The Mining Web and others, which state that the CVG has chosen Crystallex International Corp. to develop the Las Cristinas deposit in Venezuela. The selection was made by the CVG, a State Corporation, and not by the Venezuelan Government as stated in Crystallex`s news release of September 8, 2002. Vannessa wishes to inform its shareholders, and any other party who is considering to invest in this development, of the following facts which were either disregarded or incompletely touched on in the statements made:

1) Minca, Vannessa`s subsidiary through its 100% shareholding in Vannessa de Venezuela C.A., is the holder of the mining permit, the environmental permit and a contract with the CVG for the Las Cristinas Deposit and will vigorously defend its rights under Venezuelan and International Law.

2) The CVG has tried to cancel its contract with Minca, but that action and other attempts to take over the Las Cristinas deposit are subject to several ongoing court actions and the CVG is well aware that it cannot award any new contract for the Las Cristinas concessions until rulings in all of these actions have been made. It is for that reason, that the CVG has merely selected Crystallex as its choice as a partner and has not awarded any contract. An award at this time would show a blatant disregard for the Venezuelan Supreme Court and the Attorney Generals Office which are still dealing with these matters, as well as the National Assembly, which only a week ago began new investigations into irregularities concerning the CVG/Minca dispute. Some of these investigations are dealing with the large-scale attempts, at huge expense by third parties, to discredit and defame Minca and Vannessa and thereby aid in the delay of a fair and negotiated settlement of the dispute.

3) The current announcement can only be viewed as a desperate attempt to complete some form of arrangement prior to the start-up of court proceedings after the summer recess. The rush of the announcement is obvious when looking back at previous CVG declarations that "a number of large mining companies have shown interest and will be considered for the project" and "only companies with 2 Million ounces of production levels will be considered". Suddenly, those conditions appear to no longer apply and the CVG, who takes weeks to answer simple requests, seems to have reviewed a number of bids and made a major decision on the country`s largest gold deposit in just a few days.

4) Very unsettling for Vannessa is the fact that the people of the region, who could have benefited for the last 12 months from Vannessa`s first year US$ 50 Mill. development proposal made in July 2001, are once again being misled with the promise of imminent development, housing and social benefits. The CVG and its proposed future partner Crystallex know very well that no development can take place without clear title, exploration work, feasibility studies, mining licence, and environmental licence. Also, financing arrangements are impossible to make without a contract in place, without economic viability for their proposed US$ 500 Mill. development, and given that no title will be issued to Crystallex. These promises can only be intended to later put the blame on Minca when the legal proceedings, which are now in progress, eventually delay or derail the plans which are currently being proposed.

5) Of interest is the comment of the President of Crystallex de Venezuela who stated that he "fears no claim before the Venezuelan Court because they cannot affect title to the deposit". It is Vannessa`s contention that all or any of the court decisions will definitely affect title. There are also numerous hints of Crystallex`s "connections" and references to "powerful Venezuelans on its Board" in the Press and on the Internet, however it is Vannessa`s experience that the Venezuelan Supreme Court is independent and fair. Furthermore, International Courts will be involved.

6) Finally, the question of title seems to have found some clarification in the announcements made last week. The President of Crystallex de Venezuela did not object to the statement by CVG President Rangel that the title to the concessions (which was always claimed to be owned by Crystallex) will not be given to Crystallex and will stay with the State.

With the sudden turn of events by the announcement of the CVG, clear and detailed information and full disclosure about the Las Cristinas issue is of utmost importance for investors. Vannessa will soon post more information and copies of court proceedings on its web page for review.

On Behalf of the Board,

"MANFRED PESCHKE"
_____________________________
Manfred Peschke, President
VANNESSA VENTURES LTD.

[Goldguru]

@Sovereign

Hast wohl auch noch ein paar k nachgelegt, aber heute Morgen war ich fast allein, schade, scheinbar sind die alle erst Mittag aufgewacht !

Ciao,

Der Goldguru

[Sovereign]

@Goldguru...altes Trüffelschwein

Eigentlich bin ich mit seiner Crystallex-Position in meinem NY-Depot vollauf zufrieden, aber was heute vormittag in Berlin abging war ja wohl echt Quatsch: Bei solchen Kursen, muß man eben ein paar nachlegen. Ein weiterer Beweis, daß die Märkte oftmals ineffizient sind!

Gruß

Sovereign

[jumanii]

...was meint ihr zu dem satment v. Vannessa?hmmm....

...ein verwirrrrttteeerrr jumanii

mfg

[Goldguru]

@jumanii

Also wirklich diesen Leuten von VANESSA VENTURES mit ihren Hochglanzprospekten und der Hochpuscherei durch STOCK-WORLD vor einigen Monaten in Deutschland ist ja wirklich kein Wort mehr zu glauben. Absolut unseriös und schon fast betrugsverdächtig, was die da noch vor einigen Monaten abgezogen haben um ihren Aktienkurs in die Höhe schiessen zu lassen. Guck DIR mal im www.sedar.com ihre FILINGS an, da könnte jeder ahnen, daß die nur ans Geld anderer dummer Investoren wollten. Auch der GOLDREPORT hat rechtzeitig davor gewarnt, aber jetzt wird wohl ein Scherbenhaufen bei denen zurückbleiben !


@Sovereign

Von 14k hab ich dann 6k wieder bei 2,50 EURO abgestossen, den Rest halten wir erst einmal !

Was machst Du damit ?

Ciao,

Der Goldguru

[jumanii]

...tja bin kein besitzer dieser aktie, hatte sie nur zeitweise auf der watchliste! war von anfang an skeptisch, hatte aber einmal mit peschke telefoniert! und muß sagen es hatte hand u. fuß was er sagte u. auch in print-form überall nachzulesen!
jetzt ist der zug abgefahren, so scheint es zuminderst.

mfg

[Sovereign]

Placer Dome wollte sich aus Las Christinas zurückziehen, und hat seine Rechte für 50 $ (ja richtig gelesen fünfzig Dollar) an Vannessa verkauft (allerdings mit dem Recht bei einen Sieg von Vannessa die Rechte wieder zurückzukaufen).
Für mich ist diese Aktie ein pusher Wert ohne sonderliche Substanz.
Crystallex ist ein gut gemanagter kleiner Goldproduzent (Uruguay und Venezuela), der für noch einiges gut sein dürfte.

Gruß

Sovereign

[peter.wedemeier1]

Vannessa Ventures (VVV) first reaction came as predictably and as swiftly as a poison dart

Vannessa Ventures (VVV) first reaction to the Venezuelan Guayana Corporation’s (CVG) decision to award operation of the Las Cristinas gold mines to Crystallex International Corporation (CVG) came as predictably and as swiftly as a poison dart, criticizing been to criticize the CVG for its "sudden and rushed” decision, which VVV attributes to a desperate attempt to beat Venezuela’s legal recess deadline.

VVV asserts that it is still the legal holder of the Las Cristinas mining and environmental permits, and will defend its rights through the Venezuelan and international courts ... even though it admits that Crystallex ‘s president & CEO Marc J. Oppenheimer did not object to the statement by CVG President Rangel that the title to the concessions (always claimed to be owned by Crystallex subsidiary Inversora Mael!) will not be given to Crystallex but will stay within the remit of the Venezuelan State.

The statement, broadcast on Canadian News Wires earlier today, also insists that it was the CVG and not the Venezuelan government that made the decision to give the concession to Crystallex ... “the CVG is well aware that it cannot award any new contract for the Las Cristinas concessions until rulings in all of these actions have been made. It is for that reason, that the CVG has merely `selected` Crystallex as its `choice` as a partner.”

Pointing to a National Assembly (AN) committee decision last week to investigate VVV’s claims to Las Cristinas, the VVV statement says investigations will touch on alleged PR campaigns to discredit Vannessa and its Minca partner aimed at delaying a fair and negotiated settlement of the long running dispute.

Vannessa says the CVG decision is "unsettling to local inhabitants, who could have benefited for the last 12 months from Vannessa`s first year $50 million development proposal made in July 2001 … "once again, they are being misled with the promise of imminent development, housing and social benefits. The CVG and its proposed future partner, Crystallex know very well that no development can take place without clear title, exploration work, feasibility studies, mining license, and environmental license.” (Monday, September 9, 2002) Search!

[peter.wedemeier1]

TORONTO, Sep 10, 2002 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- Vancouver based Crystallex International has won the long and drawn out dispute over the Las Cristinas gold property in Venezuela, one of the largest undeveloped gold deposits in Latin America. On today`s edition of www.InvestorCanada.com Chief Market commentator Robert Graham speaks to John Ing, President of Maison Placements about this David and Goliath story that has helped put a little mining company on the map. Ing says the reason Crystallex won the gold was because, "they`re very tenacious, I think that rather than fight it out in the press, I think they have many frequent flyer points down in Venezuela."

[peter.wedemeier1]

Winning the Gold
Interview by Robert Graham

Vancouver based Crystallex International has won the dispute over the Las Cristinas gold mine in Venezuela, one of the largest undeveloped gold deposits in Latin America. It`s a classic David versus Goliath story says Maison Placements Canada President John Ing

"In mining, no deposit is worth much unless you have a lawsuit, so I am not surprised about the huffing and puffing."

Summary

Canadian miner Crystallex International has won the dispute over the Las Cristinas gold mine in Venezuela.

The Las Cristinas property contains one of the largest undeveloped gold deposits in Latin America.

There is a resource of about 12million ounces in the property.

Venezuelan state industrial holding Corporacion Venezolana de Guayana (CVG) picked Crystallex to operate the mine after many bids and offers were made by several foreign mining firms.

The Venezuelan government re-gained control over the property from Vannessa Ventures which bought controlling rights of the property from previous owner Placer Dome.

Placer Dome pulled out of the project in 1999 stating that weak gold prices was making the project too expensive to sustain.

Vannessa Ventures claims that they still have the rights to the property and there is a lawsuit pending.

According to Ing, in mining, a deposit isn`t worth much if you don`t have a lawsuit.

The development plan by the Venezuelan government and Crystallex is to produce 250,000 ounces at a 10,000-tonne per day facility.

Crystallex has been very tenacious in trying to win this project, from hiring top-notch executives, to their experience running other mines in Venezuela, they worked very hard to prove that they were fit to develop this project.

[peter.wedemeier1]

Der kritische Kurs ist ungefähr $2,50 und der nächste Schlußkurs über diesem Kurs (sollte bald sein) wird ihn als einen neuen Boden etablieren!

Der KRY Chart wird dann beginnen andere Goldaktien zu imitieren wie es eine langsame aber sichere parabolische Bewegung beginnt, bis er sich kompllet verikal bewegt, wie eine Rakete steil nach oben.

Der KRY Chart wird sicher Tech Stocks ählich sein, pre-1993, und KRY wird sich besser entwickeln als Ihre Chart Formationen. Einmal die voll geblasene Gold Mania nimmt Halt, der vertikale Pfad von Goldaktien wie KRY wird die Tech Mania erscheinen lassen wie ein "slow walk in the park"

[peter.wedemeier1]

TORONTO, Sep 12, 2002 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX/ -- Crystallex International Corporation (Amex: KRY; Toronto) announced today that it has named Borden D. Rosiak Chief Financial Officer of the Company. In addition, Robert Crombie has been hired as Vice President-Finance.

"These important changes in the financial management team add strength and vigor as we enter into a period of accelerated growth," said Marc J. Oppenheimer, President and CEO of Crystallex. "Moving forward, we will rely heavily upon the financial and mining-related experience of Messrs. Rosiak, and Crombie."

"Together they will enable us to make the most of the opportunities presented by our current mining operations as well as the huge opportunity that will unfold with the Company`s recent selection by Corporacion Venezolana de Guayana (CVG) to develop the Las Cristinas concessions in Venezuela`s Kilometre 88 region," he added.

Borden Rosiak has served in senior financial positions with major companies since 1981. Prior to joining the Crystallex team, he was Chief Financial Officer of Dorset Partners, a private investment firm. From 1994 until 1999, he was with Newcourt Credit Group, a C$25 billion global financial services company and served as their Chief Financial Officer. Mr. Rosiak managed the capital structure of the company, including numerous equity offerings, as well as the financial and administrative operations. He has also served as the Chief Financial Officer of the Toronto 2008 Olympic Bid Committee. Mr. Rosiak holds a Bachelor-Applied Science degree in Chemical Engineering and a Chartered Accounting degree.

Robert Crombie has more than a decade of mining-related financial experience. From 1999 until 2001, he managed the Canadian mining finance initiatives of Dresdner Bank in Toronto, and was primarily involved with the origination and structuring of corporate and project-debt facilities. Until 1999, he was Vice President-Corporate Finance for Chase Manhattan Bank in Toronto. Reporting to the President of Chase-Canada and to Chase`s Head of North American Mining and Metals in New York, he was the principal executive, managing and developing a portfolio of Canadian mining clients. Between 1990 and 1992, he held various positions with Corona Corporation, a Canadian mining company. Mr. Crombie has a Master of Science degree in Mineral Economics from Penn State and an Honours Bachelor of Commerce degree from Queen`s University.

Mr. Rosiak and Mr. Crombie will join Executive Vice President Dan Ross in the Crystallex office in Toronto where the Company will be centering its financial and administrative operations.

On September 6, 2002, Venezuela`s state industrial holding company, Corporacion Venezolana de Guayana (CVG) announced that its Directors had approved the signing of an agreement with Crystallex for the development of Las Cristinas, believed to be one of the largest undeveloped gold deposits in Latin America and the world.

"These new management appointments position Crystallex to move ahead aggressively with the development of Las Cristinas with the Venezuelan government," Mr. Oppenheimer said. "Our work has already begun."

About Crystallex

Crystallex International Corporation is a gold mining and exploration company. The Company`s strategy for growth is to develop its portfolio of properties in South America as well as to diversify geographically by investing in producing or near production projects and by exploring properties of merit in other areas of the world.


On Behalf of the Board:
Marc J. Oppenheimer, President & CEO

[peter.wedemeier1]

Goldpreis steigt, denn ökonomisch schwierige Zeiten sind typischerweise sehr gut für das Gold.

"We`re still in the early stages of a bull market" said Standard & Poor`s metals analyst Leo Larkin.

Gold ist nun En Vogue!...KRY -> Gap up und bildet eine Flagge. Kurzfristiges Kursziel $3,80 oder höher!

peter.wedemeier1

[peter.wedemeier1]

CARACAS, Venezuela, Sep 17, 2002 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX/ -- Crystallex International Corporation (Amex: KRY; Toronto) reported today the formal signing of a definitive agreement with the Corporacion Venezolana de Guayana (CVG) for the development of Las Cristinas 4, 5, 6 and 7, believed to be one of the largest undeveloped gold projects in Latin America and the world. The formal agreement was signed at the CVG offices in Puerto Ordaz, Venezuela, with General Francisco Rangel Gomez, the President of the CVG, signing on behalf of the CVG and Crystallex`s Chairman, Robert Fung, and President and CEO, Marc J. Oppenheimer, executing the agreement on behalf of Crystallex.

The execution of the definitive agreement follows the announcement by General Rangel Gomez on September 6, 2002, of the selection of Crystallex to develop Las Cristinas.

"We are pleased that we could move to a definitive agreement so quickly," commented Mr. Oppenheimer. "We now have all of the elements that we need to move forward. Crystallex, under the agreement, has the exclusive right to develop Las Cristinas 4, 5, 6 and 7 in all respects including exploration, the design and construction of facilities, the operation of those facilities for the processing of gold and the subsequent exploitation, commercialization and sale of gold," he added.

"What we are signing today guarantees that the project will be completed exactly as set forth in the agreement. It is a solid and secure agreement that protects both of us in order to complete this project successfully," General Rangel Gomez said.


Highlights of the agreement are:
* Crystallex will control 100% of the reserves and resources of the
project and all production and proceeds are for the account of
Crystallex subject only to the payment of royalties to the Venezuelan
Ministry of Energy and Mines and to the CVG. The royalty to the
Ministry is fixed at three percent, and the royalty to the CVG will
vary with the price of gold. Up to a price of US$280 the royalty will
be 1%. From US$280 to US$350 the royalty will be 1.5%. From US$350 to
US$400 the royalty will be 2% and above US$400, the royalty will be 3%.
Production will be measured against an annual production plan prepared
by Crystallex and approved by the CVG.
* The agreement has an initial term of 20 years with two renewals each
for a term of 10 years.
* The CVG will assist Crystallex in obtaining all necessary permits,
including explosive and operating permits, and will be responsible for
obtaining environmental permits with the support of Crystallex.
* Throughout the term of the agreement Crystallex will have the exclusive
use of National assets related to the project including digital drill
data, drill cores, and existing studies in the possession of the CVG,
and all infrastructure improvements on the property. Crystallex will
pay US$15 million for the acquisition of these National assets
including the use of the data, studies and infrastructure. Included in
the infrastructure is access to the new hydroelectric substation
located adjacent to the site.
* Crystallex will address immediately the needs of residents in the area
through the creation of employment, training programs and improvements
to the health care system. In the longer term Crystallex will address
improvements to the water and sewage system and the local road network.

We have arrived at an agreement which clearly sets forth our exclusive access to the reserves and resources of Las Cristinas and grants to us our exclusive right to exploit the resource to its full potential," said Mr. Oppenheimer. "We are confident that the financial and investment community will quickly understand and support this agreement. We will immediately commence our review of the data in order that we might complete an in depth feasibility study to support our construction and production plans.

"We look forward to working with the CVG and the Government to develop this long awaited project which will benefit not only our Company, but also the people of Bolivar State and the Kilometre 88 region," added Mr. Oppenheimer.

Mining in Venezuela:

Historically, Venezuela contains one of the most prolific gold districts in the world. Its major gold producing regions include Kilometre 88, which encompasses our Albino 1, Carabobo and Las Cristinas projects; El Callao District with our Tomi Mine, Revemin Mill and high potential Lo Increible project; and the El Dorado District where Santa Elena is located. All of these properties are located in a line that extends over only two hundred kilometres and are easily accessed by paved highways and gravel roads. Crystallex`s Revemin mill is well positioned for easy access to process ore from many of these properties as well as other smaller mines in the area.

For many years, with international attention on the country`s extensive oil reserves, Venezuela`s potential as a prolific gold producer was not exploited. However, in the 1980s, mining laws were updated, allowing economically feasible access by international companies. More recent changes in the mining law have further encouraged exploration and mining of Venezuela`s gold resources. With an exceptional geological model, today gold mining has become an important source of employment and income for many Venezuelan people and a great economic benefit to the entire country. Much of the necessary infrastructures such as roads and power already exist.

About Crystallex:

Crystallex International Corporation is an emerging intermediate gold mining company operating as well as developing new mines in Venezuela and Uruguay. Crystallex`s strategy for growth is to develop its portfolio of producing properties as well as to diversify geographically by investing in producing or near-production projects and by exploring properties of merit in other areas.

Note: This news release may contain certain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the United States Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included in this release, including, without limitation, statements regarding potential mineralization and reserves, exploration results, and future plans and objectives of Crystallex, are forward-looking statements that involve various risks and uncertainties. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the Company`s expectations are disclosed under the heading "Risk Factors" and elsewhere in documents filed from time to time with The Toronto Stock Exchange, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission and other regulatory authorities.

The Toronto Stock Exchange has not reviewed this release and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.

[peter.wedemeier1]

Wenn KRY über der $2,50 schließt, dann beweist es kategorisch, das es sich in einem bullishen Aufwärtstrend bewegt. Ebenso sollte ein Schluß über der $2,50 eine Explosion beim Kaufvolumen nach sich ziehen.
Wenn KRY über der $5,- schließt, dann kann man wiederum eine erneute Explosion beim Kaufvolumen erwarten, weil dann institutionelle Investoren einsteigen werden. Speziell die institutionellen Investoren, denen es bisher aufgrund Ihrer Regeln unmöglich war KRY zu kaufen, weil KRY unter $5,- war und sie erst über $5,- kaufen dürfen.

peter.wedemeier1

[peter.wedemeier1]

[peter.wedemeier1]

Die Unterstützung der geraden Zahl. Die $2,- sollten als starke Unterstützung dienen und KRY sollte es heute schaffen wieder über die 13-day EMA zu steigen.
Hinzufügen zum Depot oder zur bestehenden Position! Spekulativ, aber ein Versuch wert auf diesem Niveau.

[peter.wedemeier1]

Gold execs make bold bullion bets

Thom Calandra
CBS.MarketWatch
Sep 23, 2002 12:30PM ET

NEW YORK (CBS.MW) - Executives from some of the world`s most successful gold companies say they expect further gains for the metal.

http://www.321gold.com/editorials/calandra/calandra092302.ht…

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY bildet nun einen Boden aus.

[peter.wedemeier1]

Short Covering gestern.
Scheint vorgestern von der 50-day EMA nach oben weggesprungen zu sein. Hat gestern auf Tageshoch geschlossen bei $2,15.

peter.wedemeier1

[peter.wedemeier1]

Of the 45 or so companies presenting in Denver this week, about half are considered small or intermediate. Investors on Monday will be waiting for further details from Crystallex International (KRY), a small Canadian company that has been pursuing a vast gold field in Venezuela.

"They are willing to commit capital and talent to the country," says Rick Rule of Global Resource Investments, a California asset manager. Crystallex says it has the all-clear sign to pursue the Las Cristinas region, which could offer the tiny company a resource of 15 million ounces of gold.

Doody of Gold Stock Analyst says Crystallex shares, which trade on the American Stock Exchange, are very attractive. He says investors want to see more proof of the Venezuela pact, including an operating agreement that could be passed around to executives and fund managers in Denver.

"The market needs to be convinced the award is real," says Doody, who adds Crystallex is raising $15 million for the rights to drill-test results from Las Cristinas. The Venezuela government has those results in its possession.

Gold show moves on to Denver
Small producers hold edge in industry showcase

Thom Calandra
CBS.MarketWatch
Sept. 29, 2002

http://www.321gold.com/editorials/calandra/calandra092902.ht…

[peter.wedemeier1]

COMMENTS FROM JIM SINCLAIR:

This is going to be the toughest call of this entire $300 - $330 sideways movement. The reason why is because, as we enter the $320 - $325 range, there is a knee-jerk reaction in the gold market. The gold market is so used to the arrival of JPM, Lehman, Goldman and Merrill as sellers pounding the market, that gold shares now almost automatically decelerate, as a knee-jerk reaction to gold being at the the $320 -$325 price. At this price, the gold shares` appreciation decelerates and actually stops dead in their tracks.

What the market has failed to realize is that these gold dealers, due to their own liquidity situations, are now no longer the big position takers in gold as they were before. All they have been doing lately is exercising clients` orders. The sellers of gold that have come into gold market at the $320 - $325 area have not been the gold cartel. They have been the local floor traders and speculator computer traders. Again, not the cartel. This is why we have had higher lows as we chop sideways.

I firmly believe the chances of taking out the $330 level to the upside before Christmas is real because the significant enemy of the gold price, the gold cartel, is out of business. They have had their trading capital called back to the parent holding company because of the effects of the credit downgrade on the parent holding companies. When the market wakes up that the enemy is no longer there, no event will be required to take gold above $330. It will simply go there.

Here is how we will determine if gold is going to break out above $330:

Have you wondered how I was able to determine the heads up and buy/sell points in this rally? Well, thanks to RGLD/GG and the use of proprietary measures in the duration period of the chart, the slow stochastic and Williams %R, I have when these leading (action-wise) gold shares entered an oversold condition, began to look for the buy and overbought for the sell. Now as gold approaches $330, if the gold shares (which historically know more about gold than gold does) are not into the overbought condition that have been so accurate, we will assume $330 is going to breach and NOT SELL our 1/3.

This means we are remaining disciplined, but being superbly focused. I will, as we near this situation, be doing daily technical reviews. I consider the market at this time more critically positive than ever before in this 11-month rally. The magnificently symmetric, three-year golden tea cup formation* would break to the upside out of the handle at a close above $330. This type of a formation, over this amount of time, is extremely rare and super bullish. I have in my 43 years never seen a technical formation of this kind for this long a duration with this type of symmetry. It is rare and important. This type of a formation will launch only one thing, a huge Bull market, if resolved to the upside. The probability of failure after gold breaks to the upside above $330 from this type of a formation is less than 10%. Those odds are outrageously good for the long.

We know the bull market in gold started 11 months ago, but history will record the breakout above the handle on the golden tea cup as "The Birth of the Gold Bull Market." This will occur because the amount of appreciation above the handle will be orders of magnitude compared to the 11-month appreciation we have already witnessed. Be assured that I am focused and will be keeping the Gold community as closely focused.

[peter.wedemeier1]

The Fifteeth Annual
San Francisco Precious Metals Conference
December 1-2, 2002
The San Francisco Marriott, 55 and 4th Street

Focusing on value investments and wealth preservation with the global leaders in gold, precious metals and mining.



http://www.iiconf.com/SanFrancisco/

[peter.wedemeier1]

Crystallex International Corp. KRY.TO
CARACAS, Venezuela, Nov. 7 (Reuters)

http://www.kitco.com/ind/Chapman/nov122002.html

[peter.wedemeier1]

Jeil`s chart for gold...........


http://www.cluttercottage.com/chart/auwk1206.gif

[peter.wedemeier1]

Rense.com
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------




Bush, It Seems Has Lost Venezuela
Comment
By Joseph Ehrlich
SenderBerl & Sons
12-11-2
http://www.rense.com/general32/seems.htm

[peter.wedemeier1]

Reuters
Petro-Canada refinery hit by Venezuela export cut
Monday December 16, 5:14 pm ET
CALGARY, Alberta, Dec 16 (Reuters) - Petro-Canada (Toronto:PCA.TO - News) was forced to buy some alternative crude supplies for its Montreal refinery because of the cut in oil exports from strike-crippled Venezuela.
Venezuela state oil firm PDVSA has declared a force majeure on crude oil and petroleum product exports, meaning it will not fulfill its contractual obligations.
Canada is a net exporter of oil, sending well over half its more than 2.3 million bpd of production to the United States. But refineries in the eastern part of the country run imported crude because they can no longer get domestic supply via pipeline.

[peter.wedemeier1]

Police blotters

From staff reports
Monday December 16, 2002; 12:45 PM


Man allegedly had sex with sheep
http://www.dailymail.com/news/News/2002121645/

[peter.wedemeier1]

The International Forecaster - excerpt

By Bob Chapman
Dec 14, 2002





GOLD, SILVER, PLATINUM, PALLADIUM AND DIAMONDS
http://www.kitco.com/ind/Chapman/dec162002.html

[peter.wedemeier1]

report © by VHeadline.com Reporters

VHeadline.com : Thursday, December 12, 2002 --

Uruguayan EP-FA congressman Jose Bayardi says he has information that far-reaching plans have been put into operation by the CIA and other North American intelligence agencies to overthrow Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez Frias within the next 72 hours.

Bayardi says he has received copies of top-secret communications between the Bush administration in Washington and the government of Uruguay requesting the latter`s cooperation to support white collar executives and trade union activists "to break down levels of intransigence within the Chavez Frias administration."

In an interview with reporters from the Uruguyan newspaper La Juventud, Bayardi says he observes a domestic-political situation in Venezuela which could easily erupt into a civil war and bloodbath ... "the whole process is a shocking reminder of what happened in Chile in 1973 ... I sincerely hope it does not come to that!"

Bayardi says he does not foresee any immediate foreign military intervention in the Venezuelan situation but warns of a possible escalation if the opposition gets the upper hand over constitutional law and order.

[peter.wedemeier1]

By Al Giordano
December 13, 2002

Today`s Statement by the Press Secretary of the White House that “Calls for Early Elections” in Venezuela inadvertently reveals the Bush administration’s efforts against democracy in that country, and its fears that the total collapse of its foreign coup attempt is only days away.

Kind reader: “I’m from Washington, I’m here to help you,” is one of the proverbial three biggest lies whether addressed to South Dakota or to South America. Only the most gullible – or intentionally dishonest – person would claim to believe it.

The White House statement reveals that Organization of American States secretary general Cesar Gaviria is not an authentic “mediator” in Venezuela, but, rather, a biased pro-coup agent of Bush administration efforts to destroy yet another democracy in our América. It is another example of why the discredited Gaviria should leave Venezuela immediately.

There is zero chance that Gaviria will have the credibility with the Venezuelan public to broker any kind of agreement. But that’s not the true motive for his presence: Gaviria has been installed in Caracas to destabilize the situation and bolster the false portrayal by commercial media that there is a “general strike,” of which there is not. The majority of stores in Venezuela are open. The subways are moving, air traffic is moving, and despite the concerted actions of executives of the Venezuelan oil company to lock out workers and sabotage refineries, oil is flowing again.
We urge you to read between the lines.

[peter.wedemeier1]

América Reborn: 32 Nations Back Venezuela

http://www.narconews.com/

[peter.wedemeier1]

The Narco News Bulletin December 19, 2002 | Issue #26

AP’s One-Sided Venezuela Coverage
On Desk Reporters Who “Phone-in” the Spin


By Dan Feder
Special to the Narco News Bulletin
December 18, 2002

http://www.narconews.com/Issue26/article567.html

[peter.wedemeier1]

Strike hits Venezuelan mining


Posted:12/12/2002 02:00:00 PM | © Mineweb 1997-2002




CARACAS -

http://m1.mny.co.za/news.nsf/FNmg0F0?OpenFrameSet&Frame=Arti…

[peter.wedemeier1]

By Jill Serjeant
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Hundreds of Muslim men and boys are being subjected to strip searches in freezing, standing room only detention centers in southern California after being arrested for routine visa irregularities, immigration lawyers said on Thursday.
They estimated that between 1,000 and 2,500 males, some as young as 16, were spending their fourth day locked up in what they called inhumane conditions after voluntarily presenting themselves at immigration offices to register under new anti-terrorism rules.

"The situation in the detention centers is absolutely horrifying. In one center, they were ordered to strip down and given a strip search. They were only given a prison jumpsuit, without any underwear, T-shirts, socks or shoes. They were not given blankets. They are freezing," Iranian-American lawyer Sohelia Jonoubi told Reuters.

"These people are being held in inhumane conditions...We don`t know how many. We have estimated anywhere between 1,000 to 2,500 detained in southern California. The INS in Los Angeles is overworked, overwhelmed and doing everything they can (but) these people were not prepared to handle it," Iranian-American Lawyers Association spokesman Kayhan Shakib told Reuters.

A TRAP?

Most of those detained were Iranians living in Los Angeles County and neighboring Orange County, which in the past 20 years have become home to some 600,000 Iranian exiles.

Lawyers battling to get the men released on bail said many were law-abiding immigrants who were in the process of getting U.S. green cards under a lengthy and complex INS procedure.

"These people came to the INS centers voluntarily. They are not flight risks. They were led to believe it was routine registration and now this is the biggest trap I have ever seen," Jonoubi said.

Some 3,000 people staged a peaceful protest in Los Angeles on Wednesday as hundreds more waited for hours to get their relatives released on bail from overwhelmed INS officials. Some protesters carried banners reading: "What`s Next? Concentration camps?"

Community lawyers have been refused access to the detainees who they say are being shuttled round various detention centers in prison buses, shackled and in handcuffs, as the system creaks under the strain.
The southern California chapter of the ACLU said the detentions were "reminiscent of what happened in the past with Japanese-Americans" during World War II.
"I cannot believe that I lived to see the day that such human rights violations occur in the United States of America in the 21st century."

[peter.wedemeier1]

Venezuela Supreme Court Orders PDVSA Oil Restart
Reuters | December 19, 2002


CARACAS, Venezuela (Reuters) - Venezuela`s Supreme Court on Thursday ordered the restart of operations by the state oil firm PDVSA, which have been crippled by a strike to force President Hugo Chavez to resign.

The supreme court ordered authorities and individuals to obey government instructions to guarantee operations at the state oil giant, which provides about 50 percent of government revenues in the world`s No. 5 oil exporter.

"This resolution is telling these people (the strikers) that they have to obey government orders and resolutions aimed at restarting the oil industry," a court spokesman told Reuters.

But it was not immediately clear whether striking oil workers would obey the court. Strike leaders, including dissident PDVSA managers, have said they will stay out until the president resigns. Chavez has refused to step down and has vowed to break the strike.

[peter.wedemeier1]

The Long-Term Dollar bear

By Steve Saville
Dec 16, 2002


http://www.kitco.com/ind/Saville/dec162002.html

[peter.wedemeier1]

Jan 10, 3:27 PM EST

Venezuela`s Chavez Fires 700 Oil Workers

By CHRISTOPHER TOOTHAKER
Associated Press Writer

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) -- President Hugo Chavez fired 700 workers from the state oil monopoly Friday, hoping to break a 40-day-old strike that has paralyzed the world`s fifth largest oil exporter.

At least 30,000 of the 40,000 workers at Petroleos de Venezuela S.A. are participating in a nationwide strike to demand early presidential elections. Chavez sacked 300 managers of the company earlier in the strike.

"The revolutionary government is standing firm," Chavez said. "An oligarchy ... has reared like a poisonous serpent to destroy the path of justice that we are paving. The people and our morals won`t let them."

The firings inflamed an already unstable situation. Chavez`s opponents took to the streets Friday, and a bank strike prompted authorities to suspend dollar auctions for a second day in a row after Venezuela`s currency fell.

The Bush administration was talking with other nations in the Americas on ways to end the strike, White House spokesman Ari Fleischer said Friday.
"We remain deeply concerned about the deteriorating situation in Venezuela," Fleischer said. Asked about a possible U.S. role in a breakthrough, Fleischer said, "An electoral solution is the direction the United States sees."

A nonbinding referendum on Chavez`s rule is scheduled for Feb. 2. Chavez insists the constitution only requires him to respect a possible recall referendum in August, the midpoint of his six-year term.

Chavez said the government would have to invest "thousands of millions of dollars" to revive the oil industry. He urged Venezuela`s attorney general to imprison strikers, whom he called "criminals" and "traitors to the country."

The strike has shut thousands of businesses and brought Venezuela`s oil industry to a virtual halt. Chavez has tried to jump-start oil production, and crude output is estimated at about 400,000 barrels a day, compared with the pre-strike level of 3 million barrels. Exports, normally 2.5 million barrels a day, are at 500,000 barrels a day.

Bank workers and other opposition sympathizers were rallying in Caracas and 11 other cities Friday, a day after violence broke out at similar protests.

Hundreds gathered in Caracas to march on the Melia hotel, where Organization of American States Secretary-General Cesar Gaviria, who is mediating between the two sides, is staying.

Fleischer said Gaviria has been quietly discussing options with other OAS states, including formation of a "Friends of Venezuela" group "to help the Venezuelans find a solution."

The Central Bank suspended dollar auctions for a second day Friday after the currency, the bolivar, dropped to a record low of 1,593 to the dollar Thursday - 5 percent weaker than Wednesday and down 12 percent since the start of the year.

Analysts speculated Chavez`s government may have to devalue the bolivar to balance its budget. Most government income is in dollars and a weaker bolivar would increase its domestic spending power.

Meanwhile, unknown assailants tossed a grenade at the residence of Algerian Ambassador Mohamed Khelladi on Thursday night, the embassy said Friday. Nobody was injured and no arrests were made.

The motive for the attack wasn`t known. Algeria has offered to send technicians to help jump-start Venezuela`s oil industry.

Vice President Jose Vicente Rangel said the government reinforced security at embassies and diplomatic residences after the attack and a series of telephoned bomb threats at the Australian, Canadian, German, Libyan and Uruguayan embassies.

Chavez opponents claim the president`s fiery rhetoric incites violent reactions from his most radical backers. But the president, a former paratroop commander who was elected in 1998 and re-elected two years later, accuses the opposition-backed media of whipping up emotions and campaigning for his ouster.

Bloodshed last year spurred a coup and Chavez`s brief ouster. Loyalists in the military returned him to power on April 14.

Spokesmen at three of Venezuela`s largest banks - Banco de Venezuela, Banco Provincial and Banesco - said 80 percent of the country`s nearly 60,000 bank employees stayed home Thursday.

[peter.wedemeier1]

Crystallex has more brass than gold
Junior gold miner`s future is vested in Las Cristinas, but its hold on the property is tenuous

David Baines
Vancouver Sun


Saturday, January 11, 2003


How much do I dislike Crystallex International Corp.? Let me count the ways.

The junior gold producer, which until recently moved its official corporate office from Vancouver to Toronto, has long claimed ownership of the extremely rich Las Cristinas gold and copper property in Venezuela, despite a Venezuelan Supreme Court ruling to the contrary.

After Placer Dome Inc., the acknowledged owner, dealt off the property in 2001, apparently because of flagging gold prices, the state mining authority, Corporacion Venezolana de Guayana, said it would seek out a major gold producer to develop it.

Most thought this would exclude Crystallex, since it is not a major gold producer but rather a unprofitable junior mining company with a very shaky balance sheet. But lo and behold, on Sept. 2, CVG signed an agreement with Crystallex to develop the property. When the agreement was publicly announced on Sept. 6, the stock immediately jumped by 60 cents to $3.20 on the Toronto Stock Exchange.

This was especially fortuitous for Toronto-based Yorkton Securities, which according to the Ontario Securities Commission bulletin, acquired 895,200 shares at $2.82 on Sept. 5, just one day before the big announcement.

Adding fuel to the speculative flames, Yorkton analyst George Albino raised his rating on Sept. 9 from a hold to a "speculative buy" with a 12-month target price of $5. By the end of September, the stock had traded as high as $3.72.

Why Albino would make (and maintain) such a bullish recommendation on this stock is beyond me. Immediately after the CVG announcement, the Venezuelan government, noting that CVG had not publicly tendered the development contract for Las Cristinas, said it would review the matter. This raised a distinct possibility that the award would be reversed.

Also, Crystallex`s operating record in Venezuela has been questionable. Throughout its corporate history, it has claimed to be developing certain other properties, but has done little or nothing to advance them. It has also announced new credit facilities, only to have them fade away with no explanation.

More materially, the company`s current producing assets are marginal. During the nine months ending Sept. 30, the company reported a loss of $7.3 million on revenues of $33.7 million.

There is also a ticking time bomb buried in the notes to the financial statements. They show that the company has sold forward 76,848 ounces of gold this year at an average price of $300 US. With gold now at about $350 US per ounce, the current cost of this forward position is just over $3 million US.

(That`s just this year. The company has sold forward another 163,734 ounces for the years 2004 to 2006 at average prices ranging from $300 to $310 US, further increasing the company`s exposure). Also, as of Sept. 30, the company had sold call options giving the purchasers the right to buy another 111,639 ounces of gold at an average price of $310 US, all of which will expire by the end of this year. Assuming options on 90,000 ounces are still outstanding, the company stands to lose another $3.5 million US on these instruments.

In previous statements, the company has reported the fair market value of its hedge position in the notes to its financial statements. A year earlier, for example, the company reported that it was $4.96 million Cdn in the black. However, now that this figure has retreated into negative territory, the company has omitted this calculation. With current operations in the red and a hedge book that could cause serious future damage (one wonders why Crystallex has sold forward so much gold: it will be lucky if its total production reaches 100,000 ounces this year), the company`s speculative potential is clearly vested in Las Cristinas.

However, its hold on the property is so tenuous, most analysts won`t go near the company. Aside from Albino, the only other analyst who has covered Crystallex in recent years has been Taglich Brothers Inc. of New York. It has been very bullish, but its recommendation hardly counts as Crystallex pays Taglich a monthly fee "for the creation and dissemination of research reports."

With all these negatives, I have to wonder whether Albino`s interest in Crystallex stems from the fact that Crystallex`s chairman is Robert Fung who, until recently, was deputy chairman of his employer, Yorkton Securities. Fung maintains some sort of relationship with Yorkton, but the nature of that relationship is not clear. His telephone voice greeting describes him as "Bob Fung of Yorkton Securities," but nobody at Yorkton was willing or able to tell me whether he has an official position or role.

I might also be tempted to suggest that Albino`s interest stems from Yorkton`s financial interest in Crystallex (in addition to acquiring shares, Yorkton has offered to help Crystallex arrange financing for the Las Cristinas project), but on second thought, I am sure there is an impenetrable Chinese wall between Yorkton`s underwriting and research departments.

Fung is a big wig in Toronto. Among other other things, he is head of Toronto`s Waterfront Revitalization Corp. But whatever credibility he brings to the company is, to my way of thinking, seriously eroded by the fact that he is the executive in charge of shareholder communications which, judging by the company`s disclosure records, have been horribly lacking.

Also, Fung and CEO Marc Oppenheimer have been taking huge compensation, but haven`t put much of that money where their mouths are. During 2001 (the last compensation reporting period), they each drew nearly $1 million in salary and bonuses, but together they own only about $100,000 worth of Crystallex shares.

That`s just as well, because Venezuela appears to be on the brink of civil war. If President Hugo Chavez is ousted, there`s no telling where Las Cristinas will end up. On the other hand, if things settle down, the government could resume its review and ultimately decide to re-assign the Las Cristinas development contract to another company.

Faced with this dilemma, investors have bid down Crystallex`s stock to $2.20. It warms my heart.

© Copyright 2003 Vancouver Sun

http://www.canada.com/vancouver/vancouversun/archives/story.…

[peter.wedemeier1]

Q&A: Minca lawyer Mariana Almeida - Venezuela
Monday, January 13, 2003 17:59 (GMT-0400)
In this interview, Mariana Almeida, legal officer at Minera Las Cristinas (Minca), talked to BNamericas about the future of the petition filed before the national assembly or congress of Venezuela to revoke the operating contract that state heavy industry holding company CVG signed with Canadian miner Crystallex International (Amex: KRY) for the Las Cristinas gold deposit.
BNamericas: What are your expectations regarding the success of the request filed by Minca before the national assembly given the current political crisis in Venezuela?

Almeida: The investigation begun by the national assembly last year is to continue. There remain some representations to be made by both the state regulator and the mining ministry. The hearings will carry on despite the current political situation and the general strike. The only interruptions we expect to the process are the normal judicial vacations. In fact some findings related to the case have already been handed down by the supreme court, which has enabled the case to proceed to the following stage.

BNamericas: At what stage is the investigation by the national assembly into the so-called irregularities in the contract between CVG and Crystallex?

Almeida: It is well advanced and has been coupled with other investigations that have been requested into the actions of CVG president [General Francisco Rangel] regarding administrative and financial irregularities in the Las Cristinas project and also in other projects involving CVG, so this investigation is being complemented by other investigations into CVG.

BNamericas: What type of irregularities are you referring to?

Almeida: the Corporacion Venezolana de Guayana [CVG] is a development corporation for the Guayana region, acting as a holding company for many different firms including aluminum, iron, bauxite and other mining sectors. It also operates the Guri dam which generates the entire electricity needs for the southern part of Venezuela. A whole series of irregularities have been detected in all of these companies and in the budgets prepared and presented by CVG for all of these companies. Meanwhile the general [Rangel] has been able to buy a yacht, a plane and an apartment in Manhattan.

BNamericas: And he is being investigated for these possessions?

Almeida: Twenty-seven investigations into General Rangel have been opened precisely because the activities of CVG are not clear. There is a very big deficit and the various industries are performing poorly, which is why the investigations were opened.
BNamericas: But according to CVG, the national assembly is not conducting an investigation into the Las Cristinas issue or any other issue.

Almeida: But they [General Rangel and Crystallex Venezuela president Felipe Cottin] have been summoned to appear at the hearings on two occasions and they failed to turn up.

BNamericas: So what is the next step?

Almeida: The issue of arbitration. I hope that there will be some pronouncement [by the supreme court].

BNamericas: But given the position of CVG, arbitration is not an option, is it?

Almeida: CVG is not inclined toward arbitration. If it does enter into the arbitration process, it will be on a ruling from the supreme court as they [CVG] said they would not enter into arbitration.

ABOUT LAS CRISTINAS

Las Cristinas is one of the biggest undeveloped gold projects in South America with proven and probable reserves of over 11Moz.

In May last year the country`s energy and mines ministry (MEM) gave CVG authorization to develop the project and contract a third party to carry out operations.

Previously the project was in the hands of Minca. A joint venture set up by CVG and Canada`s Placer Dome (NYSE: PDG). But the latter sold its stake to Vancouver-based junior Vanessa Ventures (TSX: VVV) in 2001 for a token US$50 after the senior company decided gold prices did not warrant Las Cristinas` development on a large scale. CVG refused to recognize the transaction and the Caracas government withdrew the license for the project. Vannessa is still appealing the decision in the courts.

Last September CVG signed an operating contract with Vancouver-based Crystallex to develop the gold deposit, which is located at Kilometer 88 in the Sifontes municipality of Bolivar state.

According to CVG, the plan is to invest some US$500mn for a 40,000t/d operation. Placer Dome had been building a US$570mn mine at Las Cristinas to produce 500,000oz/y gold plus some copper but halted construction in 1999 and wrote off its investment of US$116mn in the project.


By Harvey Beltran

BNamericas.com

[peter.wedemeier1]

Caracas, Jan. 13 (Bloomberg) -- Venezuela`s central bank raised its benchmark interest rate to an eight-month high to brake a 12 percent decline in the currency this month, as a nationwide strike spurs demand for dollars.

The central bank raised the discount rate, the rate at which it provides short-term loans to commercial banks, to 42 percent from 40 percent, the bank said on its Web site. The bank last raised the discount rate on Oct. 1.

``It`s an attempt in the right direction, but I suspect it won`t be enough,`` said Jonathan Binder, who helps manage about $600 million in emerging market securities at Standard Asset Management in Miami. ``You would have to move it to 100 percent to make any real difference.``

Venezuela`s central bank is trying to stem rising demand for dollars as a nationwide strike, now in its 43rd day, has renewed concern among investors that the country may default on its debt. Higher interest rates help lower the sum of cash in circulation and reduce the amount of money available to buy foreign currency. Venezuelans rushed to buy dollars last week as banks joined the strike for 48 hours.

Revenue Down

The strike, which began Dec. 2, has cut government revenue by reducing oil exports, costing the country`s $100 billion economy $4 billion, Energy and Mines Minister Rafael Ramirez said. Economists say the cost is probably more than $6 billion. Taxes and royalties from oil sales provide the government with about half of its income.

Carlos Ortega, head of the country`s largest labor union, and other opposition leaders met today with U.S. State Department officials in Washington. They are scheduled to meet with United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan in New York on Wednesday.

President Hugo Chavez is due to meet with Annan on Thursday, El Universal newspaper`s Web site reported. Presidential spokesmen weren`t immediately available for comment.

Investors are concerned that the government may default on its debt unless the strike is ended and regular oil production begins. Venezuela has $22.4 billion in foreign debt and another $7.4 billion in domestic debt.

[peter.wedemeier1]

Washington Post On Venezuela
Walking around Caracas late last month during Venezuela`s ongoing protests, I was surprised by what I saw. My expectations had been shaped by persistent U.S. media coverage of the nationwide strike called by the opposition, which seeks President Hugo Chavez`s ouster. Yet in most of the city, where poor and working-class people live, there were few signs of the strike. Streets were crowded with holiday shoppers,
metro trains and buses were running normally, and shops were open for business. Only in the eastern, wealthier neighborhoods of the capital were businesses mostly closed.

This is clearly an oil strike, not a "general strike," as it is often described. At the state-owned oil company, PDVSA, which controls the industry, management is leading the strike because it is at odds with the
Chavez government. And while Venezuela depends on oil for 80 percent of its export earnings and half its national budget, the industry`s workers represent a tiny fraction of the labor force. Outside the oil industry, it is hard to find workers who are actually on strike.

Some have been locked out from their jobs, as business owners -- including big foreign corporations such as McDonald`s and FedEx -- have closed their doors in support of the opposition.

Most Americans seem to believe that the Chavez government is a dictatorship, and one of the most repressive governments in Latin America. But these impressions are false.

Not only was Chavez democratically elected, his government is probably one of the least repressive in Latin America. This, too, is easy to see in Caracas. While army troops are deployed to protect Miraflores (the
presidential compound), there is little military or police presence in most of the capital, which is particularly striking in such a tense and volatile political situation. No one seems the least bit afraid of the national government, and despite the seriousness of this latest effort to topple it, no one has been arrested for political activities.

Chavez has been reluctant to use state power to break the strike, despite the enormous damage to the economy. In the United States, a strike of this sort -- one that caused massive damage to the economy, or
one where public or private workers were making political demands --

would be declared illegal. Its participants could be fired, and its leaders -- if they persisted in the strike -- imprisoned under a court injunction. In Venezuela, the issue has yet to be decided. The supreme
court last month ordered PDVSA employees back to work until it rules on
the strike`s legality.

To anyone who has been in Venezuela lately, opposition charges that Chavez is "turning the country into a Castro-communist dictatorship" -- repeated so often that millions of Americans apparently now believe them are absurd on their face.

If any leaders have a penchant for dictatorship in Venezuela, it is the
opposition`s. On April 12 they carried out a military coup against the elected government. They installed the head of the business federation as president and dissolved the legislature and the supreme
court, until mass protests and military officers reversed the coup two
days later.

Military officers stand in Altamira Plaza and openly call for another coup. It is hard to think of another country where this could happen. The government`s efforts to prosecute leaders of the coup were canceled when the court dismissed the charges in August. Despite the anger of his
supporters, some of whom lost friends and relatives last year during the two days of the coup government, Chavez respected the decision of the
court.

The opposition controls the private media, and to watch TV in Caracas is truly an Orwellian experience. The five private TV stations (there is one state-owned channel) that reach most Venezuelans play
continuous anti-Chavez propaganda. But it is worse than that: They are also shamelessly dishonest. For example, on Dec. 6 an apparently deranged gunman fired on a crowd of opposition demonstrators, killing three and injuring dozens. Although there was no evidence linking the government to the crime, the television news creators -- armed with footage of bloody bodies and grieving relatives -- went to work immediately to convince the public that Chavez was responsible. Soon after the shooting, they were broadcasting grainy video clips allegedly showing the assailant attending a pro-Chavez rally.

Now consider how people in Caracas`s barrios see the opposition, a view rarely heard in the United States: Led by representatives of the corrupt old order, the opposition is trying to overthrow a government
that has won three elections and two referendums since 1998. Its coup failed partly because hundreds of thousands of people risked their lives by taking to the streets to defend democracy. So now it is crippling the economy with an oil strike. The upper classes are simply attempting to gain through economic sabotage what they could not and --given the intense rivalry and hatred among opposition groups and leaders
-- still cannot win at the ballot box.

From the other side of the class divide, the conflict is also seen as a struggle over who will control and benefit from the nation`s oil riches. Over the last quarter-century PDVSA has swelled to a $50
billion a year enterprise, while the income of the average Venezuelan has declined and poverty has increased more than anywhere in Latin America.

Billions of dollars of the oil company`s revenue could instead be used to finance health care and education for millions of Venezuelans.

Now add Washington to the mix: The United States, alone in the Americas, supported the coup, and before then it increased its financial support of the opposition. Washington shares PDVSA
executives` goals of increasing oil production, busting OPEC quotas and
even selling off the company to private foreign investors. So it is not surprising that the whole conflict is seen in much of Latin America as just another case of Washington trying to overthrow an independent,
democratically elected government.

This view from the barrios seems plausible. The polarization of Venezuelan society along class and racial lines is apparent in the demonstrations themselves. The pro-government marches are filled with
poor and working-class people who are noticeably darker -- descendants of
the country`s indigenous people and African slaves -- than the more expensively dressed upper classes of the opposition. Supporters of the opposition that I spoke with dismissed these differences, insisting that Chavez`s followers were simply "ignorant," and were being manipulated by a "demagogue."

But for many, Chavez is the best, and possibly last, hope not only for social and economic betterment, but for democracy itself. At the pro-government demonstrations, people carry pocket-size copies of the country`s 1999 constitution, and vendors hawk them to the crowds. Leaders of the various non-governmental organizations that I met with, who helped draft the constitution, have different reasons for revering it:
women`s groups, for example, because of its anti-discrimination articles; and indigenous leaders because it is the first to recognize
their people`s rights. But all see themselves as defending constitutional democracy and civil liberties against what they describe as "the threat of fascism" from the opposition.

This threat is very real. Opposition leaders have made no apologies for
the April coup, nor for the arrest and killing of scores of civilians during the two days of illegal government. They continue to
stand up on television and appeal for another coup -- which, given the depth of Chavez`s support, would have to be bloody in order to hold power.

Where does the U.S. government now stand on the question of democracy in Venezuela? The Bush administration joined the opposition in taking advantage of the Dec. 6 shootings to call for early elections, which would violate the Venezuelan constitution. The dministration reversed itself the next week, but despite paying lip service to the
negotiations mediated by the OAS, it has done nothing to encourage its allies in the opposition to seek a constitutional or even a peaceful solution.

Sixteen members of Congress sent a letter to Bush last month, asking him to state clearly that the United States would not have normal diplomatic relations with a coup-installed government in Venezuela. But
despite its apprehension about disruption of Venezuelan oil supplies on the eve of a probable war against Iraq, the Bush
administration is not yet ready to give up any of its options for
"regime change" in Caracas. And -- not surprisingly -- neither is the
Venezuelan opposition.


Washington Post Sunday, January 12, 2003; By Mark Weisbrot* *Mark Weisbrot is co-director of the Center for Economic and Policy
Research, an independent nonpartisan think tank in Washington.

[hpoth]

KRY,Die Regierung von Venezuela entschied sich für Crystallex als Partner für die Erschließung und Entwicklung des Mega-Projekt LAS CRISINAS.Mit einer geschätzten Reserve von 11,8 Mio oz Gold.(für alle Konzessionsgebiete) ist dies eines der weltgrößten,unerschlosenen Goldvorkommen.Der Kupferanteil in diesemGebiet bellläuft sich allein auf 850 MIO Pfd.Die Produktion von KRY kann damit um 250.000 oz Gold jährlich steigen und sich somit mehr als verdoppeln.Das der Aktienkurs nicht soort durch die Decke ging, hat folgende Gründe:
1. Die hohe Investionssumme von rund 600 Mio US$,die für dei Entwicklung des Mega -Projektes erforderlich sind.
2. Das Länderrisiko Venezuela.
Von der künftigen Goldförderung sind 28% über ein Zeitraum von 5 Jahren vorwärts verkauft worden.Diese noch akzeptable Quote soll sukzessive über die laufende Produktion weiter gesenkt werden.
Gruß hpoth

[peter.wedemeier1]

Unbedingt mehrfach lesen, sehr lesenswert!


http://www.madcowprod.com/

[peter.wedemeier1]

ENVIRONMENTAL REGULATION AND LIABILITY

Crystallex`s activities are subject to laws and regulations controlling
not only the mining of and exploration for mineral properties, but also the
possible effects of such activities upon the environment. Environmental laws may
change and make the mining and processing of ore uneconomic or result in
significant environmental or reclamation costs. Environmental legislation
provides for restrictions and prohibitions on spills, releases, or emissions of
various substances produced in association with certain mining industry
operations, such as seepage from tailings disposal areas which could result in
environmental pollution. A breach of such legislation may result in the
imposition of fines and penalties or the suspension or closure of mining
operations. In addition, certain types of operations require the submission of
environmental impact statements and approval thereof by government authorities.
Environmental legislation is evolving in a manner which may mean stricter
standards and enforcement, increased fines and penalties for non-compliance,
more stringent environmental assessments of proposed projects, and a heightened
degree of responsibility for companies and their officers, directors and
employees. Permits from a variety of regulatory authorities are required for
many aspects of mine development, operation and reclamation. Future legislation
and regulations could cause additional expense, capital expenditures,
restrictions, liabilities and delays in the development of Crystallex`s
properties, the extent of which cannot be predicted. In the context of
environmental permits, including the approval of reclamation plans, Crystallex
must comply with standards and laws and regulations which may entail costs and
delays depending on the nature of the activity to be permitted and how
stringently the regulations are implemented by the permitting authority.
Crystallex does not maintain environmental liability insurance.

The Las Cristinas properties are located within the Imataca Forest
Reserve. The Presidential decree regulating the Imataca region recognizes mining
activities as a permitted use in the Forest Reserve and establishes the
framework for the mining activities which may take place within the region. That
Presidential decree has been the subject of legal challenges before the
Venezuelan courts since 1997. Pending resolution thereof, the Venezuelan courts
issued an interim order that no new mining concessions or rights could be
granted in respect of the region. Crystallex believes that the interim order is
not applicable to existing and previously obtained mining rights and, because
mining rights in relation to Las Cristinas pre-date the interim order of the
court, the restrictions in that order do not apply to Crystallex`s mining rights
in relation to the Las Cristinas Deposits. Crystallex believes that this is the
official position of Venezuela`s MEM. Accordingly, the interim order should not
impact Crystallex`s Agreement or the rights granted thereunder. Nevertheless, there can be no assurances that the final
ruling of the Venezuelan courts on this matter will not impose restrictions on
mining activities within the Imataca Forest Reserve.

[peter.wedemeier1]

COMPETITION

There is competition within the mining industry for the discovery and
acquisition of properties considered to have commercial potential. Crystallex
competes with other mining companies, many of which have greater financial
resources than Crystallex, for the acquisition of mineral claims, leases and
other mineral interests as well as for the recruitment and retention of
qualified employees and other personnel.

DEPENDENCE ON LIMITED MINING PROPERTIES

Crystallex`s operations at the San Gregorio Mill (in Uruguay) and the
Revemin Mill (in Venezuela) together account for all of Crystallex`s current
mineral production and revenue. Any adverse development affecting those mills
would have a material adverse effect on Crystallex`s financial performance and
results of operations. In addition, there can be no assurance that Crystallex`s
development program at its San Gregorio mine will yield new mineral resources to
replace or expand current mineral reserves once they have been fully mined.

PRODUCTION RISKS

Crystallex prepares estimates of future gold production for its
operations. It cannot give any assurance that it will achieve its production
estimates. The failure to meet these estimates could have a material and adverse
effect on any or all of its immediate future cash flows, profitability, results
of operations and financial condition. These production estimates are dependent
upon, among other things, the accuracy of mineral reserve estimates, the
accuracy of assumptions regarding ore grades and recovery rates, ground
conditions, physical characteristics of ores, such as hardness and the presence
or absence of particular metallurgical characteristics, and the accuracy of
estimated rates and costs of mining and processing.

Crystallex`s actual production may vary from its estimates for a
variety of reasons, including actual ore mined varying from estimates of grade,
tonnage, dilution and metallurgical and other characteristics; short-term
operating factors such as the need for sequential development of ore bodies and
the processing of new or different ore grades from those planned; mine failures,
slope failures or equipment failures; industrial accidents; natural phenomena
such as inclement weather conditions, floods, droughts, rock slides and
earthquakes; encountering unusual or unexpected geological conditions; changes
in power costs and potential power shortages; shortages of principal supplies
needed for operation, including explosives, fuels, chemical reagents, water,
equipment parts and lubricants; labor shortages or strikes; civil disobedience
and protests; and restrictions or regulations imposed by government agencies or
other changes in the regulator environments. Such occurrences could result in
damage to mineral properties, interruptions in production, injury or death to persons, damage to property of
Crystallex or others, monetary losses and legal liabilities. These factors may
cause a mineral deposit that has been mined profitably in the past to become
unprofitable forcing Crystallex to cease production. Each of these factors also
applies to Crystallex`s sites not yet in production. It is not unusual in new
mining operations to experience unexpected problems during the start-up phase.

[peter.wedemeier1]

POLITICAL AND FOREIGN RISKS

Political and related legal and economic uncertainty may exist in
countries where Crystallex may operate. There can be no assurances that
political support for Crystallex`s development of its projects will continue.
Crystallex`s mineral exploration and mining activities may be adversely affected
by political instability and changes to government regulation relating to the
mining industry.

Other risks of foreign operations in these countries include political
unrest, labor disputes, invalidation of governmental orders and permits,
corruption, war, civil disturbances and terrorist actions, arbitrary changes in
law or policies of particular countries, foreign taxation, price controls,
delays in obtaining or the inability to obtain necessary governmental permits,
opposition to mining from environmental or other non-governmental organizations,
limitations on foreign ownership, limitations on the repatriation of earnings,
limitations on gold exports and increased financing costs. These risks may limit
or disrupt Crystallex`s projects, restrict the movement of funds or result in
the deprivation of contract rights or the taking of property by nationalization
or expropriation without fair compensation.

Recent and ongoing political unrest in Venezuela, including civil
disturbances, fuel shortages and labor strikes, has not yet had any material
impact on Crystallex`s Venezuelan operations. However, there can be no assurance
that these operations will not be adversely affected in the future, particularly
if these conditions continue for an extended period of time.

UNINSURABLE RISKS

Exploration, development and production operations on mineral
properties involve numerous risks, including unexpected or unusual geological
operating conditions, rock bursts, cave-ins, fires, floods, earthquakes and
other environmental occurrences, and political and social instability. It is not
always possible to obtain insurance against all such risks and Crystallex may
decide not to insure against certain risks as a result of high premiums or other
reasons. Should such liabilities arise, they could reduce or eliminate any further profitability and result in increasing costs and a decline in the
value of the securities of Crystallex. Crystallex does not maintain insurance
against environmental risks.

[peter.wedemeier1]

RISK OF GOLD HEDGING ACTIVITIES

Crystallex has entered into forward contracts to sell a portion of the
gold that it anticipates it will produce at its mines. These contracts obligate
Crystallex to sell the gold at a price set when it enters into the contract,
regardless of the price when Crystallex actually mines the gold. Accordingly,
there is a risk that the price of gold is higher at the time Crystallex mines
the gold than when it enters into the contracts, so that Crystallex must sell
the gold at a lower price than it could have received if it did not enter into
the contracts. In addition, if Crystallex is not able to produce and deliver the
amount of gold that it agreed on in the contracts, it will be required to buy
gold at market prices to satisfy its contract obligations. These market prices
may be higher than the agreed upon delivery prices or higher than Crystallex`s
production costs. Further, the entity contracting to buy the gold from
Crystallex could default, which means that if the contract price is higher than
the market price at the time of delivery, Crystallex will not likely be able to
resell the gold at the higher price.

EXPLORATION, DEVELOPMENT AND OPERATING RISKS

The business of exploring for and mining of minerals involves a high
degree of risk. Few properties that are explored are ultimately developed into
producing mines. Unusual or unexpected formations, formation pressures, fires,
power outages, labor disruptions, flooding, explosions, tailings impoundment
failures, cave-ins, landslides and the inability to obtain adequate machinery,
equipment or labor are some of the risks involved in the operation of mines and
the conduct of exploration programs. Crystallex has relied on and may continue
to rely on consultants and others for exploration and development expertise.
Substantial expenditures are required to establish ore reserves through drilling, to develop metallurgical processes to extract the metal from
the ore and, in the case of new properties, to develop the mining and processing
facilities and infrastructure at any site chosen for mining. No assurance can be
given that minerals will be discovered in sufficient quantities to justify
commercial operations or that funds required for development will be obtained on
a timely basis. The economics of developing gold and other mineral properties
are affected by many factors, including the cost of operations, variations in
the grade of ore mined and metals recovered, fluctuations in metal markets,
costs of processing equipment, continuing access to smelter facilities on
acceptable terms and other factors such as government regulations, including
regulations relating to royalties, allowable production, importing and exporting
of minerals and environmental protection. There is no assurance that
Crystallex`s mineral exploration, development and acquisition activities will be
successful.

[peter.wedemeier1]

NO CERTAINTY OF TITLE TO CRYSTALLEX MINERAL PROPERTIES

Acquisition of title to mineral properties is a very detailed and
time-consuming process. Title to, and the area of, mineral claims may be
disputed. Although Crystallex has investigated its title to all of the
properties for which it holds concessions or other mineral leases or licenses,
Crystallex cannot give an assurance that title to such properties will not be
challenged or impugned. Crystallex can never be certain that it will have valid
title to its mining properties. Mining properties sometimes contain claims or
transfer histories that examiners cannot verify, and transfers under foreign law
often are complex. Crystallex does not carry title insurance on its properties.
Furthermore, as noted earlier (see "Recent Developments Regarding Las Cristinas
- The Agreement"), the Agreement with the CVG does not convey title to the Las
Cristinas properties. Rather, Crystallex has been granted the exclusive right to
possess and develop the Las Cristinas 4, 5, 6 and 7 gold properties pursuant to
the Agreement with the CVG.

GOLD PRICE VOLATILITY MAY AFFECT PROFITABILITY

Gold prices historically have fluctuated widely and are affected by
numerous external factors beyond Crystallex`s control. Between 1997 and 2002,
the gold price fluctuated from a low of U.S.$252.80 to a high of U.S.$366.55. On
January 10, 2003, the p.m. fixing price of gold sold in the London Bullion
Market was U.S.$353.00 per ounce.

The gold price can fluctuate widely and is affected by numerous factors
beyond Crystallex`s control, including industrial and jewellery demand,
inflation and expectations with respect to the rate of inflation, the strength
of the U.S. dollar and of other currencies, interest rates, gold sales by
central banks, forward sales by producers, global or regional political or
financial events, and production and cost levels in major gold-producing regions. In addition, the gold price is sometimes subject to
rapid short-term changes because of speculative activities.

The profitability of Crystallex`s operations, its revenues and its cash
flow are significantly affected by changes in the gold price. If gold prices
decline for a significant period below the cost of production of any or all of
Crystallex`s operations, it may not be economically feasible to continue
production at such sites. This would materially affect production, profitability
and Crystallex`s financial position. A decline in the market price of gold may
also require Crystallex to write-down its mineral reserves which would have a
material and adverse effect on its earnings and profitability. Should any
significant writedowns in reserves be required, material writedowns of
Crystallex`s investment in the affected mining properties and increased
amortization, reclamation and closure charges may be required. Accordingly, even
if Crystallex discovers and produces commercial amounts of gold, Crystallex
cannot give any assurance that gold prices will be high enough for Crystallex to
sell the gold profitably.

The price of the common shares is also affected by fluctuations in the
price of gold.

[peter.wedemeier1]

UNCERTAINTY OF ORE RESERVE AND RESOURCE ESTIMATES

Crystallex`s reported mineral reserves and resources are only
estimates. No assurance can be given that the estimated mineral reserves and
resources will be recovered or that they will be recovered at the rates
estimated. Mineral reserve and resource estimates are based on limited sampling, and, consequently, are
uncertain because the samples may not be representative. Mineral reserve and
resource estimates may require revision (either up or down) based on actual
production experience. Market fluctuations in the price of metals, as well as
increased production costs or reduced recovery rates, may render certain mineral
reserves and resources uneconomic and may ultimately result in a restatement of
reserves and/or resources. Moreover, short-term operating factors relating to
the mineral reserves and resources, such as the need for sequential development
of ore bodies and the processing of new or different ore grades, may adversely
affect Crystallex`s profitability in any particular accounting period. Investors
should note that certain of the technical information included in Crystallex`s
Form 20-F has been prepared without reconciliation to Canadian mining standards.

Crystallex has not yet completed the technical reports that would allow
it to report reserves or resources for the Las Cristinas Deposits.
Notwithstanding that significant reserves at the Las Cristinas Deposits have
previously been publicly reported by others, there can be no assurance that the
technical report and feasibility study to be prepared for Las Cristinas will
demonstrate reserves or resources at the Las Cristinas Deposits.

[peter.wedemeier1]

CRYSTALLEX LACKS THE RIGHT TO MINE COPPER. Although the Agreement grants
Crystallex certain rights to develop the Las Cristinas Deposits, those rights
are limited to gold and do not explicitly include the right to explore, develop,
exploit, extract, commercialize, sell or otherwise deal with copper, which may
constitute a substantial portion of the ore-body at the Las Cristinas
properties. Subject to fulfilling all necessary requirements of Venezuelan law,
including a grant by the MEM to the CVG of authority to negotiate the
exploitation of copper rights, the CVG has agreed with Crystallex to negotiate
with Crystallex in respect of such copper rights. However, there can be no
assurance that the MEM will provide the CVG with the authorization required in
order for the CVG to grant the copper rights to Crystallex or that the CVG and
Crystallex will be able to successfully negotiate an agreement with respect to
such copper rights.

CRYSTALLEX NEEDS ADDITIONAL FUNDING

Development of Crystallex`s mining projects, including the Las
Cristinas project, will require significant financial resources. As a result,
Crystallex will need to raise significant non-recourse project financing, debt
and additional equity. Crystallex currently has limited financial resources and
there is no assurance that sufficient additional funding or financing will be
available to Crystallex or its direct and indirect subsidiaries on acceptable
terms, or at all, for further exploration or development of its properties or to
fulfill its obligations under any applicable agreements. Failure to obtain such
additional funding could result in the delay or indefinite postponement of the
exploration and development of Crystallex`s mining projects and could lead to
Crystallex defaulting under the Agreement.

[peter.wedemeier1]

MINCA has claimed that the cancellation of the MINCA Contract was
illegal. It has further challenged the validity of Resolution 35 and Decree No.
1,757 and has commenced legal actions in Venezuela disputing the CVG`s legal
authority for cancelling the MINCA Contract. Crystallex is confident that the
cancellation of the MINCA Contract was done in accordance with all applicable
Venezuelan laws. Crystallex is confident that the Agreement entered into between
it and the CVG was approved in accordance with all applicable Venezuelan laws
and is valid and enforceable against the CVG and the current and any future
government administration in Venezuela. Crystallex believes that any relief
which might be granted in legal actions by MINCA currently admitted before the
Venezuelan courts would not diminish Crystallex`s rights under the Agreement.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, Crystallex cannot predict the outcome of
the various MINCA legal actions and cannot provide any assurances that the legal
challenges of MINCA or any other third parties will not impact the rights to the Las
Cristinas Deposits granted to Crystallex by the CVG pursuant to the Agreement.
However, Crystallex believes that in the remote event that a third party was
successful in a legal action in respect of Las Cristinas, the successful party
would only be entitled to monetary damages from the Venezuelan government and
not to restitution of the Las Cristinas properties. This position is reinforced
by the fact that the property has been contracted to a third party, namely
Crystallex.

CRYSTALLEX LACKS OWNERSHIP RIGHTS. Under the Agreement between Crystallex and
the CVG and in accordance with applicable Venezuelan mining laws, ownership of
the Las Cristinas Deposits belongs to the Republic of Venezuela. The Agreement
does not transfer any property ownership rights to Crystallex, and the right of
Crystallex to develop the Las Cristinas Deposits is contingent upon Crystallex
continuing to meet its ongoing obligations thereunder. Those obligations are
more fully described under the heading "Recent Developments Regarding Las
Cristinas - The Agreement."

[peter.wedemeier1]

In July, 1991, the CVG entered into a shareholders` agreement with
Placer Dome Inc. ("Placer Dome") which, among other things, granted Placer Dome
the right to develop the Las Cristinas Deposits. Pursuant to that agreement,
Minera Las Cristinas, C.A. ("MINCA") was incorporated to explore and, if
economically feasible, exploit the Las Cristinas Deposits. In February, 1992, the CVG, in accordance with the
foregoing agreement, entered into the mining contract with MINCA (the "MINCA
Contract"). There was no gold produced by MINCA under the terms of the MINCA
Contract, MINCA suspended its development activities, and, as a result, the CVG
noted MINCA in default of this agreement. In August, 2000, Placer Dome, by
agreement with the CVG, was given until July 15, 2001 to engage an investment
bank to attempt to find an approved buyer or joint venture partner to put the
Las Cristinas Deposits into production. On or about July 13, 2001, Placer Dome
purported to transfer its interest in MINCA to Vannessa Ventures Ltd.
("Vannessa") by transferring to Vannessa its share interest in Placer Dome de
Venezuela C.A., a Venezuelan holding company which in turn held the controlling
interest in MINCA. Vannessa was not an approved buyer under the shareholders`
agreement and the CVG and the MEM have refused to recognize the transfer as a
result of a change of control restrictions in the shareholders` agreement.
Subsequent to July 15, 2001, the CVG declared the MINCA Contract in default and
gave notice to MINCA of the requisite cure period. After the end of the cure
period, with the default still not cured, the CVG immediately instituted the
necessary proceedings to formally and legally terminate and cancel the MINCA
Contract. The MINCA Contract was terminated by the CVG on November 6, 2001 and,
pursuant to the mining law of Venezuela, the mining assets related to the Las
Cristinas Deposits reverted to the Republic of Venezuela. On November 16, 2001,
the CVG, together with a representative of MEM, a representative of the National
Comptroller Office (who received the assets for the Republic of Venezuela), and
a judge (who made a formal record of the proceedings) took possession of the
assets. In March, 2002, the MEM passed Resolution 35 whereby the MEM declared
the MINCA Contract terminated and repossessed the assets on behalf of the
Republic of Venezuela. Presidential Decree No. 1,757 declared the Las Cristinas
Deposits reserved for the Republic of Venezuela and authorized the MEM to
contract the direct exploitation of the area to the CVG. The MEM and the CVG
entered into an agreement for the development of the Las Cristinas Deposits and
the MEM authorized the CVG to enter into a mine operating agreement with a third
party. Under the authority of Decree No. 1,757 and the contract with MEM, the
CVG entered into the Agreement with Crystallex.

[peter.wedemeier1]

http://www.secinfo.com/$/Search.asp?Find=crystallex



LAS CRISTINAS PROPERTIES

ALLEGED CLAIMS OF MINCA THAT IT HAS THE RIGHT TO MINE THE PROPERTIES.
The rights of Crystallex to develop the Las Cristinas 4, 5, 6 and 7 gold
deposits (the "Las Cristinas Deposits") in the Municipality of Sifontes, Bolivar
State, Venezuela are derived from the agreement dated September 17, 2002 (the
"Agreement"), between Crystallex and the Corporacion Venezolana de Guayana (the
"CVG"), acting under the authority of the Venezuelan Ministry of Energy and
Mines ("MEM") and pursuant to Venezuelan mining law. See "Recent Developments
Regarding Las Cristinas - The Agreement." Under Venezuelan mining law, all
mineral deposits belong to the Republic of Venezuela and are assets of public
domain. Mining activities are considered to be of national interest, and the MEM
is the government branch empowered under Venezuelan mining law to administer and
control all mining activities in the country. Mining may be carried on in only
two ways: (i) through a mining concession granted by MEM to a third party, or
(ii) directly by the government when, based upon public interest and pursuant to
a decree, it reserves to itself specific minerals or areas to explore and
exploit. While direct governmental exploitation requires that the government
maintain ownership of the mineral, it does not require that it retain the
administration of its development, exploitation and sale. Pursuant to the
Agreement, the administration of the Las Cristinas Deposits relating to gold
including its exploration, development, exploitation, commercialization and
sale, have been granted exclusively to Crystallex as provided by the mining law
of Venezuela.

[peter.wedemeier1]

Wednesday, 22 January, 2003, 13:36 GMT
Venezuela suspends currency markets

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/2682731.stm

[peter.wedemeier1]

[peter.wedemeier1]

[peter.wedemeier1]

GATA "substantiates" 15,000ton short
"Word is the Portuguese central bank sale was the result of an options structure arranged in tranches over 1997 and 1998 (a collar). This is exactly what MIDAS reported over the past years and may only be the tip of the iceberg. Central banks wrote calls above the market and gold is being called away from them.

"I doubt this gold will ever see the physical market because of the massive 15,000 tonne gold short position. There is a scramble out there to get hold of physical gold to honor prior commitments. The Portuguese have found that out.

"The big news, as far as GATA is concerned, is the revelation that 70% of the Portuguese gold is gone. How many other central banks are in the same predicament? The Portuguese gold loans/swaps are not in the gold loan numbers of the World Gold Council and GFMS. Their gold loan numbers are only 4600/ 5,000 tonnes. The GATA/Howe/Veneroso numbers are more than three times the official gold industry numbers.

[peter.wedemeier1]

Crystallex International engages in the acquisition, exploration and development of mineral properties located principally in Uruguay, Venezuela and Canada. For the nine months ended 9/30/02, revenues fell 20% to C$33.7 million. Net loss according to U.S. GAAP totalled $38.9 million, up from $725 thousand. Revenues reflect decreased sales in Venezuela and Uruguay. Loss reflects decreased gross profit margins and increased general and administrative expenses.

[peter.wedemeier1]

[peter.wedemeier1]

• Crystallex will control 100% of the reserves and resources of the project and all production and proceeds are for the account of Crystallex subject only to the payment of royalties to the Venezuelan Ministry of Energy and Mines and to the CVG. The royalty to the Ministry is fixed at three per cent, and the royalty to the CVG will vary with the price of gold. Up to a price of US$280 the royalty will be 1%. From US$280 to US$350 the royalty will be 1.5%. From US$350 to US$400 the royalty will be 2% and above US$400, the royalty will be 3%. Production will be measured against an annual production plan prepared by Crystallex and approved by the CVG.The agreement has an initial term of 20 years with two renewals each for a term of 10 years.

[peter.wedemeier1]

Las Cristinas Contract secure says CVG
"It is a solid and secure agreement that protects both of us in order to complete this project successfully." General Rangel Gomez said. (President of the Corporacion Venezolana de Guayana or CVG on September 17, 2002.)

[peter.wedemeier1]

"(KRY) presented to US Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) on January 15 for the issuing of $50 million new shares in what Gomez says is an effort to find resources for the Las Cristinas project"

[peter.wedemeier1]

Quinto Dia`s Guayana correspondent Cheo Gomez calls on the Venezuelan Guayana Corporation (CVG) to get hold of a certified copy of the prospectus that Crystallex International (KRY) presented to US Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) on January 15 for the issuing of $50 million new shares in what Gomez says is an effort to find resources for the Las Cristinas project.

Gomez claims that the Vancouver-based mining corporation had been forced to go to United States money markets to raise funds since it had failed to do so in Canada and that international banks had refused to lend the company that amount of cash.
Crystallex International executives have been unavailable to comment Gomez` published diatribe, but insiders claim an announcement on project financing is expected shortly.

In sidebar news, Gomez also writes that four of the biggest construction companies in the region had ordered a survey, only to discover that if there were elections for Bolivar State Governor today, Causa R leader and former State Governor, Andres Velasquez would get 30% of the vote followed by Sidor Trade Union (Sutiss) leader, Ramon Machuca (21%

[peter.wedemeier1]

From a November Reuters Article

"The company hopes to be producing 225,000 ounces (annually) from Las Cristinas alone in the early years of the new project.

Crystallex also has a mine operation in Uruguay, the Minera San Gregorio, processing 25,000 tonnes of ore a day.

But the company`s flagship operation from now on will be Las Cristinas"

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY takover target Reuters says...

From September 9 Reuters article:

"..."We haven`t tabled our final feasibility (study) and even if you use numbers slightly higher than that ($155 an ounce), the margins are significant," he said, adding that the company`s other Venezuelan mines at profitable at $260 an ounce.

Oppenheimer said the company was not looking for a partner to develop Las Cristinas but analysts said the firm was now a takeover target for big miners seeking to expand reserves.

But Oppenheimer said: "There is no doubt there is significant interest in the deposit but at this stage it is too early for anybody to contact us for discussions. But our objective is to do this on our own."

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY: Reuters said L.C. in "Top 5" mines in world.

"Past exploration has shown that the mine, located in the Venezuelan state of Bolivar, has proven and probable reserves of more than 11.8 million ounces of gold. It is believed to be one of the world`s top five undeveloped gold resources."

(from a September 9 reuters article)

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY: Bloomberg said L.C. worth $8 billion.

" Crystallex, also based in Vancouver, won the project because it ``offered the best prospect for a rapid development and start- up of the mine,`` the company said in a statement.

Las Cristinas may hold gold deposits worth about $8 billion. ..."

(From a September 9 Bloomberg article)

[peter.wedemeier1]

Bloomberg said L.C. worth $8 billion
according to bloomberg, businesses in venenzuela are back to business...signs of weakening 9 weeks strike.

http://messages.yahoo.com/bbs?.mm=FN&action=m&board=8729020&…

[miguelli]

# 95

ist das richtig ?



Crystallex also has a mine operation in Uruguay, the Minera San Gregorio, processing 25,000 tonnes of ore a day.

[peter.wedemeier1]

Ja. KRY = S T R O N G B U Y !!!!!

[miguelli]

processing 25,000 tonnes of ore a day.

25.000 to am Tag ?

Gold ?

Gestein? wenn ja mit welchem Goldgehalt ?

[peter.wedemeier1]

Diario El Expreso
Press Article
January 19, 2003
CLEARED UP DOUBTS CONCERNING LAS CRISTINAS

The Committee of the Comptrollership of the National Assembly moved swiftly to clear the doubts on the scope of the Contract and it was evidenced that it is supported by "judicial irregularities", all of this in relation to the Operations Contract signed last year between the Venezuelan Guyana Corporation (CVG) and Crystallex for the exploitation of the gold project of Las Cristinas.

In this sense, Representatives Edgar Mora and Osman Gómez, together with the General Director of the MEM, Gustavo Sorondo, the Legal Representative of the General Director of Mines, Carlos Arnaude, the Director of Mining Control and Supervision, Miguel González Porto, and the Director of Mining Planning and Economy, José Fernández, the officials of Energy and Mines ratified that other sources from this entity, including its Official Rafael Ramirez, had already spoken toward the end of last year. The administrative proceeding related to the contract under investigation is far from complying with the provisions by the Venezuelan laws in matters of this nature.

Sorondo stated that "at no time did the Administrative Office take part in the drafting of the contract" because "that was all done in the office of the Vice-minister of Mines and based on a general management concept which comes after the restructuring of the MEM: "The Vice-Ministry of Mines functions as an office parallel to the Administrative Office," with a direct connection to the area control in the regions.

On the other hand, Attorney Carlos Arnaude stated that even though the Administrative Office was in charge of reviewing the content of the CVG-Crystallex contract, this did not happen. "We were not aware that this contract was being drafted and were surprised when we read in the press that Crystallex was the company that had been awarded said contract. Because if you study the history of Crystallex within the Ministry, it has always had some claim against the Ministry and always around the same areas".
As in the case of Las Cristinas, he added, which, from a legal point of view, has been very strange and confusing. "And I think that these circumstances make it even stranger". In fact, "if the idea was to unencumber it, the way in which it was done is what made it even stranger".

The Director of Mining Control and Supervision, on the other hand, Miguel González Porto, who gave information on his performance as President of MINERVEN in the State of Bolívar, called Las Cristinas a curse for Venezuela. Nonetheless, on the basis of his own experience as a manager of the government gold business, he stated that what has been agreed on with Las Cristinas, it should have all been different in this sense the bid was necessary as the only procedure that guarantees "seriousness and transparency".

In the meantime, the Director of Mining Planning and Economy, José Fernández said that he had no knowledge of the contract, despite the fact that due to the nature of the activities of the aforementioned office, which is categorized as the financial entity of the government partner in situations such as this one (in addition to its technical and legal roles) "we were surprised when we found out through the press that Crystallex was the company that had been awarded the bid".

In this sense, he said, “there had not been any cases similar to this one.” And that it was surprising that the legal part, the bidding, had not been done. That is to say, the same thing that was recently done with Minas de Naricual,” although that was a smaller development.

Meanwhile, spokespeople for Minera Las Cristinas, C.A. (MINCA) stated that they were still awaiting the development of the interrogations/summons and their results. They ratified, once more, their trust in the work being done by the Committee of the Comptrollership and the result of the actions that the company had presented in the Supreme Court of Justice “which aim only to support our rights within a contractual relationship with CVG".

[peter.wedemeier1]

Reporte Diario de la Economía
Press Article
January 24, 2003
In the opinion of Tomás Rodríguez, internal comptroller of the Ministry of Energy and Mines (MEM), the Venezuelan Guyana Corporation (CVG) should have called for a bidding process for the exploitation of the gold mines Las Cristinas.

Rodríguez was quoted by a sub-commission of the Permanent Committee of the Comptrollership of the National Assembly that investigates the Operations Contract signed between the Venezuelan Guyana Corporation (CVG) and the Canadian company Crystallex International to reactivate the project of Las Cristinas, which means an investment of over 500 million dollars, according to Multipuerta.com

In the opinion of Rodríguez, CVG signed a "compulsive" contract and he felt that, due to the "size of the mine, the choice of the company that would perform the exploration, construction and exploitation should have been done through a bidding process".

At the time of his statement, Rodríguez said that "I have never seen or reviewed the contract between CVG and Crystallex International". "CVG had ten (10) days to deliver the contract to the MEM and evaluate the technical and financial capacity of the company, a time period that was not complied with", said Rodriguez.

For next week, the sub-commission of the Decentralized Entities, Government Agencies and Autonomous Institutes has scheduled the interrogation of the Vice-Minister of Mines, Elsa Amorer Reyes. The National Assembly presumes that there were irregularities when the concession of the mines Las Cristinas was turned over to Crystallex.

The sub-commission that investigates the case was left waiting for the representatives of Crystallex to explain how the concession was granted without a bidding process.
Once more, the representatives of the Sub-Committee of the National Assembly that is investigating the case of Las Cristinas were left waiting to begin the timetable of the scheduled interrogation. At this time the president of Crystallex, Luis Felipe Cottin, was not present, nor did he send a communication to apologize for his inability to come before the Sub-Committee of the National Assembly.

For Representative Edgar Mora, who presides the sub-commission of Decentralized Entities, Autonomous Institutes and Government Agencies, Crystallex must "prove that it does have the financial capacity to execute this project and explain why it accepted a contract without the benefit of a bid". "There was no bid or public offer here, a fact that seriously discredits our country, and this needs to be investigated", said Mora.

Mora also remembered that "according to the Constitution of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, all matters of importance for the nation must go through the National Assembly, in addition to the fact that the Security and Defense Law of the Nation, because it’s a strategic activity reserved for the government".

Representative Alfonso Marquina also pointed out that "the only concrete fact at this point is that there was no bidding process, which is apparently a violation of the Bidding Law, so there should be an investigation of the extenuating circumstances and situations that took place to make CVG grant this concession (…) At this point, if the legal norms were actually violated, the companies will be penalized, thus sending a message to the world that Venezuela does enforce compliance with the law".

Mora also explained "that he does not believe that there was any confusion on the part of the representatives of Crystallex when they abstained from appearing at the sub-commission meeting, because a communication sent by Representative Luis Velasquez Alvaray, asking them to ignore the notification and not go to the meeting". Representative Mora feels that "Velasquez Alvaray has to authority to sign any correspondence in the name of the National Assembly or the Permanent Committee of the Comptrollership, and even less of the sub-commission that is carrying out this investigation (…) He also used National Assembly letterhead to establish the position of the party that he represents and the notification is not listed, as is usual in these cases", explained Mora.

[peter.wedemeier1]

Minca lawyer still insisting petition to revoke a Las Cristinas gold contract will proceed
By: David Coleman
Tuesday, January 14, 2003

Almeida insists that the case is well-advanced and has been coupled with other investigations that have been requested into the actions of the CVG president "regarding administrative and financial irregularities."

[peter.wedemeier1]

By: Patrick J. O`Donoghue
Sunday, January 26, 2003

Gomez claims that the company had to go to the USA for funds because it failed in Canada and international banks refused to lend the company that amount of cash.

[peter.wedemeier1]

TORONTO, Dec. 2 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Crystallex
International Corporation (Amex: KRY; TSX) announced today
that it expects to have its reserve and resource modeling, as well as
its mine plan, completed for the Las Cristinas properties in
Venezuela during January 2003. Mine Development Associates
("MDA"), an independent consulting firm headquartered in Reno,
Nevada, has been commissioned to undertake the reserve and
resource modeling. Crystallex is conducting verification work
including reviewing drill core, re-surveying drill holes,
re-analyzing drill core to check against original assay data and
performing twinned core drilling to verify original drill hole
results. MDA began this work in early October, shortly after
Crystallex took possession of the Las Cristinas properties

[peter.wedemeier1]

The SKI System Triple Buy Signal
Long-term Implications for Gold Stocks

Jeffrey M. Kern, Ph.D.
http://www.gold-eagle.com/editorials_03/kern020303.html

[peter.wedemeier1]

Wed Feb 5, 2003
Exchange Stabilization Fund (EFS) Runs Gold Community Enraged One More time? When will you just say - NO? Plus answers to questions on Silver.
Author: James Sinclair



It was crystal clear that the rally in the dollar during the Powell presentation at the UN was artificially induced by the Exchange Stabilization Fund, as was the intra-US-night top in the gold market at $390.

Have you ever wondered what would happen if the Community just said "NO?" If you stared down this ESF intervention manipulative nonsense as I do and, in fact, sold them their last US dollar, or took both sides of their gold play today to your advantage. I have.

Why are you allowing yourselves to be toyed with by such obvious ESF intervention moves? Powell almost convinced Saddam Hussein to invade himself as his presentation was so clear and he is respected as the dove amongst hawks. It even took the talking heads a few minutes to figure out how to explain a stock market rally and dollar rally. They announced the stock market and dollar rally as the product of Powell`s presentation to the UN because it "took away uncertainty." Now that has to get the award for spin city speak because in English it means; "Now we are certain the US is going to Iraq, therefore, it is fine to buy equities and the dollar." Huh?

I have pointed out to you what they look like when they play and how to play them. Gold is going over $400 and looking back from the other side. Until gold is over $400, it is my opinion that using TA and buying the dips is as safe as gold can ever be. Selling any rise over $10 in one day is simply good sense.

Conclusion: Gold is going over $400 on this leg of the long-term gold bull market.

[peter.wedemeier1]

Las Cristinas contract secure says CVG Pres.

"It is a solid and secure agreement that protects both of us in order to complete this project successfully." General Rangel Gomez said. (President of the Corporacion Venezolana de Guayana or CVG on September 17, 2002.)

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY controls 100% of Las Cristinas 4,5,6,7

"One of the largest mines in the world."

• Crystallex will control 100% of the reserves and resources of the project and all production and proceeds are for the account of Crystallex subject only to the payment of royalties to the Venezuelan Ministry of Energy and Mines and to the CVG. The royalty to the Ministry is fixed at three per cent, and the royalty to the CVG will vary with the price of gold. Up to a price of US$280 the royalty will be 1%. From US$280 to US$350 the royalty will be 1.5%. From US$350 to US$400 the royalty will be 2% and above US$400, the royalty will be 3%. Production will be measured against an annual production plan prepared by Crystallex and approved by the CVG.The agreement has an initial term of 20 years with two renewals each for a term of 10 years.

[peter.wedemeier1]

Bloomberg said L.C. worth $8 billion.

Really. Here`s what they said in a recent article...

" Crystallex, also based in Vancouver, won the project because it ``offered the best prospect for a rapid development and start- up of the mine,`` the company said in a statement.

Las Cristinas may hold gold deposits worth about $8 billion. ..."

[peter.wedemeier1]

Reuters said L.C. in "Top 5" mines in world.

"Past exploration has shown that the mine, located in the Venezuelan state of Bolivar, has proven and probable reserves of more than 11.8 million ounces of gold. It is believed to be one of the world`s top five undeveloped gold resources."

(from a September 9 reuters article)

And now we await the mine plan and resource study.

any time now

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY takover target Reuters says...

From September 9 Reuters article:

"..."We haven`t tabled our final feasibility (study) and even if you use numbers slightly higher than that ($155 an ounce), the margins are significant," he said, adding that the company`s other Venezuelan mines at profitable at $260 an ounce.

Oppenheimer said the company was not looking for a partner to develop Las Cristinas but analysts said the firm was now a takeover target for big miners seeking to expand reserves.

But Oppenheimer said: "There is no doubt there is significant interest in the deposit but at this stage it is too early for anybody to contact us for discussions. But our objective is to do this on our own."

Note: That was in September. It was too early then. But the MDA studay is due out very shortly.

Who will start the bidding?

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY Short Interest Nearly 3 Million shares.

100 Octane rally fuel.

Anybody got a match?

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY Short Interest Nearly 3 Million shares.

100 Octane rally fuel.

Anybody got a match?

http://ragingbull.lycos.com/mboard/boards.cgi?board=KRY&read…

[peter.wedemeier1]

So, What Do You Get For KRY at $1.30?

http://ragingbull.lycos.com/mboard/boards.cgi?board=KRY&read…

[peter.wedemeier1]

Reuters on KRY
By Pascal Fletcher

CARACAS, Venezuela, Nov 7 (Reuters) - Venezuela`s political turmoil and sagging economy may be frightening away many foreign investors, but not Marc Oppenheimer.

The American president and CEO of Canadian miner Crystallex International Corp. KRY.TO is preparing to sink millions of dollars into the development of a gold mine in Venezuela, billed as potentially one of the richest in the world.

Oppenheimer calmly shrugs off the bitter political war raging between leftist President Hugo Chavez and his foes that generated a short-lived military coup in April and has kept the world`s No. 5 oil exporter on tenterhooks since then.

He also seems unfazed by a noisy and determined legal offensive by a Canadian rival, Vannessa Ventures Ltd. VVV.V , which is challenging Crystallex`s contract to develop the Las Cristinas gold mine in Venezuela`s mineral-rich Bolivar state.

The Sept. 17 contract is also questioned by some members of Venezuela`s National Assembly, who say it was incorrectly awarded to Crystallex without a proper tender process.

"We choose to be here," Oppenheimer said in an interview during a presentation by Crystallex of the $500 million Las Cristinas development project. "A lot of people have shied away from Venezuela. We think it`s a mistake," he added.

Venezuela`s National Investment Promotion Council (Conapri) says non-oil foreign direct investment fell by more than half to a meager $189 million in the first half of this year, compared with more than $400 million in the same 2001 period.

Conapri cites political instability and the absence of a stable regulatory environment as the main factors.

But Oppenheimer says the potential of the Las Cristinas mine -- which has proven and probable reserves of more than 11.8 million ounces of gold -- makes the project worthwhile.

"It`s a world class deposit ... No one, either analysts or banks, will question that the commodity is there," he said.

"If you want to be in the natural resources business, you have to be in Venezuela," he said.

FOCUS ON FAST START-UP

Oppenheimer, whose Toronto-based company already has a string of other gold properties in south-east Bolivar state, does not envisage problems in financing the Cristinas project.

"We have had no difficulty in getting international banks to do project financing in Venezuela," he said.

He added that the "mine model" setting out the technical features of the deposit, which was originally held by Canada`s Placer Dome Inc. PDG.TO for most of the 1990s, would be completed in mid-January, while the feasibility study would be delivered well before the agreed September, 2003 deadline.

"At this point, we are focussed on getting Las Cristinas up and running," Oppenheimer said.

Construction of the mine plant in its initial phase is expected to take 18 months, at a cost of around $150 million.

The project is scheduled to reach its maximum processing capacity -- 40,000 tonnes a day of gold-bearing ore -- in nine years but Oppenheimer said this time frame could be reduced.

Crystallex`s jilted rival Vannessa, whose purchase of the Las Cristinas concession last year from Placer Dome was never recognized by Venezuela`s state holding Corporacion Venezolana de Guayana (CVG), has mounted a multi-pronged legal challenge.

It has appealed to Venezuela`s Supreme Court against the Chavez government`s decision earlier this year to resume state control of the mine, and it also disputes the CVG`s awarding of the development operation to Crystallex as illegal and unfair.

"It was a speeded-up selection of one candidate," Eric Rauguth of Vannessa told Reuters. The Vancouver-based firm has taken its case to international arbitration, saying the government`s handling of Las Cristinas violates an existing investment protection accord between Venezuela and Canada.

Oppenheimer is not concerned by Vannessa`s aggressive public campaign."It`s just a noise factor," he said.

STAYING POWER

CVG Gen. President Francisco Rangel, who fiercely defends the choice of Crystallex in the face of criticism from inside and outside Venezuela, also sees no threat from Vannessa`s legal offensive. "This contract is bullet-proof," he said.

Oppenheimer said the Las Cristinas deal was the result of his company`s decade-old presence in Venezuela`s Bolivar mining region, where Crystallex already has a "hub and spoke" operation linking several mines to a processing plant.

Crystallex`s current operations in the El Callao, El Dorado and Kilometro 88 areas of Bolivar state would produce about 90,000 ounces of gold this year, Oppenheimer said, adding this should expand to 130,000 ounces in the coming year.

The company hopes to be producing 225,000 ounces from Las Cristinas alone in the early years of the new project.

Crystallex also has a mine operation in Uruguay, the Minera San Gregorio, processing 25,000 tonnes of ore a day.

But the company`s flagship operation from now on will be Las Cristinas, where local residents are eagerly awaiting new jobs and social improvements that are promised in the 20-year contract, which is renewable for a further 20 years.

[peter.wedemeier1]

In case you missed Doody`s recommendation of KRY,

In the January issue of Gold Stock Analyst, John Doody sums up his feeling about Crystallex by saying,

"Mkt doesn`t believe KRY got LC, and current Venezuela National strike hurts. Credibility-building effort began with hire of COO from SVP at ABX (1990-2001) who led Pierina and other projects construction; Coming independent feasibility study for LC will help too. Current $126 million market cap is only $10/oz P+P when PDG`s work confirmed. Majors are starved for OZ. Buy!"

[peter.wedemeier1]

[peter.wedemeier1]

"Crystallex International Corporation (KRY on TSX and Amex) announced today that it expects TO HAVE ITS RESERVE and resource modeling, AS WELL AS ITS MINE PLAN, completed for the Las Cristinas properties in Venezuela during January 2003. Mine Development Associates (“MDA”), an independent consulting firm headquartered in Reno, Nevada, has been commissioned to undertake the reserve and resource modeling. Crystallex is conducting verification work including reviewing drill core, re-surveying drill holes, re-analyzing drill core to check against original assay data and performing twinned core drilling to verify original drill hole results. MDA began this work in early October, shortly after Crystallex took possession of the Las Cristinas properties. "

"Geologic cross sections throughout the length of the deposit show that mineralization is found within alternating bands, up to 10`s of meters thick of varying gold grades. Down dip continuity is considered good to excellent. The overall true thickness of the gold mineralization envelope throughout La Conductora/Cuatro Muertos/Potaso reaches up to 500 meters. The high grade gold zones (+ 1g Au/t) reach up to 100 meters thick. Gold and copper mineralization identified to date in this area covers a distance of over 2,000 meters, from the south end of Potaso to the north end of Cuatro Muertos."

"Crystallex, with the assistance of MDA is continuing to validate the data, which includes twinning holes and taking additional check samples."

"Subject to the upcoming data verification program, and based on the information presented in Placer`s 1996-1998 feasibility studies and MDA`s own sample checks, MDA believes that there are no fatal flaws and it has no significant supportable concerns about the data. Placer had extensive checks and QA/QC protocols incorporated throughout the process and had noted no major problems." ...

"The Las Cristinas project contains a significant gold and copper resource with potential to increase in size."

[peter.wedemeier1]

Crystallex International Corporation · CA O · On 2/4/3
http://www.secinfo.com/$/SEC/Filing.asp?PSI=511597-1-4486&CI…

[peter.wedemeier1]

http://iw.thomsonfn.com/iwatch/cgi-bin/iw_ticker?ticker=kry&…

[peter.wedemeier1]

Short Interest
http://www.nasdaq.com/asp/quotes_full.asp?mode=&page=&symbol…

[peter.wedemeier1]

BULLETIN: GOLD MARKET MANIPULATION

By Michael Newton

February 10, 2003

http://www.globalstockalert.com/bb1.htm

[peter.wedemeier1]

GOLD, THE STOCK MARKET AND WAR

By Robert Milan

February 10, 2003

http://www.globalstockalert.com/rm2.htm

[peter.wedemeier1]

Nova gold did a comparison of market valuations during the genesis of a
golds deposit. There comments and analysis are below:

"Company Comparisons:

Exploration companies generally are valued on a market capitalization per
total ounces of gold resources based on the stage of advancement of a
project to production. These milestones to production are: 1) the initial
discovery and definition of a potentially economic resource (typical market
value of $1-5 per resource oz), 2) completion of an Economic Scoping Study
(typical market value of US$10/resource oz), 3) Advanced Exploration Stage
with completion of a Preliminary Feasibility Study (US$25/resource oz), and
4) completion of a Final Feasibility Study (US$50/resource oz). With
continued positive progress on a project, the market tends to look forward
to the next stage of advancement toward production.

At production the median North American Gold Producer Market Cap Per Ounce
was US$100/ounce of resource with a range from $27-$138/oz.

The recent announcement of the buyout by Glamis Gold of Fracisco Gold values
that company`s feasibiltiy stage El Sauzal resource ounces at US$70/oz."

[peter.wedemeier1]

Crystallex International Corporation

Crystallex International Corporation is a Canadian-based intermediate producer of gold with operations and exploration properties in Uruguay, Venezuela and Canada.

Trading Symbol: KRY on TSX/AMEX

http://www.crystallex.com/

Crystallex International Corporation · CA O · On 2/4/3
CSA Project 511597 · Submission 1 · Accession Number 511597-1-4486
http://www.secinfo.com/$/SEC/Filing.asp?PSI=511597-1-4486&CI…

[peter.wedemeier1]

9 month period at end of Sept 2002

Operating revenue
Uruguay_______$24.239 million
Venezuela______$9.445 million

[peter.wedemeier1]

Ownership Information - Crystallex International (AMEX:KRY)
http://ca.us.biz.yahoo.com/hd/k/kry.html

[peter.wedemeier1]

The Company is operating the San Gregorio mine in the Rivera Crystalline Island of Uruguay, and the Tomi concession. It also controls the Lo Increible Project in the El Callao gold district of Venezuela, as well as the Revemin mill, which is located near the Company`s Venezuelan concessions. These concessions lie on a 150-kilometer line that runs through the country`s three richest gold producing regions: El Callao, El Dorado and Kilometre 88.

[peter.wedemeier1]

For the nine months ended 9/30/02, revenues fell 20% to C$33.7 million. Net loss according to U.S. GAAP totalled $38.9 million, up from $725 thousand. Revenues reflect decreased sales in Venezuela and Uruguay. Loss reflects decreased gross profit margins and increased general and administrative expenses.

[peter.wedemeier1]

Standard and Poors cut Uruguay`s credit rating TWO notches TODAY.Uruguay may default on 11.4 billion of debt.S&P may cut their rating more depending upon if hte country proposes a debt swap.

[peter.wedemeier1]

Uruguay may default on 11.4 billion of debt.

[peter.wedemeier1]

Short Interest
http://www.nasdaq.com/asp/quotes_full.asp?mode=&page=&symbol…

[peter.wedemeier1]

MDA reports that "the Las Cristinas project contains a significant gold/copper deposit with potential to increase in size". MDA found that "for the most part, the existing Las Cristinas data is adequate and appears valid," "the work was done in a technically sound basis" and the "work can form the basis for making economic decisions." The report recommends that Crystallex "perform data validation and verification and then reinitiate engineering studies culminating in a new feasibility study."

[peter.wedemeier1]

Press Release Source: Crystallex International Corporation


Crystallex Files Initial Report on Cristinas
Tuesday February 11, 9:28 am ET


TORONTO, Feb. 11 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ --

http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/030211/attu014_1.html

[peter.wedemeier1]

Crystallex Files Initial Report on LC
TORONTO, Feb 11, 2003 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX/ -- Crystallex International Corporation (Amex: KRY; Toronto) announced today it has filed a report following the guidelines of National Instrument 43-101F, regarding its 100% controlled Las Cristinas gold project in Venezuela. The report is the first of two reports that Crystallex has commissioned in respect of the Las Cristinas deposits. This initial technical report describes the historic work done by previous operators and, the results of that work. It supports the adequacy and relevance of the data produced and previously made public in respect of the Las Cristinas properties. The report, compiled by Mine Development Associates (`MDA`) of Reno, Nevada, has been filed on SEDAR and is available at the website (http://www.sedar.com). The persons responsible for or involved in the preparation of the report on behalf of MDA included Steven Ristorcelli, P. Geo., Scott Hardy, P. Eng. and Neil Prenn, P. Eng., all of whom are "qualified persons" for the purposes of National Instrument 43-101.

MDA reports that "the Las Cristinas project contains a significant gold/copper deposit with potential to increase in size". MDA found that "for the most part, the existing Las Cristinas data is adequate and appears valid," "the work was done in a technically sound basis" and the "work can form the basis for making economic decisions." The report recommends that Crystallex "perform data validation and verification and then reinitiate engineering studies culminating in a new feasibility study." MDA was on site at Las Cristinas in October 2002 during which time they reviewed existing evidence and took independent samples of core, pulps and course rejects as part of the commencement of the verification process. Crystallex has been conducting validation and verification work including reviewing existing drill core, re- surveying drill holes, re-analysing drill core to check against original assay data and performing twinned core drilling to verify original drill holes. In conjunction with the Crystallex verification program, MDA has undertaken reserve and resource modeling, as well as the completion of a mine plan for the Las Cristinas project. The second MDA report updating reserve and resource modeling and mine plan is expected to be released in the 1st Quarter of 2003, and will be filed on SEDAR upon release.

Crystallex entered into a binding agreement on September 17, 2002 with Corporacion Venezolana de Guayana (`CVG`) which granted to Crystallex the exclusive rights to exploit and extract gold from the Las Cristinas properties. On September 30, 2002, Crystallex took possession of the Las Cristinas properties as well as related data, studies and core samples, and subsequently commissioned MDA to undertake a modeling and mine plan. Since Crystallex`s development plans will differ from those of previous operators, the second MDA report will allow Crystallex, for the first time, to address the potential of the Las Cristinas properties in the specific context of Crystallex`s plans.

[peter.wedemeier1]

The Las Cristinas project contains a significant gold and copper resource with potential to increase in size.

[peter.wedemeier1]

Subject to the upcoming data verification program, and based on the information presented in Placer`s 1996-1998 feasibility studies and MDA`s own sample checks, MDA believes that there are no fatal flaws and it has no significant supportable concerns about the data. Placer had extensive checks and QA/QC protocols incorporated throughout the process and had noted no major problems.

[peter.wedemeier1]

Crystallex, with the assistance of MDA is continuing to validate the data, which includes twinning holes and taking additional check samples.

[peter.wedemeier1]

Geologic cross sections throughout the length of the deposit show that mineralization is found within alternating bands, up to 10`s of meters thick of varying gold grades. Down dip continuity is considered good to excellent. The overall true thickness of the gold mineralization envelope throughout La Conductora/Cuatro Muertos/Potaso reaches up to 500 meters. The high grade gold zones (+ 1g Au/t) reach up to 100 meters thick. Gold and copper mineralization identified to date in this area covers a distance of over 2,000 meters, from the south end of Potaso to the north end of Cuatro Muertos.

[peter.wedemeier1]

Crystallex International Corporation (KRY on TSX and Amex) announced today that it expects TO HAVE ITS RESERVE and resource modeling, AS WELL AS ITS MINE PLAN, completed for the Las Cristinas properties in Venezuela during January 2003. Mine Development Associates (“MDA”), an independent consulting firm headquartered in Reno, Nevada, has been commissioned to undertake the reserve and resource modeling. Crystallex is conducting verification work including reviewing drill core, re-surveying drill holes, re-analyzing drill core to check against original assay data and performing twinned core drilling to verify original drill hole results. MDA began this work in early October, shortly after Crystallex took possession of the Las Cristinas properties.

[peter.wedemeier1]

Press Release Source: Placer Dome Inc.


Placer Dome to increase stake in Donlin Creek
Tuesday February 11, 8:23 pm ET


VANCOUVER, Feb. 11 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -

http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/030211/va068_1.html

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY to start Production in LC this Year


DJ SNC-Lavalin/Crystallex -2: Value Of Pact Wasn`t Given


TORONTO (Dow Jones)--Crystallex International Corp. (KRY) has hired SNC-Lavalin Engineers & Constructors Inc. to undertake a feasibility study for the development, construction and operation of a gold and copper mining and processing facility on its 100%-controlled Las Cristinas project in Venezuela.

In a news release, Crystallex, a Canada-based mining company, said it`s contemplating an initial 20,000-metric-ton-a-day operation capable of processing oxide and sulphide ores.

The value of the contract wasn`t disclosed.

As reported, Mine Development Associates has been retained by Crystallex to prepare the geology, mineral resource estimate, mineral reserve estimate and mine plan to be incorporated in the study, which will also incorporate the work of others.

Crystallex anticipates the study by SNC-Lavalin Engineers to be completed in mid-year.

SNC-Lavalin Engineers is owned by SNC-Lavalin Group Inc. (T.SNC).

Company Web Site: http://www.crystallex.com

[peter.wedemeier1]

LC operations accelerated !! NEWS ! (1)
Crystallex Commissions Feasibility Study On Cristinas; Retains SNC-Lavalin, Engineers & Constructors Inc.

PR NEWSWIRE - February 12, 2003 09:01
TORONTO, Feb 12, 2003 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX/ -- Crystallex International Corporation (Amex: KRY; Toronto) announced today that it has awarded to SNC-Lavalin Engineers & Constructors Inc. ("SNCL") the mandate to undertake a Feasibility Study for the development, construction and operation of a gold and copper mining and processing facility on its 100% controlled Las Cristinas project in Venezuela. The mandate to SNCL contemplates an initial 20,000 tonne per day operation capable of processing oxide and sulphide ores. As previously reported, Mine Development Associates ("MDA") of Reno, Nevada has been retained by Crystallex to prepare the geology, mineral resource estimate, mineral reserve estimate and mine plan to be incorporated in the Feasibility Study. The Feasibility Study will also incorporate the work of others. Crystallex anticipates the Feasibility Study by SNCL to be completed in midyear 2003. Receipt of the MDA report to be incorporated in the Feasibility Study is expected in the 1st quarter of 2003.

Crystallex had originally considered a three phase development of the Las Cristinas properties, however, after reviewing project data received from the Corporacion Venezolana de Guayana ("CVG"), receiving an initial report from MDA, and completing internal pre-feasibility analysis, it was determined that an initial 20,000 tonne per day operation had technical and financial feasibility and merited detailed analysis by SNCL.

SNC-Lavalin companies have significant experience working in Latin American countries, and maintain a permanent office in Caracas. SNC-Lavalin, and its predecessor, Kilborn Inc., are well known for their successful gold project experience. Major gold projects such as Pierina, Peru; Omai, Guyana; La Coipa, Chile; Bulyanhulu, Tanzania and others have been successfully designed and constructed by SNC-Lavalin companies. Additionally they have completed over 30 major studies and projects in Venezuela over the past 25 years.
The study will be directed from SNCL`s Toronto office and Crystallex coordination will be provided by Ken Thomas, the Company`s recently appointed Chief Operating Officer from the Crystallex head office, also in Toronto.

About Crystallex:

Crystallex International Corporation is a Canadian based gold producer with operations and exploration properties in Venezuela and Uruguay. Crystallex shares are traded on the TSX and AMEX Exchanges and Crystallex is part of the S&P/TSX Composite Index, the most widely followed benchmark index in Canada. Crystallex has been focused on strategic growth in South America and recently signed a definitive agreement with respect to the Las Cristinas mining properties in Venezuela and has taken possession of those properties. Crystallex is currently reviewing drill data and studies previously completed in preparation for the completion of a feasibility study to support its development plans for the properties.

Note: This news release may contain certain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the United States Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included in this release, including, without limitation, statements regarding potential mineralization and reserves, exploration results, and future plans and objectives of Crystallex, are forward-looking statements that involve various risks and uncertainties. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the Company`s expectations are disclosed under the heading "Risk Factors" and elsewhere in documents filed from time to time with The Toronto Stock Exchange, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission and other regulatory authorities.

The Toronto Stock Exchange has not reviewed this release and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.

SOURCE Crystallex International Corporation

[peter.wedemeier1]

Press Release Source: Crystallex International Corporation


Crystallex Commissions Feasibility Study On Cristinas; Retains SNC-Lavalin, Engineers & Constructors Inc.
Wednesday February 12, 9:03 am ET


TORONTO, Feb. 12 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ --

http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/030212/atw010_1.html

[peter.wedemeier1]

"From tomorrow`s opening over the balance of next week, expect $358.08 to $364.50, then its biggest battle at a range of $371.50 to $372.45 and, ASSUMING WE WIN AT THAT LEVEL, then $385.30 to $390.80, followed by $409 to $414. ONCE A LEVEL IS CROSSED IT WILL BECOME SUPPORT."

"This is a golden "Battle Royal" - enjoy it as you are the winners but you simply don`t know it yet. I do!"

"No Bull Market in the US$ = No Bear Market in Gold."

"You will see many more ferocious run ups in gold to prices like $414, $529 and $590 as gold derivatives cause their holders financial pain beyond belief!"

"Pure Gold Shares Did Confirm Gold at $390.80 By Making Themselves a New High"

"In terms of price, the pure gold "SGI" confirmed gold at $390.80. To technicians of gold bullion, this is an important consideration."

http://www.jsmineset.com/s/Home.asp

[peter.wedemeier1]

Posted: Friday, February 14, 2003
By: David Coleman


300 small scale gold miners to be relocated from Las Cristinas 5 goldfield

http://www.vheadline.com/readnews.asp?id=3033

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY LC Status Feb 2003
KRY LC status February 2003

1) Signed agreement for the Las Cristinas. September, 2002. Contract for 20 years.
2) Paid the required $15 million. Received the Placer data, cores, and took possession of the mining camp.
3) Initial Study from MDA confirms Placer’s methods and data. 10.6 million ounces at $325 gold. Blue Sky statements. Investors informed that confirmation drilling (twinning) underway. Also informed that balance of MDA study to come shortly.
4) Hired SNC-Lavalin Engineers & Constructors Inc. to do bankable feasibility study. A top firm.
5) Hired Ken Thomas, respected industry veteran, to build and direct the project.

Significant Items Needed in 2003

1) Agreement for copper with CVG.
2) Completed Mine Plan.
3) Completed bankable feasibility study.
4) Project financing.

Notes:

KRY would not have hired SNCL if they thought that the MDA study and mine plan would be uneconomic.

KRY would not have hired Ken Thomas if they were not serious about immediately building the project.

Ken Thomas would not have signed on with KRY if the project were not to be built.

[peter.wedemeier1]

Venezuela`s Media Coup

In Venezuela, even color commentators are enlisted in the commercial media`s open bid to oust the democratically elected government of Hugo
Chávez. Andrés Izarra, a Venezuelan television journalist, says that the campaign has done so much violence to truthful information on the
national airwaves that the four private TV stations have effectively forfeited their right to broadcast. "I think their licenses should be revoked," he says.

It`s the sort of extreme pronouncement one has come to expect from Chávez, known for nicknaming the stations "the four horsemen of the apocalypse." Izarra, however, is harder to dismiss. A squeaky clean made-for-TV type, he worked as assignment editor in charge of Latin

America at CNN en Español until he was hired as news production manager for Venezuela`s highest-rated newscast, El Observador on RCTV.

On April 13, 2002, the day after business leader Pedro Carmona briefly seized power, Izarra quit that job under what he describes as "extreme emotional stress." Ever since, he has been sounding the alarm about the threat posed to democracy when the media decide to abandon journalism and pour all their persuasive powers into winning a war
being waged over oil.

Venezuela`s private television stations are owned by wealthy families with serious financial stakes in defeating Chávez. Venevisión, the most-watched network, is owned by Gustavo Cisneros, a mogul dubbed
"the joint venture king" by the New York Post. The Cisneros Group has partnered with many top US brands--from AOL and Coca-Cola to Pizza Hut and Playboy--becoming a gatekeeper to the Latin American market.

Cisneros is also a tireless proselytizer for continental free trade, telling the world, as he did in a 1999 profile in LatinCEO magazine, that "Latin America is now fully committed to free trade, and fully committed to globalization.... As a continent it has made a choice."

But with Latin American voters choosing politicians like Chávez, that has been looking like false advertising, selling a consensus that doesn`t exist.

All this helps explain why, in the days leading up to the April coup, Venevisión, RCTV, Globovisión and Televen replaced regular programming with relentless anti-Chávez speeches, interrupted only for commercials
calling on viewers to take to the sreets: "Not one step backward.

Out! Leave now!" The ads were sponsored by the oil industry, but the stations carried them free, as "public service announcements."

They went further: On the night of the coup, Cisneros`s station played host to meetings among the plotters, including Carmona. The president of Venezuela`s broadcasting chamber co-signed the decree dissolving
the elected National Assembly. And while the stations openly rejoiced at news of Chávez`s "resignation," when pro-Chávez forces mobilized for his return a total news blackout was imposed.
Izarra says he received clear instructions:"No information on Chávez, his followers, his ministers, and all others that could in any way be related to him." He watched with horror as his bosses actively suppressed breaking news. Izarra says that on the day of the coup, RCTV had a report from a US affiliate that Chávez had not resigned but
had been kidnapped and jailed. It didn`t make the news. Mexico, Argentina and France condemned the coup and refused to recognize the
new government.

RCTV knew but didn`t tell. When Chávez finally returned to the Miraflores Palace, the stations gave up on covering the news entirely. On one of the most important
days in Venezuela`s history, they aired Pretty Woman and Tom & Jerry cartoons. "We had a reporter in Miraflores and knew that it had been retaken by the Chávistas," Izarra says. "[but] the information blackout stood. That`s when it was enough for me, and I decided to leave."

The situation hasn`t improved. During the recently ended strike organized by the oil industry, the television stations broadcast an
average of 700 pro-strike advertisements every day, according to government estimates. It`s in this context that Chávez has decided to go after the TV stations in earnest, not just with fiery rhetoric but
with an investigation into violations of broadcast standards and a new set of regulations. "Don`t be surprised if we start shutting down television stations," he said at the end of January.

The threat has sparked a flurry of condemnations from the Committee to Protect Journalists and Reporters Without Borders. And there is reason for concern: The media war in Venezuela is bloody, with attacks on
both pro- and anti-Chávez media outlets. But attempts to regulate the media aren`t an "attack on press freedom," as CPJ has claimed--quite the opposite.

Venezuela`s media, including state TV, need tough controls to insure diversity, balance and access, enforced at arm`s length from political powers.


Some of Chávez`s proposals (such as an ominous clause banning speech that shows "disrespect" to government officials) overstep these bounds and could easily be used to muzzle critics. That said, it is absurd to treat Chávez as the principal threat to a free press in Venezuela. That honor clearly goes to the media owners themselves. This fact has been entirely lost on the organizations entrusted to
defend press freedom around the world, still stuck in a paradigm in which all journalists just want to tell the truth and all threats come from nasty politicians and angry mobs.

This is unfortunate, because we are in desperate need of courageous defenders of a free press at the moment--and not just in Venezuela.

After all, Venezuela isn`t the only country is being waged over oil, where media owners have become inseparable from the forces clamoring for "regime change" and where the opposition finds itself routinely erased by the nightly news. But in the United States, unlike

in Venezuela, the media and the government are on the same side.

[peter.wedemeier1]

Let`s Get Real

A few questions and observations for my readers:

- Why has the only Dove in the Bush Administration, General Colin Powell, Become a Hawk?
- The "why" behind my decision not to issue a sell on gold when it broke down from its power up trend line recently.
- Why is gold going to move above $400 soon?
- Why the 2nd leg in gold may surpass the Key $529 level?
http://www.jsmineset.com/s/Home.asp

[peter.wedemeier1]

"Conclusion:
Where gold is concerned, as soon as this extreme angle power down-trend breaks, we are on our way to a $3.2 trillion dollar deficit and gold over $400 then $500 in the mode of progression outlined to you."
http://www.jsmineset.com/s/Home.asp

[peter.wedemeier1]

Doug Casey
He likes Wolfden-
============

Wolfden Resources (YWO.V:C$1.55)
Ever since Goldcorp gave away the geological secrets of its Red Lake mine over the Internet, a staking rush and exploration boom has ensued that has made Red Lake, Ontario one of the most active exploration areas in North America, if not the world.

The prize is huge. Goldcorp’s Red Lake mine and Placer Dome’s Campbell mine are actually both mining the same orebody that, including past production plus current reserves and resources, exceeds 23 million ounces. And the grades are spectacular. Current reserves at the Red Lake mine are 5.1 million ounces at 1.5 ounces per tonne, which is why Goldcorp can produce gold for $65 an ounce.

It’s no surprise that the competition to find another Red Lake or Campbell is so intense. But one company stands head-and-shoulders above the rest, given the quality of its projects and the dominant land position it has in the Red Lake area: Wolfden Resources.

The quality of Wolfden’s projects can be judged by the fact that Teck-Cominco is earning an interest in 3 projects and Kinross is earning an interest in 2. In addition, both Teck-Cominco and Goldcorp are shareholders of Wolfden.

Kinross is currently on hole #5 of a 10 hole drill program and Teck should commence drilling in two weeks. While you never know who is going to hit paydirt it helps to own the stocks before a discovery is made. Given the total number of Wolfden’s projects, its dominant position in Red Lake, their advanced High Lake project in Nunavut and the potential of the Monument Bay project (Bema JV) in Manitoba, I think it is an excellent speculation.

The company was recommended to Alert subscribers on November 6th last year at C$0.80 per share. While I don’t like chasing stocks any more than you do, I do believe in buying quality. And at C$1.55 Wolfden still represents very good speculative value.

Paul van Eeden

The Casey Investment Alert is published by Douglas Casey, © 2003. Information herein is obtained from sources believed to be reliable, but its accuracy cannot be guaranteed. The publisher, editors and officers, including Douglas Casey and Paul van Eeden, may from time to time have positions in securities or commodities recommended by or referred to in this broadcast.

[peter.wedemeier1]

Jeff Berwick`s Paradigm Trader: Updates on KRY, HIET, SWEB & T.IUS
Monday, February 17, 2003
By Jeff Berwick
Chief Editor, Paradigm Trader

>

The market selloff over the last month has taken its toll on all four of our portfolio companies. Technically and realistically, I think the market is at a short term bottom and we should at least see a few weeks of decent gains, unless something unexpected occurs, which is highly possible given the state of current world politics.

Below I have updates for all four of the companies we are following. These four remain the only four public companies of our interest although I have information on a private company going public that I will be sending out to the Paradigm Trader database in the next 48 hours.

Crystallex International (AMEX: KRY) (TSX: KRY)

Despite rising gold prices Crystallex (AMEX: KRY)/ (TSX: T.KRY) has been dropping significantly and has sunk below the $2 CDN level for the first time since we began covering the stock near $1.20 CDN nearly two years ago. Fears over continued political strife in Venezuela as well as continued disbelief that a company like Crystallex could have actually attained such a mammoth gold deposit have had the stock selling off over the last month from the $3.50 level it touched briefly in December.

At $1.75, KRY is really getting very little value for its Las Cristinas deposit which has 12 million ounces of gold. Gold has increased nearly 40% in the last year which should have impacted Crystallex’s stock price dramatically, but it is obvious that many are still skeptical of Crystallex’s actual ownership of this deposit.

I continue to feel comfortable that Crystallex has this deposit. There are numerous risks including political risk, but in my opinion, Crystallex has the rights to mine this deposit.

If Crystallex can advance their situation in Venezuela to such point that it made it clear to market purveyors that the deposit was theirs, the stock would skyrocket.

At its close on Friday of $1.75, KRY has a market capitalization of $150 million CDN. Exploration companies generally are valued on a market capitalization per total ounces of gold resources based on the stage of advancement of a project to production. These milestones to production are: 1) the initial discovery and definition of a potentially economic resource (typical market value of $1-5 per resource oz), 2) completion of an Economic Scoping Study (typical market value of US$10/resource oz), 3) Advanced Exploration Stage with completion of a Preliminary Feasibility Study (US$25/resource oz), and 4) completion of a Final Feasibility Study (US$50/resource oz).

Crystallex recently announced it has commissioned a feasibility study with SNC-Lavalin placing it in between the 3rd and 4th step above. For the Las Cristinas alone, this should value KRY at $450 million CDN ($5/share). Once they complete the feasibility study, they should be valued at $900 million CDN ($10/share).

At production the median North American gold producer market cap per ounce is US$100/ounce of resource with a range from $27-$138/oz. Therefore if Crystallex were to then bring Las Cristinas into production, their market cap based on Las Cristinas alone should be $1.8 billion CDN ($20/share).

The term ‘banana republic’ is probably a compliment to Venezuela, which is the biggest wildcard in this gamble and probably the biggest reason why Crystallex isn’t getting the acknowledgement it should for its ownership. But if KRY can continue to progress the development and can make it more clear to the world that they own this deposit, the stock will be set for exponential gains.

I continue to hold and will likely be buying more if it remains at these levels much longer.



Go to Stockhouse.com for the complete report.

[peter.wedemeier1]

Press Release Source: Vannessa Ventures Ltd.


Vannessa`s Las Cristinas court cases advance
Tuesday February 18, 2:25 pm ET
TSX: VVV OTC-BB: VNVNF Berlin: VVT - WKN 914781


VANCOUVER, Feb. 18 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/030218/va097_1.html

[peter.wedemeier1]

Cristinas court case developments
Vannessa`s Las Cristinas court cases advance
TSX: VVV OTC-BB: VNVNF Berlin: VVT - WKN 914781

VANCOUVER, Feb. 18 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ - Vannessa Ventures Ltd. (VVV: TSX, OTC-BB: VNVNF, Berlin: VVT - WKN 914781) is pleased to announce that the court action to nullify the cancellation of the Minera Las Cristinas C.A. (MINCA) contract by Venezuela`s state-owned Corporacion Venezolana de Guayana (CVG) is progressing. In addition, MINCA`s court proceedings against CVG for contractual non-compliance have been admitted for hearing by the Supreme Court. The case will deal with CVG`s actions as a shareholder of MINCA and its obstruction of MINCA`s attempts at advancing the project.

MINCA, 95 % owned by Vannessa`s wholly owned subsidiary in Venezuela, is the holder of a work contract to develop the Las Cristinas Project and has invested over US$170 million to advance the project to the feasibility stage with a proven gold reserve exceeding 11 million ounces.

In August 2001, CVG advised MINCA of its intent to cancel the contract and refused to follow the arbitration process as agreed to in the CVG/MINCA contract. In November 2001, CVG unilaterally cancelled the MINCA contract and, without any legal court order, engaged military personnel to take possession of the mine and of MINCA`s assets.

MINCA filed an action in the Venezuelan Supreme Court asking the court to reverse the CVG cancellation of the Contract and to restore the contract effective to the cancellation date.

This legal action is now proceeding. Last week, CVG made its case for the unilateral cancellation of the contract by alleging MINCA`s lack of reporting over a four-semester period and referring to the fact that no start-up of the Mine occurred after July 15, 2001.

MINCA filed its evidence, which included proof that the requested reports were in fact in the possession of CVG when it made its allegations that MINCA had not filed the reports.

MINCA also maintained that it was at no time to blame for lack of development. In 1997, a title dispute between Inversora Mael (a Crystallex subsidiary) and CVG caused mine construction to be suspended until a Supreme Court ruling in 1998 confirmed CVG`s rights due to the fact that, among other reasons, Mael had no standing in court to bring forward a title challenge since it never held mining rights to the properties. With the price of gold dropping below US$300, CVG and MINCA agreed to a suspension of construction until July 15, 2002. Furthermore, the parties hired an international investment bank to help find a solution for the impasse; however the bank terminated its involvement citing a complete lack of co-operation by CVG. MINCA also provided written evidence that CVG prohibited its directors from attending MINCA`s directors meetings to approve planned project developments and therefore willfully obstructed MINCA from proceeding with its development plans.

Vannessa has also formally notified the Venezuelan Government of its intent to enact international arbitration under the Venezuelan-Canadian Agreement for Promotion and Protection of Investments.

"MANFRED PESCHKE"
Manfred Peschke, President
VANNESSA VENTURES LTD.

[peter.wedemeier1]

Minca says: "MINCA, 95 % owned by Vannessa`s wholly owned subsidiary in Venezuela, ***is the holder *** of a work contract to develop the Las Cristinas Project and has invested over US$170 million to advance the project to the feasibility stage with a proven gold reserve exceeding 11 million ounces."

***A lie. It should read WAS the holder. The contract they reference was cancelled.

Minca says: "In August 2001, CVG advised MINCA of its intent to cancel the contract ***and refused to follow the arbitration process*** as agreed to in the CVG/MINCA contract. In November 2001, CVG unilaterally cancelled the MINCA contract and, ***without any legal court order,*** engaged military personnel to take possession of the mine and of MINCA`s assets."

***Arbitration was ruled out by the National Assembly.
Cancellation of the decade-old Minca Contract was affirmed by the National Assembly and the assets returned to the nation.***

Minca says: "MINCA filed an action in the Venezuelan Supreme Court asking the court to reverse the CVG cancellation of the Contract and to restore the contract effective to the cancellation date.

***What? Minca, aka Vannessa, doesn`t tell its shareholders is that no action they have filed to date can possibly interfere with the CVG/KRY contract. See below.***

Minca says: "This legal action is now proceeding. Last week, CVG made its case for the unilateral cancellation of the contract by alleging MINCA`s lack of reporting over a four-semester period and referring to the fact that (no) start-up of the Mine occurred ***after July 15, 2001.*** MINCA filed its evidence, which included proof that the requested reports were in fact in the possession of CVG when it made its allegations that MINCA had not filed the reports."

***Either a typo, or a bald faced lie. The contract that Minca "bought" from Placer Dome was in the second one-year extension, which extension expired on July 15, 2001. Vannessa acquired the venezuelan subsidiary of Placer Dome with just two days to go under that extension. The default under that contract was not because there was no start up of the mine AFTER July 15, 2001, it was because there was no start up BEFORE July 15, 2001, and that default was not cured during the 90-day cure period extended to Placer Dome.

These slick bastages don`t expect their shareholders to miss something like that, do they?***

Minca says: "MINCA also maintained that it was at no time to blame for lack of development. ***In 1997, a title dispute between Inversora Mael (a Crystallex subsidiary) and CVG*** caused mine construction to be suspended...

***What? Not according to press issued by Placer Dome in 1997 and 1998. Didn`t happen according to them.***

Minca continued... "until a Supreme Court ruling in 1998 confirmed CVG`s rights due to the fact that, among other reasons, Mael had no standing in court to bring forward a title challenge since it never held mining rights to the properties. With the price of gold dropping below US$300, CVG and MINCA agreed to a suspension of construction until July 15, 2002.

***What? Where was there any agreement to suspend until 2002? A full bodied lie! The last extension, to July 15, 2001, was so that Placer could seek a third party JV or sell.
http://messages.yahoo.com/bbs?.mm=FN&action=m&board=8729020&…

[peter.wedemeier1]

But moreover, I think it would be terribly interesting for the Vannessa shareholders to learn that Vannessa never had a chance to enjoy the fruits of a long-shot Vannessa victory in the LC. I think they would be very interested to learn that behind the curtain, there was Placer Dome ready to step back in and run the show in the event of an unlikely lottery ticket win. They could then compare the grandiose figures spouted by Casey* with the reality of what would have been left over after Placer exercised either the back-in or the cost plus 10% option to take PDV back."

PS: The above comments are directed to Vannessa Ventures, the company that bought, for $50, the subsidiary that had the contract that Placer Dome had on the Las Cristinas, which contract expired on July 15, 2001. the comments are not directed to Crystallex, the company that now has the contract for that deposit.

http://messages.yahoo.com/bbs?.mm=FN&action=m&board=8729020&…

[peter.wedemeier1]

Crystallex International clarifies Vannessa Ventures` misrepresentations on Las Cristinas status quo

Hot on the heels of a misleading press release issued late Tuesday by Vancouver-based Vannessa Ventures (VVV), dealing with its spurious claim against a Venezuelan Guayana Corporation (CVG) and its gold mining contract awarded to Crystallex International Corporation (KRY), the latter`s vice president of corporate affairs, Richard Marshall says the current case (if worth any merit) is strictly between the CVG and Mineras Las Cristinas (MINCA).

"This is a case between the CVG and Minca which ... even if Minca were ultimately successful ... its recourse would be limited to compensation or damages as opposed to restitution of property or reinstatement of contract."

Marshall adds "we have more than one opinion to this effect ... there is precedent in a well-known Zulia-Venezuela case which settles the law in this area. It is understandable in the sense that if government administrative actions were subject to court reversal, governments would find themselves forever before the courts and virtually paralyzed."

"Our (attorney`s) advice is that the Minca contract is cancelled, the assets have reverted to the Republic of Venezuela and have been dealt with strictly in accordance with Venezuelan mining law through the succession of contracts i.e. Energy & Mines (MEM) Ministry to the CVG and thereafter CVG to Crystallex International."

Vannessa Ventures` press release "incorrectly states that Minca maintains a work contract for Las Cristinas. This is the contract that was cancelled. While they may maintain an action, they do not currently have a contract. Finally, they again refer to international arbitration ... the Canada Venezuelan Treaty is clear that in order to invoke the treaty, VVV would have to renounce and discontinue all other avenues of recourse whether before the courts or otherwise ... this is something that appears to be very unlikely. In addition, recourse under the treaty is itself limited to monetary compensation at the option of the Republic of Venezuela."

[peter.wedemeier1]

Press Release Source: Gold Reserve Inc.


Venezuela Approves Brisas Operating Plan For Gold Reserve`s 6.7 Million Ounce Gold/Copper Project
Wednesday February 19, 9:05 am ET


SPOKANE, Wash.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/030219/190108_1.html

[peter.wedemeier1]

What happens to the project if Minca is successful with its court actions ?



At last count, Minca had instituted 12 actions in Venezuela and most of those actions have not been admitted or have been dismissed by the Venezuelan Courts. Two actions which have been admitted to date relate to matters of public interest (a Presidential Decree and government resolution), and the Admission Chamber of the Supreme Tribunal of Venezuela, in such circumstances, has little, if any, discretion but to admit. In the remote event that Vannessa/Minca was successful in one or both of these legal actions, the mining assets of Las Cristinas are national assets owned by the Republic of Venezuela (Mining Law: Article 2), and by Presidential Decree, the mining assets have been reserved for the Nation. The mining industry is declared of public interest (Mining Law: Article 3), and the remedy available to Vannessa/Minca under settled Venezuelan jurisprudence is indemnity (monetary damages) rather than restitution of property (In Re: Consorcio de Aeropuerto del Zulia, Supreme Court of Justice, Political Administrative Chamber, August 6, 1998). The pertinent portion of the Zulia decision is as follows:



"The Plaintiff has requested as an accessory pretension the nullity of Resolution # 78-A, the reestablishing of his condition of concessionaire in charge of the administration, maintenance and development of the airports La Chinita, Santa Barabara and Oro Negro.

The problem lies in determining if this chamber can order the Government of the State of Zulia to proceed and reinstate the plaintiff in the concession. In this sense, the French jurisprudence and doctrine have given a negative response arguing that the Administration can terminate the concession contract, even in the absence of breach of contract by the holder of the concession, and in cases such as the present, if the declaration of caducity was found illegal, the Judge must limit himself to condemn the indemnity for damages (cf. Vedel, Georges, Administrative Law, Aguilar, Madrid, 1980, pp 220 and following).

In this respect this Chamber considers, applying the criteria expressed, that independently that the concessionaire has breached or not his obligations, the extraordinary power of unilateral rescission of the contract may be exercised, with the object of assuring an improvement of the service. Evidently, if the rescission has not been the consequence of violation by the holder of the concession, the reinstatement shall consist in an indemnity correspondent to the damage caused, as is the present case. In consequence the request by the plaintiff is denied, and is so declared."



The Court, by limiting its remedy in these cases to the payment of equitable indemnification, insures and protects the stability and continuity of the acts of government. In summary, while Minca may commence multiple actions against the CVG and the Government of Venezuela, and even if the actions were successful, which we believe to be highly unlikely, recourse will be limited to damages, and such actions will not impact the contractual rights of Crystallex. It is important to note that under the CVG/Crystallex contract, the Venezuelan government continues to own the mineral rights of the Las Cristinas properties and has granted to Crystallex the exclusive administration of the mineral. It is therefore the government that defends and enforces its ownership rights.

AV

[peter.wedemeier1]

From Venezuela, A Counterplot
Posted Feb. 19, 2003

By Martin Arostegui

http://www.insightmag.com/news/370704.html

[peter.wedemeier1]

Press Release Source: Gold Reserve Inc.


Venezuela Approves Brisas Operating Plan For Gold Reserve`s 6.7 Million Ounce Gold/Copper Project
Wednesday February 19, 9:05 am ET


SPOKANE, Wash.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 19, 2003--

http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/030219/190108_1.html

[peter.wedemeier1]

Las Cristinas estimates confirmed: Crystallex: Gold reserves study

February 12, 2003 5:03am


The Las Cristinas gold deposit in Venezuela is a least as big as previous property owners believed, according to a new technical report released yesterday by property developer Crystallex International Corp.

In a report commissioned by Crystallex, Nevada-based Mine Development Associates concludes previous geological work performed on the property is, for the most part, "adequate and appears valid."

"The Las Cristinas project contains a significant gold/copper deposit with potential to increase in size," the report states.

Earlier studies have estimated Las Cristinas contains 11.7 million ounces of gold, making it one of the world`s largest undeveloped gold deposits. That estimate dates from the 1990s, when Vancouver-based Placer Dome Inc. drew up plans to mine the deposit. Placer abandoned the plans in July, 2001.

Crystallex, a Vancouver-based junior, took possession of the property in September, 2002, and hired MDA to study the property and confirm the geological conclusions produced by Placer.

A team of geologists visited Las Cristinas in October and took fresh ore samples from locations beside previous drilling sites. Those geologists say their fresh samples confirm the earlier drilling results collected during the Placer days. MDA will produce another report later this quarter that contains a new reserve and resource estimate. Crystallex expects to complete a feasibility study by mid-year. It aims to have Las Cristinas in production by May, 2004.

Publication: Financial Post

Distributed by Financial Times Information Limited


Copyright © 2003 National Post.
http://hoovnews.hoovers.com/fp.asp?layout=displaynews&doc_id…

[peter.wedemeier1]

Venezuela: Feb 20, 2003
Leading Chavez Opponent Arrested

Leading Venezuelan business chief and opposition leader Carlos Fernandez -- a key figure in the recent anti-government national strike -- was arrested Feb. 20. The judge issuing the arrest order has ties to President Hugo Chavez, and has also ordered the arrest of other opposition figures without the input of the attorney general.

[peter.wedemeier1]

Crystallex International social projects highlighted in Guayana regional media

Guayana regional newspaper El Expreso has highlighted important social projects begun by Canadian gold mining corporation Crystallex International (KRY) at Kilometer 88 in association with its Las Cristinas mining project. In today`s issue, El Expreso says "one of the principal social goals is the qualification of personnel working for the company and small-scale miners in surrounding communities which could form part of the projects workforce."

Project Las Cristinas General Manager Bira de Oliveira is quoted as saying that Crystallex will sponsor courses through the work training organization INCE to extended into the community, to develop mini-companies to help development of future work projects through the mine`s construction phase and in the following exploitation phase.



Crystallex executives say that the courses take high-priority and "we are going to establish agreements with the Institute of Educative Cooperation (INCE) and the La Salle Foundation ... " during the construction phase we will require up to two thousand workers." Crystallex currently has some 74 employees onsite of which 24 had previously been on the CVG payroll but were taken aboard the Crystallex project last November.

"Later, when the construction stage has been completed and we move on to the actual operations stage, we plan to generate 400-500 permanent jobs."



General Manager Bira de Oliveira says the project is receiving the wholehearted support of local politicians, among them Mayor Carlos Chancellor ... "we have been working very well together, and we hope it will continue in this way, for our mutual benefit ... we have good projects for the communities in the Km.88 region ... we have different training and maintenance programs including the reclassification of the new Las Claritas Health Center from Rural to Urban I and the construction of 50 new houses in Santo Domingo."

[peter.wedemeier1]

Naked shorts watch out

Yesterday`s Financial Times carried an important lead story on page one that relates to many companies. John Labate in New York reports:

"Staff at the Securities and Exchange Commission, the chief US financial regulator, are expected to present proposals to William
Donaldson, the new chairman, as early as next week. Among them could be rules forcing traders to borrow stock to cover their short positions. Under current rules, traders can take out `naked` short positions over an unlimited number of shares, putting huge downward
pressure on an illiquid stock."

In effect, it appears that the SEC is prepared to halt electronic counterfeiting of shares of companies (such as CDE) and others which have been driven down by the unlimited counterfeiting of their securities through naked short-selling. In effect, the naked short-sellers make illegal, unregistered secondary offerings of the shares of any
company they target for destruction and drive the price down by increasing the effect float by large amounts. It is time this unfair and destructive practice is exposed and eliminated. This Financial Times report suggests that the day of reckoning for the electronic counterfeiters is near.

[peter.wedemeier1]

[peter.wedemeier1]

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Judge Orders House Arrest for Chavez Foe
Sun Feb 23, 6:21 PM ET

By STEPHEN IXER, Associated Press Writer

CARACAS, Venezuela -
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20030223/a…

[peter.wedemeier1]

Reuters
UPDATE - Venezuela Sincor syncrude project restarting
Monday February 24, 4:32 pm ET


(Adds details on other Orinoco projects in paragraph 9)
CARACAS, Venezuela, Feb 24 (Reuters) -
http://ca.us.biz.yahoo.com/rm/030224/energy_venezuela_sincor…

[peter.wedemeier1]

Fighting Fair
http://www.drphil.com/show/show.jhtml?contentId=1116_fightin…

[peter.wedemeier1]

February 25, 2003


Asian Interest Buys $373,615,200.00 Worth of Gold

Media Reports Central Bank Sells 30 Metric
Tons of Gold in the week ended February 21st.

"In time, the Gold Community will learn that the most positive action for the price of gold during a gold Bull Market is for central banks to sell gold."


"The proof (a gold price above $400) is not far off. I firmly believe that such an occurrence is coming in the not-too-distant future."

http://www.jsmineset.com/s/Home.asp

[peter.wedemeier1]

N. Korea Warns of Possible U.S. Attack
Wed Feb 26, 7:33 AM ET

By SANG-HUN CHOE, Associated Press Writer

SEOUL, South Korea - North Korea (news - web sites) urged its people and armed forces to be ready for war, saying Wednesday that it could be the U.S. military`s next target after Iraq.

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20030226/a…

[peter.wedemeier1]

U.S. Says N. Korea Has Restarted Reactor
Wed Feb 26, 6:44 PM ET

By GEORGE GEDDA, Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON
http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&cid=516&e=2&u=/ap/200…

[peter.wedemeier1]

Por las razones precedentemente expuestas, esta Sala Constitucional del Tribunal Supremo de Justicia, administrando justicia, en nombre de la República y por autoridad de la Ley, declara: IMPROCEDENTE la presente acción de amparo constitucional intentada por Minera Las Cristinas, C.A., contra la Corporación Venezolana de Guayana. "

Dada, firmada y sellada en el Salón de Audiencias de la Sala Constitucional del Tribunal Supremo de Justicia, en Caracas, a los febrero días del mes de febrero de dos mil tres (2003). Años: 192º de la Independencia y 144º de la Federación.

El Presidente,


IVÁN RINCÓN URDANETA

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

For the reasons previouly mentioned , this Constitutional Room of the Supreme Court of Justice, in the name of the Republic and by authority of the Law, declares: INADMISSIBLE the present action for consitutional protection put forth by Minera De Cristinas,(VVV) C TO. against the Venezuelan Corporation of Guiana.

For immediate registration and Publication



It given, signed and sealed in the Parlor of Audiences of the Constitutional Room of the Most supreme Court of Justice, in Caracas, on February days of the month of February of two thousand three (2003). Years: 192º of the Independence and 144º of the Confederacy.



The President,


IVÁN RINCÓN URDANETA


---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

My Comment :
-

Since the Constitution was fully respected by CVG there is no other way for Vanessa to proceed exept to beg for some financial compensation from the Venezuelan goverment

In this way LC is now oficially with Crystallex
http://messages.yahoo.com/bbs?.mm=FN&action=m&board=8729020&…

[peter.wedemeier1]

TSJ Declares MINCA INADMISSIBLE
TSJ Constitutional Chamber declares MINCA Las Cristinas shelter inadmissible

Venezuela`s Supreme Tribunal of Justice (TSJ) Constitutional Chamber has declared inadmissible one of three shelters introduced by Mineras Las Cristinas, C.A. (Minca) against an unavoidable execution of a November 6 (2001) administrative act which declared the rescinding of Minca`s 1992 work contract at the Las Cristinas 4, 5, 6 and 7 goldmines.

TSJ file 02318 has now been irrevocably sealed by the decision of the court following a similar ruling of inadmissibility by the First Administrative Court of Appeals. A further ruling to close file 03138 referring to a constitutional shelter lodged by Minca is now deemed without merit since Minca had not lodged any appeal.

According to the files, the shelters had been aimed at trying to neutralize the administrative process by which the Venezuelan Guayana Corporation (CVG) had terminated Minca`s work contract because of a string of breaches of contract. CVG president, Major General (ret.) Francisco Rangel Gomez says that the corporation will continue to act in defense of the interests of the Republic of Venezuela inasmuch as here is valid legal reason why the contract was terminated after more than 10 years without fulfilling contracted investment and operational agreements

[peter.wedemeier1]

Apocalypse is nigh, Buffett tells Berkshire faithful



Posted on 03/03/2003

Apocalypse is nigh, Buffett tells Berkshire faithful By Simon English in New York

Warren Buffett is poised to issue his most doom-laden forecast for the state of the world economy yet, including a damning verdict on the derivatives industry he fears could cause a global financial crisis.

In the upcoming annual letter to shareholders of Berkshire Hathaway, Mr Buffett drops his usual folksy style to warn that banks do not understand the hidden risks lurking on their balance sheets.

He labels derivatives "time bombs, both for the parties that deal in them and the economic system" and "financial weapons of mass destruction, carrying dangers that, while now latent, are potentially lethal".

The views of the world`s second richest man are closely watched and his apocalyptic vision will do little to steady nerves on Wall Street or in the City of London. Extracts from his annual letter, to be delivered on Saturday but posted on Fortune.com yesterday, reveal that he has little optimism for the stock market.

"Despite three years of falling prices which have significantly improved the attractiveness of common stocks, we still find very few that even mildly interest us. That dismal fact is testimony to the insanity of the valuations reached during the Great Bubble. Unfortunately, the hangover may prove to be proportional to the binge," he writes.

Until now vague warnings about the pyramid nature of derivatives contracts have led to bland assurance from banks that there is no threat to their stability.

Mr Buffett says the banks simply have no idea what their exposure could be. "When Charlie [Munger, his business partner] and I finish reading the long footnotes detailing the derivatives activities of major banks, the only thing we understand is that we don`t understand how much risk the institution is taking."

Derivatives are often complex financial instruments that allow investors to take bets on anything from share prices to the weather. Their range is limited, says Mr Buffett, "only by the imagination of man, or sometimes, so it seems, madmen". Enron was especially fond of derivatives, offering contracts that would be settled years in the future and claiming profits immediately.

Berkshire Hathaway acquired a derivatives dealer when it bought reinsurer Gen Re. After failing to sell this business, Mr Buffett is now closing it down though he admits this will take years. "Reinsurance and derivatives businesses are similar. Like Hell, both are easy to enter and almost impossible to exit," he says.

Mr Buffett, dubbed the Sage of Omaha, believes that major insurers are exaggerating earnings from derivatives contracts and underplaying the "daisy chain risk" that comes when they lay off business with other firms.

His personal fortune fell last year by $5 billion to $30 billion, leaving him second to Bill Gates in the rich list.

[peter.wedemeier1]

Associated Press
SEC Accepting Nominations for Agency Head
Tuesday March 4, 8:03 pm ET
SEC Accepting Nominations for New Head of Accounting Oversight Board


WASHINGTON (AP) --

http://ca.us.biz.yahoo.com/ap/030304/sec_accounting_board_1.…

[peter.wedemeier1]

Crystallex Closes Private Placement



TORONTO, March 5 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Crystallex International Corporation (Amex: KRY; Toronto) confirmed today that it has closed the private placement of 2,562,500 special warrants at a price of C$1.60 per special warrant raising gross proceeds of C$4.1 million. Each special warrant shall entitle the holder thereof, upon exercise and without payment of any additional consideration, to acquire one common share and one-half of one common share purchase warrant of Crystallex. Each whole purchase warrant is exercisable for one common share for a period of two years after issuance at a price of C$2.00 per share.

The securities have not been and will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933 or the securities laws of any state, and may not be offered or sold in the United States or to US persons unless an exemption from registration is available.

Proceeds from the offering will be used by Crystallex to finance the continued development of its gold properties in Venezuela and for general working capital purposes.

About Crystallex:

Crystallex International Corporation is a Canadian based gold producer with operations and exploration properties in Uruguay and Venezuela. Crystallex shares are traded on the TSX and AMEX Exchanges and Crystallex is part of the S&P/TSX Composite Index, the most widely followed benchmark index in Canada.

[peter.wedemeier1]

DJ Crystallex/Wts -2: Proceeds For Venezuelan Gold Devt >KRY


TORONTO (Dow Jones)--Crystallex International Corp. (KRY) raised about C$4.1 million in gross proceeds when it closed the private placement of about 2.56 million special warrants.

The proceeds will be used by the company to finance the continued development of its Venezuelan gold properties.

In a press release Wednesday, the company said it sold the warrants for C$1.60 each. Each warrant will entitle the purchaser to acquire one share and half of one share purchase warrant for Crystallex stock.

The purchase warrant is applicable for one share is applicable for one year after issuance at a price of C$2.00 a share.

These securities have not been nor will they be registered under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933. They may not be offered or sold in the U.S. without an exemption.

The Canada-based gold producer, which has 88.1 million shares outstanding, is traded on the American Stock Exchange.

-Thomas Derpinghaus; Dow Jones Newswires; 201-938-5388

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Press Release Source: Crystallex International Corporation


Crystallex Closes Private Placement
Wednesday March 5, 12:31 pm ET


TORONTO, March 5 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ --

http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/030305/atw013_1.html

[peter.wedemeier1]

METALS STOCKS

Geopolitical concerns buoy gold
Merrill Lynch dubs `neutral` outlook on copper

By Myra P. Saefong, CBS.MarketWatch.com
Last Update: 1:53 PM ET March 6, 2003







NEW YORK (CBS.MW) -- Uncertainty surrounding Iraq and North Korea, as well as disappointing economic data helped gold close near $357 an ounce Thursday.


http://cbs.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?guid=%7B5F547D0D%2…

[peter.wedemeier1]

RENSE.COM

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------



The Land Of The Free?
By Ian Gurney
3-6-3
http://www.rense.com/general35/amam.htm

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Cameron Diaz blow job not granted

Teen`s dying wish for Cameron Diaz blow job not granted



Morten imagines Diaz (inset)

PHILADELPHIA, Monday: The parents of 15-year-old leukaemia patient Josh Morten, who last night passed away after a four year battle with the illness, said they were sorry not to have fulfilled his dying wish to get a blow job from Cameron Diaz.

The courageous teenager told his family two months ago that the one thing he`d really like before he died was to be sucked off by the successful Hollywood actress and former model.

"Josh never asked for much," his father confided. "He never complained about his illness, or made unrealistic demands. So when he requested fellatio from the star of Charlie`s Angels and There’s Something About Mary we thought, sure, that’s the least we can do for him."

But attempts to grant Josh his dying wish proved much more difficult than the family had initially thought. Formal requests inviting the star to perform oral sex on their dying son were repeatedly declined.
"We wrote, we rang, we faxed," Mr Morten explained. "And every time it was the same answer: `Sorry, Ms Diaz is currently unable to comply with your request.` I mean, how unsympathetic can you get? We`re talking about a dying kid here! Would it kill her?"

Mr Morten even made a special trip to Los Angeles, to try to talk to the movie star personally outside the premiere of Gangs of New York. "The crowds were ten deep," he said, "and I`m there yelling out to her from the back: `Will you go down on my son please!`, but she didn’t want to know."

With hopes diminishing by the day, Mr Morten placed similar standby requests with the agents representing Catherine Zeta Jones, Jennifer Lopez and Salma Hayek, but in each case the stars refused to co-operate.

"Who do they think they are, these women!" railed Mr Morten. "They earn millions of dollars and swan about at fancy parties, but when they get a simple request to bring a smile to a young boy far less fortunate than them, they turn their back on you. What kind of world do we live in when a dying teenager can no longer get his cock sucked by a celebrity?"

[peter.wedemeier1]

Crystallex International Corporation is a Canadian based gold producer with operations and exploration properties in Uruguay and Venezuela. Crystallex shares are traded on the TSX and AMEX Exchanges and Crystallex is part of the S&P/TSX Composite Index, the most widely followed benchmark index in Canada.

SOURCE Crystallex International Corporation

CONTACT: A. Richard Marshall, VP of Crystallex International Corporation, [phone]

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[peter.wedemeier1]

Chavez Foes in Limbo After Failed Venezuela Strike yahoo.com ^ | March 10, 2003 | Alistair Scrutton, Reuters

CARACAS, Venezuela (Reuters) - They disrupted Christmas. They froze Venezuela`s oil lifeblood. They marched in their millions.

To little avail.

Vast numbers of Venezuelans who failed to force out leftist President Hugo Chavez with a huge strike are now in limbo. They are wondering what do to next and fearful of what may come as the nation, split along economic class and political fault lines, falls deeper in recession.

"Depressed isn`t the word for it. I`m totally crushed," said Maria Jose Alonso, a brooding, out-of-work pharmacist who chatted in a restaurant about the two-month strike that petered out early last month. "Now Chavez is on the offensive."

Chavez, a former paratrooper who survived a bungled coup in April last year, took on and defeated the strike which slashed oil output in the world`s No. 5 petroleum producer.

He has called his foes "oligarchs" out to destroy his self-styled "revolution" to help the poor.

"We thought the strike would push Chavez out in a week, ten days at most," Alonso said, flashing ten fingers in the air.

In December, she took part in demonstrations for the first time ever. Like many Venezuelans across the country, she spent Christmas banging pots and pans to protest against Chavez and to call for early elections.

Alonso`s pessimism reflects a mood swing among the middle and upper classes, the backbone of the opposition whose marches often ended in street battles with Chavez`s mainly poor supporters.

Trip wires still lie ahead -- from opposition calls for a referendum to fears the government could take over private TV stations -- that could spark further civil unrest. But many of Chavez`s foes are soul-searching.

OPPOSITION IN DISARRAY

"There`s disarray. The opposition aren`t weaker in the sense they can still mobilize a lot of people. But most agree mobilizations are not the way," said Caracas-based political analyst Janet Kelly. "The debate is over what to do now."

Resigned, scared and depressed are some of the words Chavez` opponents use to describe their reaction to the fact that the president, whom they see as a power-hungry class warrior trying to turn Venezuela into a Cuba-style communist state, is still leading the country.

"Two months ago we were optimistic. Now it`s all just so uncertain," said Tom Bokor, a systems auditor at the PVDSA state oil firm who was fired after he went on strike. He now supports his wife and three children with his savings.

Several million Venezuelans have participated in dozens of huge opposition marches over the last year. But polls show that the populist president could still win an election with around 40-50 percent support, if the opposition vote remained divided between anti-Chavez leaders.

Opponents fear a government counter-attack. Chavez has fired more than 15,000 striking state oil workers, and authorities have arrested businessman Carlos Fernandez, a strike leader, on rebellion charges. Detention orders have also been issued for several other strike organizers.

Unexplained bombs at Colombia and Spanish diplomatic buildings on Feb. 25 sparked fears of an upsurge in political violence.

"Maybe the only way out is flying to Miami but now I can`t even buy dollars. I`m trapped," Alonso added, referring to currency controls introduced in February by Chavez to curb what he called the "dolce vita" (sweet life) of the rich.
PEOPLE MUST MAKE A LIVING

Caracas, a sprawling city nestled in lush mountains, is returning to the normalcy of chaotic Latin American capitals. Streets empty during the strike have filled up again with snarling traffic. Once-closed restaurants are busy, surrounded by gleaming sports utility vehicles tended by security guards.

Demonstrations are smaller now. One recent Sunday, protesters on gleaming motorbikes and draped in flags rode through a wealthy business district, but they numbered only a few hundred. Only several thousand people protested Fernandez` arrest.

"A lot of the opposition are shell-shocked. They fired their biggest artillery and missed. They underestimated Chavez and now they`re marched out," said one European diplomat.

Private TV stations, some of Chavez`s most vocal opponents, still broadcast spots show flag-waving protesters calling for liberty and urging Venezuelans to keep up the fight against the president. But the images have little resonance on the streets.

Ice cream vendors outnumber visitors at the posh east Caracas Altamira square, a few months ago a hub of resistance to Chavez that teemed with students, office workers, military officers and housewives who gathered daily to protest.

"People have to make a living, you know, now the strike has ended," said Leonora Acevedo, a university teacher who has been protesting in the square for four months. She sat alone.

The opposition umbrella group, Coordinadora Democratica, is an alliance of interest groups ranging from unions and civic groups to a business federation. Their divided aims range from throwing out Chavez with military help to having a referendum,

"We need to refresh the movement," said Miranda State governor Enrique Mendoza, an opposition leader.

WAIT AND SEE

Meanwhile Caracas is in wait-and-see mode. Its inhabitants still talk about latent class hatred between the poor western and posh eastern halves of a city that may explode in unrest. Rich districts store arms and chains to mount barricades.

Chavez-loyal soldiers have confiscated the heavy weapons of the opposition-run Caracas metropolitan police. Soldiers stand guard outside police stations.

Downtown Caracas is a Chavez stronghold of street peddlers, run-down buildings, graffiti and garbage. The presidential palace is a heavily guarded mansion surrounded by troops and road blocks. But nearby his supporters seem confident.

"The people are with Chavez. They know he`s fighting the rich who are responsible for all this mess," said Antonio Lopez, selling children`s toys on a street corner.

A few miles away to the east the atmosphere is different.

"Don`t Despair" reads one banner on the windows of an expensive dried flower shop in an upmarket Caracas mall.

"We feel hemmed in now," said Flor, a retired woman who said she was too worried about recriminations to give her full name. She strolled by the flower shop, her neck laden with jewelry. "But don`t count us out. We`ll be back."

[peter.wedemeier1]

Crystallex Shareholder update

Date: Tue, 11 Mar 2003 10:56:41 -0500

March 11, 2003

http://messages.yahoo.com/bbs?.mm=FN&action=m&board=8729020&…

[peter.wedemeier1]

CARACAS (AP)--A leader of a failed two-month strike to oust Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez sought political asylum Friday in the residence of the Costa Rican ambassador, union leaders said.

Carlos Ortega, the head of Venezuela`s largest labor union, entered the residence of Costa Rican ambassador Ricardo Lisano early Friday morning, said Froilan Barrios and Pablo Castro, leaders of the Venezuela Workers Confederation.

Ortega had been in hiding since Feb. 20 after a judge issued a warrant for his arrest on charges of treason, rebellion and incitement.

It wasn`t immediately clear whether Costa Rica would grant the asylum request.


Dow Jones Newswires
03-14-03 1437ET

[peter.wedemeier1]

In Venezuela, a comprehensive update on the Las Cristinas legal issues is currently being prepared and will be distributed to our shareholders shortly.

While it was our intention to let the court action take its course, we have been consistently forced to rectify statements made by Crystallex International Corp. which can only be interpreted as blatantly self-serving. The statements either contain the facts veiled in misleading language or omit the facts altogether and present false information.

A good example is Crystallex`s statement in its letter to investors dated March 11, 2003 (Item No. 4) in which it states that MINCA formally withdrew its action against CVG regarding the cancellation of the MINCA mining contract. Responsible due diligence by Crystallex would have ascertained that the MINCA versus CVG case regarding the mining contract`s cancellation is still active and advancing. The case that has been withdrawn was for "Abuse of Power" by the CVG against MINCA, of which CVG is a shareholder, and the damage incurred by MINCA as a result of the abuse. The reason for the withdrawal is that current ongoing investigations have provided MINCA with substantially more evidence and the case is being re-filed on the basis of this additional information.

[peter.wedemeier1]

Excerpts from summary on PR`s Vannessa/Minca

Vannessa Ventures PR Inaccuracies
Summary, March 2003

Introduction

Let’s first review what happened around the end of July, 2001.

Before July, 2001, a decade-long contract existed between the Corporacion Venezolana de Guayana (CVG), (a corporation of the Venezuelan government to exploit natural resources), and Placer Dome, through a subsidiary, (a Canadian gold mining firm NYSE: PDG). (Hereafter referred to as the “CVG/PDG” contract or the "Placer/CVG contract".) The contract was for the exploitation of the Las Cristinas mines in Bolivar State, Venezuela, sometimes called the Las Cristinas 4,5,6,and 7. Hereafter sometimes called the “LC” or “Cristinas”. ...

The CVG/PDG contract was in the second one-year extension of the contract, but PDG had not put the property into production. Before National Instrument 43-101, Placer Dome used the reserves/resources of the Las Cristinas on their balance sheet, and announced several times that production would commence, but no gold was mined at LC by PDG....

The Venezuelan government, tired of the decade-long contract which produced little or no revenue for the nation, notified PDG in 2001 that it was in default in the contract and that in July 2001 the contract would not be renewed. July 15 to be exact.

In early 2001, Placer Dome announced they were writing off the Las Cristinas mines, taking a nearly $120 million write down in the process. In public press, PDG said they were washing their hands of the Las Cristinas. ...

The “Sale” to Vannessa

Then, on July 13, 2001, with less than two days to go under the second extension of the CVG/PDG contract which contract was being terminated by the Venezuelan government, PDG and Vannessa Ventures, Ltd. (OTC:BB VNVNF, Can. VVV) announced a “sale” of the Venezuelan subsidiary of Placer Dome which held the CVG/PDG contract. The “sale” of this subsidiary was for a token amount, reportedly $50, but from the documents available in the public domain, the “sale” to a subsidiary of Vannessa appears to be more of a partnership than a sale. Placer, through its subsidiary, kept a back-in right which would allow Placer to take the project back in the future, and Placer also retained an entire class of voting stock in the subsidiary which guaranteed that the subsidiary could remain under Placer’s control after the so-called “sale”. ...

Thus, despite Placer’s public statements to the contrary, in which they “washed their hands” of the Venezuelan mines, Placer retained a controlling interest in the subsidiary it sold to Vannessa through a sometimes partially and sometimes completely veiled back door. Throughout the rest of this document, it is important to remember that Placer retained control of the subsidiary. It is also important to remember that 3 years prior to the July 13, 2001 “sale” to Vannessa, a title dispute between another Canadian company, Crystallex International (AMEX: KRY Can. KRY), was decided in the Tribunal of Supreme Justice of Venezuela, (“TSJ,” The Venezuelan Supreme Court) with that ruling going to Placer, but for at least one year prior to that June 1998 ruling, the title dispute was cited as a reason for Placer not being able to obtain project financing. This is important, as it establishes the basis for the bad blood between Canadian giant Placer Dome and Canadian junior Crystallex. It also is a possible motive behind the apparently devious actions taken by Placer Dome through its “sale” to Vannessa. ...

Keeping in mind that Placer and Vannessa acted through subsidiaries, in order not to confuse the reader with multiple sets of initials for those subsidiaries, actions taken by Placer or Vannessa through their subsidiaries will be attributed to the parent companies, unless it is important to distinguish between the two or unless it would distort the intent of the action not to recognize the subsidiary.

Before moving on to the public press portion of this paper, we see that as of July, 2001, the Venezuelan government was in the process of terminating the PDG/CVG contract, and that at the eleventh hour Placer purported to sell their interest in that mining contract (via its subsidiary) to a little known Canadian exploration company, Vannessa Ventures, Ltd. for a token amount, but at the same time, Placer kept a back-in right and a controlling “B” share in the deal. ...

Underlying this transaction was a backdrop of growing political unrest in Venezuela. As we will see, a secondary motive for the July 2001 “sale” to Vannessa may have been the possibility of a change in the government of Venezuela and the possibility such a change would bring in a government more friendly to the Placer cause.

In April of 2002, a brief coup ousted leftist president Hugo Chavez for about two days. A popular uprising ensued and Chavez regained power. During the brief coup, the management of Vannessa was reported “to be popping corks over the coup” and the possibilities that change in power might represent.

It is beyond the scope of this work to examine the political situation in Venezuela, but in general, the situation could be summed up from the Placer/Vannessa partnership point of view by saying that the current administration, under Chavez, is perceived by the Placer/Vannessa partnership as adversarial and that a change in the government might help them to regain an interest in the Cristinas gold mines. (Again, that is from the Placer/Vannessa point of view in 2001 and early 2002. Since then, the Venezuelan National Assembly (the “AN”) recommended to the executive that the old CVG/PDG contract be terminated and since the nation acted scrupulously to the letter of the law in terminating that contract, there is much doubt now, in early 2003, that a change in government would have any positive effect for Placer/Vannessa. In July of 2001 that was not at all clear. So, into the mix, throw the possible change in government through which Placer might have a chance to regain the interest it had just lost.)...

Side Notes

Also, before moving into the public press portion of this work, it is important to remember that the price of gold in early 2001 was showing signs of awakening after a 20-year bear market. Shares of little known companies who had lain dormant for some time were being bought by speculators and gold hedge funds and nearly all companies in the gold sector were rising in price. Economic and political signs were pointing to the beginning of a new bull market for the commodity and for gold stocks. Gold stocks had begun to be promoted during this time also. Shares of even obscure non-producing companies, such as Caledonia Mining (OTC:BB CALVF) were undergoing rapid high-percentage increases in price as the speculators snapped up the thinly traded shares.

Because the gold market was heating up, recommendations by analysts and news letter writers as well as sudden news press releases by individual companies could have a dramatic, almost overnight effect on the stock price of these thinly traded companies with many of them increasing over 100% and some moving as much as 500% and more. Thus, in early 2001, there was a sort of urgency in the market to find companies with compelling exploration or production stories. A fact which many of those companies used to their advantage, putting out whatever positive press they could to gain attention, increase the stock prices which made it easier to raise capital after such a long drought of public interest. ...
The Placer/Vannessa Partnership – Distortions in the Press
How Placer tried to use Vannessa and the press to thwart the will of the government of Venezuela and tried to destroy its rival company, Crystallex International.

So far we have seen that the government of Venezuela had had enough of a decade long contract with Placer Dome and in July of 2001, that contract was to be terminated. We have also seen that with two days to go under that doomed contract, Placer mucked up the works by purportedly selling the mines to Vannessa for a token $50 while keeping the right to retake the deal and while keeping an entire class of voting stock with which to retain control. It was not so much a sale, as it was a stall.

We have also seen what the possible motives might have been for this action by Placer Dome, including the possible re-entry into the Venezuelan scene through a change in government, and possibly punishing its rival, Crystallex for a 1998 title dispute which Placer contended kept it from mining the LC.

We have also seen a possible motive for Vannessa, that being a chance to increase its stock price and to raise additional capital more easily using the relatively large numbers of the LC in press releases and in investment tout sheets.

It is easy to understand the strange marriage between Placer and Vannessa under the above circumstances. Placer saw a way to possibly retain a very large mining project which was being lost as well as a way to punish its rival company, Canadian upstart Crystallex, who was at the time negotiating with the CVG for a contract to replace the CVG/PDG contract for the Cristinas, and Vannessa saw a way to generate interest in its shares and to raise capital from it. What is not apparent, at least to the casual observer, is the depth to which both Placer and Vannessa were willing to go to in order to accomplish their goals.

Through documents available in the public domain, it surfaced that just prior to the “sale” of Placer’s interest in the Cristinas to Vannessa, Placer apparently funded a subsidiary called Minera Las Cristinas C.A., or Minca, with just under $2 million US dollars. A corresponding debt to the cash portion of that funding of Minca “washed” the funding and rendered it invisible to most observers at the time. This is important for a couple reasons. Minca, is the Venezuelan subsidiary formed by Placer to Joint Venture with the CVG to mine the Cristinas, (which JV moved to Vannessa in the purported “sale”). The $2 million in cash gave Minca, then in July of 2001, under the apparent control of Vannessa, a fund with which to initiate a vigorous campaign both in the press and in the courts, as we will shortly see. The other reason this is important is because the way the “sale” was reported, later press by Vannessa/Minca tried to give the impression that Minca assumed a larger debt than it did, when in apparent fact, the debt that Vannessa/Minca assumed was the $2 million to Placer in return for the $2 million of funding that went with Minca. ...

The marriage of Placer and Vannessa then, was a marriage of convenience for both companies, but it was at least initially funded by Placer.

Up to the time of the July 2001 “sale” to Vannessa, Minca operated as a separate JV entity, with a board of directors chosen by the CVG and Placer Dome. After the “sale”, the CVG refused to recognize Vannessa as its new JV partner, did not attend Minca meetings, and Vannessa dismissed the old Minca board and appointed a new board to Minca that was completely controlled by Vannessa. (It is important to remember here that the CVG maintained that the “sale” to Vannessa was illegal, a fact backed up by the AN later. In a public statement, the president of the CVG, General Rangel said that the sale constituted a fraud on the people of Venezuela.)...

Minca, now completely controlled by Vannessa and liberally funded by Placer, began it’s press and lawsuit campaign against the CVG in July of 2001, and later against Crystallex when it became apparent that the Venezuelan government would choose Crystallex to replace Placer to mine the Cristinas mines. (14 months later)

From the perspective of the casual observer, in mid-2001, there appeared to be a conflict between the Venezuelan government and Vannesssa with regard to a mining contract about to be canceled. As the above introduction illustrates, the apparent conflict involved much more than that. What is particularly interesting in reviewing the press portion of this work, is the metamorphosis of the stance of Minca/Vannessa in the press, the extreme volume of the misinformation contained in that press and the apparently profound effect that the press campaign and lawsuit campaign had on the share price of Placer rival Crystallex. ...

If one objective of Placer in doing and funding the “sale” to Vannessa at the eleventh hour was to inflict damage on thinly capitalized Crystallex so that it would be difficult, if not impossible, to raise the funding necessary to carry out the mining plans for Cristinas, then to any observer, that goal was at least partially and temporarily accomplished. During the later months of 2002, most gold stocks enjoyed a large percentage increase in their share prices. Apparently, due at least partly to the cumulative effects of the millions of dollars spent by Placer/Vannessa in their campaign of interference against the CVG and Crystallex, shares of that company lost value despite having gained the right to mine the Cristinas from the Venezuelan government under very favorable conditions the previous September.

The next section of this work looks at the press releases issued by Vannessa, and to avoid confusion, even though Minca is completely under the control of Vannessa, the Minca press releases are looked at separately in the section after this next one. One reason for this separation is that even though the Minca press releases are often quoted and re-printed in the North American markets, that entity is based in Venezuela, which is not subject to the same rules and regulations as the companies which trade in the US and Canadian markets. ...

With brazen audacity, and using funds pumped into Minca by Placer Dome, Vannessa proceeded to gin up a false, but menacing monster in the press and in the courts. A monster which damaged the credibility of the CVG and the marketablilty of Crystallex for a time. This, from the wafer thin toehold created by the questionable "sale" of one of two classes of ownership in the Placer Venezuelan subsidiary which held an interest in the LC mining contract, a sale in which Placer not only just sold one class of shares out of two, but also retained a back-in right, the right to re-take the deal - where Placer stayed in control. This outrageous press attack and smear campaign got underway about the time that the Placer/CVG contract was running out of time. About the time that Vannessa entered the scene, with two days left to go under that contract. Vannessa paid Placer $50, and then proceeded to mislead, to interfere, to damage, to obstruct, and build a false case in the public press, wasting the precious assets of this public company in the process...

The Next part of this paper looks at each of the Vannessa press releases. ...

(go to Vannessa PR Commentary)

[peter.wedemeier1]

Wall Street Remains Hostage to the Headlines







Saturday, March 15, 2003

NEW YORK — Investors, heading into a week that will be dominated by rapid-fire headlines on the likelihood of a U.S. showdown with Iraq, are advised to take a deep breath and hold on tight.


http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,81145,00.html

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY (+ 3.74% bei $1.11) hat aktuell die Führung im US-Handel soeben übernommen. KRY führt nun vor SSRI (+ 3.34% bei $4.33) und RGLD (+ 3.06% bei $14.48).

Go Gold Go!

[peter.wedemeier1]

Nun hat KRY (+ 3.74% bei $1.11) wieder die Führung im US-Handel übernommen. Unter die ersten drei hat sich nun RANGY mit (+ 3.17% bei $9.45) gemischt, vor SSRI (+ 2.86% bei $4.31).

Go Gold Go!

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY (+ 4.60% bei $0.910) führt zu Handelsbeginn im US-Handel vor SSRI (+ 3.25% bei $4.45) und SWC (+ 2.00% bei $3.06).

Go Gold und Silber und Platin/Palladium Go!

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY (+ 3.41% bei $0.910) hat soeben im US-Handel die Führung von VGZ übernommen. KRY führt nun vor BGO (+ 1.98% bei $1.03) und KGC (+ 1.49% bei $5.46).

Go Gold Go!

[peter.wedemeier1]

Richard Harris Sacks, Phoenix Advisory Co., presents his take on KRY (Crystallex International).

>>"Having prevailed in its quest to be granted mining rights to the vast Las Cristinas gold deposit last year, shares of Crystallex (KRY: news, chart, profile) have declined approximately 50 percent. The drop can be attributed to a combination of factors, including management not achieving 2002 planned production goals and ongoing political tensions in Venezuela."

"The company commissioned a new resource and reserve study with respect to the Las Cristinas deposit, and that report, prepared by MDA of Nevada, is expected before the end of the month. Some believe the area controlled by Crystallex may hold 15 million to 20 million ounces of gold. By almost any industry metric of valuation, Crystallex shares are wildly mispriced. New entrants to Crystallex will likely not have to endure the string of frustrations long-standing stockholders have."<<

source: CBS MarketWatch.com, Inc., March 23, 2003

[peter.wedemeier1]

First let me say that I, like you, am very disappointed by the concerted pressure on our share price. The Company is moving in a responsible, measured way to address this issue. We are continuing with our preparations to get the Las Cristinas project up and running as per our commitment to you, our shareholders, and to the Government and people of Venezuela. We are addressing and fulfilling our obligations under the Mining Agreement with the Corporacion Venezolana de Guayana (“CVG”).




We have great confidence in our Mining Agreement with the CVG and our ability to control and develop the Las Cristinas properties. We have developed a strong working relationship with the CVG, and we are actively developing the corporate infrastructure to fully exploit the Las Cristinas properties. We have refused to be drawn into a media debate with respect to the Mining Agreement, purported investigations and unfounded claims. Instead we created a legal and binding relationship founded in and recognized by Venezuelan law and we are building upon that relationship. This strategy has recently been validated on several fronts:



The Commission of Energy and Mines of the National Assembly of Venezuela, in late February 2003, released yet another report clearly confirming the legal and administrative process by which the Minca mining contract rights were terminated, the related assets were repossessed by the Nation, and by which the government, through the CVG, entered into the Mining Agreement with Crystallex for the exploration and exploitation of the Las Cristinas gold deposits. The report received support from members representing a broad range of political affiliations in the National Assembly and confirmed previous reports by the Permanent Commission of Foreign Affairs and the Permanent Commission of The Comptroller, both standing committees of the National Assembly. The most recent report provides an in depth analysis of the process and confirmation of the actions of the CVG. The president of the CVG, General Francisco Rangel, was a participant in the most recent review. A copy of the Report has been released and will be made available on the Crystallex website.

The Minister of Energy and Mines, Rafael Ramirez in a statement from Guayana City, reported March 1, 2003 by Venpres, confirmed that the Ministry of Energy and Mines “totally” supported the manner in which the CVG/Crystallex Mining Agreement was granted. The Minister further described as irresponsible reports that the Ministry was not in agreement with the actions of the CVG.

The Constitutional Chamber of the Supreme Tribunal of Justice of Venezuela on the 26th of February, 2003, issued a final decision denying the appeal of Minera Las Cristinas, C.A. (“Minca”) for constitutional relief in respect of the actions of the CVG in terminating the Minca mining contract. Contrary to a press release by Minca, the Supreme Court in no manner whatsoever endorsed or made any judicial pronouncement in respect of the Minca mining agreement or in respect of arbitration. The CVG has maintained its position throughout that the Minca contract was terminated in accordance with its terms, in accordance with Venezuelan Mining Law and arbitration is not an available remedy. A copy of the complete decision will be made available on the Crystallex website.

Minca, in the last week of February formally withdrew its action against the CVG in respect of the cancellation of the Minca mining contract, in which action it had allegedly claimed US$572 million in damages. The withdrawal of the action follows by less than one week an extensive press release by Minca on February 19, 2003 in which a Minca spokesperson was quoted as saying that the Supreme Court of Justice would rule in its favour “any time now”. We are not aware of any public disclosure by Minca of the withdrawal.

All of the above actions represent independent and objective confirmation or support of the legal position which has been steadfastly maintained by Crystallex.




In the meantime, we have continued to be very active in our preparations to advance the development of Las Cristinas. We have recently released the first of two reports by Mine Development Associates with respect to Las Cristinas. This initial technical report describes the historic work done by previous operators and the results of that work. It supports the adequacy and relevance of the data produced and stated that the Las Cristinas project contains a significant gold/copper deposit with potential to increase in size.


We are expecting to receive, during March, 2003, the second MDA report containing reserve/resource modeling and mine plans based specifically on the development proposed by Crystallex and we will be communicating the results to you by news release and through our website.




Crystallex has retained SNC-Lavalin Engineers and Constructors Inc (SNCL) to complete a final feasibility study for the development, construction and operation of a processing facility on the site of Las Cristinas. The SNCL staff are actively engaged with Crystallex staff and we expect this study to be completed during this summer.




We committed to strengthening our management team. Ken Thomas, a former Senior Vice President of Barrick Gold Corporation, will join Crystallex as Chief Operating Officer on April 1st of this year. Ken is an acknowledged expert in mining metallurgy and mining operations. His extensive experience with engineering, construction, commissioning and management of gold mining facilities will be invaluable. Ken is already on board as a consultant, assisting with the preparation for the SNCL final feasibility study, and he will play an integral role in the development of Las Cristinas.




Already hard at work are two other senior hires – Borden Rosiak and Robert Crombie. Borden, the Company’s CFO, held that position at Newcourt Capital in the nineties when it grew from a hundred million dollar corporation to one worth several billion when it was sold. Bob Crombie has extensive experience on the project debt side of the mining industry, working for Dresdner Bank Canada and Chase Manhattan Canada in project lending before joining our team.




On March 5, the Company announced it had raised gross proceeds of C$4.1 million through a private placement. The money will be used for working capital including the financing of the continued development of our gold properties in Venezuela.




Venezuela no longer dominates the news headlines as it did earlier this year. Throughout the strikes and debate in Caracas, Crystallex continued its business in Bolivar State. We remain as committed to Venezuela today as we always have been, and remain confident that Venezuela is a country in which our business can grow and prosper.




In closing, let me say we have listened to your concerns, and we share your frustrations with share performance. But I urge you to focus on the reality that Crystallex is the sole operator of the Las Cristinas project. We are working on the site. We have raised money to support the growth of the Company. We will shortly be reporting the MDA assessment of the reserves, resources and mine plan. Our feasibility study is underway. I believe that there is every reason for you to share our confidence in the future of Crystallex.




Yours sincerely,






Marc J. Oppenheimer,

President and CEO

http://www.crystallex.com/interior.asp?p=2&s=3

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY (+ 3.41% bei $0.910) hat soeben im US-Handel die Führung von RIC (+ 2.64% bei $3.11) zurück erobert.

Go Gold Go!

[peter.wedemeier1]

Vannessa Ventures PR Inaccuracies

Let’s first review what happened around the end of July, 2001.

Before July, 2001, a decade-long contract existed between the Corporacion Venezolana de Guayana (CVG), (a corporation of the Venezuelan government to exploit natural resources), and Placer Dome, through a subsidiary, (a Canadian gold mining firm NYSE: PDG). (Hereafter referred to as the “CVG/PDG” contract.) The contract was for the exploitation of the Las Cristinas mines in Bolivar State, Venezuela, sometimes called the Las Cristinas 4,5,6,and 7. Hereafter sometimes called the “LC” or “Cristinas”.

The CVG/PDG contract was in the second one-year extension of the contract, but PDG had not put the property into production. Before National Instrument 43-101, Placer Dome used the reserves/resources of the Las Cristinas on their balance sheet, and announced several times that production would commence, but no gold was mined at LC by PDG.

The Venezuelan government, tired of the decade-long contract which produced little or no revenue for the nation, notified PDG in 2001 that it was in default in the contract and that in July 2001 the contract would not be renewed. July 15 to be exact.

In early 2001, Placer Dome announced they were writing off the Las Cristinas mines, taking a nearly $120 million write down in the process. In public press, PDG said they were washing their hands of the Las Cristinas.

The “Sale” to Vannessa

Then, on July 13, 2001, with less than two days to go under the second extension of the CVG/PDG contract which contract was being terminated by the Venezuelan government, PDG and Vannessa Ventures, Ltd. (OTC:BB VNVNF, Can. VVV) announced a “sale” of the Venezuelan subsidiary of Placer Dome which held the CVG/PDG contract. The “sale” of this subsidiary was for a token amount, reportedly $50, but from the documents available in the public domain, the “sale” to a subsidiary of Vannessa appears to be more of a partnership than a sale. Placer, through its subsidiary, kept a back-in right which would allow Placer to take the project back in the future, and Placer also retained an entire class of voting stock in the subsidiary which guaranteed that the subsidiary could remain under Placer’s control after the so-called “sale”.

Thus, despite Placer’s public statements to the contrary, in which they “washed their hands” of the Venezuelan mines, Placer retained a controlling interest in the subsidiary it sold to Vannessa through a sometimes partially and sometimes completely veiled back door. Throughout the rest of this document, it is important to remember that Placer retained control of the subsidiary. It is also important to remember that 3 years prior to the July 13, 2001 “sale” to Vannessa, a title dispute between another Canadian company, Crystallex International (AMEX: KRY Can. KRY), was decided in the Tribunal of Supreme Justice of Venezuela, (“TSJ,” The Venezuelan Supreme Court) with that ruling going to Placer, but for at least one year prior to that June 1998 ruling, the title dispute was cited as a reason for Placer not being able to obtain project financing. This is important, as it establishes the basis for the bad blood between Canadian giant Placer Dome and Canadian junior Crystallex. It also is a possible motive behind the apparently devious actions taken by Placer Dome through its “sale” to Vannessa.

Keeping in mind that Placer and Vannessa acted through subsidiaries, in order not to confuse the reader with multiple sets of initials for those subsidiaries, actions taken by Placer or Vannessa through their subsidiaries will be attributed to the parent companies, unless it is important to distinguish between the two or unless it would distort the intent of the action not to recognize the subsidiary.

Before moving on to the public press portion of this piece, we see that as of July, 2001, the Venezuelan government was in the process of terminating the PDG/CVG contract, and that at the eleventh hour Placer purported to sell their interest in that mining contract to a little known Canadian exploration company, Vannessa Ventures, Ltd. for a token amount, but at the same time, Placer kept a back-in right and a controlling “B” share in the deal.

Underlying this transaction was a backdrop of growing political unrest in Venezuela. As we will see, a secondary motive for the July 2001 “sale” to Vannessa may have been the possibility of a change in the government of Venezuela and the possibility such a change would bring in a government more friendly to the Placer cause.

In April of 2002, a brief coup ousted leftist president Hugo Chavez for about two days. A popular uprising ensued and Chavez regained power. During the brief coup, the management of Vannessa was reported “to be popping corks over the coup” and the possibilities that change in power might represent.

It is beyond the scope of this work to examine the political situation in Venezuela, but in general, the situation could be summed up from the Placer/Vannessa partnership point of view by saying that the current administration, under Chavez, is perceived by the Placer/Vannessa partnership as adversarial and that a change in the government might help them to regain an interest in the Cristinas gold mines. (Again, that is from the Placer/Vannessa point of view in 2001 and early 2002. Since then, the Venezuelan National Assembly (the “AN”) recommended to the executive that the old CVG/PDG contract be terminated and since the nation acted scrupulously to the letter of the law in terminating that contract, there is much doubt now, in early 2003, that a change in government would have any positive effect for Placer/Vannessa. In July of 2001 that was not at all clear. So, into the mix, throw the possible change in government through which Placer might have a chance to regain the interest it had just lost.)

Side Notes

Also, before moving into the public press portion of this work, it is important to remember that the price of gold in early 2001 was showing signs of awakening after a 20-year bear market. Shares of little known companies who had lain dormant for some time were being bought by speculators and gold hedge funds and nearly all companies in the gold sector were rising in price. Economic and political signs were pointing to the beginning of a new bull market for the commodity and for gold stocks. Gold stocks had begun to be promoted during this time also. Shares of even obscure non-producing companies, such as Caledonia Mining (OTC:BB CALVF) were undergoing rapid high-percentage increases in price as the speculators snapped up the thinly traded shares.

Because the gold market was heating up, recommendations by analysts and news letter writers as well as sudden news press releases by individual companies could have a dramatic, almost overnight effect on the stock price of these thinly traded companies with many of them increasing over 100% and some moving as much as 500% and more. Thus, in early 2001, there was a sort of urgency in the market to find companies with compelling exploration or production stories. A fact which many of those companies used to their advantage, putting out whatever positive press they could to gain attention, increase the stock prices which made it easier to raise capital after such a long drought of public interest.
The Placer/Vannessa Partnership – Distortions in the Press
How Placer tried to use Vannessa and the press to thwart the will of the government of Venezuela and tried to destroy its rival company, Crystallex International.

So far we have seen that the government of Venezuela had had enough of a decade long contract with Placer Dome and in July of 2001, that contract was to be terminated. We have also seen that with two days to go under that doomed contract, Placer mucked up the works by purportedly selling the mines to Vannessa for a token $50 while keeping the right to retake the deal and while keeping an entire class of voting stock with which to retain control. It was not so much a sale, as it was a stall.

We have also seen what the possible motives might have been for this action by Placer Dome, including the possible re-entry into the Venezuelan scene through a change in government, and possibly punishing its rival, Crystallex for a 1998 title dispute which Placer contended kept it from mining the LC.

We have also seen a possible motive for Vannessa, that being a chance to increase its stock price and to raise additional capital more easily using the relatively large numbers of the LC in press releases and in investment tout sheets.

It is easy to understand the strange marriage between Placer and Vannessa under the above circumstances. Placer saw a way to possibly retain a very large mining project which was being lost as well as a way to punish its rival company, Canadian upstart Crystallex, who was at the time negotiating with the CVG for a contract to replace the CVG/PDG contract for the Cristinas, and Vannessa saw a way to generate interest in its shares and to raise capital from it. What is not apparent, at least to the casual observer, is the depth to which both Placer and Vannessa were willing to go to in order to accomplish their goals.

Through documents available in the public domain, it surfaced that just prior to the “sale” of Placer’s interest in the Cristinas to Vannessa, Placer apparently funded a subsidiary called Minera Las Cristinas C.A., or Minca, with just under $2 million US dollars. A corresponding debt to the cash portion of that funding of Minca “washed” the funding and rendered it invisible to most observers at the time. This is important for a couple reasons. Minca, is the Venezuelan subsidiary formed by Placer to Joint Venture with the CVG to mine the Cristinas, (which JV moved to Vannessa in the purported “sale”). The $2 million in cash gave Minca, then in July of 2001, under the apparent control of Vannessa , a fund with which to initiate a vigorous campaign both in the press and in the courts, as we will shortly see. The other reason this is important is because the way the “sale” was reported, later press by Vannessa/Minca tried to give the impression that Minca assumed a larger debt than it did, when in apparent fact, the debt that Vannessa/Minca assumed was the $2 million to Placer in return for the $2 million of funding that went with Minca.
The marriage of Placer and Vannessa then, was a marriage of convenience for both companies, but it was at least initially funded by Placer.

Up to the time of the July 2001 “sale” to Vannessa, Minca operated as a separate JV entity, with a board of directors chosen by the CVG and Placer Dome. After the “sale”, the CVG refused to recognize Vannessa as its new JV partner, did not attend Minca meetings, and Vannessa dismissed the old Minca board and appointed a new board to Minca that was completely controlled by Vannessa. (It is important to remember here that the CVG maintained that the “sale” to Vannessa was illegal, a fact backed up by the AN later. In a public statement, the president of the CVG, General Rangel said that the sale constituted a fraud on the people of Venezuela.)

Minca, now completely controlled by Vannessa and liberally funded by Placer, began it’s press and lawsuit campaign against the CVG in July of 2001, and later against Crystallex when it became apparent that the Venezuelan government would choose Crystallex to replace Placer to mine the Cristinas mines.

From the perspective of the casual observer, in mid-2001, there appeared to be a conflict between the Venezuelan government and Vannesssa with regard to a mining contract about to be canceled. As the above introduction illustrates, the apparent conflict involved much more than that. What is particularly interesting in reviewing the press portion of this work, is the metamorphosis of the stance of Minca/Vannessa in the press, the extreme volume of the misinformation contained in that press and the apparently profound effect that the press campaign and lawsuit campaign had on the share price of Placer rival Crystallex.

If one objective of Placer in doing and funding the “sale” to Vannessa at the eleventh hour was to inflict damage on thinly capitalized Crystallex so that it would be difficult, if not impossible, to raise the funding necessary to carry out the mining plans for Cristinas, then to any observer, that goal was at least partially accomplished. During the later months of 2002, most gold stocks enjoyed a large percentage increase in their share prices. Apparently, due at least partly to the cumulative effects of the millions of dollars spent by Placer/Vannessa in their campaign of interference against the CVG and Crystallex, shares of that company lost value despite having gained the right to mine the Cristinas from the Venezuelan government under very favorable conditions the previous September.

The next section of this work looks at the press releases issued by Vannessa, and to avoid confusion, even though Minca is completely under the control of Vannessa, the Minca press releases are looked at separately in the section after this next one. One reason for this separation is that even though the Minca press releases are often quoted and re-printed in the North American markets, that entity is based in Venezuela, which is not subject to the same rules and regulations as the companies which trade in the US and Canadian markets.

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY (+ 3.41% bei $0.910) hat soeben im US-Handel die Führung von RIC (+ 2.64% bei $3.11) zurück erobert.

Go Gold Go!

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY (+ 3.41% bei $0.910) hat soeben im US-Handel die Führung von RIC (+ 2.31% bei $3.10) zurück erobert. Beide führen nun vor BGO (+ 1.98% bei $1.03).

Go Gold Go!

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY (+ 3.41% bei $0.910) hat soeben im US-Handel wieder die Führung von RIC (+ 2.31% bei $3.10) zurück erobert.

Go Gold Go!

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY (+ 3.41% bei $0.910) hat soeben wieder die Führung im heutigen US-Handel von RIC (+ 2.31% bei $3.10) zurück erobert. Beide führen nun vor KGC (+ 1.12% bei $5.44).

Go Gold Go!

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY (+ 4.55% bei $0.920) hat soeben die Führung im US-Handel von VGZ zurück erobert und führt nun vor KGC (+ 1.86% bei $5.48) und VGZ (+ 1.56% bei $3.25).

Go Gold Go!

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY (+ 14.58% bei $1.10) führt heute im US-Handel vor DROOY
(+ 9.11% bei $2.66) und ASL (+ 7.14% bei $5.85).

Go Gold Go!

[peter.wedemeier1]

Analysis Report
Crystallex Announces Reserve and Resource Estimates for Las Cristinas
3/31/2003 9:02:00 AM
TORONTO, Mar 31, 2003 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX/ -- Crystallex International Corporation (TSX, Amex: KRY) announced today that Mine Development Associates ("MDA") of Reno, Nevada has completed reserve and resource estimates for the Las Cristinas gold deposits located in Bolivar State, Venezuela.

MDA Report highlights:

-- Measured and Indicated Resources: 439 million tonnes at 1.09 grams of
gold per tonne (15.3 million ounces)
-- Inferred Resources: 208 million tonnes at 0.91 grams of gold per tonne
(6.1 million ounces)
-- Proven and Probable Reserves: 224 million tonnes at 1.33 grams of gold
per tonne (9.5 million ounces)
-- Mineralization remains open at depth


"The release of the MDA data represents a major milestone for our Company, our shareholders and the people of Bolivar State, Venezuela who will directly benefit from this project," said Marc J. Oppenheimer, President and CEO of Crystallex. He continued, "The data confirms that Las Cristinas is one of the world`s largest undeveloped gold deposits with excellent potential to grow in size. More specifically, the report concludes that with additional drilling at least a portion of Inferred Resources will likely be upgraded to the Measured and Indicated categories which should add to the reserves. These data certainly validate the intensive efforts over the past several years which resulted in Crystallex securing the exclusive mining rights to this valuable deposit."

"This is a deposit of impressive size," said Ken Thomas, newly appointed Chief Operating Officer of Crystallex. "I look forward to working with our Government partners in Venezuela to bring this important property into production. A significant amount of preparatory work has already been done," Thomas added noting that, "SNC-Lavalin is well underway with its work on the Feasibility Study for the development, construction and operation of a mining and processing facility."
The resource and reserve estimates were calculated for two near contiguous deposits known as Conductora/Cuatro Muertos ("CO/CM") and Mesones/Sofia ("MS/SO"). Mineralization at CO/CM is contained within a moderately-dipping zone, 3 kilometres long and up to 400 metres thick. Mineralization is hosted by a shear zone characterized by foliation-parallel pyrite disseminations and crosscutting quartz-carbonate-pyrite-chalcopyrite veinlets. Alteration assemblages at CO/CM include biotite, epidote, carbonate, silica and tourmaline. The MS/SO deposits are predominantly tourmaline-bearing breccia pipes associated with intense silicification, potassium feldspar alteration, and coarse pyrite and chalcopyrite mineralization.

The resource estimates for the two deposits were made using geologic modeling and kriging techniques. The modeling took into account material types, grade domains, and geologic features. At a cutoff grade of 0.50 grams of gold per tonne, the resources for the Las Cristinas deposits are as follows:

LAS CRISTINAS RESOURCES

Deposit Measured
Tonnes g/t Ounces
Au
CO/CM 48,333,000 1.21 1,879,000
MS/SO 9,405,000 1.20 364,000
Total 57,738,000 1.21 2,243,000

Deposit Indicated
Tonnes g/t Ounces
Au
CO/CM 343,588,000 1.09 11,986,000
MS/SO 37,605,000 0.91 1,099,000
Total 381,193,000 1.07 13,085,000

Deposit Inferred
Tonnes g/t Ounces
Au
CO/CM 187,382,000 0.94 5,633,000
MS/SO 20,507,000 0.65 431,000
Total 207,889,000 0.91 6,064,000
Reserves were developed from Measured and Indicated resources by establishing the ultimate economic pit limits using Medsystem Lerchs-Grossman pit optimization software. The economic calculations were based on a gold price of US$325 per ounce and variable cutoff grades of about 0.50 grams of gold per tonne and higher, dependent upon material type. In-pit reserves, estimated in accordance with CIM Standards and National Instrument 43-101, are as follows:

LAS CRISTINAS RESERVES
Deposit Category Tonnes Grade Ounces Strip
(Au g/t) Ratio
CO/CM Proven
34,133,000 1.43 1,569,000 1.30:1
Probable 167,955,000 1.31 7,073,000
MS Probable 21,860,000 1.28 900,000 1.89:1
Total Proven 34,133,000 1.43 1,569,000 1.34:1
Probable 189,815,000 1.31 7,973,000
Total Proven &
Probable 223,948,000 1.33 9,542,000 1.34:1


The reserves are contained in two separate pits. The CO/CM pit will be the deeper of the two, at 300 metres below surface and with an overall strip ratio 1.34 to 1.

Mineralization at both CO/CM and MS/SO is open at depth. In addition, the pits include inferred resources that could not be categorized as reserves because of insufficient drill density. Thus, there is excellent potential for increasing resources, adding reserves, and decreasing the strip ratio, by undertaking additional drilling.

The reserve and resource estimates are based on a diamond drill data base of 98,100 metres in 894 holes and 116,525 assayed core intervals. During January and February of 2003, Crystallex, under the supervision of Dr. Luca M. Riccio, P. Geo., Crystallex`s Vice President of Exploration and Gregory Maynard, P. Geo., on behalf of MDA, completed a verification program aimed at validating a previous operator`s drill-core assays. The verification program included 2,188 metres of drilling in 11 holes that twinned holes completed by a previous operator and assaying of 1,089 core samples, 55 blanks, 110 checks and 110 standards. In addition, 262 pulps, 200 rejects and 342 quarter core samples from previous drilling were also re-analyzed. Assay results from the verification drilling and check sampling programs corroborate the general tenor of mineralization reported by the previous operator. All samples from the verification program were prepared at Triad Laboratory in Venezuela. Chemex Labs in Vancouver, Canada assayed 74 % of the samples. The remaining samples were assayed at Triad. The program was managed by qualified person Dr. Luca Riccio, P.Geo., with assistance during part of the program by qualified person Gregory Maynard, P.Geo., on behalf of MDA.

The persons responsible or involved in the resource and reserve estimations on behalf of MDA included Steven Ristorcelli, P. Geo., and Scott Hardy, P. Eng., both qualified persons for the purposes of National Instrument 43-101, with geologic input from Dr. Luca Riccio, P. Geo. An executive summary of this study will be filed on SEDAR (http://www.sedar.com) within 30 days of the issuance of this press release.
Future Development:

On February 12, 2003, Crystallex awarded to SNC-Lavalin Engineers & Constructors Inc. ("SNCL") the contract to undertake a Feasibility Study for the development, construction and operation of a mining and processing facility on its 100% controlled Las Cristinas project in Venezuela. The mandate to SNCL contemplates an initial 20,000 tonne per day operation capable of processing oxide and sulphide ores. The current schedule calls for the SNCL Feasibility Study to be completed this summer. In addition, SGS Lakefield Research Limited, Canada, have been contracted to run a metallurgical pilot plant to confirm the flowsheet for the Feasibility Study.

About Crystallex:

Crystallex International Corporation is a Canadian based gold producer with operations and exploration properties in Venezuela and Uruguay. Crystallex shares are traded on the TSX and AMEX Exchanges. Crystallex has been focused on strategic growth in South America and recently signed a definitive agreement with respect to the Las Cristinas mining properties in Venezuela and has taken possession of those properties. Crystallex is currently working on the final feasibility study to support its development plans for Las Cristinas.

Note:

This news release may contain certain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the United States Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included in this release, including, without limitation, statements regarding potential mineralization and reserves, exploration results, and future plans and objectives of Crystallex, are forward-looking statements that involve various risks and uncertainties. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the Company`s expectations are disclosed under the heading "Risk Factors" and elsewhere in documents filed from time to time with The Toronto Stock Exchange, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission and other regulatory authorities.

Cautionary Note to Investors - The United States Securities and Exchange Commission permits mining companies, in their filings with the SEC, to disclose only those mineral deposits that a company can economically extract or produce. We use certain terms in this news release, such as "resource," "measured resource", "indicated resource" and "inferred resource," that the SEC guidelines strictly prohibit us from including in our filing with the SEC. U.S. investors are urged to consider closely the disclosure in our Form 20-F. Furthermore, reserves have been calculated in accordance with NI 43-101, as required by Canadian securities regulatory authorities. For United States reporting purposes however, a full feasibility study is required in order to classify mineralization as reserves. Accordingly, until we complete our final feasibility study, we will not report reserves for Las Cristinas for U.S. reporting purposes.

The Toronto Stock Exchange has not reviewed this release and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.

SOURCE Crystallex International Corporation

Investors - A Richard Marshall, VP of Crystallex International
Corporation, [phone], or [e-mail]
/Company News On-Call: http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/114620.html


http://www.crystallex.com


Copyright (C) 2003 PR Newswire. All rights reserved.

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY (+ 9.37% bei $1.05) hat soeben im US-Handel die Führung von GSS wieder zurück erobert. KRY führt nun vor RANGY
(+ 6.55% bei $11.55) und GSS (+ 6.51% bei $1.80).

Go Gold Go!

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY (+ 8.33% bei $1.04) hat sich zum Handelsschluß heute im US-Handel die Führung von GSS (+ 6.51% bei $1.80) wieder zurück geholt. Beide führten zum Handelsschluß vor DROOY
(+ 4.59% bei $2.55).

Go Gold Go!

[Gringo1]

Was´n da passiert, jemand Infos bzgl. bad news ?

-18.68 %

Las Cristinas enteignet, oder sowas ?

Sonst ist das ja ein Schnäppi ...

[matthiasch]

http://biz.yahoo.com/n/k/kry.html


Wir sollten immer bedenken, dass auch bei den GM Bilanzfälschungen in Zukunft nicht ausgeschlossen sind.

Eine breite Streuung wird wohl immer wichtiger.

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY (+ 9.59% bei $0.800) führt im US-handel vor SWC (+ 3.31% bei $2.50).

Go Gold und Platinum/Palladium Go!

[peter.wedemeier1]

Van Sun says regulators pay Crystallex a call

2003-04-07 09:33 ET - In the News

The Vancouver Sun reports in its Saturday edition that Crystallex International took a belated trip to the confessional last week, but it might be too late to save its Toronto Stock Exchange listing. The Sun`s David Baines, writing in a Securities column, notes that the restatement had no effect on the company`s financial position under Canadian accounting rules, but it increased the company`s loss under U.S. accounting rules to $33-million from $11-million. He also reviewed the company`s money-losing call option strategy. The lack of an explanatory press release prompted him to write on March 29, "Where are the regulators when you need them?" They arrived Thursday. Market Regulation Services halted trading in Crystallex shares, agreeing that the restatement was material and required disclosure. Auditor Davidson & Company resigned as auditors in late March. While there were no official disagreements over accounting, Mr. Baines says Deloitte & Touch will have to be careful that its hands don`t get burned. Mr. Baines says he would not be surprised if Crystallex has its listing revoked, a move that would have negative implications for its contract to develop Las Cristinas in Venezuela.

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY (+ 16.05% bei $0.940) führt im US-Handel vor SSRI
(+ 4.92% bei $4.69) und PAL (+ 4.44% bei $2.35).

Go Gold und Silber und Palladium Go!

[peter.wedemeier1]

Crystallex auditor change adds to regulatory woes Financial Post - Tuesday April 8, 2003
By David Baines TSX, SEC monitoring junior miner.Crystallex International Corp. says a Toronto Stock Exchange decision on Friday to review its stock listing was prompted by a newspaper article several days earlier, but it is clear that regulators were already monitoring the Toronto-based junior mining company.On Wednesday, the Vancouver Sun published a column noting the company had filed revised statements for the nine months ended Sept. 30 which included a $14-million loss on account of its gold call option program, increasing its net loss to $22-million.The Sun noted that the revised statements had been filed in the United States but not in Canada, and the company had not issued a news release explaining the revisions to shareholders.On Thursday, Market Regulation Services Inc. halted trading in Crystallex shares pending the filing of those revised statements in Canada and the issuance of a news release reporting those revisions. "It was our position that this restatement was material and should have been disclosed in a news release," said Gerry Halischuk, vice-president of MRS`s western region.The same day, Crystallex filed the revised statements in Canada and an explanatory news release. That did not end the matter, however.On Friday, the TSX announced it was reviewing Crystallex "with respect to meeting the requirements for continued listing." It added that the review is being conducted "on an expedited basis."Crystallex issued a release yesterday which stated that the TSX review "followed the publication on April 2 of a newspaper article," referring to the Sun column.However, by that time, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission officials had already directed the company to file amended statements which included the loss on account of its call options. Those amended statements were filed with the SEC on March 28.The company said it intended to delay publicly filing those statements until the SEC had reviewed them, but the SEC directed the company to file them immediately. That resulted in the statements being filed in the United States, but not in Canada.This may not be the only accounting issue facing Crystallex. In its release Thursday, the company reported that its Vancouver auditors, Davidson & Co., had resigned at the end of March.Crystallex president Marc Oppenheimer of New Jersey said there were "no disagreements, unresolved issues or other reportable events" involving the accounting firm.However, the timing of the auditors` departure may be problematic: Crystallex`s audited year-end statements are due on or about May 20, leaving little time for its new auditors, Deloitte & Touche, to file completed audited statements on time.Also, Deloitte & Touche may have to deal with other accounting issues, most notably the company`s accounting for its Las Cristinas gold concession in Venezuela, which reportedly contains 10.5 million ounces of proven and probable reserves.Since 1995, Crystallex has insisted it owns the property, despite pronouncements to the contrary by the Venezuelan Supreme Court and the Venezuelan government, which had already entered into a joint venture with senior gold producer Placer Dome Inc. to develop the property.In June, 2000, Placer Dome abandoned the project due to slumping gold prices and Venezuela`s state mining agency, Corporacion Venezolana de Guayana, began looking for a suitable replacement partner.CVG said at the time that it would only consider a major mining company that produced at least two million ounces of gold per year and had the capacity to finance a US$600-million mining facility.

[peter.wedemeier1]

Last September, however, CVG shocked the mining community by awarding the contract to Crystallex, which was producing only about 100,000 ounces per year from small mines in Venezuela and Uruguay. Even more shocking, the contract was awarded without a bidding process.Political opponents of Venezuela president Hugo Chavez charged this was yet another example of CVG`s corruption and the Venezuelan National Assembly formed a sub-committee to investigate the awarding of the contract. That inquiry is still in progress.Meanwhile, Crystallex continues to carry Las Cristinas on its books at its full cost of $73.9-million, including $22.1-million in "professional fees," a catch-all for money the company has spent advancing its interest in the property.However, by accepting the development contract from the Venezuelan authorities, Crystallex may have implicitly acknowledged that the state owns the property, in which case it will have to significantly write-down its carrying value.(Vancouver Sun)h ttp://finance.canada.com/bin/story?StoryId=CpPjjqd8bmtKWnJa0&Topic=Financial_Post&Type=home&Heading=News%20from%20Financial%20Post

[peter.wedemeier1]

CRYSTALLEX ENGAGES DEUTSCHE BANK SECURITIES, INC. AS LAS CRISTINAS PROJECT FINANCE ADVISOR... http://www.crystallex.com/

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY (+ 4.44% bei $0.940) hat soeben im US-Handel die Führung von RGLD (+ 3.20% bei $15.79) übernommen. Beide führen nun vor VGZ (+ 2.66% bei $3.47).

Go Gold Go!

[peter.wedemeier1]

Venezuela restarts old gold mine with Chinese help
Wednesday April 9, 12:34 PM EDT
CARACAS, Venezuela, April 9 (Reuters) - Venezuelan state gold producer CVG Minerven hopes to boost its annual output by 50 percent to 4.6 tonnes by reactivating a long-idled gold mine with help from China, the company said on Wednesday.China`s Shandong Gold Group, through its Venezuelan affiliate Jinyan Co., will initially invest $13 million in the Sosa Mendez mine in the El Callao district of mineral-rich southeastern Bolivar state, CVG Minerven said in a statement.The mine had been inactive for more than 40 years,The investment will go toward digging a new shaft, draining the mine, repairing galleries and other improvements.Francisco Rangel, president of Venezuelan state industrial holding Corporacion Venezolana de Guayana, which controls mining in Bolivar state, said the mine would start working again in 20 months. It had proven reserves of 950,000 tonnes of ore grading 13 grams of gold per tonne, CVG Minerven said. CVG Minerven President Franqui Patines said the Chinese partner would mine the gold and sell it to the Venezuelan state for processing.Through the venture, the Venezuelan state producer hoped to increase its annual gold production to 4.6 tonnes from the current 3.1 tonnes a year, CVG Minerven said.Venezuela`s government is moving to develop its gold resources in Bolivar state and last September awarded a contract to Canadian miner Crystallex International Corp. (KRY) to exploit the Las Cristinas mine, billed as one of the world`s largest undeveloped gold deposits. http://money.iwon.com/jsp/nw/nwdt_rt_top.jsp?cat=TOPBIZ&src=… s&news_id=reu-n09264127&date=20030409&alias=/alias/money/cm/nw

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY (+ 3.33% bei $0.930) hat soeben die Führung von SSRI
(+ 3.19% bei $4.85) übernommen. Beide führen nun vor VGZ
(+ 2.96% bei $3.48).

Go Gold und Silber Go!

[peter.wedemeier1]

Venezuelan gold in the interest of international investors

Venezuelan gold in the interest of international investors Representatives of important international banking and financial organizations interested in investing in the mining project the Cristinas, visit our country with the intention to know depth the reach and importance that would have their contributions in the development aurferor.

In this opportunity one is commissioners of the Deutsche Bank and TD Newcrest, quines fulfill in Venezuela a tight agenda of three days guided by the main representatives of Crystallex International Corporation, operating company of the gold deposits in the Cristinas.

This project has special relevance for the country, still more after the recent publication of considered of reserve and the appeals done by Mine Development Associates (MDA) that confirms that the Cristinas is one of the gold deposits more grandit is of the world. the endorsement of this study on the magnitude of this mine, as well as its meaning in economic terms for the region of Guayana and for the country, they justify, that like part of the activities planned for this important delegation of foreign investors, includes meetings with deputies of the National Assembly and high civil employees of the Venezuelan Corporation of GuayAna in Ordaz Port.

This visit will allow that the investors appreciate the advances by themselves and progresses in the mine; as well as the enormous potential and benefit that a project of high economic yield reverts that goes beyond simple lucrative activities for the interested ones, because it is a project that includes forts and constants social investments for the improvement of the quality of life of the communities adjacent to the Cristinas.

[peter.wedemeier1]

Economy

International investors receive backing in the National Assembly

Any possibility that this operation contract can be canceled by parliamentarian decisions doesn`t exist

A significant delegation of representatives of international bank and financial entities interested in investing in the gold-bearing mining project The Cristinas, received the backing of representatives of the National Assembly.

The international investors were received in the Hemiciclo of the National Assembly by deputies Luis Salas, Luis Velásquez Alvaray and Rafael Simón Jiménez.

Around the concession granted to the company Crystallex to operate in the mine of gold, located in the sector of The Cristinas, to the south of the Estado Bolívar, deputy Luis Salas expressed that in the history of Venezuela no government has stopped to honor the fundamental commitments that have assumed mining companies, petroleum and telecommunications in the country. It contended vigorously that “each government has always respected the agreements subscribed previously.”

On the other hand deputy of the party Podemos, Rafael Simón Jiménez assured to the foreign investors that “it doesn`t exist in Venezuela any possibility that an investor can see in risk the stability of any negotiation in which is involved government entities”. however deputy Jiménez added the existence of the agreement it doesn`t avoid that any deputy in the exercise of his rights can promote investigations it has more than enough business carried out with the government.

Jiménez concluded asserting that in the specific case of The Cristinas, “they have been revised in the National Assembly all the formalities and it doesn`t exist any possibility that this contract of operations can be canceled.”


Deputy Luis Velásquez Alvaray -in representation of the biggest opinion group in the National Assembly composed by the MVR - affirmed to be authorized to ratify the commitment that has the country in the development of the project of The Cristinas, and it finished their intervention expressing that they are willing to make it respect in the face of any authority.

On the other hand, on behalf of the investors he/she spoke: Jeffrey R. Stufsky who is Managing Manager of the Deutsche Bank, thanked the opportunity to allow to the Bank that represents to participate in the auriferous project of The Cristinas, since they recognize that “it is at the moment one of the very few ones in the world that deserves to be developed.”

For the investors David W. Christie, Analyst of Project of Mining of Gold of the company TD Newcrest, also intervened he mentioned that the auriferous reservorio of The Cristinas is one of the most important mining references in the world, of there the transcendency of investing in him.

Finally Marc J. Oppenheimer, president of Crystallex International, thanked the presence of the deputies of the National Assembly in this meeting with the international investors, since you/he/she is a form of supporting the continuity of the advances in the area mining Venezuelan, and concretely in the project of The Cristinas, that which will be good for the development of the region located to the south of the Estado Bolívar.

[peter.wedemeier1]

Crystallex contracts Deutsche Bank like financial leader of the project the Cristinas Executives of both institutions met with members of the National Assembly and CVG authorities, later were transferred until the camping to mineror. The German institution Deutsche Bank will lead the group of banks that will finance part of the investment considered for the development of the auriferous deposit the Cristinas, amount that promotes to 500 million of dollares.

the operating company of the project Crystallex International Corporation, will contribute a fraction of the total amount by means of direct investment, for which it contracted the services of the Toronto Dominium Newcrest (TDN), that will be in charge to handle its operations of pick up of capitals. the announcement was informed in a maintained encounter this week between the main directors into Crystallex International Corporation, Marc Oppenheimer and Robert Fung, president Ejecutivo and president of the Board of directors, respectively, and the holder of the Venezuelan Corporation of Guayana, Franciscor Rangel Go`mez.

Oppenheimer explained that the German bank account with experience anywhere in the world with regard to obtaining of financing through European, North and Latin American institutions, in addition to beings multilateral. "All mining project account with different sources from pick up of appeals, one is the financing and another one the direct investment, first is long term debt that cancels the project, and second it is the own contribution of the company, we will only know that proportion of both components we will have once culminates the study of feasibility ", explained Oppenheimer.

the president of Crystallex needed that now the mining project the Cristinas is more attractive for the financial beings, because gr/ton (superior to 1.12 considered by Minca) calculated with a price of gold to 325 dollars by ounce has a tenor of proven reserves of 1.33 (inferior in 50 dollars to the price fixed by Minca), which makes less employee to proyecto of the fluctuations of the price. Data certified by the report presented/displayed by the American company Mines Development Acesociates (MDA) the last week.

"Parallelly, we are making new perforations, and the preliminary data guarantee greater reserves and greater tenor to us, which will give independence us of prec still moreio!!SYSTRAN sentence_id 19 <., assured the president Crystallex. Jeffrey Stufsky, executive of the Deutsche Bank, it described like excellent the subscribed contract of operation between CVG and Crystallex, and emphasized the importance of establishing - in the short one plazo- the cronogram of obtaining of benefits.

On the other hand, the CVG president explained that the main interest of the Corporation is the consolidation of a sustainable economic activity in the South zone of the state Bolivar, with the consequent generation of use and obtaining of social benefits for the communities."That will be the true gain that will have the country of this one and all lsyou mining proyectos that the Bolivars are taking in the state ". the executives of Deutsche Bank and the TDN transferred until the seat of the mining Camping the Cristinas, located in Kilometer 88 of the Sifontes municipality, in order to have a direct approach in the area and to state the evaluation trial that advances Crystallex.

AV

[peter.wedemeier1]

Las Cristinas row rages on

Venezuela, Apr 09, 2003 (BNamericas.com via COMTEX) -- Venezuela`s supreme court has agreed to hear a case brought by Minera Las Cristinas (Minca) aimed at revoking a contract signed last September by state heavy industry holding CVG and Toronto-based Crystallex International (TSX: KRY) to develop the Las Cristinas gold-copper deposit.

The filing is one of several legal measures Minca, and its controller Vancouver-based Vannessa Ventures (TSX: VVV) have brought in an attempt to quash the Crystallex contract, including one demanding CVG`s decision to revoke Minca`s contract for the 9.5Moz gold deposit be overturned.

The dispute, which Minca wants to resolve via arbitration, is also being "investigated" by the comptroller committee of Venezuela`s congress, the company says. Minca also claims it is the only holder of Las Cristinas` environmental permit.
Crystallex described the supreme court move as a "procedural step," and said Minca`s only hope is to seek damages from the Venezuelan government.

Minca, 95% held by Vannessa and 5% by CVG, with an option to increase its stake to 30%, held the rights to develop the Las Cristinas deposit in southeast Venezuela`s Bolivar state. But in November 2001, CVG unilaterally revoked the agreement and the government rescinded the rights and later authorized CVG to find a new partner for the project, which turned out to be Crystallex.

Via Minca, Vancouver-based senior Placer Dome (NYSE: PDG) had been building a US$570mn mine at Las Cristinas to produce 500,000oz/y gold plus some copper but halted construction in 1999 because of low prices and wrote off its investment of US$116mn in the project.
Placer sold its stake in Minca to Vannessa for a token US$50 in July 2001. CVG never recognized the Vannessa transaction, and accused Minca of not complying with its contractual obligations as Las Cristinas was still not producing more than a decade after the original joint venture had been created in 1992.

Vannessa had wanted to build a 100,000oz/y mine at Las Cristinas for some US$50mn, something CVG regarded as too small.

[peter.wedemeier1]

Reactivated auriferous mining by foreign investment Guayana City, 10 Abr. Venpres (Oscar Ossa). - the president of the Venezuelan Corporation of Guayana, Francisco Rangel Go`mez, considered that the national auriferous sector is in one of its better moments during these last 100 years, thanks to the foreign investments and projects that from year 2001 have begun to consolidate in the south of the state Bolivar.

This affirmation made to Venpres the civil employee when talking about to the importance that had the beginning of the works of reactivation of the auriferous mine "Sosa Méndez", left from 1966 and which through an investment of 13 million dollars it will return to be put in production by the Chinese company Shandong Gold Group and its branch JIthe Go`mez nyan of Venezuela.

Rangel emphasized that when two years ago assumed the presidency of the CVG, he could appreciate good perspective for the sector aluminum, forest, steel, iron and metalmecánica, but the Cristinas considered that the sector mining would be very difficult to reactivate then its main project, denominated, was paralyzed into the hands of the transnational company Placer Dome and its Minca company.,

Rangel Go`mez indicated that the small mining was disorganized extremely and required a deep process of contract revision, relocation of miners and environmental adjustment. To this the lack of resources was also united that suffered the state company CVG-Minerven to assume the operation and exploration of several mines and deposits located in lands that the Nation granted to him Nevertheless under concession.", this situación has reverted of remarkable way.

Nowadays the Cristinas is being reactivated with an investment of 550 million dollars by Crystallex International, whereas mines as the "Sosa Méndez" will be reopened with Chinese capital and other auriferous areas handled by CVG-Minerven will be explored by the North American company Hecla.

All this demonstrates that we have managed to reactivate one of the more important productive areas successfully that it has the state Bolivar, as is the gold extraction ", Also pointed Rangel Gomez., the holder of the CVG emphasized the investment that Bolivar Gold Corp makes to operate diamond deposits in that regional organization, as well as the organization of the small artisan miners in cooperatives that the due permisología from the Ministry of the Atmosphere and the Ministry of In is receivingergía and Mines.

Stressed that great part of these cooperatives has signed even contracts with Minerven to work in some concessions handled by this state company and to sell to an advisable price extra goldído of the subsoil. This way, is guaranteed a fiscal, technical control and environmental of the mining activity and new sources of use for benefit are generated of economically depressed communities of the Callao, Guasipati and Tumeremo.

Rangel Go`mez also added that it met with representatives of the Deutshe Bank and the Toronto Bank, that are arranged totally to support financially to the company Crystallex International so that the auriferous project is executed the Cristinas, located in jurisdiction of the Sifontes municipality of the state Bolivar and where it calculates that superior gold reserves exist a the 15 million ounces.

"This is an accolade to the Venezuelan mining and demonstrates that our country is extremely attractive to the foreign investment, in spite of the problems of political and social type at this moment ", added.

On the other hand, emphasized that this support of the foreign capital is not limited single the mining, but that also has come declaring in sectors like hidroeléctricor, infrastructure, steel and aluminum.


"In the heat of December-January unemployment we received in Guayana City to representatives of the Danielli group of Italy whom they love to install an iron and steel for the automotive steel provision with an investment of 800 million of dólares. This project is advance in the heat of and either we have several signed agreements advances and or is signed agreements on the matter ", .. also Added Rangel Go`mez who continues the Brazilian investment in works of II the Bridge on the Orinoco river and that the CVG and the state Edelca is receiving propose foreign to participate in the licitations of the new hydroelectric power station Tocoma, whose investment reaches 2 thousand 300 million of dollars.

"In fact, we are making two licitations, one for referring one to the manufacture and installation of metalmecánicos equipment by the order of 500 million of dollars, and another one for main the civil works, whose investment arrives at the 700 msillones of dollars. In this last one even is participation of the Inter-American Bank of Development ", added. Another foreign investment mentioned by the high civil employee is the one that the French group Glencore, to that granted the good-pro to him for the construction of new line of aluminum reduction in CVG-Alcasa, with an investment will do that alcanzto the 600 million dollars.

Finally, when talking about to the Chinese investment in Venezuela, it emphasized that in addition to the mine "Insipid Méndez", already is all ready one so that in 3 weeks the feasibility study of a Farm appears before the authorities of the CVG Integral Model that Chinese to installá in Island of Guara, Monagas state."As soon as this study is approved, we will give the authorization so that the project is executed, which implies an investment of 20 million of dolares", Francisco Rangel finalized Go`mez.

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY (+ 3.33% bei $0.930) hat soeben im US-Handel die Führung von VGZ (+ 2.96% bei $3.48) übernommen. Beide führen nun vor RGLD (+ 2.94% bei $15.75).

Go Gold Go!

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY (+ 4.44% bei $0.940) hat soeben im US-Handel die Führung von RGLD (+ 3.14% bei $15.78) zurück erobert´. Beide führen nun vor VGZ (+ 2.66% bei $3.47).

Go Gold Go!

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY (+ 3.30% bei $0.940) hat soeben im US-Handel die Führung übernommen. KRY führt nun vor PAL (+ 2.17% bei $2.35) und RIC (+ 2.16% bei $3.31).

Go Gold und Palladium Go!

[peter.wedemeier1]

Reporte Diario de la Economía
Press Article
April 3, 2003

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------



Through the President of its Board of Directors, Erich Rauguth,


MINCA PROMPTED THE COMMITTEE ON ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
OF CONGRESS TO DEEPEN THE INVESTIGATION ON LAS CRISTINAS

The President of the Board of Minera Las Cristinas, C.A. (MINCA), Erich Rauguth, prompted the Standing Committee on Economic Development of the National Congress to deepen their investigations on the legal and economic conditions under which the Operation Agreement between Corporación Venezolana de Guayana (CVG) and Crystallex International Corporation was executed, for the commercial exploitation of the mine of Las Cristinas, located in the Municipality of Sifontes in the State of Bolivar.

The international investor appeared before the Committee, attending a hearing granted to discuss the case, and he ratified the arguments put forward by the company from the time CVG unilaterally terminated the Operation Agreement with Minca in 2001, for the development of the gold mining project in Las Cristinas, and almost immediately entered into another agreement with the Canadian corporation Crystallex for the same purpose.

Such heterodox administrative procedure followed by CVG in this case, has served as a basis for MINCA to bring various legal actions before the Supreme Court of Justice (TSJ) and the Office of the General Prosecutor of the Republic "to seek Justice". In fact, on March 27 this year, the Political-Administrative Room of said Court admitted an Annulment Petition against such agreement between CVG and Crystallex International Corporation.

In addition, the case was also sent to the Comptrollership Committee of the National Congress which made a series of interrogatories at the end of 2002 and at the beginning of 2003 to officials of the Ministry of Energy and Mines (MEM) and of CVG in an attempt to determine if by reason of the mode used in said contracting, as said by a member of such Committee, representative Edgar Mora during such conversations "the equity of the Venezuelan Nation has been affected".
From stoppage to re-activation of Las Cristinas

Now the matter was assumed by the new Committee of the National Congress before which, the President of the Board of MINCA clarified that the argument used by CVG to terminate the Agreement is totally "false", according to which, the company paralyzed the mining development, in disregard to the terms of the Agreement. Everything was done with the prior knowledge of the partners, CVG/MINCA, due to a lawsuit brought by an affiliate of Crystallex, Inversora Mael against the Venezuelan Nation due to purported rights they had on Las Cristinas.

During the time of the stoppage, MINCA informed everything to the regional development agency, as it is evident from documents submitted in due time. But thereafter, the lawsuit ended, CVG acted against MINCA, and the name of Crystallex reappeared, not as a plaintiff against the Nation but as a corporation "selected" among a purported group of mining companies interested in exploiting Las Cristinas.

Rauguth stated that "MINCA always met its commitments", and therefore, due to the occurrences with the new agreement, "we are waiting for a decision of the Supreme Court of Justice to determine which is the real Operator for the mine, according to legitimate contractual rights".

He then referred to the "privilege" enjoyed by Crystallex when it lists and describes its works in the site of the mine, supported on initiatives, investments and developments made by MINCA in the recent past, and at the same time underestimating MINCA legal actions before the Supreme Court of Justice and the Office of the General Prosecutor of the Republic to seek justice.

That is another variable of the "privilege" enjoyed by Crystallex in its relationship with CVG, contrary to the lack of attention with which CVG initially treated Placer Dome and MINCA later during the time this latter wanted to make progress in the development of the mine, including a prohibition to its two representatives in the Board of Directors to attend the meetings of such Board as partner.

Rauguth ended saying that there are "abundant" elements to "investigate in a deep manner" recent occurrences in Las Cristinas.
Reporte Diario de la Economía
Press Article
April 3, 2003

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------



Attempted by MINCA


SUPREME COURT OF JUSTICE ALLOWED THE CLAIM
AGAINST CVG-CRYSTALLEX CONTRACT

The Political Administrative Court of the Supreme Court of Justice allowed, this past Thursday, March 27, 2003, the Reversal Appeal against the contract signed on September 17, 2002, between the Venezuelan Guyana Corporation (CVG) and Crystallex International Corporation, in which the latter had been granted exclusive exploitation rights in the area known as Las Cristinas, in the Municipality Sifontes, State of Bolivar.

The aforementioned appeal was presented by Minera Las Cristinas C.A. (MINCA), acting as a third interested party, on November 14, 2002. Among the reasons alleged by MINCA for requesting the reversal of the contract are express violations of the 1999 Constitution and the Mining Law in force. In fact, the contract had been signed without having fulfilled the requisites of substance and content stipulated in the Venezuelan legal ordinance, especially because they tried to cover up the granting of a true concession in the guise of an operations contract. In addition, the area in question is the object of numerous legal actions that hindered the CVG in signing any contracts with third parties other than MINCA. As it may be recalled, MINCA is the holder of the Operations Contract signed with CVG in 1992, which was unilaterally rescinded by the CVG on November 16, 2002. MINCA had alleged that the rescission was unjustified and illegal, reason for which it has tried a series of legal actions that are currently being processed.

With the acceptance of the Appeal, the Supreme Court of Justice found that it was worth analyzing the reversal of the aforementioned contract, just as the allegations by Crystallex in relation to a supposed lack of quality by MINCA to try said action were rejected.

In addition to this Reversal Appeal, the Permanent Committee of the National Assembly Comptrollership is also investigating the signing of the contract proceeding, since it was granted in a direct manner, without any bidding, even though the President of CVG, Francisco Rangel Gómez had stated that there were several companies interested in exploiting the mine.

In the event that the Reversal Appeal does prosper, Crystallex would lose any right over the exploitation of the aforementioned areas, right that it wanted to make legal, unsuccessfully, with its claims against the CVG and the Republic in 1997, which were rejected by the Supreme Court of Justice.

[peter.wedemeier1]

For Immediate Release

April 11, 2003



Crystallex Welcomes Endorsement of the Republic of Venezuela





Caracas, Venezuela, April 11, 2003 – Crystallex International Corporation (KRY: TSX, AMEX) welcomes the strong endorsement given by the Republic of Venezuela to the Company’s Mining Operation Contract to develop and exploit the Las Cristinas gold properties.



Senior representatives of the Executive of the Republic of Venezuela, including General Francisco Rangel Gómez, President of the Corporación Venezolana de Guayana (‘CVG’), and representatives from the Legislative authorities including Mr. Luis Salas, President of the Energy and Mines Commission of the National Assembly, Luis Velásquez Alvaray, recently appointed Vice-President of the Comptroller´s Commission of the National Assembly, and Rafael Simón Jiménez, member of the Comptroller´s Commission and until December 2002, Vice-President of the National Assembly of the Republic of Venezuela, clearly stated that the Republic of Venezuela fully supports the Las Cristinas Mining Operation Contract. They further stated that in the history of the Republic of Venezuela, there has never been a single case where the government failed to honour commitments to mining, petroleum or telecommunications companies. These assurances were made during public meetings this week in Venezuela with representatives of Crystallex and international financial institutions.



Crystallex International Corporation dismissed as self-serving the allegations contained in Vannessa Ventures April 8, 2003 press release. Crystallex’s Mining Operation Contract is a final and binding agreement based on the authority and the laws of the Republic of Venezuela and is not open to discussion.



About Crystallex

Crystallex International Corporation is a Canadian based gold producer with operations and exploration properties in Venezuela and Uruguay. Crystallex shares are traded on the TSX and AMEX Exchanges. Crystallex has been focused on strategic growth in South America and recently signed a definitive agreement with respect to the Las Cristinas mining properties in Venezuela and has taken possession of those properties. Crystallex is currently working on the final feasibility study to support its development plans for Las Cristinas.



For further information:

Investor Relations: A Richard Marshall, VP [phone]

Internet address: http://www.crystallex.com

Email: [e-mail]

[peter.wedemeier1]

Crystallex Welcomes Endorsement of the Republic of Venezuela





Caracas, Venezuela, April 11, 2003 – Crystallex International Corporation (KRY: TSX, AMEX) welcomes the strong endorsement given by the Republic of Venezuela to the Company’s Mining Operation Contract to develop and exploit the Las Cristinas gold properties.



Senior representatives of the Executive of the Republic of Venezuela, including General Francisco Rangel Gómez, President of the Corporación Venezolana de Guayana (‘CVG’), and representatives from the Legislative authorities including Mr. Luis Salas, President of the Energy and Mines Commission of the National Assembly, Luis Velásquez Alvaray, recently appointed Vice-President of the Comptroller´s Commission of the National Assembly, and Rafael Simón Jiménez, member of the Comptroller´s Commission and until December 2002, Vice-President of the National Assembly of the Republic of Venezuela, clearly stated that the Republic of Venezuela fully supports the Las Cristinas Mining Operation Contract. They further stated that in the history of the Republic of Venezuela, there has never been a single case where the government failed to honour commitments to mining, petroleum or telecommunications companies. These assurances were made during public meetings this week in Venezuela with representatives of Crystallex and international financial institutions.



Crystallex International Corporation dismissed as self-serving the allegations contained in Vannessa Ventures April 8, 2003 press release. Crystallex’s Mining Operation Contract is a final and binding agreement based on the authority and the laws of the Republic of Venezuela and is not open to discussion.



About Crystallex

Crystallex International Corporation is a Canadian based gold producer with operations and exploration properties in Venezuela and Uruguay. Crystallex shares are traded on the TSX and AMEX Exchanges. Crystallex has been focused on strategic growth in South America and recently signed a definitive agreement with respect to the Las Cristinas mining properties in Venezuela and has taken possession of those properties. Crystallex is currently working on the final feasibility study to support its development plans for Las Cristinas.



For further information:

Investor Relations: A Richard Marshall, VP [phone]

Internet address: http://www.crystallex.com

Email: [e-mail]

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY (+ 1.12% bei $0.900) führt heute zu Handelsbeginn im US-Handel.

Go Gold Go!

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY (+ 3.37% bei $0.920) hat soeben im US-Handel die Führung von RGLD (+ 2.28% bei $16.57) übernommen. Beide führen nun vor SWC (+ 1.30% bei $2.33).

Go Gold, Platin und Palladium Go!

[Spieler0815]

Auf jeden Fall: Go Go Go !

[Wavetrader]

Ich sage jetzt lieber nichts über mein Urteil zu Aktien, bei denen jedes Prozentpünktchen von ihren "langfristigen" Fans kommentiert wird.

[granitbiss]

go go go scheint zu langsam...

run run run....

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY (+ 3.41% bei $0.910) hat soeben im US-Handel die Führung von SWC (+ 2.93% bei $2.46) übernommen. Beide führen nun vor KGC(+ 2.05% bei $6.48).

Go Gold, Platin und Palladium Go!

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY (+ 3.41% bei $0.910) hat soeben im US-Handel die Führung von GLG (+ 3.03% bei $11.23) zurück erobert. Beide führen nun vor GSS (+ 2.89% bei $1.78).

Go Gold Go!

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY (+ 3.41% bei $0.910) hat soeben im US-Handel die Führung von GLG (+ 3.30% bei $11.26). Beide führen nun vor GG
(+ 3.00% bei $11.00).

Go Gold Go!

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY (+ 5.06% bei $0.830) hat soeben die Führung im US-Handel von VGZ übernommen. KRY führt nun vor RIC (+ 3.43% bei $3.32) und VGZ (+ 3.13% bei $3.29).

Go Gold Go!

[peter.wedemeier1]

Topic: STANDING COMMITTEE ON ECONOMIC
http://www.vheadline.com/forum/display_topic_threads.asp?For…

[peter.wedemeier1]

April 11, 2003
CRYSTALLEX WELCOMES ENDORSEMENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF VENEZUELA

For Immediate Release

Caracas, Venezuela, April 11, 2003 - Crystallex International Corporation (KRY: TSX, AMEX) welcomes the strong endorsement given by the Republic of Venezuela to the Company`s Mining Operation Contract to develop and exploit the Las Cristinas gold properties.

Senior representatives of the Executive of the Republic of Venezuela, including General Francisco Rangel Gómez, President of the Corporación Venezolana de Guayana (`CVG`), and representatives from the Legislative authorities including Mr. Luis Salas, President of the Energy and Mines Commission of the National Assembly, Luis Velásquez Alvaray, recently appointed Vice-President of the Comptroller´s Commission of the National Assembly, and Rafael Simón Jiménez, member of the Comptroller´s Commission and until December 2002, Vice-President of the National Assembly of the Republic of Venezuela, clearly stated that the Republic of Venezuela fully supports the Las Cristinas Mining Operation Contract. They further stated that in the history of the Republic of Venezuela, there has never been a single case where the government failed to honour commitments to mining, petroleum or telecommunications companies. These assurances were made during public meetings this week in Venezuela with representatives of Crystallex and international financial institutions.

Crystallex International Corporation dismissed as self-serving the allegations contained in Vannessa Ventures April 8, 2003 press release. Crystallex`s Mining Operation Contract is a final and binding agreement based on the authority and the laws of the Republic of Venezuela and is not open to discussion.

About Crystallex
Crystallex International Corporation is a Canadian based gold producer with operations and exploration properties in Venezuela and Uruguay. Crystallex shares are traded on the TSX and AMEX Exchanges. Crystallex has been focused on strategic growth in South America and recently signed a definitive agreement with respect to the Las Cristinas mining properties in Venezuela and has taken possession of those properties. Crystallex is currently working on the final feasibility study to support its development plans for Las Cristinas.

For further information:
Investor Relations: A Richard Marshall, VP [phone]
Internet address: http://www.crystallex.com
Email: [e-mail]

[peter.wedemeier1]

Press Release Source: Crystallex International Corporation


Crystallex Continues Listing on the Toronto Stock Exchange
Thursday April 24, 10:22 am ET


TORONTO, April 24 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Crystallex International Corporation (Amex: KRY; Toronto) today reported that representatives of the Company met with representatives of the Toronto Stock Exchange on April 17, 2003, to discuss the TSX`s requirements for continued listing.
As a result of the discussions, the TSX has decided that the shares of Crystallex will continue to be listed and traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange; however, the TSX has decided to extend the suspension review period for 60 days during which period Crystallex will be required to meet the following conditions in order for the review extension to be considered for removal:

Provide TSX with a copy of the Company`s written disclosure policy and processes;
Constitute a disclosure committee with members acceptable to the TSX;
Provide TSX with minutes of all board meetings for the past year; and
Provide TSX with minutes to all audit committee meetings for the past year.
Upon review of these documents the TSX will determine whether to terminate the suspension review or continue with suspension proceedings.

"Crystallex expects to promptly and thoroughly comply with the conditions of the Exchange. We appreciate the Exchanges concerns and will ensure that all future filings and disclosure are in full compliance with regulatory requirements," said Borden Rosiak, Chief Financial Officer of Crystallex.

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY (+ 2.53% bei $0.810) hat soeben im US-Handel die Führung von RIC zurück erobert. KRY führt nun vor VGZ (+ 2.51% bei $3.27) und RIC (+ 1.56% bei $3.26).

Go Gold Go!

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY (+ 2.53% bei $0.810) hat kurz vor Handelsschluss im US-Handel die Führung von VGZ (+ 2.51% bei $3.27) zurück erobert.

Go Gold Go!

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY (+ 1.25% bei $0.810) hat soeben im US-Handel die Führung vo BVN (+ 1.04% bei $26.16) übernommen.

Go Gold Go!

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY (+ 1.22% bei $0.830) hat soeben im US-Handel die Führung von GG übernommen.

Go Gold Go!

[peter.wedemeier1]

Chavez Backs CVG on Las Cristinas
via CDS

April 28, 2003

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez expressed his `absolute support`for steps taken by state heavy industry holding company CVG to bring the Las Cristinas gold project to fruition, according to a statement issued by the conglomerate. CVG awarded a contract to Canada`s Crystallex International (Amex: KRY) last September to develop Las Cristinas after the government revoked the rights to the deposit held by Minca, a joint venture between Vancouver-based Vannessa Ventures (TSX: VVV) and CVG. A CVG spokesperson told BNamericas the project, which according to Crystallex has reserves of 9.5Moz, now has all its required environmental permits in place.

(C) Copyright 1996 - 2001 Business News Americas Ltda. All rights reserved.


Website: http://www.bnamericas.com

http://www.smallcapcenter.com/story.asp?mysection=headlines&…

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY (+ 2.44% bei $0.840) hat soeben im US-Handel die Führung von SWC (+ 1.92% bei $2.65) zurück erobert. Beide führen nun vor MDG (+ 1.11% bei $10.03).

Go Gold, Platin und Palladium Go!

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY (+ 2.44% bei $0.840) hat soeben im US-Handel die Führung von SWC zurück erobert.

Go Gold Go!

[gholzbauer]

Was sind die Crystallex eigentlich noch wert, wenn sie in Venezuela den Kürzeren ziehen?

[gholzbauer]

http://messages.yahoo.com/bbs?.mm=FN&action=m&board=8729020&…


More bad press for Crystallex
by: riptide_in_03
04/17/03 09:01 am
Msg: 11182 of 11314


From the current issue of Canadian Business Magazine


http://www.canadianbusiness.com/features/article.jsp?content… 5



Gold Grief

Robert Fung appears to have the Midas touch--except in the case of Crystallex

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

advertisement


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Toronto businessman Robert Fung, best known as chairman of the Toronto Waterfront Revitalization Corp., has a problem on his hands: regulators are turning up the heat on his junior gold mining company, Crystallex International Corp., which has been awarded the contract to develop the massive Las Cristinas gold concession in Venezuela.

On April 3, Market Regulation Services Inc. (RS), which supervises trading on the nation`s equity markets, temporarily halted Crystallex`s shares (TSX: KRY) on the Toronto Stock Exchange after the company revealed it had suffered a $14.6-million loss on its gold call options, increasing its net loss for the nine months ending Sept. 30 to $22 million from $7 million. The revised statements had been filed in the US, where the company`s shares are co-listed on the American Stock Exchange, but not in Canada. "It was our position that this restatement was material and should have been disclosed in a news release," said Gerry Halischuk, vice-president of RS`s western region, speaking on behalf of RS`s surveillance staff in Toronto.

Also on April 3, Crystallex issued a press release stating that its longtime auditors, Davidson & Co., had resigned at the end of March. Crystallex president and CEO Marc Oppenheimer said there were "no disagreements, unresolved issues or other reportable events" involving the accounting firm. But it was clearly an inopportune time for its auditors to quit: the company`s year- end statements are due next month.

The following day, April 4, TSX officials announced they are reviewing Crystallex "with respect to meeting the requirements for continued listing." Even more ominously, they said the review is being conducted "on an expedited basis." That raises the possibility that Crystallex may be booted off the exchange, which would be the company`s second market-related blow in recent weeks. In March, it was removed from the S&P/TSX Composite Index after its market capitalization dropped below minimum standards. With its share price now hovering at about $1.35, its market cap is now 62% lower than it was last September when the Venezuelan government handed Crystallex the contract to develop the Las Cristinas concession in Bolivar state.

The review may have more serious ramifications than Crystallex`s stock listing. Venezuelan officials are already under heavy criticism for awarding the contract to Crystallex, as there is nothing in the company`s past or present to suggest it has the capacity or capability to pull off such a huge undertaking: Las Cristinas, which has proved and probable reserves of 9.5 million ounces, has an estimated capital cost of US$400 million and would be Venezuela`s biggest-ever gold project. If Crystallex is kicked off the Toronto exchange, those officials may find it even more politically difficult to retain the company as its development partner.

All of this is bad news for Crystallex`s two key architects, chairman Fung and CEO Oppenheimer (neither of whom, despite repeated requests, made himself available for comment on recent company developments). Crystallex is "a story I`m very proud of," Fung recently told the National Post Business magazine, adding that he has been "driving [the company] strategically since 1997." The company`s proxy circular states that the executive committee, which consists only of Fung and Oppenheimer, is responsible for ensuring Crystallex complies with disclosure rules. In view of the many controversial disclosure issues now enveloping the company, that statement places both of them on the hot seat.

Fung`s involvement with Crystallex, a relative pip-squeak in the mining industry, seems incongruous with his other endeavors, which have been mainly big-league and blue-chip. As chairman of the Toronto Waterfront Revitalization Corp., he is in charge of a $17-billion plan to redevelop the city`s run-down waterfront. He also is a director of Export Development Canada, the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada and Toronto`s Mount Sinai Hospital. From 1980 to 1997, he served as vice-chairman of Gordon Capital Corp., where he specialized in mergers and acquisitions in the oil industry, including the sale of Gulf Canada Resources Ltd. to the Reichmann family. His roommate at the University of Toronto was Paul Martin, the Liberal leadership hopeful who is godfather to one of Fung`s sons. When Jean Chrétien temporarily left politics in 1986, Fung got him an adviser`s job at Gordon Capital. (Martin and Chrétien would later make the brokerage firm one of the lead underwriters in the privatization of Petro- Canada.) In January 2001, Fung was named deputy chairman of Yorkton Securities, reportedly to help the firm stickhandle through OSC allegations that Yorkton and some of its employees had become embroiled in untenable conflicts of interest. One year later, Yorkton CEO Scott Paterson agreed to a two-year suspension, and the firm agreed to pay a fine of $1.25 million plus $200,000 in costs. In June 2002, Fung left his post (he says he went voluntarily; Yorkton says he was asked to leave as part of a revamping of the board), but remains as a company adviser and maintains an office at the firm, where he discharges his duties as Crystallex`s chairman.

Oppenheimer currently resides in New Jersey. Not much is known of his background. Disclosure documents say he held executive positions at Chase Manhattan Bank and Midlantic National Bank, but no details are provided. According to Vancouver Stock Exchange records, he served briefly as president of VSE-listed IBL Equities Ltd. in late 1994 and early 1995. During this period, the company acquired a business engaged in the underwater salvage of logs using "state-of-the-art sonar technology" and global rights for the sale of Rejex-It, the first "EPA-approved bird aversion agent in the global aquaculture industry." The stock price briefly touched $1.42, then slumped to pennies.

Inauspicious though it was, that penny stock gambit was Oppenheimer`s jumping-off spot for Crystallex, which he joined in February 1995. Two years later, the company acquired a private Venezuelan firm that purported to have title to the Las Cristinas concession. That claim was refuted by Venezuela`s state mining agency, Corporacion Venezolana de Guayana (CVG), which had earlier entered into a joint-venture to develop the property with Vancouver-based Placer Dome Inc. (CVG had 30% interest, Placer Dome had 70%.) It was also refuted by the Venezuelan Supreme Court, which ruled in 1998 that it would not even grant the company standing to advance a claim in court. Still, Crystallex continued to carry the property on its balance sheet at its full cost.

At the same time, Placer Dome continued to drill the property, define the ore body and make development plans. By 2000, Placer Dome had spent US$116 million on the property, which it carried at full cost on its books, creating the absurd situation of two Canadian companies simultaneously reporting the same asset on their books. That was resolved in June 2000, when Placer Dome, citing low gold prices, pulled out and wrote off its investment. But that did not resolve the fact that Crystallex was still reporting an asset it couldn`t even legally step on. Further confusing the ownership issue was the fact that, when Placer Dome walked away from Las Cristinas, it sold its interest to Vancouver junior Vannessa Ventures Ltd. for a token US$50, a production royalty and, under certain circumstances, the right to reacquire its interest. CVG was indignant that Placer Dome would unilaterally sell out to an obscure junior and refused to recognize the transfer. The Venezuelan government issued a decree asserting its ownership. Vannessa responded with a lawsuit, which is still working its way through the courts.

That should have excluded Crystallex, which at the time was barely producing 100,000 ounces per year and under no circumstances could be considered a "major mining company." However, in September 2002, CVG shocked the mining community by awarding the development contract to Crystallex. Even more shocking, the contract was awarded without a bidding process, which would have helped ensure transparency and the best possible deal for Venezuelan citizens.

The announcement drew howls of protest from political opponents of Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez. Justifying its decision, CVG officials noted that Crystallex`s proposal to develop the mine "has an important social component that includes the improvement and maintenance of local infrastructure," including houses, roads, water systems, recreational and medical facilities. But Carlos Chancellor, mayor of Sifontes municipality, where the Las Cristinas concession is located, told El Progresso newspaper that Crystallex "has a negative track record in Bolivar state." Citing Albino as an example, he said it is "evident that Crystallex has been developing its activities at a minimum in all its properties." Prompted by the protests, the Venezuelan National Assembly asked a commission to inquire into the bidding process. That inquiry, which could determine whether Crystallex retains any interest in the property, is still in progress.

Meanwhile, Crystallex finds itself in an accounting catch-22. By accepting the development contract, the company is implicitly acknowledging that the property belongs to the Venezuelan government. That means that, among the many questions Crystallex`s new auditors, Deloitte & Touche LLP, will have to consider is whether the company should write off its $73.9-million investment in Las Cristinas, a move that would wreak serious havoc on its financial statements.

Whatever transpires, Fung and Oppenheimer will emerge as financial winners. During 2001 (the last reporting period), Oppenheimer collected US$623,961 in salary, bonus and other compensation. By comparison, Placer Dome president and CEO Jay Taylor, who presides over a company whose operations dwarf Crystallex, earned slightly more at US$735,207. Oppenheimer also generated another $1.4 million selling shares from his personal holdings since he joined the firm. Fung drew $530,000 in compensation during 2001 and has made $400,000 selling stock since he joined the firm. He has generated most of these trading profits by exercising options and quickly selling the shares in the market, thereby minimizing his investment risk.

The pair are also highly insulated from any decline in Crystallex`s share price: at press time, Fung owned only 19,500 shares, which were collectively worth less than $27,000, and Oppenheimer 279,910 (just 0.3% of shares outstanding), which means public shareholders are carrying the bulk of the risk. In a March 11 letter to shareholders, Oppenheimer said he is disappointed with the flagging share price, but has "great confidence" in the company`s development agreement with CVG and refuses "to be drawn into a media debate with respect to the mining agreement, purported investigations and unfounded claims.

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY (+ 2.30% bei $0.89 führt heute zu Handelsbeginn im US-Handel.

Go Gold Go!

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY (+ 2.17% bei $0.940) hat soeben im US-Handel die Führung von RANGY übernommen. KRY führt nun vor KGC (+ 2.05% bei $6.48) und SIL (+ 1.91% bei $13.88).

Go Gold und Silber Go!

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY (+ 5.56% bei $0.950) führt zu Handelsbeginn im US-Handel vor VGZ (+ 4.63% bei $3.39) und PAL (+ 2.22% bei $2.30).

Go Gold, Platin und Palladium Go!

[hpoth]

Zu KRY etwas in deutsch: die kanadische Gesellschaft mit dem riesigen goldvorkommen Las Cristinas in Venezuela haat in den letzten Monaten and der Börse ( Handel auch in NY) sehr schlecht abgeschnitten.Die Marktteilnehmer befrüchten,daß der Eingentumstitel nicht solide genung ist und daß KRY im Verkaufe eines neuen Prozesess Las Crystinas doch wieder verlieren könnteObendrein wurde auch noch die Notiz an der Toronto Stock Exchange in Frage gestellt.weil irgendwelche Dokumente nicht rechtzeitig eingereicht wurden. Das Ma´nagement betreibt das Projekt Las Cristinas unbeirrt weiter und konnte sich nach eingenen Angaben die Deutsche Bank als Finanzberater sichern.Gegen die Aktie ist nicht einzuwenden: Sie ist einerseits hochspekulativ und kann ssich anderseits im Kurs vervielfachen, wenn mit Las Cristinas alles gut geht.Dann hat man sich sehr billig an einem wirklich großen Goldvorkommen beteiligt. Eine Erfolgsgarantie gibt es nicht, das wäre auch zuviel verlangt. gelesen im neuem G&M gruß hpoth

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY (+ 1.11% bei $0.910) hat soeben die Führung im US-Handel übernommen.

Go Gold Go!

[Trendseeker]

Nanu, bewegt sich bei KRY etwas ?

Ein paar News, aber wohl nicht kausal für erhöhte Umsätze:

http://www.kitco.com/pr/1069/article_06092003090246.pdf

Gruss

Trendseeker

[Gringo1]

Das Las Cristinas Projekt nimmt immer konkretere Formen an. Finanzierung scheint auch schon durch die DB gesichert.

Mit den Reserven & Resoursen von Las Cristinas ist KRY ein nettes Schnäppchen. wenn alles paßt, sollte der Kurs m.E. bald weit mehr als 2$ ausmachen. Die sind jetzt schon günstig, im Gegensatz zu Bema oder anderen.

[Trendseeker]

Last Trade
4:00pm · 1.22 Change
+0.20 (+19.61%)
Prev Cls 1.02
Open 1.09

Volume
2,604,400

Avg Vol
395,772





P.S. Sovereign lag mal wieder goldrichtig.

[Gringo1]

Womit lag Sovereign richtig ?

Gibt´s genauere Infos ?

[Trendseeker]

#263

Sovereign lag hinsichtlich dieser Anmerkung richtig:


#3 von Stosstrupp_Gold 08.06.03 17:45:13 Beitrag Nr.: 9.692.418

...Ansonsten bin ich momentan bei Crystallex auf der Käuferseite...ich weiß ich weiß: Risiko Venezuela, Gerichtsstreit mit Placer/Vannessa, einige verlustbringende hedges....die übliche "Oh shit-Geschichte"....andererseits ist Las Christinas ein Weltklasseasset, das es für gerade mal 5 USD je oz via Crystallex zu kaufen gibt.... Ich schätze mal ich brauche eben dann und wann einen kleinen Zock, meinen anderen Goldminen geht`s einfach zu gut...Es wird langweilig wenn zu lange nichts passiert!


Auch ansonsten liegt Sovereign meist richtig .

Gruss
Trendseeker

[Gringo1]

@264

Sag ich ja ...

[Stosstrupp_Gold]

Merci beaucoup mes amis. Et bonne chance avec Crystallex.

[Gringo1]

Biensur Monsieur !

[Stosstrupp_Gold]

Je crois que Crystallex est un bon investissement. Par conséquent je boirai une bouteille de vin rouge ce soir. Peut-être un Hermitage ou un Gigondas. Cela va pour aujourd`hui.

Au revoir mes amis!

Sovereign

[Trendseeker]

Go Gold,go !

[Gringo1]

Aber sofort UP mit dem Thread !

Wie pflegt Sovereign zu sagen: darauf einen Malti.

Die 2$ kommen nächste Woche...

Sagte schon: KRY ist immer noch billig !

[peter.wedemeier1]

Schaut euch auch mal den Intraday Chart von GSS an! Genau so eine Rakete gestartet!

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY (+ 11.03% bei $1.61) hat soeben im US-Handel die Führung von GSS (+ 9.13% bei $2.75) übernommen. Beide führen nun vor RANGY (+ 6.06% bei $12.95).

Go Gold go GATA go KRY!

[peter.wedemeier1]

Based on Calandra report; there must e a buyout announcement before June 20, 2003 shareholder meeting right? It could be next week. (Barrick oder Newmont, wer könnte der Käufer sein. Übernahmegerüchte!

[peter.wedemeier1]

I love the Calendra report on CBS Marketwatch especially the following extract:

"Fund managers tell me several companies are busy auditing Crystallex`s activities and financial statements this week in preparation for a possible bid "

[peter.wedemeier1]

abx - news may be a hint to kry In addition, the world`s major producers of gold, such as Barrick Gold (ABX: news, chart, profile), are nearly all losing part of their gold reserves as mines get tapped out or as environmental restrictions reduce output. Gold reserves are a fundamental Wall Street measure for evaluating the worth of a miner`s shares

[peter.wedemeier1]

...the stock rise may be because of "significant short covering or a big acquisitive buyer" looking to close the gap between the company`s $1.50 U.S. share price and a possible offer of $3 or more.

[peter.wedemeier1]

" 20,000,000 oz (consisting P/P & inferred) X $100- $125 (let`s settle on $112) of value per oz = $2,240,000,000 / 100,000,000 shares = $22 dollars a share give or take at curretn gold bullion of $350. obviously at $400 per oz in gold which we`ll see before this summer is over KRY`s value only increases. Hence, the takeover must be done soon to still buy it or partner with it cheaply."
http://messages.yahoo.com/bbs?.mm=FN&action=m&board=8729020&…

[peter.wedemeier1]

"Others, speaking to me at the San Francisco gold show this week, said the stock rise may be because of "significant short covering or a big acquisitive buyer" looking to close the gap between the company`s $1.50 U.S. share price and a possible offer of $3 or more." from the KRY article in the news section...it means 3 or 4, and if it happens to be your birthday, maybe 5...

[hpoth]

Bei Big Charts, legte KRY o.27 cent zu bei einem Volumen von 4027.900, 18,62% After Hours Trading Schluß 1.80 nicht schlecht, so könnte es weiter gehen.gruß hpoth

[peter.wedemeier1]

@hpoth

Ist schon komisch wie das Goldboard im Fall Crystallex momentan schläft. Ich verweise hiermit auf die aktuelle Diskussion Yahoo Board, den thom Calandra Report und den Auftritt von Thom Calandra im US-Fernsehen heute. Immerhin handelt es sich um eine wahrscheinliche Übernahme von Crystallex und das der Kurs von KRY morgen wahrscheinlich durch die Decke gehen wird. Die Reserven von Las Christinas werden immerhin auf 10.000.000 Unzen Gold eingeschätzt.

THOM CALANDRA`S STOCKWATCH

Troubled miner to see light of day
Crystallex shares `in play` as Las Cristinas heats up

By Thom Calandra, CBS.MarketWatch.com
Last Update: 1:19 PM ET June 13, 2003

SAN FRANCISCO (CBS.MW) - Beleaguered Canadian miner Crystallex International Corp., grasping rights to a world-class gold asset, is likely to be sold before it ever develops the vast Las Cristinas deposit.

http://cbs.marketwatch.com/news/sto...%7D&siteid=mktw

Tarnish on glitter
Troubled Canadian mining company Crystallex has rights to a vast gold asset in Venezuela. But Thom Calandra says Crystallex may be bought out before it can tap in.

Ich hätte bei so einer Übernahmespekulation mindestens eine regere Diskussion wie im Yahoo Board und vielleicht einen zum Anlaß neu aufgemachten Thread erwartet. Wie gesagt von Calandra ein world-class gold asset steht wahrscheinlich zur Übernahme an. Schon komisch das hier keine Diskussion statt findet?

mfg

[peter.wedemeier1]

Ich empfehle hiermit den Teilnehmer des Goldboardes die Diskussion im Yahoo Board aufmerksam zu lesen bis zum Ende vom Donnerstag. Es wurde sogar in Verbindung KRY über den Fall BRE-X ($250) diskutiert.

mfg

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY (+ 14.53% bei $1.97) führt zu Handelsbeginn im US-Handel vor GSS (+ 4.03% bei $2.84) und SWC (+ 3.03% bei $4.76).

Go Gold go GATA go KRY!

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY (+ 5.23% bei $1.81) hat soeben im US-Handel die Führung von CDE übernommen. KRY führt nun vor SWC (+ 3.03% bei $4.76) und CDE (+ 2.99% bei $1.38).

Go Gold go GATA go KRY!

[Gringo1]

Nunja....

aus dem Yahoo-Board:


The bitter reality: KRY is anti-gold
by: net_pornoholic (M/techtown) 06/17/03 11:03 am
Msg: 12560 of 12560

My main beef with KRY is that it appears to be in cahoots with several major gold short players.

For starters, Oppenheimer used to work for Chase Manhattan (a heavily gold short bullion bank that is now a subsidiary of equally gold short bullion bank JP Morgan). As head of KRY, Oppenheimer superhedged (aka shorted) KRY`s annual gold production over the past several years.

Second, it places Deutsche Bank as a lead advisor when it is common knowledge that Deutsche has been an active and aggressive bullion bank gold short for many years now. These gold short positions (effected through the gold carry trade) are physical gold shorts and cannot be covered by currency transactions. Since there are only 2500 tons of gold mined globally per annum, since the total bullion bank physical gold short is now apparently some 10,000 tons, then the physical gold short cannot be covered at these low gold prices today.

Third, it hires a senior Barrick exec to command its operations when it is common knowledge that Barrick has acted as an effective major gold short player by superhedging its production for years now.
Remember, when a company like Barrick proceeds to hedge future years production of gold, that hedged contract hits the spot market as though it were ounces already mined, when in fact they have yet to be unearthed. Such superhedging assists the short gold bullion banks to the detriment of the long unhedged gold players.

Any gold long who has suffered for years under the manipulations, cronyism, and moral hazard of the bullion banks and gold short Barrick should be infuriated by these recent KRY appointments (Deutsche and Barrick`s Thomas).

As sure as there is a God in Heaven, I will bet big money that KRY intends to hedge its Las Cristinas deposits, under the guidance of Barrick`s Thomas and Deutsche Bank, solely in order to cap the price of gold. Remember: LC is the motherlode and they can use its future production as a suppressant of the current gold price via superhedging.

The best thing that could happen to gold and gold stocks in general would be the summary removal of KRY from the LC project and its replacement by a gold-friendly company.

KRY is NOT gold-friendly. Never has been, probably never will be.

Don`t kid yourself.

Posted as a reply to: Msg 12553 by au3_finger

[peter.wedemeier1]

KRY (+ 3.33% bei $1.86) hat soeben im US-Handel die Führung von RGLD (+ 2.94% bei $22.08) übernommen.

Go Gold go GATA go KRY!

[peter.wedemeier1]

Calendra report Wed`s after the market closes

[hpoth]

KRY- US Analysten verwiesen auf eine mögliche Übernahme von KRY durch einen größeren Goldproduzenten,der an dem gigantischen Las Cristinas-Goldvorkommen Interesse haben könnte.Genannt wurde u.a. GLAMIS, die jedoch jede Stellungnahme verweigerte.Unverändert wird KRY nicht zugetraut,das Las Cristinas-Project alleine zu stemmen.US-Marktanalysten nannten als Kursziel für eine Übernahme mindestens 3-4 US$ pro Aktie.Diese rief promt einige kleinere und mittlere Hedge-Fonds auf den Plan ( damit wird sehr wahrscheinlich alles kaputt gemacht),die seit Montag vergangener Woche massiv in KRY einstiegen.So hat sich das durchschnittliche Handelsvolumen an einigen
Handelstagen verzehnfacht und gestern über 10 Mio. Stücksogar verzwanzigfacht.Im Bereich 2,50$ befindet sich eine massive charttechnische Hürde.Selbstverständlich ist die Aktie kurzfristig deutlich übergekauft, sodass eine kurzfristige Korrektur nicht ungewöhnlich wäre, zumal Hege-Fonds mitmischen.
Es bleibt abzuwarten ,ob das Crystallex-Management bereits auf der HV am 26.06.2003 eine Übernahmeinteressenten präsentiert.Noch hüllt man sich in Schweigen.
Ebenso denkbar wäre eine Alternative in Form einer 50:50 - Beteiligung durch einen größeren Partner ( vieleicht Placer-Dome).Letzlich kommt es jedoch auf den Preis an. Es ist kaum anzunehmen,dass das KRY- Managment nach dem jahrelangen Kampf um Las Cristinas, der im übrigen immer noch nicht vollständig ausgestanen ist, sich mit einer 3 US$-Offerte pro Aktie abspeisen lässt.
Je nachdem, wie sicher sich ein größerer Goldproduzent in Venezuela fühlt,könnten auch mehrere Interessenten für eine Übernahme auf den Plan treten. Die kontinuierliche Umsatzentwicklung in den letzten Monaten liefert breits ein erstes Indiz, dass ein möglicher Aufkäufer am Werk ist.
Also Aktie weiter halten. gruß hpoth

[Stosstrupp_Gold]

Crystallex mal etwas weiter gedacht (an Buy Out Spekulationen beteilige ich mich nicht):

- Der Wert ist unterbewertet, riesige Ressourcen bei niedriger Marktkapitalisierung.

- Im September kommt die feasability study

- Die Gold mayors brauchen dringend neue Großprojekte...eben sowas wie Las Christinas

Also halte ich meine Crystallex weiter, interessant ist aber auch der Blick auf einen anderen Wert: Gold Reserve (Ticker: GLDR.OB)

MKP gering, Ressourcen 0,28 oz je Aktie, die 1,85 $ kostet, ergo: 6,60 $ je oz!!!! Und das beste: Die Ressourcen sind im Brisas-Projekt konzentriert, dieses liegt genau neben Las Christinas der Crystallex! Im Grunde ist es derselbe Erzkörper, der sich nur über diese beiden claims verteilt! Wenn jemand Las Christinas erschleissen will, dann macht es Sinn Brisas damit zu verknüpfen. Zusammen wäre das dann eine 19 Mio. oz Lagerstätte!

Also wenn ihr an Crystallex denkt, vergesst auch Gold Reserve nicht...die Umsätze sind niedrig, der Markt ist eng, aber noch sind sie günstig. Noch ist niemand auf diese Idee gekommen

Gruß

Sovereign

[hpoth]

Danke, schaue ich mir an. Ticker ist GLDR, ist der bei Big Chart auch so? danke gruß hpoth

[konradi]

.


Gold analyst Ing explodes "one of the biggest myths" on Las Cristinas gold mine

David Coleman


In the latest issue of his Gold Stealth Bull Market financial newsletter, analyst John Ing says that one of the biggest myths on the North American stock markets is that Toronto headquartered Crystallex International Corporation (KRY) does not own the rights to the gigantic Las Cristinas gold mine in southeastern Venezuela.

Ing writes: "Las Cristinas was awarded to Crystallex on September 17, 2002 ... this exclusive operating agreement was signed with Venezuelan Guayana Corporation (CVG) a multi-billion state-owned company that was given authority to contract with third parties over the Las Cristinas property from the Ministry of Energy and Mines, as the executing authority under the Mining Law."

"Following the cancellation of the Placer Dome contract due to a notice of default (no gold was produced) the property was repossessed on behalf of the Republic of Venezuela under Venezuelan mining law. The contract was cancelled in early November 2001 and the assets were repossessed November 16, 22001. The contract was gazetted and the copper concessions were cancelled on March 6, 2002 ... Crystallex owns the rights: fact."
Ing continues: Crystallex has reported a reserve update at the 100% owned Las Cristinas gold project in Southeastern Venezuela where an independent study by Reno-based Mine Development Associates shows the deposit holds proven and probable reserves of 9.5 million ounces, grading 1.33 grams per tonnes.

Crystallex has hired SNC Lavalin, to complete a feasibility study of Venezuela`s largest undeveloped deposit is expected this fall ... current plans call for an initial 20,000 tonnes per day operation, capable of producing oxide and sulfide ores with a capital expenditure between $225-$230 million. The first phase should produce 275,000-280,000 ounces of gold.

Deutsche Bank has been selected as project finance advisor and, despite earlier ownership questions, we believe that Las Cristinas does not have any of the political problems or lack of economics of other major projects.

Crystallex will not have to move villages, cemeteries or change their processing facilities to mine Las Cristinas ... the government is Crystallex` partner and with power, water and abundant labor, this is an excellent project.

Quelle: http://www.vheadline.com/readnews.asp?id=8696

The Gold Stealth Bull Market financial newsletter concludes: "We continue to recommend purchase since Crystallex has one of the lowest market cap per ounce of production with respect to other major underdeveloped projects. As such the longer the shares drift down here, the more likely the company will become a takeover candidate. Maison has assisted the company in recent financings."

[hpoth]

Crystallex:kan man heute im Gold&Money folgendes lesen:
Einerseits das riesige Goldvorkommen Las Cristinas in Venezuela,anderseits Bilnaztricks,Verluste mit Derivaten und neulich die Drohung der BBörsenaufsicht in Toronto, die Aktie vom Handel auszusetzen.Das alles hinterläßt gemischte Gefühle.Wir verkaufen vorsichtshalber die Hälfte. Damit hat Bandulet wieder eine Aktie auf die Todesliste gesetzt. gruß hpoth

[borazon]

Warum so sprachlos?
Hofft ihr, die Pleite wäre noch vermeidbar?

Tja Leute, don`t KRY!

[Stosstrupp_Gold]

#292

Warum soll Crystallex denn bitte pleite gehen?
Wegen des restatement der 2001er Zahlen? Ob hedge-Options nun bilanziell erafßt werden sollen, oder nicht, wen interessiert das?
Wir haben jetzt 2003, die Höhe der hedges ist bekannt und Las Christinas gehört ja wohl Crystallex, also so what?
Ich habe jedenfalls keine Angst um meine KRY-Aktien....Hosenscheisser haben bei dieser Aktie auch nichts zu suchen!

[Gringo1]

Yes, nix für Hosenscheisser !

Halte auch weiter - sind spottbillig.

[Stosstrupp_Gold]

@Gringo1

Yeah, hombre that`s the spirit. Ich werde einen Gin-Tonic huete auf Dich heben.

Schade, daß KRY nicht OTC gehandelt wird, sonst würde ich unter nem Dollar nachkaufen.

KRY ist der nächste doppelt-oder-nichts-play...bei Cambior und Ashanti hat`s geklappt...bei Crystallex wird`s auch klappen...Amen und so weiter!

[sterngleiter]

Hallo hpoth,

Bandulett hat sich schon öfters gewaltig geirrt!!

Ich erinnere mich nur ungern an die Situation von
" Durban Deep " als diese Aktie anfing zu steigen,
blies Bandulett bereits bei Tiefstkursen zum Ausstieg!!
(angeblich wegen neg. Fakten).
Danach ist die Aktie noch um ca. 300% gestiegen!!!!!!

[Stosstrupp_Gold]

Vor Ende diesen Jahres wird Crystallex meiner Einschätzung nach übernommen werden. Wenn der trading halt aufgehoben wird, werden einige Angsthasen und Hosenscheisser sicher ihre Aktien auf den Markt schmeissen. Ich werde jedenfalls nicht verkaufen, wenn wir die 1 $-Marke von unten sehen kaufe ích ggf. etwas nach.
Ansonsten bin ich mit meiner Crystallex-Position zufrieden....(sagen wir es mal so: Wenn KRY zum Teufel geht, dann geht etwas mehr als ein Jahresnettogehalt bei mir mit zum Teufel...soweit wird`s aber nicht kommen).
Also abwarten und Tee trinken (bei mir gerade Twinings Earl Grey, ohne Zucker, ohne Milch, exakt 3 1/2 Minuten gezogen)...


>Crystallex crunch time has arrived

By: Tim Wood


Posted: 2003/07/10 Thu 17:36 EDT | © Mineweb 1997-2003


NEW YORK -- Crystallex [KRY] stock has been suspended from trading yet again over regulatory problems. This looks to be the final nail in the coffin of company chief executive, Marc Oppenheimer.
Key investors and company watchers are fed up with the slurry of “sidebar issues” – as one money manager described it to Mineweb – that have been a dead weight on Crystallex’s stock price.

This time the “sidebar issue” is another accounting glitch. As a result of a review by new auditors Deloitte & Touche, Crystallex will be restating three years of financials affected by incorrect or inappropriate treatment of gold derivatives. Meanwhile, the Toronto Stock Exchange, already censorious of Crystallex, has extended its eligibility review of the junior miner until July 16.

Since gold hedge reporting is mostly notional, there should not be any cash impact; certainly not going forward. However, any bad news on hedging is a lightning rod for unremitting denigration. Combine that with demands for pious accounting, and Crystallex is courting a sell off when trade resumes.

Off with his head

As a result, the Gold Stock Analyst newsletter has called for Oppenheimer’s head. Publisher John Doody would like Dr. Ken Thomas, presently chief operating officer, to be appointed interim president; a view echoed by others. Those views are apparently being funnelled to the Crystallex board with increasing intensity.

Thomas, an accomplished engineer who only recently joined Crystallex, has already gained the sort of Bay Street credibility that could set the firm on a new tack.

“The cumulative nature of Crystallex’s problems is destructive,” said an influential shareholder. “It draws attention away from the asset which is all that we should be talking about.” The “asset” refers to the bitterly contested Las Cristinas deposit in Venezuela.

Professional investors long Crystallex are betting on Las Cristinas being auctioned off at the sort of price Placer Dome [PDG] this week paid for East African Gold Mines – $101 per reserve ounce. Crystallex currently trades at about $16 per reserve ounce on Las Cristinas only – not atypical of resource valuations at quality early stage projects.

Initial industry scepticism about the Las Cristinas’s metallurgical quality has been addressed to some extent by engineering studies undertaken by reputable firms MDA and SNC-Lavalin. A final feasibility study is due for publication in September, but indications are that the reserve base could be expanded as much as one fifth even after recent increases.

The company recently announced an increase in reserves to 10.1 million ounces from 9.6 million ounces. Meanwhile metallurgical testing has been positive in a simplified process that will be cheaper and probably have higher gold recoveries than initially thought.

Auction

With an expected low stripping ratio, Crystallex investors, however longsuffering, think Las Cristinas’s 10.1 million reserve ounces are too important not to be bought out. “This is about the challenge of reserve replacement for the major miners,” said an investor who requested anonymity.

Rumours of interest from several companies remain rife with the most common names bandied about being Barrick [ABX], Gold Fields [GFI], Glamis [GLG] and Kinross [KCG].

Newmont’s name has also come into play, primarily because Endeavour Mining Capital [EDV] has been linked to heavy trading activity in Crystallex. Since Endeavour’s Frank Giustra and Newmont’s Pierre Lassonde are close, a connection was made, but with little foundation. Firstly, the Endeavour transactions relate to debentures that were converted. Second, Newmont is arch-conservative on country risk and with South Africa off limits convincing shareholders that Venezuela is better could be tough.

Nevertheless, supporters cite the fact that although Venezuela is hardly a model of stability, none of its governments has ever reversed property ownership. “Placer defaulted on Las Cristinas,” said a fund manager. “There was no expropriation or confiscation. Why else would the oil companies continue to invest in Venezuela?”

Indeed, that may entice someone to make a bid and investors are betting that the minute one offer is tabled, others will pour in. Even if Las Cristinas is only sold for half what EAGM went to Placer for, then the stock could soar to $4.90. But it is much more likely to be priced closer to $80 in a bidding war which indicates a price of $7.84 which would give it a market capitalisation somewhere between IAMGOLD [IMG] and Agnico-Eagle [AEM]. At the current weighted average market value of around $105 per ounce, Crystallex becomes a $1 billion company which sets it just behind Meridian [MDG] which ranks thirteenth.

That promise, and that promise alone, allows Crystallex to squeak into the ranks of the top-fifty most valuable gold companies worldwide. It may never get a $1 billion rating, but even half that is good enough from where investors currently sit. Consequently, it might be prudent to lay in bids below the waterline to catch any bargains should a sell-off eventuates.

[borazon]

Danke für die Meinungen.
Dann hoffen wir also auf einen neuen Kursabsturz um billig abzustauben.

[peter.wedemeier1]

"When all the chatter settles down, the North American shareholders can get back to focusing on reality ... i.e. the fact that the development of Las Cristinas as one of the largest gold deposits in South America, if not the whole world, is proceeding according to an earlier stipulated time plan ... "this hullabaloo in Toronto and New York means nothing more than a few speculators trying to make something out of nothing."

North American investors would be wise not to lose sight of Las Cristinas reality

http://www.vheadline.com/readnews.asp?id=9462

[peter.wedemeier1]

"while Canadian Crystallex International is about to kick-start a $400 million project to mine gold at Las Cristinas in southeastern Bolivar State."

Gulf of Paria, Deltana and Las Cristinas projects to kick-start Venezuela`s sabotaged economy

http://www.vheadline.com/readnews.asp?id=9510

[hpoth]

Hallo Sterngleiter,
hatte heute Gelegenheit mit Bandulet zusprechen,zur Drooy
saagte er dort ist zur Zeit ein ganz miese Management am Werk, Drooy ist eingentlich kein Investment wert.Nun gut wenn das Wasser steigt hebt es eben alle Schiffe.Gruß hpoth

[peter.wedemeier1]

TSX extends review of Crystallex International Corporation (Symbol: KRY)
TORONTO, Jul 16, 2003 (Canada NewsWire via COMTEX) --

Further to the news release dated July 9, 2003, Toronto Stock Exchange has extended its review of the eligibility of Crystallex International Corporation (KRY) for continued listing until Wednesday, July 30, 2003.

VIEW ADDITIONAL COMPANY-SPECIFIC INFORMATION: http://www.newswire.ca/cgi-bin/inquiry.cgi?OKEY=47066 http://www.newswire.ca/cgi-bin/inquiry.cgi?OKEY=89881

For further information: Steve Kee, Director, Media Relations and
Publicity, Public Affairs, Research and Communications, TSX Group Inc.,
[phone], 1-888-873-8392, [phone], [e-mail]

News release via Canada NewsWire, Toronto 416-863-9350

[konradi]

.
http://www.marketwatch.com/news/yhoo/story.asp?source=blq/yh…
.

[konradi]

.

Mit der Verlinkung auf CBS marketwatch gibt es doch immer Probleme

Also hier der Kommentar von Thom Calandra (29.07.2003)

Curtain-raiser looms for Crystallex
Restated earnings next step on path to Venezuela


SAN FRANCISCO (CBS.MW) -- Crystallex International, the embattled South America gold miner, is on the verge of filing restated earnings with Canadian and American regulators.

When it does, Toronto-based Crystallex (KRY: news, chart, profile) almost surely will update hungry shareholders on Las Cristinas, the Venezuela El Dorado that holds at least 10 million ounces of gold across a vast and dusty plain. For years, the company has struggled to gain the right to mine Las Cristinas.

As stated in The Calandra Report, I share the opinion of two leading mining analysts -- Robert Bishop of the Gold Mining Stock Report and John C. Doody of Gold Stock Analyst -- as well as at least one large shareholder, Richard Sacks of Phoenix Advisory Management. Crystallex`s Venezuela venture ranks as one of the most attractive bullion deposits in the world of proven and probable reserves.

Crystallex shares were headed to $3 on the American Stock Exchange before the company several weeks ago told Canadian and American regulators its accountant was conducting a review of the way the company valued its hedge book. The regulators halted trading, for the second time this year, dealing shareholders a setback in the company`s long-running saga to operate Las Cristinas.

That restatement of gold derivatives is due out any minute now, literally or figuratively, according to people familiar with the situation. Indeed, the filing may already have been submitted, and investors merely await Canadian regulators` nod for approval of a company press release.
Whatever the review by new auditors Deloitte & Touche shows when the company files its new numbers on Canada`s CEDAR and America`s EDGAR electronic systems -- be it a $9 million loss from previous years or a $19 million loss -- the situation remains the same: a corporate suitor will pursue Crystallex in a search for badly needed gold reserves. Crystallex shares also trade in Toronto under the KRY (CA:KRY: news, chart, profile) ticker.

"This is my largest gold position," said David Banister of 1717 Capital Management, a small money manager in Rhode Island. "The market does not believe this company will get the $200 million or more of financing together to develop the initial stages of Las Cristinas. And some people think they don`t have full title to Las Cristinas. But I don`t see it that way."

Trading in Crystallex shares likely will resume two full business days after the filing of the restatement. (If a filing does not occur Tuesday, shareholders may have to wait at a week, until Tuesday Aug. 5, because that Monday is a civic holiday in Canada.) When trading does resume, the miner`s "cheap paper" may get even cheaper. The Ontario Securities Commission and the British Columbia Securities Commission ultimately would be required to give the green light on trading.

But the stock, like a battered boxer with a heart of gold, won`t stay down for long. "My guess is that the low posted on the first day back will be the low for the remainder of KRY`s days," says Bishop.

The world of derivatives accounting is tricky enough for the world`s largest companies. For a small gold miner, the practice of hedge-book accounting involves judgments on how to mark the value of forward sales and call options on the company balance sheet. More than one miner, including the world`s largest, Newmont Mining (NEM: news, chart, profile), has been caught in that snare, forcing it to restate its numbers from previous quarters.

Gold miners use hedge books to squeeze extra income from gold sales during a span of flat to falling bullion prices. The difference here is that Newmont and others calculated their restatements and published them in official filings at the same time that they alerted the public to new numbers.

Crystallex`s restatements almost surely will address the "mark to market" calculations of call options and other derivatives used to manage the sale of gold. Crystallex this year already has restated once. The restatements, for the years 2000, 2001 and possibly 2002, conceivably may even show gains in certain periods during which there originally were losses.

But when all is said and done, the company is nearly certain to have to post further losses - losses that will have no material effect on cash or operations but will depress some shareholders who can`t see through to Las Cristinas.

Crystallex, most would agree, is not an easy company to love. The company`s executives, among them CEO Marc J. Oppenheimer, have come under terrific criticism for the way they have raised money, using toxic convertibles that give the company`s backers dirt-cheap shares in exchange for cold, hard cash. Oppenheimer, although I find him to be fairly straightforward, is seen by some on Wall Street and in Toronto as pugnacious and headstrong.

Some observers expect the company to give Oppenheimer the boot when it restates this week. New chief operating officer Ken Thomas, for one, could take the reins. Thomas helped develop South American gold properties for Barrick Gold (ABX: news, chart, profile), among the world`s largest bullion producers.

I, however, think it much more likely that Oppenheimer will remain as CEO and president, or continue in at least the one role where he has a major influence: his excellent relations with Venezuela government officials for more long and barren years than shareholders would like to remember.
The make-or-break event on Crystallex shares is not the looming restatement. Instead, it is the feasibility study the company must present to the Venezuelan Guayana Corp., the regional regulator that essentially controls the Las Cristinas gold deposit.

"The deadline to present a feasibility study to the CVG is Sept. 17," said Banister, the money manager. "I expect the stock to begin reflecting the worth of the Venezuela concession by then. At some point, the shares will reflect how investors value other companies sitting on huge gold deposits, like Bema Gold (BGO: news, chart, profile)."

Some analysts, including Doody of Gold Stock Analyst, see Las Cristinas worth about $1 billion, or approximately 10 million ounces by $100 per ounce. Crystallex, with about 110 million fully diluted shares, after the effects of its toxic convertibles and other forms of desperate financing, is currently worth about $170 million on the American Stock Exchange.

Las Cristinas is essentially a miner`s dream site: a low-strip, open pit stretch of land with a central road in and a central road out. Geologists have complained that part of the deposit sits in a flood plain, potentially delivering a miner`s messiest challenge: mud.

Still, do the math. Crystallex shares last traded at $1.54, before they were halted July 9. That`s a number that one day - perhaps as soon as Thursday or Friday if and when trading resumes - will seem dirt-cheap.

If I`m wrong, look me up at the New York Gold Show in September, and please, speak your mind. (Note: Thom Calandra and members of his family do not own shares of Crystallex, nor are they compensated in any way by this company or any other cited by Thom Calandra`s StockWatch and subscription service The Calandra Report.)

For more: Crystallex saga to accelerate transaction.

.

[Stosstrupp_Gold]

Die restatements der Crystallex-Bilanzen sind nun offiziell veröffentlicht! Zu finden unter www.sedar.com

Als Effekt ergibt sich folgendes:


RESTATEMENT AND PRIOR PERIOD ADJUSTMENT
As described in detail below, the Company has amended its accounting treatment for call options and fixed
forward contracts in including a mark to market adjustment of both call options and fixed forward contracts.
The impact is as follows:
2002 2001 2000
($000’s)
Net Income (Loss) – As originally reported (39,772) 68 3,305
Prior period adjustment - (36,718) (3,713)
Net (Loss) – As previously reported (39,772) (36,650) (408)
Restatement of non hedge derivative loss (16,688) (5,502) 4,957
Net Income (Loss) – As restated (56,460) (42,552) 4,549


Nicht so schlimm wie erwartet, wie ich meine. Außerdem sind diese Effekte NICHT CASHWIRKSAM, sondern spiegeln einzig mark-to-market Bewertungen des hedge books zu den verschiedenen Terminen wider. Mal sehen wie KRY wieder eröffnen wird. Mein Tip: Unter 1,20 $ wird`s nicht gehen. Also seht die Sache relaxt (gell, konradi).

Gruß

Sovereign

[Tsuba]

Der revidierte Jahresabschluss 2002 ist 55 Seiten lang.

Meiner Meinung much ado about nothing.

Also am Ende des Bilanzaufhellungszeitrams,

also ca. Ende März 2003 kann man die Hedges

so bewerten, daß ein größerer Aufwand in

GuV 2002 zu zeigen ist.



Ich hatte gedacht; daß die Börsennotierung

nicht mehr aufgenommen wird, weil ansonsten

die Käufer die Bude einrennen.

Sollte die Notierung aufgenommen werden,

was anscheinend bevorsteht, war die erste

Hälfte meiner Prognose falsch.

Und die 2. Hälfte?

Gruss

Tsuba

[konradi]

@ sov

Du läßt micht aufatmen !

.

[Stosstrupp_Gold]

Mal sehen, wie tief man welche abstauben kann...ich schätze nicht unter 1,20 USD.

Ist mir im Grunde auch egal, da meine Position ohnehin groß genug ist, und alles über 93 cents eine Verteuerung meines Einstandskurses bedeuten würde

[Stosstrupp_Gold]

Heute wird noch nichts beim Kurs passieren:

With the filing of its restated financial statements, the Company`s best information from regulatory authorities is that trading will resume on the TSX and AMEX at the opening of market on July 31, 2003.

Was allerdings bleibt, ist die Prüfung der Widerrufung der Börsenzulassung in Toronto (die Frist wurde bis zum 06.08. verlängert). Muß aber nicht schlcht sein: Meine Golden Star wurden bei 40 cents auch von der AMEX deslistet und heute sind sie wieder gelistet und kosten an die 3 Dollar In der Ruhe liegt die Kraft!

Gruß

Sovereign

[Tsuba]

Also sollte die Börsennotierung wieder

aufgenommen werden heißt das:

Der jetzt gezeigte Mehraufwand muß

so hoch sein, daß es überhaupt kein einziges

Argument mehr für einen noch höheren Mehraufwand

gibt.

So etwas ist aber nur denkbar, wenn der jetzt

gezeigte Mehraufwand völlig übertrieben ist,

sagen wir mindestens 3-fach.


Es gibt eine Anzahl Fachleute, die das verstehen.


Ob die Verkaufs-Volumen ängstlicher Hasen vom Volumen

her so groß ist, daß dies die Vernunft-Käufe

überkompensiert? Es mögen ja etliche Kurzfrist-Glücksritter

drin sein, die aus Unverstand raus wollen,aber so viele?





Reichlich mysteriös, das ganze.


Gruss

Tsuba

[Stosstrupp_Gold]

KRY wird heute wieder gehandelt!

CRYSTALLEX (AMEX:KRY) - Trade: Choose Brokerage
Last Trade
10:05am · 1.87 Change
+0.33 (+21.43%) Prev Cls
1.54 Open
1.77 Volume
3,280,000

Und der Kurs STEIGT...Tja, das ist eben die Boerse.
Dafür gibt`s heute abend bei mir folgendes:

1995er Ruffino Chianti Classico Riserva Ducale (die mit dem Gold-Label)...

Cheers!

Sovereign

[Stosstrupp_Gold]

Symbol Last Trade Change Volume
KRY 10:15am 2.00 +0.46 +29.87% 4,198,600


Oh ha! Ich sollte meine Weinwahl revidieren: Dafür könnte man schon den 94er Barolo opfern... Allerdings ist es bis heute abend nicht mehr lange hin und Barolo muß bekanntlich lange vorher atmen....vielleicht also doch der Chianti.

[Stosstrupp_Gold]

CRYSTALLEX (AMEX:KRY) - Trade: Choose Brokerage
Last Trade
10:20am · 2.15 Change
+0.61 (+39.61%) Prev Cls
1.54 Open
1.77 Volume
4,741,800

Ja ist denn heut schon Weihnachten???

[konradi]

puh !!

[konradi]

.

... und natürlich: salute ! - Sovereign

.

[hpoth]

@ sovereign,

Du Genieser, salute.Vollumen bei über 9Mio Kurs 2.02, gut das ich nichts verkauft habe, Bandulet riet zum Verkauf, der weis eben auch nicht alles. Prost hpoth

[hpoth]

@ sovereign,
Ist ja unglaublich über 10 Mio Volumen und es ist noch früh am Tag dort drüben.Hätte nie gedacht das der Kurs so explodiert 20% Plus, da ist heute Abend ein Dom Pergion dran.Prost hpoth

[Stosstrupp_Gold]

Abwarten und nicht verkaufen heißt meine Devise! OK, es mag einem in den Fingern kribbeln, aber unter Preis verkaufe ich nicht (d.h. unter 4 USD).

Schaut Euch auch Gold Reserve an (GLDR.OB). Der Kurs dümpelt nahezu umsatzlos bei 1,70 USD....wenn sich ein Käufer für Las Christians interessiert, dann macht es am meisten Sinn, wenn er das benachbarte Brisas-Vorkommen von Gold Reserve ebenfalls übernimmt....

[hpoth]

Ja da hast Du recht, diese Aktie habe ich auch im Depot, wie gesaagt der Kurs ist fast Bewegungslos.Gute Nacht hpoth

[hpoth]

Nachdem rasanten Kursgewinn gestern nehmen einige erst Gewinne mit,vieleicht nicht verkehrt? Kurs 2.03 Volumen 1,7 Mio mfg hpoth

[hpoth]

Crystallex- naach Wiederaufnahme des Börsenhandels, habe ich einige Infos in deutsch.
Die Bereinigung der Bilanzen und des Hedge-Buches für die Jahre 2000 bis 2003 führte am 30.07.2003 zu folgenden Änderungen:
Das Geschäftsjahr 2000 schließt jetzt mie einem Nettoverlust von 4,6 Mio US$ statt ursprünglich mit einem Nettogewinn von 0,4 Mio US$,2001 mit einem Nettoverlust von 42,6 Mio US$ statt 36,6 Mio US$ Verlust und 2002 mit netto 56,5 Mio.US$ Verlust statt 39,8 Mio US$ Verlust.Das erste Quartal 2003 endet bereinigt mit einem Nettogewinn von 6,7 US$ statt zuvor einem Nettoverlust von 29.000 US$.
Diese Änderungen sind hauptsächlich auf eine neue Bewertungsart der Vorwärtsverkäufe zurückzuführen und betreffen nicht die Cas-Positionen von Crystallex.
Trotzt der negativen Berichte stieg die Aktie mit großem Volumen bis 14 Mio an statt zufallen, hier sammelt doch bestimmt einer billig ein.Intressanten sind Gold Fields, Kinross und Glamis. Mitte September soll die Durchführbarkeitsstudie raus kommen, könnte vieleicht ein neuer Kursschub bevorhstehen oder sogar eine Übernahme wer weis? gruß hpoth

[hpoth]

Die Börse erlaubte am 30 Juli den Handel - und der Kurs explodierte um 40%.Offenbar ist das Publikum an einem Punkt angelangt,wo es durch nichts mehr zu erschüttern ist , sondern nur noch auf die 10 Millionen Unzen Gold in Venezuela schaut,die KRY kontrolliert werden.Cyrstallex kan dieses Vorhaben aber nie selbst ausbauen, sondern an einn größeren Konzern verkaufen.Oder Crystallex wird ganz übernommen, dann könnten die Aktionäre Kasse machen.Schwer zu sagen,wieviel für Las Cristinas herausgeschlagen werden kann, aber 6 kanadische Dollar sollten schon drin sein.
gruß hpoth

[konradi]

.


http://www.kitco.com/pr/1069/article_09102003194301.pdf



.

[hpoth]

Die Durchführbarkeitsstudie für das Gold - Großprojekt Las Cristinas liegt vor.Die Goldvorräte im südlichen Venezuela werden als wirtschaftlich abbaubar betätigt. Der erwartet Übertageabbau ist möglich. Die festgestellten Reserven betragen 10.2 Mio Unzen. Bei einem Goldpreis von 325$ Unze ergibt isch ein freier Cash-Flow vor Steuern von 742 Mio.US$, der bei US/oz 375 auf 1,2 Mrd.US$ steigt.Nach Steuern ergeben sich 516 Mio,US$ und 648 Mio.US$.
Der Umfang der Goldreserven nacht KRY zur fünftgrößten Minen-Gesellschaft Nordamerikas.Das Minenleben wird auf ca 34 Jahre geschätzt.Leute der Zock kann starten.Guten Nacht
hpoth

[hpoth]

Diese Nachrichten waren wohl schon eingepreist, wenn man jetzt den Kursrückgang betrachtet, geht langsam aber ständig südwärts, schade gruss hpoth

[borazon]

Reuters
Venezuela to revise gold, diamond mining contracts
Friday September 19, 6:27 pm ET

CARACAS, Sept 19 (Reuters) - Venezuela said Friday it would revise existing gold and diamond concessions in the country to eliminate unlawful and outdated contracts where illegal mining was costing a fortune in lost revenues.

Mines and Energy Minister Rafael Ramirez said leftist President Hugo Chavez`s government had passed a decree giving his ministry control of all existing concessions in the mineral-rich nation, which is also the world`s No. 5 oil exporter.

"On the basis of this decree, we are going to start revising all these contracts," Ramirez told a news conference.

He added this included contracts operated by the state holding company Corporacion Venezolana de Guayana (CVG) with foreign gold miners like Crystallex International Corp. (Toronto:KRY.TO - News) of Canada and Hecla Mining Co. (NYSE:HL - News) of the United States.

"The contracts that are legal will not be modified, but the others will be revised," Ramirez said.

The decree caught the CVG, which runs mining operations in the vast southeast state of Bolivar, by surprise.

"I don`t know anything about it. I can`t tell you what it means," CVG`s director of mining, Armando John Madero, told Reuters. Venezuela`s richest gold and diamond deposits are situated in Bolivar state.

Ramirez said the aim of the decree was to restore effective control of the mining sector, where many contracts awarded before 1999 had given huge swathes of territory to big land owners and other individuals. Many of these concessions had expired, were idle or were being illegally mined.

"We estimate that tremendous amounts of gold and diamonds, hundreds of thousands of kilos (ounces), are being produced which are slipping out of the country," the minister said.

One of populist Chavez`s promises when he was elected in late 1998 was that he would eradicate corruption and use the country`s huge natural resources to fight poverty. His popularity has fallen since then and he faces a determined campaign by his opponents to hold a referendum on his rule.

Ramirez said the chaos in the mining sector, especially in Bolivar state, had created social tensions, with impoverished free-lance miners scrabbling to make a living. They would be organized into cooperatives with government support.

Executives of foreign mining companies in Venezuela, such as Crystallex and Hecla, were not immediately available to comment on the latest government decree.

[konradi]

tja was ist davon zu halten ? ich weiß es nicht !
In Frankfurt heute morgen fast 10 % im Plus, aber was heißt das schon ?

Gruß an Sov. !

[borazon]

Lt. Yahoo-Board geht es wohl um ein paar andere Firmen, deren Lizenzen auf dem Spiel stehen.
Bei KRY wird Chavez mindestens abwarten, bis die Mine läuft. Danach kann man immer noch was drehen, damit die Gringos nicht zuviel vom Investierten wiedersehen. Doch vielleicht muß nur das ein oder andere Milliönchen auf Hugos Privatkonto landen, wer weiß?

[hpoth]

@konradi,

sei bitte so gut und stelle doch mal die Stelle rein wo man in Frankfurt den Kurs abfragen kann, ich habe nur BigChart. Danke hpoth

[konradi]

das kann doch nicht so schwer sein ...

[peter.wedemeier1]

!

Dieser Beitrag wurde vom System automatisch gesperrt. Bei Fragen wenden Sie sich bitte an [e-mail]

[konradi]

.



... The reserves delineated by the Feasibility Study transform Crystallex into the fifth largest North American-based gold company in terms of reserves, remarked Ken Thomas, Chief Operating Officer of Crystallex…







Tja, da heißt es warten, warten, warten, denn:
Crystallex sees Las Cristinas approvals by July ...

Crystallex International Corp. (Toronto:KRY.TO - News) said on Tuesday it should receive by the middle of next year all the mining and environmental permits needed to develop its large Las Cristinas gold deposit in Venezuela.

Releasing its third quarter results, the small Canadian gold producer said it will submit an updated environmental study to the Venezuelan government at the end of this month.

It has also invited four firms to tender to build a mine at Las Cristinas, one of the world`s largest undeveloped gold deposits. Detailed engineering work is due to start in early January.

"In terms of the above schedule, construction at Las Cristinas is expected to start during the summer of 2004 and the first gold should be produced in the first quarter of 2006," Crystallex chief executive Todd Bruce said.
In the third quarter, Crystallex`s net loss deepened to C$33.8 million ($25.8 million) from a loss of C$7.6 million in the year ago period, largely on the back of a non-hedge derivative loss.

The Toronto-based firm produced 18,000 ounces of gold at total cash cost of $346 an ounce in the three-month period.

(Reuters)

---

Crystallex International Corporation (TSX: KRY) today reported its third quarter 2003 results.

HIGHLIGHTS - Completed a positive Feasibility Study for Las Cristinas on schedule during September. - Successfully completed private placements for aggregate proceeds of US$38.2 million. - Appointed Todd Bruce as President and Chief Executive Officer of Crystallex. - Gold production of 18,000 ounces for the third quarter at a total cash cost of US$346 per ounce. Nine months production of 62,000 ounces at a total cash cost of US$303 per ounce. - Net loss for the quarter of C$33.8 million. - Net operating loss for the quarter of C$12.2 million before non-cash derivative losses arising from quarterly "mark to market" adjustments of derivative instruments and non-cash write-down arising from the sale of the San Gregorio mining interests. - Cash at quarter end of C$46.3 million. - An Updated Environmental Impact Study (EIS) for Las Cristinas is scheduled for submission by late November. - On October 27, Crystallex announced the closing of the sale of the San Gregorio mining interests and related operations in Uruguay. The transaction recognized the limited operating life of the Uruguayan assets and relieves Crystallex from a number of significant expenses related to the planned closure of the Uruguayan facilities including environmental, remediation, severance and relocation costs. Additionally, the sale reduced the Company``s forward hedge book exposure by approximately 37,600 ounces. - Crystallex has finalized plans to consolidate its North American management and administrative operations at its new office in Toronto effective December 31, 2003.

During the quarter Crystallex achieved several milestones. Todd Bruce``s appointment as President, Chief Executive Officer and Director of the Company and Marc Oppenheimer``s accession to the position of Vice Chairman represent significant advancements of the management restructuring initiative that the Board commenced almost two and a half years ago.

Todd Bruce noted that, "As the new CEO, I must say that the Company``s performance in assembling an executive team of such quality is not only remarkable in its own right, but it directly compliments the incredible job done by Marc and his colleagues in securing the rights to the Las Cristinas deposit." Mr. Bruce further continued, "The privilege of leading such a management team is rare enough, however the opportunity to apply this quality resource to extracting the value from an asset as extraordinary as Las Cristinas is a unique one that I could not decline."

During the quarter, the Company reached a major milestone with the release of its SNC-Lavalin full feasibility study on a 20,000 tonne per day ("tpd") operation at Las Cristinas. The addition of the 10.2 million ounces of proven and probable Las Cristinas reserves (calculated at a gold price of US$325 per ounce) defined by the feasibility study has transformed Crystallex into the fifth largest North American based gold mining company in terms of reserves. More details on the feasibility study results are included in the MD&A section below and the executive summary of the feasibility study is available on the Company``s website at http://www.crystallex.com/ .

In addition, SNC-Lavalin completed a scoping study during the quarter on a 40,000 tpd operation at Las Cristinas. The scoping study indicates that doubling the size of the operation significantly enhances the already robust economics of the base case 20,000 tpd operation which was selected by Crystallex as an appropriate initial production level in terms of the Company``s expected financing capacity. At 40,000 tpd, the scoping study estimates that the mine would produce an average of 500,000 ounces of gold per annum at a total average cash cost of US$181 per ounce with an initial capital expenditure of US$370 million pre-VAT. At a gold price of US$325 per ounce, a 40,000 tpd operation is forecast to generate free cash flow of US$710 million and a pre-tax IRR of 17%.

Based on these results, the Company has commenced a full 40,000 tpd feasibility study which is expected to be substantially completed by the end of this year. The Company``s current plan is to establish a 20,000 tpd operation and then expand it to 40,000 tpd within the first five years of operation, just as soon as cumulative cash flow and financing capacity will allow. The 40,000 tpd feasibility will provide Crystallex with the flexibility to establish Las Cristinas at the 40,000 tonne per day level should market circumstances permit Crystallex to finance this scale of operation.

The Company continues to work closely with the Corporacion Venezolana de Guayana ("CVG") to advance the Las Cristinas 20,000 tpd program on schedule. The update of the previously issued Environmental Impact Statement ("EIS") will be submitted by the end of November, 2003 which should see all the necessary mining and environmental permits issued by midyear 2004. The Company has invited four major engineering companies to tender for the engineering, procurement, and construction management ("EPCM") role in building Las Cristinas. Crystallex expects to award the EPCM contract by the end of this year with detailed engineering to start in early January. In terms of the above schedule, construction at Las Cristinas is expected to start during the summer of 2004 and the first gold should be produced in the first quarter of 2006.

The Company``s operating team under the leadership of Chief Operating Officer, Dr. Ken Thomas, and VP Operations, Dr. Sadek El-Alfy, have made commendable progress during the quarter in restoring the Venezuelan operations, as the negative effects of strict capital rationing that they have been subject to over the last two years are addressed. As an example, Venezuelan gold production, which averaged 1,400 ounces per month in the first quarter, increased to an average of 3,400 ounces per month in the third quarter. Although the Venezuelan operations are not yet performing at anticipated levels, their production risk profile decreases each month as the recapitalization process proceeds.

The Company is planning to consolidate its North American management and administration at its new Toronto office at Suite 1210, 18 King Street East M5C 1C4 in mid December. The Company``s telephone number (416-203-2448) and fax number (416-203-0099) will remain the same.

Management``s Discussion and Analysis For the Nine Month Period Ended September 30, 2003 (in Canadian dollars, except where noted)

Management``s Discussion and Analysis ("MD&A") of the financial condition and results of the operations of Crystallex International Corporation ("Crystallex" or the "Company") should be read in conjunction with the unaudited consolidated financial statements and the notes thereto. The Company prepares and files its consolidated financial statements and MD&A in Canadian dollars.

Crystallex and its subsidiaries are engaged in gold mining and related activities, including exploration, extraction, processing and reclamation. Crystallex produces gold in Venezuela.

KEY STATISTICS Three months Nine months ended Sept. 30, ended Sept. 30, 2003 2002 2003 2002 Operating Statistics (US$/ounce) Gold Production (ounces) 17,969 23,007 61,736 70,405 Total Cash Cost Per Ounce(A,B) $346 $252 $303 $339 Gold Ounces Sold 14,309 25,238 56,420 69,510 Average Realized Price Per Ounce $300 $300 $305 $308 Average Spot Gold Price Per Ounce $363 $314 $354 $306 Financial Statistics (C$ thousands) Revenues $5,452 $9,327 $28,552 $33,386 Net Income (Loss) ($33,781) ($7,564) ($31,960) ($33,483) Cashflow from Operating Activities(C) ($5,024) $1,227 ($10,772) ($7,549) Net Income (Loss) per Basic Share ($0.29) ($0.09) ($0.31) ($0.40) Weighted Average Common Shares O/S 116,151,08 85,686,891 103,110,626 82,721,034 (A) Includes Royalties and Production Taxes. (B) Total Cash Costs are calculated in accordance with The Gold Institute Standards. For an explanation, refer to the section of NON-GAAP measures. (C) Includes Working Capital changes, before capital expenditures. SUMMARY FINANCIAL RESULTS

For the third quarter 2003, Crystallex incurred a loss of $12.2 million prior to adjustments for non-hedge derivative gains/losses and the San Gregorio write-down, as compared with a loss of $5.9 million in the third quarter of 2002. A non-cash adjustment for non-hedge derivative losses of $19.6 million, (and a loss of $16.5 million in 2002) resulted in a net loss of $33.8 million, or $0.29 per share for the third quarter, as compared with a net loss of $7.6 million, or $0.09 per share, for the same period in 2002.

Revenue for the third quarter totalled $5.5 million on gold sales of 14,309 ounces, as compared with $9.3 million of revenue on gold sales of 25,238 ounces for the year earlier quarter. The decrease in sales revenue was attributable to fewer ounces sold and a stronger Canadian dollar. Fewer ounces were produced and sold due in part to a mechanical failure at the San Gregorio mill. The average realized gold price during the quarter was US$300 per ounce. The Company``s average realized price per ounce was below the average quarterly spot price of US$363 per ounce as a result of delivering gold production into forward sales positions with exercise prices of approximately US$300 per ounce, thereby reducing the Company``s hedge book exposure.

During the first nine months of 2003, revenues totalled $28.6 million, as compared to $33.4 million for the corresponding period in 2002. Gold sales amounted to 56,420 ounces as compared with 69,510 ounces for the same period in 2002.

For the third quarter, there was an operating cashflow deficit, as expenses from operations exceeded realized revenue from gold sales (considering the impact of delivering into forward sales positions). The total operating cashflow deficit, after including corporate general and administrative expenses and working capital changes, totalled $5.0 million during the third quarter. For the nine month period, the cash flow deficit was $10.7 million, as compared with a $7.5 million cash flow deficit during the comparable period in 2002. The increase in the cash flow deficit was due largely to lower gold sales and higher general and administrative costs.

LAS CRISTINAS Feasibility Study

As reported in detail on September 10, 2003, a full Feasibility Study for the Las Cristinas project was completed during September by SNC - Lavalin Engineers and Constructors, (SNCL). The results of the Feasibility Study clearly distinguish Las Cristinas as a world class gold deposit that can be economically developed and operated by conventional mining and gold processing technology.

Feasibility Study Operating Highlights Measured and Indicated Resources(A) (0.5g/t cut-off) 439 million tonnes grading 1.09 g/t 15.3 million ounces of contained gold Mineable Reserves(A,B) (Proven and Probable) 246 million tonnes grading 1.29 g/t; 10.2 million ounces of contained gold Gold Price US$325/oz. Metallurgical Recovery 89% Daily Mill Throughput 20,000 tonnes Annual Mill Throughput 7,300,000 tonnes Overall Strip Ratio 1.34 Mine Life 34 years Average Annual Gold Production -- First Five Years 311,000 ounces Average Annual Gold Production -- Life of Mine 266,000 ounces Development Capital US$243 million VAT on Development Capital(C) US$ 39 million Operating Costs Per Tonne of Ore US$6.70 Total Cash Costs Per Ounce(D) -- First Five Years US$144 Total Cash Costs Per Ounce(D) -- Life of Mine US$196 (A) Mineral reserve and mineral resource estimates in the Feasibility Study were estimated in accordance with the standards of the Canadian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy as adopted by the Canadian Securities Regulators in National Instrument 43-101. Unlike proven and probable mineral reserves, mineral resources do not have demonstrated economic viability. (B) Mineral reserves, which were calculated using a gold price of US$325/oz., are included in the mineral resources. (C) VAT is charged on goods and services during the construction period; however, is fully recoverable from gold sales revenues within about three years. (D) Includes royalties. Las Cristinas Economic Highlights

The Feasibility Study financial results, calculated at a gold price of US$325 per ounce, demonstrate that Las Cristinas can be economically developed as a large, open pit mining operation utilizing a conventional gravity and carbon-in-leach (CIL) gold processing circuit.

Based upon current proven and probable reserves of 10.2 million ounces and a gold price of US$325 per ounce, Las Cristinas will generate pre-tax cumulative free cashflow of US$742 million. At US$375 per ounce, pre-tax cumulative cashflow climbs to US$1.2 billion.

The table below presents Las Cristinas financial returns on an all-equity, before tax basis using a gold price of US$325 per ounce and also at gold prices more reflective of current market conditions.

Before Tax Gold Price (US$/ounce) Feasibility Sensitivities US$ millions $325 $350 $375 Cumulative Free Cashflow(A) $742 $942 $1,156 NPV @ 5% (unleveraged) $239 $327 $421 IRR (unleveraged) 13.8% 16.6% 19.4% Payback 4.7 years 4.1 years 3.7 years (A) Cumulative Free Cashflow is defined as cashflow net of development and sustaining capital, operating costs and royalties, including a 3% exploitation tax. (B) Royalties include the 3% Exploitation Tax on gold sales payable to the Venezuelan Ministry of Mines and the royalty on gold sales payable to the CVG (1% if gold is <= $280/oz; 1.5% if gold is >$280/oz and < $350/oz; 2% if gold is >=$350/oz and <$400/oz and 3% if gold is >=$400/oz). Next Steps

Work is ongoing in a number of areas to advance the development of Las Cristinas. The Company is on schedule to complete an Updated Environmental Impact Study (EIS) by late November, 2003 for presentation to the Corporacion Venezolana de Guayana, (CVG). Following review by the CVG, the EIS will be presented to the Venezuelan Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (MARN). The submission to the MARN will initiate the process for securing the updated Land Use Permit and the Permit to Impact Natural Resources. At present, it is estimated that the Permit to Impact Natural Resources could be awarded by the end of the second quarter next year, which would allow construction to commence.

Invitation letters and Requests for Proposals have been extended to engineering firms to submit bids for supplying Engineering, Procurement and Construction Management, (EPCM) services for the engineering, construction and development of Las Cristinas. Tenders are due by early December and Crystallex intends to award the EPCM contract during January, 2004.

Crystallex is also nearing completion of the improvements contemplated by the local social programs as outlined in the Mining Operation Contract with the CVG and will begin formal transfer of ownership in early December. These projects include providing new water treatment facilities, sewerage systems, thirty new houses and road improvements. The Company is also providing medicines on a monthly basis to a local medical clinic, as well as undertaking an expansion and regular maintenance of the clinic.

OPERATIONS REVIEW Summary Operating Statistics Three months Nine months ended Sept. 30, ended Sept. 30, 2003 2002 2003 2002 Gold Production (ounces) San Gregorio 8,849 15,840 41,729 49,126 La Victoria 986 6,770 5,564 16,568 Tomi Open Pits 7,028 42 11,195 1,890 Tomi Underground 454 --- 1,028 --- Purchased Material 652 355 2,220 2,821 Total 17,969 23,007 61,736 70,405 Total Cash Cost (US$/ounce) San Gregorio $370 $226 $276 $234 Venezuela $322 $309 $360 $339 Company Average $346 $252 $303 $339 San Gregorio

Gold production from the San Gregorio mine in Uruguay was 8,849 ounces during the third quarter, as compared with 15,840 ounces for the comparable period in 2002. Gold production was well below budget in the third quarter as a result of the failure of the ball mill gear reducer shaft, which was reported in the second quarter Management Discussion and Analysis. As a consequence of the shaft failure, the mill was shut down from early July until mid-August, after which mill operations returned to a normal level.

Total cash operating costs averaged US$370 per ounce for the third quarter, an increase from US$226 per ounce in the comparable quarter of 2002, largely attributable to the shaft failure.

As reported on October 27, 2003, Crystallex sold its Uruguayan interests, including the San Gregorio mining operations to Uruguayan Mineral Explorations Inc.(UME). Under the terms of the agreement, UME will pay Crystallex US$2 million in two equal installments, with the first installment due six months after closing and the second installment due twelve months after closing. Crystallex will also receive a transfer of certain exploration drilling equipment. In addition, UME paid approximately US$2.8 million to fund the closing out of all remaining San Gregorio gold forward sales commitments, (approximately 37,600 ounces), and through the Uruguayan companies purchased, assumed certain environmental, remediation, severance and closure costs which would have been incurred by Crystallex had it proceeded with the planned closure of its Uruguayan mining operations. The sale was completed through the transfer of the shares of the Company``s Uruguayan subsidiary companies which owned the mining assets. The Company recorded a $2.0 million write-down of its Uruguayan investment in the third quarter.

Venezuela Overview

During the third quarter of 2003, the Revemin Mill processed ore mainly from the open pit mines on the Tomi concession:

Three months Nine months ended Sept. 30, ended Sept. 30, 100% Basis 2003 2002 2003 2002 Revemin Mill-Ore Processed (tonnes) La Victoria Ore 19,000 92,000 89,000 245,000 Tomi Open Pit Ore 82,000 300 134,000 23,000 Tomi Underground Ore 2,000 --- 6,000 --- Purchased Ore 5,000 1,400 20,000 11,000 Total Ore Processed (tonnes) 108,000 93,700 249,000 279,000 Head Grade of Ore Processed (g/t) 3.22 3.26 3.15 2.98 Total Recovery Rate (%) 82% 73% 79% 79% Total Gold Recovered (ounces) 9,120 7,167 20,007 21,279

Gold production from the Revemin Mill was 20,007 ounces for the first nine months of 2003, and 9,120 ounces for the third quarter. Third quarter 2003 production was 27% higher than the prior period. The increase is largely attributed to processing a significantly higher proportion of ore from the Tomi concession which yields higher recoveries than the refractory ore from La Victoria. Gold recoveries averaged 82% for the quarter as compared with only 73% for the comparable period in 2002. Gold recovery was over 87% in September when no ore from La Victoria was processed.

There has been a steady increase in the tonnes of ore processed and gold recovered at Revemin since the beginning of the year. Ore processed was 67,000 tonnes in the first quarter, 74,000 tonnes in the second quarter and 108,000 tonnes in the third quarter. The mill operated at 87% of its 1,350 tonne per day capacity during the third quarter, up from about 55% in the first quarter. The improved tonnage reflects capital recently invested in mine equipment and maintenance. Production of gold has increased from 4,325 ounces in the first quarter to 9,120 ounces in the third quarter. The increase in gold production is due to both higher tonnes of ore milled and higher gold recoveries.

La Victoria

During the period, metallurgical testwork results on the La Victoria sulphide ore deposit have demonstrated that the content of refractory ore was higher than originally estimated, and as a consequence this sulphide ore will be difficult to process using the conventional cyanide gold extraction process at the Revemin mill. The gold in the La Victoria ore is encapsulated in sulphide minerals which prevent sufficient quantities of gold from being leached by the cyanide. As a consequence, gold recovery rates are low, averaging only 54% during the third quarter. Further testwork indicated that the ore at La Victoria may be amenable to Bio-Oxidation, a pre-treatment step that breaks down the sulphide minerals through accelerating the oxidation process, thereby exposing the gold for subsequent removal by cyanide leaching.

The Company is currently in the process of evaluating the technical and economic viability of constructing and operating a Bio-Oxidation plant at the Revemin mill, which based on preliminary testwork is a more suitable process for this type of ore. The evaluation requires a drilling program to be conducted to reassess the size and grade of the La Victoria ore deposit and pilot plant testing of the Bio-Oxidation process. It is planned that drilling and pilot plant testing will be conducted during the first quarter of 2004 to fully evaluate the property``s viability.

While these programs are underway, ore feed for the Revemin mill will come from the open pits and underground mine on the Tomi concession.

Tomi

Ore from the Tomi open pits accounted for 76% of the ore feed to the Revemin mill during the third quarter of 2003. The Tomi ore is higher grade and does not have the refractory characteristics of the La Victoria ore and, as a result, gold recovery is higher. Gold recovery from the Tomi pits averaged 84% for the first nine months of the year, as compared with 68% recovery for La Victoria. It is planned that the Tomi pits will supply the majority of the ore feed to Revemin for the balance of 2003 and for 2004. Drilling is currently ongoing at the Milagrito open pit mine on the Tomi concession.

Production at the Tomi underground mine is gradually increasing as recent capital funding provided for new equipment required for development and production. It is expected that the mine will reach design levels of about 200 tonnes of ore per day by the end of the first quarter 2004. A change in mining method will result in greater ore dilution and the Company is currently forecasting an average mined grade of about 11.0 grams per tonne.

At the Venezuelan operations, total cash operating costs averaged US$322 per ounce for the third quarter of 2003, as compared with US$309 per ounce for the similar period in 2002. Although quarterly average costs were higher for the third quarter 2003, both production and operating costs improved throughout the third quarter. Gold production exceeded 3,400 ounces in both August and September, as compared with a monthly average of 1,400 ounces during the first quarter and 2,200 ounces per month during the second quarter. Also, September unit costs were reduced to $302 per ounce. However, cashflow from operations is being negatively impacted by the currency exchange controls in Venezuela. The Company is currently considering options to reduce the impact of the currency controls.

GOLD PRODUCTION STATISTICS Three months ended Nine months ended Sept. 30, Sept. 30, 100% Basis 2003 2002 2003 2002 Uruguay San Gregorio (100% Crystallex) Tonnes Ore Mined 148,000 279,000 739,000 778,000 Tonnes Waste Mined 865,000 1,157,000 3,284,000 3,493,000 Tonnes Ore Processed 189,000 267,000 760,000 815,000 Average Grade of Ore Processed(g/t) 1.61 2.01 1.86 2.03 Recovery Rate (%) 90% 91% 92% 92% Production (ounces) 8,849 15,840 41,729 49,126 Total Cash Costs (US$/ounce) $370 $226 $276 $234 Venezuela La Victoria (51% Crystallex)(A) Tonnes Ore Mined 20,000 98,000 86,000 245,000 Tonnes Waste Mined 58,000 190,000 391,000 760,000 Tonnes Ore Processed 19,000 92,000 89,000 245,000 Average Grade of Ore Processed (g/t) 3.01 3.17 2.84 2.75 Recovery Rate (%) 54% 73% 68% 77% Production (ounces) 986 6,770 5,564 16,568 Tomi Open Pits (100% Crystallex) Tonnes Ore Mined 110,000 300 156,000 23,000 Tonnes Waste Mined 264,000 0 367,000 3,000 Tonnes Ore Processed(B) 82,000 500 134,000 23,000 Average Grade of Ore Processed (g/t) 3.11 3.47 3.10 2.9 Recovery Rate (%) 86% 73% 84% 89% Production (ounces) 7,028 42 11,195 1,890 Tomi Underground (100% Crystallex) Tonnes Ore Mined 2,000 --- 7,000 --- Tonnes Waste Mined --- --- --- --- Tonnes Ore Processed 2,000 --- 6,000 --- Average Grade of Ore Processed (g/t) 6.94 --- 6.12 --- Recovery Rate (%) --- 91% --- Production (ounces) 454 --- 1,028 --- Other (Purchased Material) Tonnes Ore Processed 5,000 1,400 20,000 11,000 Average Grade of Ore Processed (g/t) 4.31 8.64 4.06 8.14 Recovery Rate (%) 94% 95% 83% 97% Production (ounces) 652 355 2,220 2,821 Total Production- Venezuela (ounces) 9,120 7,167 20,007 21,279 Total Cash Cost- Venezuela (US$/oz)(B) $322 $309 $360 $339 Crystallex Total Total Gold Production (ounces) 17,969 23,007 61,736 70,405 Total Cash Cost (US$/Ounce) $346 $252 $303 $339

(A)Crystallex owns 80% of El Callao Mining Corp, which in turn has an indirect 51% equity interest in La Victoria. However, Crystallex has an 87.5% share of the cashflow from La Victoria until US$4.0 million of debt relating to the La Victoria project is repaid. Thereafter, Crystallex has a 75% share of the cashflow from La Victoria until the La Victoria debt is fully repaid. Presently, there is no distributable cashflow, and Crystallex reports all reserves, resources and production for its account.

(B)Ore from La Victoria, Tomi and purchased material is processed at the Company``s Revemin mill.

GENERAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE

General and Administrative expenses totalled $7.2 million for the third quarter of 2003, as compared with $1.9 million for the comparable period in 2002. The $5.3 million increase includes $1.8 million representing the contractual costs of additions in senior management personnel during the past year as the Company commenced preparations for the development, construction and operation of the Las Cristinas properties and substantially increased legal and audit costs. The increase further reflects annual contractual and discretionary bonus payments of $2.2 million for the 2003 fiscal year determined and accrued in the third quarter, and a payment of $1.3 million to certain management and operating personnel and directors specifically in recognition of their extraordinary commitment of time and effort on behalf of the Company, over several years, in successfully securing the Las Cristinas mining operation agreement, the latter payment having been approved by an independent compensation committee of the Board of Directors..

For the first nine months of 2003, general and administrative expenses were $12.5 million as compared with $5.3 million in 2002. The increase is largely attributable to the aforementioned payments, and significantly higher legal and audit fees.

FORWARD SALES AND WRITTEN CALL OPTIONS

At September 30, 2003, Crystallex had outstanding 188,900 ounces of fixed forward contracts at an average price of US$303 per ounce, and 224,169 ounces under call options sold at an average price of US$303 per ounce. At September 30, 2003, Crystallex had the following forward contracts and call options outstanding:

2003 2004 2005 2006 Total Fixed Forward Gold Sales (ounces) 23,866 82,608 42,430 39,996 188,900 Average Price (US$/Ounce) $300 $300 $305 $310 $303 Written Gold Call Options (ounces) 55,781 115,456 50,932 2,000 224,169 Average Exercise Price (US$/ounce) $295 $306 $303 $348 $303 Total (ounces) 79,647 198,064 93,362 41,996 413,069

As previously noted, the Company``s objective is both to restructure and reduce the size of its hedge book by negotiating with hedge counterparties to move certain commitments to future periods, by repurchasing positions at opportune times, and by delivering into forward sales contracts without replacing those contracts.

Subsequent to the end of the third quarter, the Company purchased 25,000 ounces of gold at a spot price of US$372 per ounce and delivered an equal number of ounces of forward sales for settlement at US$298 per ounce for a net cost of US$1.84 million. Also, as part of the sale of the Uruguayan assets, Uruguay Mineral Explorations funded the retirement of 37,640 ounces of forward sales contracts, which represented all remaining forward sales contracts for San Gregorio that were guaranteed by Crystallex. As a result, the Company``s total outstanding forward contracts and call options have been reduced to 350,429 ounces.

At September 30, 2003, the unrealized mark-to-market value of Crystallex``s gold forward sales and call options, calculated at a spot price of US$388 per ounce was negative C$47 million. This value represents the replacement value of the forward sale and call option contracts based upon the spot gold price at quarter end and does not represent an obligation for payment by Crystallex. The Company``s obligations under the forward sales contracts are to deliver an agreed upon quantity of gold at a predetermined price by the maturity date of the contract, while delivery obligations under the call options sold are contingent upon the price of gold and will take effect if the gold price is above the strike price of the relevant contract at its maturity date.

ACCOUNTING FOR DERIVATIVE INSTRUMENTS Written call options

As previously reported, upon re-examination of the accounting for the Company``s written call options, management determined that call option contracts outstanding at the end of 1999, 2000 and 2001 had not been properly accounted for and, as a result, the Company had reflected premiums received in income on the date of receipt and had not reflected the amount of the related mark to market adjustments for changes in estimated fair values within the consolidated financial statements. Accordingly, management has reclassified premiums received, previously reported in revenue, as a liability (deferred credit) on the balance sheet and has recorded the mark to market adjustments to the recorded liabilities for options outstanding at the end of each year. The change in fair value of the liability has been recorded as a non-hedge derivative (loss) gain.

Fixed forward contracts

As previously reported, the Company treated fixed forward contracts as transactions qualifying as hedges for accounting purposes and recorded the contracts off balance sheet until the settlement date at which time the contract settlement amount was recorded in mining revenue. Upon re- examination, it has been determined that certain restructuring transactions with the counterparty modified the fixed forward contracts prior to their maturity resulting in a reassessment of hedge designation and effectiveness. Consequently, the Company has redesignated its forward contracts as trading activity and accordingly has recorded the estimated fair values of these contracts on the balance sheets and related mark to market adjustments for changes in estimated fair values in the statements of operations as non-hedge derivative (loss) gain.

The variation in fair market value of options and forwards from period to period can cause significant volatility in earnings; however, the fair market value adjustment is a non-cash item that will not impact the Company``s cashflow. For the three month period ended September 30, 2003, the total mark to market loss on the non-hedge derivative positions was $19.6 million. For nine months of 2003, the Company reported a non-hedge derivative loss of $13.0 million.

In circumstances where the Company is unable to meet the obligations under the fixed forward sales or call options, the Company will defer the expiry date of the forward sale or call option, or purchase gold in the market, or settle the positions financially. If the Company were to purchase gold in the market or settle the positions financially, it would result in a reduction of the Company``s cashflow.

LIQUIDITY AND CAPITAL RESOURCES

Operating Cashflow (after working capital changes and before capital expenditures) was a utilization of $5.0 million for the three months ended September 30, 2003 as compared with operating cashflow of $1.2 million for the comparable period in 2002. At September 30, 2003, cash and cash equivalents were $46.3 million. At quarter end, there was a working capital surplus of $15.0 million.

FINANCING ACTIVITIES

During the third quarter of 2003, the following financing transactions were completed:

On August 29, 2003, the Company completed a private placement of 4,545,455 special warrants at a price of US$2.20 per special warrant for aggregate proceeds of approximately US$10 million. Each special warrant entitles the holder to acquire one common share. In addition, the purchaser received purchase warrants to acquire 2,272,727 additional common shares of Crystallex. Each purchase warrant entitles the holder to acquire one common share, at an exercise price of US$2.75 per share for a three year period.

On September 8, 2003 the Company closed a private placement of 12,800,000 special warrants at a price of US$2.20 per special warrant for aggregate proceeds of US$28.2 million. Each special warrant entitles the holder, upon exercise, to acquire one common share and one-half of one common share purchase warrant. Each whole common share purchase warrant is exercisable for one common share of the Company at an exercise price of US$2.75 per share for a period of three years.

INVESTING ACTIVITIES

Capital expenditures during the third quarter totaled $6.4 million, compared with $31.5 million for the same period in 2002. Investments were principally for the Las Cristinas project $4.7 million, with the balance related to the operating mines in Uruguay and Venezuela.

As noted, subsequent to quarter end, the Company spent US$1.84 million to settle 25,000 ounces of forward sales from future periods.

NON GAAP MEASURES

The total cash cost per ounce data are presented to provide additional information and are not prepared in accordance with Canadian or U.S. GAAP. The data should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for measures of performance prepared in accordance with GAAP. The measures are not necessarily indicative of operating profit or costs of operations as determined under Canadian or U.S. GAAP. The total cash cost per ounce calculation is derived from amounts included in the Operating Expense line on the Statement of Operations. As this line item is unchanged under US GAAP, the total cash cost per ounce figure is similarly unchanged using US GAAP results of operations.

Total cash costs per ounce are calculated in accordance with "The Gold Institute Production Cost Standard." Crystallex has not changed the components of these costs from period to period. Adoption of this standard reporting is voluntary, and the data may not conform to other similarly titled measures provided by other precious metals companies. Management uses the cash cost per ounce data to access profitability and cashflow from Crystallex``s operations and to compare it with other precious metals producers. Total cash costs per ounce are derived from amounts included in the Statement of Operations and include mine site operating costs such as mining, processing, administration, royalties and production taxes but exclude amortization, reclamation, capital expenditures and exploration costs.

RISK FACTORS

The profitability of the Company depends upon several identified factors including levels of production, commodity prices, costs of operation, financing costs, the successful development and integration of Company assets and the risks associated with mining activities. Profitability will further vary with discretionary expenditures such as investments in technology, exploration and mine development. The Company operates in an international marketplace and incurs exposure to risks inherent in a multi-jurisdictional business environment including political risks, varying tax regimes, country specific employment legislation and currency exchange fluctuation. The Company presents and updates in its public filings risk factors that it considers relevant and material to its business at the time of filing. The Company seeks to minimize its exposure to these factors by implementing insurance and risk management programs, monitoring debt levels and interest costs, and maintaining employment and social policies consistent with sustaining a trained and stable workforce.

Reclamation and Environmental Risks

The Company takes care to maintain compliance with the regulations prevalent in the countries within which it has activities. Concern for the environment has spawned several regulations with regard to mining in various countries. The Company believes that its environmental programs, developed internally in conjunction with local advisors, not only complies with but in some cases exceeds prevailing regulations. The Company accrues for its estimated future reclamation and remediation liability over the life of its mines, while costs relating to ongoing site restoration are expensed when incurred. The Company``s estimate of its ultimate reclamation liability may vary from current estimates due to possible changes in laws and regulations and changes in costs estimated. The Company will accrue additional liabilities for further reclamation costs as and when evidence becomes available indicating that its reclamation liability has changed.

About Crystallex

Crystallex International Corporation is a Canadian based gold producer with significant operations and exploration properties in Venezuela. Crystallex shares trade on the TSX and AMEX Exchanges. The Company``s principle asset is the Las Cristinas property in Bolivar State which is currently under development. Other producing assets include the Tomi Mine, the La Victoria Mine and the Revemin Mill.

For Further Information: Investor Relations Contact: A. Richard Marshall, VP at [phone] Visit us on the Internet: http://www.crystallex.com/ Email us at: [e-mail]

NOTE: This may include certain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the United States Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included in this presentation, including, without limitation, statements regarding potential mineralization and reserves, exploration results, and future plans and objectives of Crystallex, are forward-looking statements that involve various risks and uncertainties. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the Company``s expectations are disclosed under the heading "Risk Factors" and elsewhere in documents, including but not limited to its annual information form ("AIF") and its annual report on Form 20-F, filed from time to time with the Canadian provincial securities regulators, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"), and other regulatory authorities.

The Toronto Stock Exchange has not reviewed this release and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.

Crystallex International Corporation

© PR Newswire 25.11.2003

[konradi]

...falls ich mittlerweile nicht der Letzte bin, der noch KRY im Depot hat:

http://www.crystallex.com/pdf/LCExecutiveSummary.pdf

.

[hpoth]

# 15
Darauf sind die ja gleich 2 cent hoch gegangen, war wohl eine größere Position?
gruß hpoth

[hpoth]

Sorry, gehöhrte hier nicht rein, habe mich vertan.Guten Abend hpoth

[konradi]

hmm ...


[IMG]http://ichart.yahoo.com/w?s=KRY[IMG]



CRYSTALLEX ANNOUNCES CVG APPROVAL OF LAS CRISTINAS FEASIBILITY STUDY - Company now anticipates the construction phase of the project


For Immediate Release


TORONTO, March 8, 2004 - Crystallex International Corporation (KRY on TSX and Amex) announced today the approval by the Corporacion Venezolana de Guayana ("CVG") of Crystallex`s full Feasibility Study for the development of the Las Cristinas mining properties in Bolivar State, Venezuela. On September 17, 2002, Crystallex entered into a mining operation agreement with the CVG which granted to Crystallex the exclusive right to fully develop and exploit the significant gold reserves and resources at Las Cristinas. Mine Development Associates of Reno, Nevada, estimated in the Feasibility Study that proven and probable reserves amounted to approximately 10.2 million ounces (246 million tonnes at 1.29 g/t) based on measured and indicated resources of some 15.3 million ounces (439 million tonnes at 1.09 g/t) inclusive of the 10.2 million ounces of reserves, while inferred resources were estimated at approximately 6.1 million ounces (208 million tonnes @ 0.91 g/t). The full Feasibility Study, prepared by SNC-Lavalin Engineers & Constructors, was delivered to the CVG on September 10, 2003 by Crystallex, and since that time, Crystallex has worked closely with the CVG to obtain final approval. The Feasibility Study addresses and confirms the economic and technical viability of the Las Cristinas Project and provides the foundation for construction and operating plans.

"The approval by the CVG is a major milestone in the development of the Las Cristinas properties," said Todd Bruce, President and CEO of Crystallex. "We expect that the formal granting of our Engineering, Procurement and Construction Management ("EPCM") contract for Cristinas will very quickly follow the CVG approval. Our Chief Operating Officer, Dr. Ken Thomas, and his team have been working with EPCM candidates for several months in anticipation of this approval to ensure that we proceed as quickly as possible." Mr. Bruce also acknowledged the dedicated efforts of CVG representatives in finalizing the approval. "We enjoy an excellent working relationship with our partner, the CVG, and this relationship will stand us in good stead as we proceed through the permitting and construction stages of the project. We look forward to bringing long awaited investment and employment opportunities to the people of Bolivar State and Venezuela. I would like to especially acknowledge the leadership of General Francisco Rangel Gomez throughout the entire process and thank John Madero, Vice President of Mining, and the CVG senior staff for their professionalism, support and guidance during this critical period."

General Rangel Gomez confirmed the approval and commented: "The CVG is very pleased to announce the approval of the Crystallex Feasibility Study for the Las Cristinas Project. We look forward with great anticipation to the start of gold production in early 2006 and all of the associated benefits that will be generated for the local community, Bolivar State and the Republic through the jobs created, social benefits and royalties and taxes paid to the CVG and the Republic."
The Feasibility Study clearly distinguishes Las Cristinas as a premier gold deposit that can be economically developed and operated by conventional mining and gold processing technology. The reserves delineated by the Feasibility Study transform Crystallex into the fifth largest North American based gold company in terms of reserves.

Highlights of the approved Feasibility Study include:

· Proven & Probable Reserves: 246 million tonnes at 1.29 g/t (10.2 million ounces) using a gold price of US$325/oz
· Measured & Indicated Resources including reserves: 439 million tonnes at 1.09 g/t (15.3 million ounces)
· Additional Inferred Resources: 208 million tonnes @ 0.91 g/t (6.1 million ounces)
· Low Strip Ratio of 1.34:1 (Less than 1:1 in the first five years)
· Expected metallurgical recovery of 89%
· Deposit open at depth
· Other mineralized zones not yet drilled

Reserves and Resources calculated in accordance with Canadian NI 43-101

Dr. Thomas added: "Once we have awarded the EPCM contract, Crystallex intends to move forward quickly to get final approval for our Environmental Impact Study ("EIS") report and, in conjunction with the CVG, to secure the Land Use Permit and the Permit to Impact the Environment. The Company has also initiated an internal study to investigate higher mining rate alternatives and possible expansion scenarios to the 20,000 tonnes per day operation outlined in the Feasibility Study. Crystallex will also shortly begin a drill program to test other mineralized zones within the Las Cristinas properties, including the zone below the US$325 gold pit shell as described in the Feasibility Study. The intention of the latter program is for in-fill drilling to increase the density of drilling in this area in order to upgrade current inferred resources into measured and indicated resources which in turn can be converted into proven and probable reserves." Dr. Thomas further confirmed that Crystallex had completed and exceeded its contractual obligations to advance social programs with new water treatment facilities, sewerage systems, medical clinic expansions, housing and road improvements having been provided for the local community.

About Crystallex
Crystallex International Corporation is a Canadian based gold producer with significant operations and exploration properties in Venezuela. The Company`s principal asset is the Las Cristinas property in Bolivar State which is currently under development. Other key assets include the Tomi Mine, the La Victoria Mine and the Revemin Mill. Crystallex shares trade on the TSX and AMEX Exchanges.

For Further Information:
Investor Relations Contact: A. Richard Marshall, VP at [phone]
Visit us on the Internet: http://www.crystallex.com
Email us at: [e-mail]

[konradi]

sorry -

[konradi]

.


01.04.2004
Crystallex spekulativ - Empfehlung der "Wirtschaftswoche"



Die Experten der "Wirtschaftswoche" sehen die Crystallex-Aktie (ISIN CA22942F1018/ WKN 890729) als spekulative Empfehlung.

In Las Cristinas in der venezolanischen Provinz Bolivar liege eines der größten noch unerschlossenen Goldvorkommen der Welt. Unabhängige Gutachter würden die Goldressourcen der Lagerstätte auf 15,3 Mio. Unzen schätzen, wovon sich mit heutiger Technik 10,2 Mio. Unzen wirtschaftlich fördern lassen würden. Bei einem Goldpreis von 325 Dollar je Unze, würden die Reserven von Las Cristinas bei einer anfänglichen Jahresfördermenge von ca. 270.000 Unzen einen Produktionszeitraum von 34 Jahren abdecken. Das exklusive Recht das Gold zu fördern, sichere sich der kanadische Goldförderer Crystallex.

Dies sei ein Meilenstein für das Unternehmen, das damit nach Reserven zum fünftgrößten Goldunternehmen in Nordamerika avanciere. Der Bau der Mine starte im Sommer, die Goldproduktion solle Anfang 2006 anlaufen. Der Konzern fördere bereits Gold in Venezuela und pflege vor Ort gute Beziehungen zu Behörden und Bevölkerung. Crystallex habe eine Auszeichnung für sein vorbildliches soziales Engagement erhalten.

Im Management würden erfahrene Goldleute sitzen. So z. B. der seit September 2003 amtierende Vorstandschef Todd Bruce. Er sei zuvor Mitglied im Topmanagement von Iamgold gewesen. Ken Thomas sowie drei weitere erst kürzlich zugestoßene Manager hätten zuvor leitende Positionen bei dem kanadischen Branchengiganten Barrick Gold innegehabt. Ihr Wechsel von einem etablierten Goldkonzern zu einem jungen Goldunternehmen sei ein Hinweis, dass in Las Cristianas keine vergoldeten Luftschlösser entstünden.

Auch die Börse setze auf dieses Projekt und habe auf die angekündigte Kapitalerhöhung zur Finanzierung des Projekts mit einem Kursfeuerwerk reagiert. Zudem dürften die großen Goldkonzerne inzwischen ein Auge auf den Newcomer geworfen haben.

Auf Jahressicht lasse sich aus einem Aufwärtstrend ein maximales Kursziel von ca. sechs Dollar ermitteln. Die Experten der "Wirtschaftswoche" empfehlen die Aktie von Crystallex spekulativ zu kaufen.

[hpoth]

Ja wo ist er denn explotiert? gestern gings abwärts $ 2.83 war ja schon viel höher der Kurs.
mfg hpoth

[konradi]

hpoth, der sich selbstaktualisierende chart unten zeigt nicht mehr den 01.04. an ... und zudem brauchen wir sowieso Geduld, Geduld, Geduld ... Gruß K.

[hpoth]

#339
Ja wir brauchen die drei G´s, Geduld, Geld und Glück aber vorallem Geduld.
Wünsche Dir Frohe Ostern.
mfg hpoth