Set to Soar: record performance in 2006, coupled with the likely prospect of tripling gold production by 2009, has Agnico-Eagle flying high

摘要

During E&MJ's visit to Agnico-Eagle Mines' Quebec operations, one of the company's managers half-jokingly compared AEM's public image to a well-known description of waterfowl propulsion. "On top," he said, "a duck looks calm, serene and moves smoothly across the surface. Underwater, he's paddling like crazy." Substitute "underground" for "underwater," and the description becomes surprisingly apt for this Canadian gold producer. For many years a one-mine company known for its conservative strategy and decades-long string of dividend payments, Toronto, Ontario-based AEM has recently applied its extensive underground mining knowledge, bolstered by a healthy balance sheet and strong metal prices, to quickly and significantly expand its sphere of activity in Quebec's famous Cadillac-Bousquet mining district as well as internationally. AEM currently is developing three new mines in Quebec and another in Finland, has a USD26-million underground exploration program under way at its Pinos Altos gold property in Mexico and another exploration program at its Oijarvi prospect in Finland.