David Lotan Shows You How to Make Junior Mining Millions: Aurion & Fox River Buyouts Explained
Mining Stock EducationShow Notes
In this episode of Mining Stock Education, host Bill Powers sits down with pro resource investor and returning guest David Lotan. David buys nearly all his junior resource stocks in the open market and employs a process any retail investor can follow. You don’t need to be an accredited investor to make millions in mining stocks. David proves it!
David shared: "Especially in the last decade, the real bargains are in the open market. It's, to me, far more valuable to find little companies trading for peanuts where management just is missing one of those ingredients. If you can grab a hold of that capital structure before it's ruined, and if management is well-intended and can follow an investor-friendly pathway, you can get fantastic outcomes."
David shares how he went from just being an investor in Aurion Resources and Fox River Resources to becoming the chairman of both as a leading shareholder. The companies were recently independently bought out for just shy of C$600M total. He explains how the sales came about and shares a behind-the-scenes look into how M&A happens in junior mining. Listen to be educated and inspired in your junior mining journey!
00:00 Intro 01:26 Why Juniors Got Cheap 03:02 Aurion Early Crisis 05:20 Chairman and Financing 05:55 Exit Expectations 09:48 Agnico Buyout Details 10:30 Investor Alignment 12:52 Why Sale Took Years 15:35 Rupert Conflict Timeline 20:35 Market Forces Drive M&A 23:42 Strategy During Skirmish 29:43 Open Market Buying 30:40 Cash Deal and Trust 32:26 Trust and Win-Win 41:05 Fox River Buyout 45:39 Warrants and Bargains 49:00 Tenaz Energy Win
Sign up for our free newsletter and receive interview transcripts, stock profiles and investment ideas: http://eepurl.com/cHxJ39
Mining Stock Education offers informational content based on available data but it does not constitute investment, tax, or legal advice. It may not be appropriate for all situations or objectives. Readers and listeners should seek professional advice, make independent investigations and assessments before investing. MSE does not guarantee the accuracy or completeness of its content and should not be solely relied upon for investment decisions. MSE and its owner may hold financial interests in the companies discussed and can trade such securities without notice. MSE is biased towards its advertising sponsors which make this platform possible. MSE is not liable for representations, warranties, or omissions in its content. By accessing MSE content, users agree that MSE and its affiliates bear no liability related to the information provided or the investment decisions you make. Full disclaimer: https://www.miningstockeducation.com/disclaimer/
More from Mining Stock Education
Simon Catt is an Australian resource investor, investment banker, and the writer behind CattCalls.com. As a first time MSE guest, he talks about his early wins and painful losses that shaped how he invests in mining stocks today. Simon shares his rules for selling, and why he thinks this commodity super cycle has years left to run. Listen to the wisdom from this 40-year veteran of junior mining stocks!
David Erfle joins MSE for his monthly episode. David explains the pullback in gold and silver, what he heard at the Beaver Creek Precious Metals Summit, why he’s moving into discovery-stage explorers, the Roxmore Resource and SSR Mining deal, and whether the TSX Venture chart is signaling a top. Dave also explains the necessary project economics for him to buy a developer right now.
CEO Richard Osmond explains sponsor Element 29 Resources’ investment value proposition in this episode. Element 29 is a copper explorer in Peru, and its flagship Elida porphyry copper-molybdenum-silver project already has a 321 million tonne inferred resource. Richard says the goal is much bigger. The company wants to double the size of the pit and is targeting a tier-one deposit of more than 1 billion tonnes at about 0.5% copper equivalent, or roughly 5 million tonnes of contained copper. Element 29 is well funded to pursue that goal. It raised about $47 million in 2026, and with roughly $11 million in warrants coming due, it expects a budget of close to $60 million CAD to be spent over the coming years. Support comes from well-respected, strategic investors such as Randy Smallwood, George Brack, Ross Beaty, and Alex Gubbins.
Bill Powers and co-host Brian Leni sit down for their monthly Junior Mining Insights chat to discuss sector sentiment after the Metals Investor Forum and Beaver Creek Precious Metals Summit. Then they cover a range of topics: glossy direct-mail mining stock promotions, why investors should specialize, when management teams should step aside, name changes and rollbacks, short sellers, visible gold in press releases, and why site visits are becoming essential to Brian's process.
Returning guest Sultan Ameerali is a self-directed investor who has significantly multiplied his own capital in junior resource stocks since entering the sector almost a decade ago. Fresh off his second year at the invitation-only Beaver Creek Precious Metals Summit, Sultan shares how he approaches conferences to get real intel, how he uses AI as a "first-year analyst" without giving up human judgment, and the due diligence process behind his recent positions. This episode is less about hot picks and more about building a repeatable, operationalized process with real money at risk.