Silver Bow Mining tolls capitalism's big bell as exploration begins

On Friday morning, Travis Naugle, chairman and CEO of Silver Bow Mining, along with J.P. Gallagher, chief executive of Butte-Silver Bow County, and Johnny MacLean, Ph.D., chancellor at Montana Tech, were among those gathered to ring the New York Stock Exchange's opening bell.

The three men and others on the podium grinned and applauded as the brief and wordless ritual unfolded in New York City. MacLean had little time in the Big Apple because Montana Tech graduations loomed.

Silver Bow Mining had announced Monday that surface drilling has started at the company’s exploration project near Walkerville in the Butte Mining District.

That disclosure followed on the heels of a May 1 Silver Bow Mining press release announcing the company had closed its initial public offering of common shares, raising nearly $60 million in gross proceeds. The company is listed on the New York Stock Exchange American as SBMT.

Naugle was quoted in a company press release.

“Ringing the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange is an important moment for our company and our stakeholders,” he said. “Our recent listing represents a key step in building our public company profile and broadening awareness of Silver Bow Mining as we advance our exploration activities in Butte, Montana.”

The NYSE observes, “Trading floor bells are more than just a colorful tradition. They are critical to the orderly functioning of the marketplace, assuring that no trades take place before the opening or after the close.”

The exchange added, “The rhythmic strikes of the NYSE’s brass podium bell have become synonymous with the real-time beat of capitalism, signaling the start and close of trading at the world’s largest stock exchange.”

Silver Bow Mining has said it hopes to mix surface drilling and underground exploration to characterize roughly the same ore body as predecessor Butte Blackjack for possible commercial mining of zinc, silver, gold, lead and copper.

Current work can proceed under an existing authorized exploration license assigned to Silver Bow Mining from Butte Blackjack, according to the Montana Department of Environmental Quality.

DEQ issued a final environmental assessment in March for a license amendment for exploration, but Silver Bow Mining has not yet posted the required reclamation bond for that work, DEQ said.

Up to seven new drill pads would be constructed. Four to 10 holes would be drilled per pad, with a total of up to 53 drill holes and a maximum drill depth of 7,000 feet.

Underground operations would include the excavation of one new portal, the Rainbow Decline, and its sloping underground tunnel would travel about 6,000 feet laterally to connect with the Lexington Mine tunnel.

Blackjack changed its name more than a year ago to Silver Bow Mining Corp. Silver Bow Mining, the parent company, is based in British Columbia but SBM Montana has an office in Butte.

Project Manager John Marjerison is a Butte native whose father was an engineer for the Berkeley Pit and whose grandfather labored underground.

As envisioned, the work would occur on private lands already disturbed by historic mining. A January filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission acknowledges that the results of the exploration would not necessarily support commercial mining and that SBM Montana has no history of mineral production.

Naugle has said the Butte project “represents a unique opportunity to strengthen America’s critical mineral supply chains while unlocking remaining value from one of the highest-grade silver equivalent deposits in one of the world’s most prolific mining districts.”

Naugle is a licensed professional engineer in Montana, has an MBA from the University of Chicago and a bachelor’s degree in mining engineering from Montana Tech.

DEQ has said Silver Bow Mining expects to complete the exploration work no later than Dec. 31, 2029, and to finish reclamation within two years of that date.