XMFSinchiruna (28.54)

If Mining Were Easy, They'd Call it "Scooping"

February 23, 2012 – Comments (1) | RELATED TICKERS: AEM

Borrowing a phrase from the fishing industry, I wanted to bring attention to the very tough road that Agnico-Eagle Mines has had to walk in its still elusive efforts to bring annual production past the 1 million ounce mark.

Sean Boyd and his team are very well regarded within the industry as an extremely professional and high-quality outfit, so Agnico's story offers a poignant reminder that sometimes -- even when high-quality management is paired with high-quality assets -- challenges and setbacks can arise to force revisions to even the best laid plans.

After all, if mining were easy, they'd call it "scooping". :)

http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2012/02/23/if-mining-were-easy-theyd-call-it-scooping.aspx

I don't want to suggest that setbacks on the scale that Agnico has suffered are common. Setbacks themselves are commonplace, of course, but rarely to we encounter a strong of setbacks as sustained and as major as those encountered here. What agnico has suffered has been an unusual string of rotten misfortune. I just want investors to recognize the difference between a hard-luck story and a mismanaged story, because Agnico has done the best it possibly could have with a series of very unfortunate challenges. Sometimes in mining, just as in fishing, running a tight ship doesn't guarantee the fish will bite.