Chapter 207: This Is a Breaking News Bombshell!
Joseph casually flipped through the documents and immediately had an idea. "I'll contact a friend who's an expert in the mining sector. He'll be able to give us an accurate interpretation of this story."
Then he patted Elvin on the shoulder. "Well done, Elvin! This story is going to rock the mining world—and the financial markets!"
"I'm guessing BHP still doesn't even know that the Taluge Copper-Gold Project has turned out to be a world-class deposit," Elvin said with a mischievous grin. "When they see the headlines, they'll be shocked."
"We need to move quickly and schedule more interviews," Joseph said, inspired by Elvin's energy. "We can break this story in phases. First, we run the rags-to-riches tale: a Chinese man buys a prospecting license from BHP and strikes gold—literally. Then, in phase two, we interview BHP executives to hear their side. Let the public see the embarrassment of a corporate giant. After that, we'll follow up by profiling the Chinese team and tracking the project's progress."
"Understood. I'll handle the follow-up on my end."
"I'll bring in a geologist to interpret the geological and economic value of this project."
They moved fast.
That's how news worked—it was all about being first. Even half a step late and the scoop would belong to someone else.
The expert they invited was Bill—a veteran of over thirty years in Canada's exploration industry, a key member of the Canadian Prospectors and Developers Association, and a founding figure of the Ontario Association of Professional Geologists.
After receiving Joseph's invitation, Bill reviewed the data on the Taluge Copper-Gold Project in Mengguo.
The more he read, the more stunned he became. His expressions grew more intense until finally, he looked up and asked, "Are you certain these materials are authentic?"
"Absolutely. The documents were provided by the Mengguo government," Elvin said confidently. "I also verified the assay results with the lab that analyzed the samples. Everything checks out."
"I can say this without exaggeration: this is the greatest mineral discovery of the last thirty years," Bill said.
As a professional geologist, he understood immediately what those numbers meant. "This is a world-class mine. It will disrupt the entire global copper supply chain."
Elvin and Joseph had anticipated this reaction—but hearing it from an expert confirmed their instincts.
Elvin asked, "So from a deeper perspective, what does the discovery of this copper deposit imply?"
"Professionally speaking, Taluge is a porphyry-type deposit. The discovery of such a large system will trigger a new wave of exploration targeting similar deposits," Bill said, giving the project the highest possible praise. "Porphyry copper will be the hottest term in exploration over the next few decades."
Elvin then deliberately shifted the focus. "And what does it mean that it was a Chinese team who found this world-class deposit?"
Bill was slightly taken aback. "This was discovered by a Chinese team?"
"Yes, by a young man from China. I hear he's only in his twenties."
"I haven't interacted with many Chinese geologists. From what I've seen, they usually work domestically. In my mind, China's been a fairly closed country when it comes to outbound exploration," Bill said thoughtfully. "But from what you're telling me, it seems they're ready to step onto the global stage."
Joseph jumped in. "Can you explain the economic implications?"
"Twenty-three million tons of copper, and high-grade copper at that…" Bill paused for a moment to organize his thoughts. "This deposit has an economic value exceeding $100 billion USD. If it's successfully mined, it could become the cornerstone of Mengguo's economy. It might even make up half of their national GDP. This could transform Mengguo from an agricultural country into an industrial economy."
Elvin furiously took notes. This quote alone would make headlines.
Bill wasn't done. "This discovery is going to shift the global copper landscape. Until now, the market was dominated by three giants: Chile's national copper company, the Freeport-McMoRan group from the U.S., and BHP. Now, a new Chinese company is about to join their ranks."
"Assuming they can actually extract the copper," he added as a caveat.
"This license was purchased by the Chinese company from BHP," Elvin interjected.
"What?" Bill's eyes widened. "BHP sold this?"
"Yes. Just a few months ago. They sold the license for $8 million. At the time, no one had confirmed the scale of the deposit," Elvin said. "You could say the Chinese got lucky—or that BHP misjudged the site."
"That was a colossal mistake on BHP's part," Bill said bluntly. "The global copper concentrate market is projected to face sustained supply shortages over the next decade. Mines are the fulcrum of supply. Most major producers are scrambling to boost capacity precisely because copper prices are expected to climb. And yet BHP goes and sells a future-tier deposit for just $8 million?"
"They could still buy it back. BHP isn't short on cash," Elvin said.
"Unless the contract includes a buyback clause, I doubt that's likely."
"If it does, then at least that shows they didn't completely lose their minds," Bill nodded.
Still, it was clear from their tone that they weren't happy the license had fallen into the hands of a Chinese firm. It felt like an opportunity lost to a rival.
After this conversation, Elvin's mind was spinning with angles for his article.
That very night, he wrote the feature, polished it, and submitted it to Joseph for approval.
The moment the paper came off the presses, Elvin booked a flight and flew straight to Australia.
He slept briefly on the plane and woke up reinvigorated, ready for the next stage.
He had scheduled an interview with Miles, BHP's Director of Exploration.
Miles had no idea why The Financial Post was suddenly so interested in a forgotten exploration license. Still, it was a major newspaper, and media coverage was always welcome.
They met at a café, where soft music played in the background.
After a brief round of small talk, Elvin placed a voice recorder on the table and opened his notebook.
"Mr. Miles, may I ask—was the Taluge Copper-Gold license in Mengguo originally owned by BHP?"
"Yes, until June of this year, that license was under BHP," Miles replied. "But it now belongs to a Chinese company. Is there something wrong with the license?"
"No, not at all," Elvin said, then continued, "Did your contract include a buyback clause?"
"No, it didn't," Miles said, his voice flat.
"What prompted BHP to sell the license?" Elvin asked.
"It was part of an internal strategic shift. We decided to focus exploration efforts elsewhere."
"Was the decision to sell made by you personally, or higher management?"
"A license like that is part of our group's core assets—even if the sale price was modest, final approval came from the executive team, including our CEO."
"Were you fully aware of the license's potential value when you sold it?"
Miles fell silent.
At this point, he was starting to feel something was off.
Why would The Financial Post care so much about a backwater license in a little-known country?
Something was clearly going on.
He stared at Elvin for a long moment, trying to read him.
"Why exactly are you interested in the Taluge license?"
"Because this is a major news story."
Elvin could tell that Miles had no idea what had happened since the sale. The discovery hadn't reached Australia yet.
He didn't want to toy with the man. He reached into his bag and pulled out the latest issue of The Financial Post. The ink was still slightly wet.
"Here. We ran the story today."
Miles took the paper with curiosity. The bold headline jumped out:
BHP Misses Out on World-Class Copper-Gold Mine — Losses Estimated at Over $100 Billion USD!
Those words hit like a sledgehammer.
He couldn't look away.
Twenty-three million tons of copper…
Seven hundred sixty tons of gold…
Five thousand four hundred tons of silver…
And molybdenum, too.
Each figure stabbed like a dagger into Miles's chest.
He couldn't breathe.
A heavy cloud settled over him. He sat, stunned, for a long time.
When he finally looked up, his eyes were bloodshot.
"Is this true?"
"Yes," Elvin said softly. "All of our reports are verified and fact-checked."
"But those numbers are… hard to believe."
"I'm not a geologist, so I had the same doubts," Elvin admitted. "But the data is real. There's no exaggeration here."
"Can I… take the newspaper with me?" Miles asked. He could barely sit still.
This wasn't just a headline—it was an earthquake.
No one at BHP had seen it yet.
If the article's contents were true, it would mean catastrophe for the company's leadership.
When shareholders found out that an asset worth billions had been sold for a mere eight million…
They would demand blood.
Internally, it would be considered a failure of epic proportions.
"Of course. We've printed many copies. If you'd like more, I can arrange to have them sent."
Elvin noticed that Miles looked pale and shaken. "Would you prefer we reschedule the rest of the interview?"
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