Our Mission
To enhance and create shareholder value by:
- Efficient allocation of capital resources;
- Application of management’s core competencies and contact networks; and
- Focusing on opportunities related to continued urbanization and modernization of emerging economies, led by China
Our Strategy
Century’s strategic approach is multi-pronged including readying our substantial iron ore holdings for development when the iron ore market inevitably recovers in the long term. In addition, we are investing in new growth opportunities in non-ferrous mining and food industry, to further capitalize on the continued urbanization of emerging economies.
Century’s Strategic Advantages
- Strong balance sheet: The Company’s substantial corporate cash balance and working capital (September 2015: ~C$38 million) which is not tied to iron ore project development;
- Partnerships with Global Fortune 500 Chinese State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) WISCO and Minmetals;
- Capital market and M&A expertise with a proven track record of raising funds;
- Highly-skilled and experienced technical and business teams in the mining and food sectors; and
- Knowledge of and contact networks within China, the largest urbanizing emerging economy in the world and the prime market for commodities.
With a strong balance sheet and strategic partnerships, we are taking advantage of global supply rebalancing during this period of restructuring in the mining and metals industry, and positioning ourselves for the next growth cycle.
Iron Ore Strategy
Century has established a strong foothold in iron, with the discovery and development of multi-billion-tonne deposits, some of the largest in Canada. We have completed the feasibility study for our flagship Joyce Lake DSO Project, a preliminary economic assessment for our multi-billion-tonne taconite Full Moon Project and a first resource estimate for our Black Bird DSO Deposit. Together with the Duncan Lake Project also at the preliminary economic assessment stage, we are well positioned to deliver significant returns when the market inevitably recovers.
Century firmly believes that the commodities sector, including iron ore, will continue to play a key role in China’s growth, particularly with the establishment of the new Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and the expansion of the Chinese Yuan as a global currency. China’s US$21-trillion “One Belt One Road” project will drive long-term growth and greatly expand trade across the Eurasian continent. This momentum, combined with the ongoing support from our strategic partners, WISCO and Minmetals, will further strengthen the value proposition of our iron ore developments, potentially self-funding, in readiness for a pending recovery.
Non-ferrous Strategy
Having positioned ourselves for long-term success in the iron ore business, we have now turned our attention to undervalued high-quality mining and metal assets, which offer significant opportunities in the current market downturn. Through our extensive international networks and our own global search, we are examining various acquisition and investment opportunities in the non-ferrous sector, aligned with our strategy and investment criteria, in order to create sustainable value for shareholders.
Through this evaluation process, our internal team has created a database of hundreds of mining companies and their assets, incorporating a significant number of key and relevant data points for proper evaluation of potential acquisition targets. This database will give Century a competitive advantage in evaluating companies against their peers, allowing us to build partnerships aligned with our strategy and opening up value creation and growth opportunities.
To increase the scope and size of potential strategic acquisitions, Century has retained the largest bank in the world, the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), in Canada to advise us in identifying potential investors aligned with our strategy in the mining sector. With ICBC, Century has the support of one of the strongest financial players on the global stage.
Food Strategy
After a more than decade of accelerated economic growth and urbanization, China is moving from a fixed-asset-investment economy to a consumer-driven one. The country expects to continue its urbanization and increase its middle-class population in the medium to long term. This will massively increase the demand for safe, high-quality food products for decades to come.
China’s recently announced objectives of agricultural modernization and the abolition of China’s one-child policy will create an even more favourable business environment for the food industry. To capitalize on these positive developments and our strong networks and ties to the huge Chinese market through our long-term SOE strategic partnerships, we have created a new food business, Century Food Company Limited.
Century Food was launched in July 2015 with the successful conclusion of an exclusive distributorship agreement with Sunny Queen Pty Ltd. , one of Australia’s largest egg producers, to distribute Sunny Queen’s products in Hong Kong and Macau, China. Since then, Century Food has made good progress in securing customers and expanding the potential sourcing of other food and beverage products. Our ultimate objective is to capture a greater market share and expand growth in a market where an increasingly health-conscious population is avidly accessing high-quality food products.