Novagold on Monday said it’s preparing a full response to a scathing report from J Capital Research that accuses managers of the Vancouver-based explorer of “systematically” misleading investors about its proposed Alaska gold mine over the last 15 years.
J Capital, a company founded in China a decade ago which usually targets overvalued media and tech companies for short-selling, says the Donlin Gold project, which is 50-50 owned by Novagold and Barrick, “will never be built” and “in short, this is a stock promote, not a mining plan.”
Shares in Novagold (NYSE: AMERICAN, TSX: NG) are down 15% since the publication of the report and 25% from the all-time high hit little over a month ago, pushing the company’s market value to just under $3 billion.
Novagold says its formal response will be available within a week and calls the report a “catalogue of inaccuracies and falsehoods” and adds that it is “exploring exploring all of its legal options in various jurisdictions against J Capital Research and any other parties who may be complicit in any effort to manipulate Novagold’s share price.”
Novagold on defensive after short seller shreds its Alaska project