Annual reports filed by certain Canadian issuers pursuant to Section 15(d) and Rule 15d-4

Financial instruments

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Financial instruments
12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2012
Investments, All Other Investments [Abstract]  
Financial instruments
14. Financial instruments

 

The Company’s financial instruments consist of cash and cash equivalents, short-term investments, marketable securities, amounts receivable, restricted cash, deposits, accounts payable and notes payable. The Company is exposed to risks related to changes in foreign currency exchange rates, interest rates and management of cash and cash equivalents and short-term investments. See the table in note 3 for the composition of the Company’s cash and cash equivalents and short-term investments.

 

Credit risk

 

Financial instruments that potentially subject the Company to concentrations of credit risk consist of cash and cash equivalents, short-term investments, deposits and restricted cash. These assets consist of Canadian dollar and U.S. dollar denominated guaranteed investment certificates, certificates of deposits, money market accounts and demand deposits. They bear interest at annual rates ranging from 0.25% to 1.8% and mature at various dates up to September 4, 2013. These instruments are maintained at financial institutions in Canada and the United States. Of the amount held on deposit, approximately $0.9 million is covered by the Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Securities Investor Protection Corporationor the United States Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. Another $5.2 million is guaranteed by a Canadian provincial government leaving approximately $15.2 million at risk at December 31, 2012 should the financial institutions with which these amounts are invested be rendered insolvent. The Company does not consider any of its financial assets to be impaired as of December 31, 2012.

 

Liquidity risk

 

Liquidity risk is the risk that the Company will not be able to meet its financial obligations as they come due.

 

As at December 31, 2012, the Company’s financial liabilities consisted of trade accounts payable and accrued trade and payroll liabilities of $2.1 million which are due within normal trade terms of generally 30 to 60 days. In addition, the Company has $0.1 million due within one year as the current portion of notes payable.

 

The Company manages liquidity risk through regular cash flow forecasting of cash requirements to fund its exploration and development projects and operating costs. Currently, the Company is in the process of preparing its annual business plan, budget and cash forecast, which will include the construction, development and start-up of the Lost Creek Project as well as the estimated costs to complete the acquisition of the Pathfinder Mines Corporation. Additional funding will be required in order to achieve production at Lost Creek and complete the acquisition of the Pathfinder Mines Corporation. The Company is actively pursuing debt financing with several financial sources, including the State of Wyoming’s Industrial Development Bond financing program, to mitigate this risk. While the Company maintains a well-funded treasury, the debt instruments being considered would provide additional flexibility to advance the Pathfinder acquisition and pursue other prospective development and acquisition opportunities.

  

Market risk

 

Market risk is the risk to the Company of adverse financial impact due to changes in the fair value or future cash flows of financial instruments as a result of fluctuations in interest rates and foreign currency exchange rates. Market risk arises as a result of the Company incurring a significant portion of its expenditures and a significant portion of its cash equivalents and short-term investments in U.S. dollars, and holding cash equivalents and short-term investments which earn interest.

 

Interest rate risk

 

Financial instruments that expose the Company to interest rate risk are its cash equivalents, short-term investments, deposits and restricted cash. The Company’s objectives for managing its cash and cash equivalents are to maintain sufficient funds on hand at all times to meet day to day requirements and to place any amounts which are considered in excess of day to day requirements on short-term deposit with the Company's financial institutions so that they earn interest. When placing amounts of cash and cash equivalents on short-term deposit, the Company only uses financial institutions chosen by the Company for financial stability (measured by independent rating services and reviews of the entity’s financial statements, where appropriate) and approved by the Treasury and Investment Committee of the Board of Directors.

 

Currency risk

 

The Company incurs expenses and expenditures in Canada and the United States and is exposed to risk from changes in foreign currency rates. In addition, the Company holds financial assets and liabilities in Canadian and U.S. dollars. The Company does not utilize any financial instruments or cash management policies to mitigate the risks arising from changes in foreign currency rates.

 

At December 31, 2012, the Company had cash and cash equivalents, short-term investments, deposits and restricted cash of approximately US$7.5 million (US$18.9 million as at December 31, 2011) and had accounts payable, accrued liabilities and notes payable of US$2.7 million (US$0.9 million as at December 31, 2011) which were denominated in U.S. dollars.

 

Sensitivity analysis

 

The Company has completed a sensitivity analysis to estimate the impact that a change in foreign exchange rates would have on the net loss of the Company, based on the Company’s net U.S. dollar denominated assets and liabilities at period end. This sensitivity analysis assumes that changes in market interest rates do not cause a change in foreign exchange rates. This sensitivity analysis shows that a change of +/- 10% in U.S. dollar foreign exchange rate would have a +/- $0.4 million impact on net loss for the year ended December 31, 2012. This impact is primarily as a result of the Company having cash and investment balances denominated in U.S. dollars and U.S. dollar denominated trade payables. The financial position of the Company may vary at the time that a change in exchange rates occurs causing the impact on the Company’s results to differ from that shown above.

 

The Company has also completed a sensitivity analysis to estimate the impact that a change in interest rates would have on the net loss of the Company. This sensitivity analysis assumes that changes in market foreign exchange rates do not cause a change in interest rates. This sensitivity analysis shows that a change of +/- 100 basis points in interest rate would have a +/- $0.2 million impact on net loss for the year ended December 31, 2012. This impact is primarily as a result of the Company having cash and short-term investments invested in interest bearing accounts. The financial position of the Company may vary at the time that a change in interest rates occurs causing the impact on the Company’s results to differ from that shown above.