Mine Builder Bob Quartermain Still Sees Gold Higher and Says Even He Will Buy Physical Again
Robert Quartermain has been building gold mines since the metal traded at 140 dollars an ounce. On a day when gold fell back below 4,000, the veteran still calls himself bullish. Most of his own net worth is tied to gold, and he says the long term case has not changed.
“We were very committed to discipline in this sector. When the price of gold was 300 an ounce, we were not making huge profits. The one thing we see, even at this price just before 4,000, is that mining companies are returning value to shareholders. Because many of the costs when looking at the sector are still around 1,600 to 2,000, we have discipline in this sector.”
Quartermain started in the business in 1976. He has watched the metal swing through every cycle. Today’s drop, he argues, looks more like a liquidity squeeze and short covering in a market that is still relatively small than a change in the fundamentals.
“The key to the basics is to continue buying physical gold. We are still seeing central banks buying, and we are still seeing gold flowing into China.”
He added that there comes a point even for someone in his position. “There’s a point where even I start buying physical gold back again.”
The same discipline that keeps producers profitable at current prices also shapes how Dakota Gold models its own projects. The company uses conservative gold prices well below the market for its feasibility work, building in a large safety margin so the mine remains profitable even after corrections.
Quartermain also spoke about critical minerals and military supply chains. North America’s real gap, he says, is refining capacity rather than mining. China spent two decades building the choke points for rare earths and other materials. Gold itself is essential in phones, servers, and electronics because it does not spark, yet it does not appear on NATO’s short list of defense critical materials simply because it is more widely available.
“This is the first time in my career that I have heard politicians discuss our need for these minerals and our desire to produce them locally.”
In South Dakota, near the historic Homestake district that once produced more than 40 million ounces, Quartermain’s team is advancing the Richmond Hill project on private land with a target of first production in 2029. The state has a long mining history and a supportive permitting environment. He sees the project as another example of returning value to shareholders while the broader gold thesis remains intact.
After fifty years in the industry, Quartermain’s view is unchanged. Corrections happen. Liquidity can knock prices lower in the short term. The physical demand from central banks and from China continues. Producers that stay disciplined keep making money. And the metal he has built his career and his wealth around still has the long term fundamentals on its side.
