I am happy with this deal. I think it takes out a lot of the risk for ECU shareholders, in terms of improving the financial strength of the company and having the potential in-house to expand the Velardena operation to a level that is profitable and able to capitalize on the huge resource numbers. Also the combined resource from this merger will be huge, closing in on a billion ounces of silver. This is set up to become a powerhouse player with current production and strong growth potential. The merger will also take out the overhang of cheap paper in the stock, tighten the float, and put an end to the naked shorting issue when the transaction closes. Any phantom shares will have to be accounted for and covered, and that alone may put a big tailwind of buying into the market.

I am pissed off that ECU chose to announce this deal on a Friday, and the day before COMEX op-ex. I am not familiar with the exchange requirements and perhaps they had no option to delay over the weekend. Perhaps it was the decision by AUM to make the news announcement quickly. But we would have been much better off to wait IMO.

I bought 10,000 wrts today at 36 cents, which I consider to be a stupid cheap bargain. The wrts will be rolled over to become AUM wrts at the exact ratio of the merger transaction and this means I am getting a great bargain with leverage as this deal settles down.

I am not discourage by the market reaction today. The entire sector is selling off again, and some people will not understand the news. This is NOT a takeover. It is a MERGER. In fact, ECU shareholders end up with majority of ownership. We get a much stronger management team, access to cash, a tighter float, and the ability to control the development going forward without struggling to raise additional funding and blow up the share structure. We will have a huge resource base to support further development into the future, much faster news flow with 2 flagship assets in the pipeline, a US listing on the Amex, and the debt will be paid off.

Congratulations to ECU management. I am very happy today after this news. And the most important aspect to this deal is that Velardena will remain 100% owned by one company with the full control to manage the development process and pace of activity.

ECU is a paid advertiser on my website but my comments are entirely my own personal opinion.

cheers!

mike