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Mineral Properties | 12 Months Ended
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Dec. 31, 2014
Mineral Properties [Abstract] |
Mineral Properties | 5. Mineral Properties
|  | At December 31, 2014 |  | At December 31, 2013
Mt. Todd, Australia | $ | 2,146 | $ | 2,146
Guadalupe de los Reyes, Mexico |  | 2,224 |  | 2,752
Los Cardones, Mexico |  | 1,036 |  | 1,536
Long Valley, United States |  | - |  | 750
| $ | 5,406 | $ | 7,184
Guadalupe de los Reyes During January 2014, we announced that we signed a non-binding letter of intent (the “LOI”) to option our interest in the Guadalupe de los Reyes gold/silver project in Sinaloa, Mexico (the “Guadalupe de los Reyes gold/silver project”) to Cangold Limited (“Cangold”). The LOI provided that a non-refundable $50 payment be made during January 2014 to Vista for which Cangold was given a 90 day period of exclusivity (the “Exclusivity Period”) to complete due diligence and negotiate and enter into a definitive option agreement with Vista (the “Option Agreement”). During April 2014, Minera Gold Stake S.A. de C.V. (“MGS”), Vista’s wholly-owned subsidiary, entered into the Option Agreement to option its interest in the Guadalupe de los Reyes gold/silver project to Cangold. Pursuant to the terms of the Option Agreement, Vista has granted Cangold the right to earn a 70% interest in the Guadalupe de los Reyes gold/silver project by:
| · |  | making payments totaling $5,000 in five payments over a three-year period, with payments totaling $1,000 in the first year (comprised of $50 0 received in 2014 and $500 received in February 2015 (postponed from January 2015)), $1,500 in the second year and $2,500 in the third year;
| · |  | operating the Guadalupe de los Reyes gold/silver project maintaining the concessions comprising the Guadalupe de los Reyes gold/silver project in good standing; and
| · |  | fulfilling all of the obligations of MGS to the Ejido La Tasajera (the ”Ejido”) as set out in the temporary occupation contract between MGS and the Ejido.
The Option Agreement provides that all cash payments are non-refundable and optional to Cangold, and in the event Cangold fails to pay any of the required amounts on the scheduled dates or fails to comply with its other obligations, the Option Agreement will terminate and Cangold will have no interest in the Guadalupe de los Reyes gold/silver project. Provided it is not in breach of the Option Agreement, Cangold may at its discretion advance the above payment schedule and exercise the initial option for a 70% interest in the Guadalupe de los Reyes gold/silver project any time during the three-year period. Subject to Cangold earning a 70% interest in the Guadalupe de los Reyes gold/silver project, MGS has granted Cangold the option to earn the remaining 30% interest in the Guadalupe de los Reyes gold/silver project, by notifying MGS of a production decision no later than the tenth anniversary of exercising the first option and by making a cash payment to Vista of $3,000 plus an additional cash payment based on a formula that includes the growth, if any, in estimated National Instrument 43-101 – Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects compliant Measured and Indicated mineral resources of the Guadalupe de los Reyes gold/silver project, and the then prevailing spot gold price (“Escalator Payment”). Should Cangold determine not to put the Guadalupe de los Reyes gold/silver project into production, the Option Agreement provides MGS with the right to buy back Cangold’s 70% interest in the Guadalupe de los Reyes gold/silver project for a cash payment of $5,000 plus the Escalator Payment described above. If MGS does not exercise its buyback option, MGS will still retain a right of first refusal should Cangold elect to sell its 70% interest in the Guadalupe de los Reyes gold/silver project to a third party. Los Cardones During October 2013, we sold our 100% debt and equity participation in the Los Cardones gold project located in Baja California Sur, Mexico (“Los Cardones Sale”) to Invecture and RPG Structrued Finance S.a.R.L. (the “Purchasers”) for a total of $13,000 ($7,000 of which was paid in October 2013 and $6,000 was payable January 2014 (the “Subsequent Payment”) subject to the Purchasers’ option to elect to not make the Subsequent Payment). If the Purchasers elect to not make the Subsequent Payment, we would retain all payments already received and 100% of the Los Cardones gold project would be returned to us. In January 2014, the due date for the Subsequent Payment was extended to July 31, 2014 (the “First Extension”) for additional consideration of $250 payable on July 31, 2014. As a result of permitting delays, we and the Purchasers agreed to an additional extension of the due date of the Subsequent Payment to January 30, 2015 (the “Second Extension”) for additional consideration of $250. The Company received a cash payment of $500 comprising the aggregate consideration for the grant of the First Extension and the Second Extension during August 2014. In October 2014, Invecture announced that the Los Cardones gold project, had been suspended because the conditions for its development were not favorable at that time. Since making this announcement, there have been no apparent significant favorable changes to incentivize Invecture to lift the suspension. In January 2015 we agreed to amend the payment terms (the “Amendment”) of the acquisition of the Los Cardones gold project. Under the Amendment, t he Company received a payment of $3,000 cash from the Purchasers as full and final payment for 100% of the Company’s interest in the project. This will result in a realized gain of approximately $2,000 during 2015. Long V alley We acquired the Long Valley gold project in 2003. During 2014, we completed a review of the permitting process and probable impediments to developing the project, and concluded that the permitting process would consume an inordinate amount of our limited resources and time. Accordingly, we will not attempt to advance this project in the foreseeable future. As a result, an impairment amount equal to the $750 carrying value has been included in our Consolidated Statements of Income/(Loss) and Comprehensive Income/(Loss) for the year ended December 31, 2014.

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