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The following table presents information about financial instruments recognized at fair value on a recurring
basis as of December 31, 2015 and 2014, and indicates the fair value hierarchy:
December 31, 2015
December 31, 2014
Level 1
Level 2
Total
Level 1
Level 2
Total
Assets
Cash and cash equivalents
$ 3,881
$ -
$ 3,881
$ 10,139 $ -
$ 10,139
Total financial assets
$ 3,881
$ -
$ 3,881
$ 10,139 $ -
$ 10,139
Liabilities
Accounts payable and accrued
liabilities
$ 909
$ -
$ 909
$ 1,098 $ -
$ 1,098
Asset retirement obligation
-
357
357
-
366
366
Total financial assets and
liabilities
$ 4,790
$ 357
$ 5,147
$ 11,237 $ 366
$ 11,603
4. MINERAL PROPERTIES
The amounts shown represent acquisition costs, and do not necessarily represent present or future values as
these are entirely dependent upon the economic recovery of future ore reserves. A summary of current property
interests is as follows:
Bear Lodge Property, Wyoming, USA
The Company, through our indirectly held, wholly owned subsidiary, Rare Element Resources, Inc., holds
a 100% interest in a group of unpatented mining claims and owns 634 acres (257 hectares) of fee property, together
which contain (1) the Bear Lodge REE Project that contains REE mineralization; and (2) the Sundance Gold Project
that contains gold mineralization. The property is situated in the Bear Lodge Mountains of Crook County, in
northeast Wyoming. These claims were, in part, acquired from Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc.
(“Freeport”) by way of a “Mineral Lease and Option for Deed.”
On June 1, 2006, Rare Element Resources, Inc. and Newmont North America Exploration Limited
(“Newmont”), a subsidiary of Newmont Mining Corporation, signed an agreement to establish a gold-exploration
venture on our Bear Lodge Property (the “Venture”). Under the agreement, Newmont had the right to earn a 65%
participating interest in the Bear Lodge Property, excluding any rights to the REE and uranium, but including rights
to gold and other metals, by spending $5,000 on property exploration.
On May 12, 2010, Newmont terminated the option and the Company retained its 100% interest in the
mining claims of the entire property. In addition, 327 contiguous claims wholly owned by Newmont outside the
Venture were transferred to the Company. In consideration for transferring these claims, Newmont was granted a
0.5% net smelter royalty (“NSR”) royalty, for precious and base metals only, on the claims transferred to the
Company by Newmont. The Company also assumed certain obligations to honor an arrangement between
Newmont and Bronco Creek Exploration Company, a wholly owned subsidiary of Eurasian Minerals Inc. (“Bronco
Creek”), on Newmont’s formerly wholly owned claims, pursuant to which Bronco Creek will continue to receive
minor payments and retain a 0.05% NSR royalty on these claims.
The Bear Lodge Property comprises 499 unpatented mining claims located on land administered by the
USFS and 634 acres (257 hectares) of fee property for a total of approximately 9,000 acres (3,642 hectares).