(Business Edge columnist Gyle Konotopetz regularly profiles the top stock picks of some of Canada’s most accomplished investment pros.)

FEATURED PRO: John Ing is president of Toronto investment firm Maison Placements, which specializes in resource stocks.

Ing’s Perspective: “The stock market itself looks very toppy. The energy resource stocks are probably the exception with high energy (commodity) prices. Gold stocks also look good because of expectations of continued weakness in the U.S. dollar.”



First Star
* Centurion Energy International (CUX-TSX)
* Recent Price: $3.18.
* 52-Week Range: $.63-$3.85.
* Snapshot: Centurion is an international oil and gas company with production and exploration properties in Tunisia and Egypt. The company is currently drilling the Robbana-2 well in south-central Tunisia, in which it owns an 80-per-cent working interest, and plans 15 exploration wells this year and eight more in 2005.
The company’s recent production was at 10,400 boepd (barrels of oil equivalent per day).
* CEO: Said Arrata.
* Head Office: Calgary.
* Vital Stats: Current Price/Earnings Ratio, 19.8; Revenue (last 12 mos), $42.6 million; 5-Yr Revenue Growth, 20.9 per cent; Earnings (last 12 mos), $10 million; Market Cap, $194.6 million; Shares Outstanding, 61.1 million.
* Ing’s View: “This company is a junior producer that has been quite successful in Tunisia and Egypt. It’s in a growth phase and I expect they’ll be doing about 12,000 (boepd) this year.
“One of the key attractions is their Tunisian well (Robanna-2), which they spudded recently and the results should be out very soon. This has potential to be a very big prize.”
* Ing’s Risk Rating: Medium.
* Web Watch: www.centurionenergy.com



Second Star
* Crystallex (KRY-TSX)
* Recent Price: $4.61.
* 52-Week Range: $1-$4.67.
* Snapshot: Crystallex is a gold-mining company with exploration and producing properties in Venezuela. Its principal project, currently being developed, is the high-impact Las Cristinas property.
* CEO: Marc Oppenheimer.
* Head Office: Vancouver (250 employees).
* Vital Stats: Revenue (last 12 mos), $40 million; 5-Yr Revenue Growth, 38.5 per cent; Earnings/Loss (last 12 mos), $64.4 million loss; Market Cap, $475.3 million; Shares Outstanding, 103.1 million.
* Ing’s View: “They have a 12-million-ounce deposit in Venezuela (the Las Cristinas property) which is to be developed. It’s really one of the largest undeveloped gold deposits around. They have presented a feasibility study to the Venezuelan government and I expect shortly that the government will accept it. I can’t see why the government wouldn’t accept it. This company could be a very good producer in a couple of years.”
* Ing’s Risk Rating: Medium.
* Web watch: www.crystallex.com



Third Star
* Sino-Forest Corp. (TRE.A-TSX)
* Recent Price: $5.43.
* 52-Week Range: $1.62-$7.12.
* Snapshot: Sino-Forest is growing and harvesting a plantation of eucalyptus, aspen and pine trees in southern China and also manufactures and sells forestry products, including logs, woodchips and forestry chemicals.
* CEO: Allen Chan.
* Head Office: Mississauga, Ont. (417 employees).
* Vital Stats: Current Price/Earnings Ratio, 14.1; Revenue (last 12 mos), $359.9 million; 5-Yr Revenue Growth, 19.5 per cent; Earnings (last 12 mos), $40.5 million; 5-Yr Earnings Growth, six per cent; Market Cap, $438.8 million; Shares Outstanding, 80.8 million.
* Ing’s View: “This company is the largest private landholder of trees in China. They’ve been able to accumulate about 235,000 hectares, of which 70-odd per cent is trees, over the last 15 years.
“There’s no frost line in China, so trees grow 24 hours, seven days a week. Of course, China is a very big consumer of wood products such as pulp, newsprint and box boards.
“What is of interest here is that they propose to spin off their tree plantations into a separate company and take it public in Hong Kong. I think that would be a very hot issue.”
* Ing’s Risk Rating: Low.
* Web Watch: www.sinoforest.com

Ing’s EDGE Record: +59.1 per cent. Best Pick: Eldorado Gold (ELD-TSX) +540.9 per cent. Worst Pick: Meridian Gold (MNG-TSX) -32.7 per cent.

Disclosure: Ing says he does not personally own the featured stocks.