Eldorado Gold Corp has entered into a definitive agreement with Integra Gold Corp, pursuant to which Eldorado has agreed to acquire all of the issued and outstanding common shares of Integra that it does not currently own, by way of a plan of arrangement.
Integra’s principal asset is the Lamaque project near Val-d’Or, Quebec. Lamaque hosts an NI 43-101 indicated resource of 5.1 Mt at a grade of 9.13 g/t Au and an inferred resource of 3.5 Mt at a grade of 7.94 g/t Au (5.0 g/t cutoff)1. A PEA was completed in February 2017 that envisions a high-grade underground operation producing 123,000 oz/y of gold at all-in sustaining costs of $634/oz over 10 years. Integra is currently in the process of advancing underground ramp development to facilitate underground exploration and completion of a bulk sample.
Integra owns the Sigma mill (pictured) which is well located to process the Lamaque ore.
George Burns, President and Chief Executive Officer of Eldorado Gold, stated, “The company has been following Integra’s progress at Lamaque over the last 18 months and commend their team for the accomplishments to date. From previous experience of building and operating gold mines in Canada, I am excited about Eldorado’s entry into the Eastern Abitibi region of Canada. With our current balance sheet strength post the sale of our Chinese assets, this acquisition represents a use of the proceeds complementing our existing portfolio of high quality, low cost assets.”
Benefits to Eldorado:
- Adds a high quality development project that has the potential to add meaningful near-term production and cash flow with modest upfront capital
- Establishes an operating presence in Canada and diversifies the operating portfolio into one of the most productive mining camps in the world
- Maintains the flexibility to fund its development pipeline
- Income tax and G&A synergies with the addition of a future mining operation in Canada
Both companies’ Boards of Directors have determined that the proposed transaction is fair to their respective shareholders and in the best interests of their respective companies based on a number of factors, including fairness opinions received from their respective financial advisors. Each company’s Board of Directors approved the terms of the proposed Arrangement and the Integra Board of Directors unanimously recommends that its shareholders vote in favour of the transaction.
Eldorado is a leading low cost gold producer with mining, development and exploration operations in Turkey, Greece, Serbia, Romania and Brazil. Its success to date is based on a low cost strategy, a highly skilled and dedicated workforce, safe and responsible operations, and long-term partnerships with the communities where it operates.