Newcrest to buy stake in Canadian copper and gold mine for $1.1b
Gold miner Newcrest Mining said on Monday it had agreed to acquire a majority stake in copper and gold mine in Canada for $806.5 million ($1.12 billion), just a few weeks after its chief executive indicated he had asset purchases on his mind.
Newcrest said in a statement it would acquire a 70 per cent joint-venture interest in, and operatorship of, the Red Chris mine and surrounding tenements in British Columbia from Toronto-listed Imperial Metals Corp.
Red Chris is an operating open-pit mine with mineral resources of 20 million ounces of gold and 13 billion pounds of copper. The property comprised 57,200 acres of land with 77 mineral tenures, Newcrest said.
Last month, Newcrest's CEO, Sandeep Biswas, said his company would pursue a potential acquisition only if it were the right value for investors, adding that he would prefer to buy assets rather than whole companies.
Newcrest said it would fund the acquisition through a mix of cash and undrawn bank facilities.
The move comes amid talk of consolidation in the gold industry, after Barrick Gold Corp's $US18 billion takeover offer for rival Newmont Mining Corp.
Several media reports had also indicated that Newcrest was interested in buying Newmont's Australian assets, as part of the deal.
Reuters