Gold giant Gold Fields is swallowing up Canadian mining company Osisko. The transaction, estimated at $2.16 billion, gives the South African company control of the entire Windfall deposit, on the border between Abitibi and Northern Quebec.
Since last year, Gold Fields has held 50% of the deposit buried under the territory of the Waswanipi Crees. This acquisition completes the company’s control over these gold veins, which hold a potential of 6.2 billion Canadian dollars in gross revenue.
Osisko had not yet started mining, but estimated it could produce about 306,000 ounces (8.67 tonnes) of gold per year for at least a decade, according to a feasibility study dated 2022. In total, some 3.3 million ounces (93.5 tonnes) of gold would be scattered across the 125-square-kilometre site.
The purchase comes as gold prices are at record highs. An ounce of gold (28.3 grams) is currently trading at around CAD$3,400, while its value has been hovering around CAD$2,500 for the past three or four years.
“In nine years, we have transformed Windfall into one of the largest and highest quality gold development projects in the world,” Osisko CEO John Burzynski said in a written statement. [Les équipes de Gold Fields] are fully capable of bringing Windfall into production and we wish them the best for the future.”
The offer by Gold Fields’ owners to buy Osisko at $4.90 per share represents a premium of about 55% to their current market value.
By purchasing the Osisko mining company, Gold Fields is also acquiring two other potential gold deposits in the Lebel-sur-Quévillon sector.
The Johannesburg-based miner already operates nine mines in Australia, South Africa, Ghana and South America.
This story is supported by the Local Journalism Initiative, funded by the Government of Canada.