Thunder Bay

Australian company to acquire Red Lake, Ont., gold mines

An Australian company has announced it intends to purchase Newmont Goldcorp's gold mining complex in Red Lake, Ont.

Evolution to purchase three mines, two processing facilities from Newmont Goldcorp

Australian company Evolution Mining Limited has announced plans to acquire Newmont Goldcorp's Red Lake gold mining complex. ((Newmont Mining/Associated Press))

An Australian company has announced it intends to purchase Newmont Goldcorp's gold mining complex in Red Lake, Ont.

In a media release issued Tuesday, Evolution Mining Limited said the deal includes the Red Lake and Campbell mines and their associated processing facilities, as well as the Cochenour mine.

Evolution said it will pay Newmont Goldcorp $375 million in cash upon closing, and up to an addition $100 million if new deposits are discovered.

Further, Evolution has agreed to invest $100 million on existing operations, and $50 million on further exploration, within three years of the deal closing.

"Evolution is excited to be adding Red Lake to its portfolio, providing the company with a high-grade, long life gold mine in Canada," Evolution chairman Jake Klein said in a statement. "We have been actively looking at assets in Canada since 2017, as we believe it is a country with low geopolitical risk, high geological prospectivity and a strong mining culture."

"Red Lake is an under-capitalised asset which, through committed investment in development and exploration, is intended to become a cornerstone asset in the Evolution portfolio."

The deal is expected to close by the end of March 2020.