Endeavour Mining Corporation and Avnel Gold Mining, both listed on the TSX, have announced that they have reached an agreement under which Endeavour will acquire Avnel in an all-share transaction for a total consideration of approximately US$122 million.
Avnel holds an 80 % interest in the Kalana gold project in Mali and holds significant exploration permits in the surrounding area. Kalana is a fully permitted, feasibility-stage project based on a 1,2 Mt/a carbon-in-leach (CIL) plant and a single open-pit constrained reserve of approximately 2,0 Moz grading 2,8 g/t.
According to the feasibility study, Kalana has an 18-year mine life and an expected production of 101 000 ounces per year at an average All-in Sustaining Cost (AISC) of US$784/oz (with 148 000 ounces on average during the first five years at an average AISC of US$589/oz). The initial capital cost is forecast at US$196,3 million and Kalana demonstrates robust economics with an after-tax NPV5 of US$257 million, an after-tax IRR of 38 % and a payback of 1,2 years based on a gold price of US$1 200/oz.
Avnel has pursued optimisation scenarios that, if adopted, could provide Kalana with an after-tax NPV5 of US$321 million and an after-tax IRR of 50 %. In addition, such optimisation scenarios could reduce average AISC to US$730/oz over the 18-year mine life and to US$561/oz over the first five years.
Endeavour expects to take advantage of its construction expertise, operating synergies and exploration experience to re-design and optimise the current feasibility study, which is expected to increase the annual production profile and improve the project economics.
Comments Sébastien de Montessus, President and CEO of Endeavour: “We are delighted to have reached this agreement with Avnel. We believe that Kalana fits well within our strategy of building a high-quality portfolio of long-life, low AISC assets with exploration upside. Furthermore, this acquisition expands our footprint in Mali and reinforces our project pipeline, which will allow us to continue to leverage our in-house construction expertise.
“Kalana adds a third high-quality project to our portfolio, which we intend to develop following the completion of our Hounde and Ity CIL projects. In the interim, we look forward to optimising the current feasibility study which should unlock further value for both Endeavour and Avnel shareholders, as well as benefiting our partners, the State of Mali and the local communities around Kalana.”