IAMGOLD now has funding in place to complete Côté Gold project
IAMGOLD announced this week it now has the funding in place to complete its Côté Gold project, located about an hour south of Timmins.
The company said it has completed the sale of its 95 per cent interest in Rosebel Gold Mines N.V. in Suriname to Zijin Mining Group Co. Ltd. for US$360 million (about $480 million Canadian), as well as the release of IAMGOLD's equipment lease liabilities amounting to approximately $41 million.
The remaining five per cent interest in Rosebel will continue to be held by the Government of Suriname.
"On behalf of the company, we would like to thank the Rosebel team for their hard work and commitment," said Maryse Bélanger, IAMGOLD’s interim president and CEO, in a statement.
"With the completion of the sale of Rosebel, IAMGOLD has achieved an important milestone in the company's strategy to create value for our stakeholders through disciplined portfolio management to fund the Côté Gold Project.”
“This transaction, in addition to the previously announced sale of IAMGOLD's West African gold assets and the financing agreement with Sumitomo, ensures the current remaining funding requirements for completion of construction at Côté have been met," Bélanger added.
Construction of Côté Gold began in 2020 and was expected to take three years and cost the company around $900 million. The lifespan of the mine is expected to be 16-18 years and produce 495,000 ounces of gold a year in its first six years.
Average production over the full 18 years is estimated at 365,000 ounces a year, starting in the fourth quarter of 2023.
However, rising costs and other challenges recently pushed back the opening to early 2024. IAMGOLD's share of the remaining costs to complete the project soared from $750 million to an estimated $1.3 billion.
That meant the company needed to raise about $1.1 billion to complete the work.
In December, IAMGOLD announced an agreement with Sumitomo Metal Mining worth $340 million, giving the Japanese company a 10 per cent stake in Côté.
Also in December, IAMGOLD announced it was selling its Boto Gold project, located in western Africa, for $282 million.
Côté Gold is now more 70 per cent complete and is scheduled to come into production in early 2024.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Louis Gossett Jr., 1st Black man to win supporting actor Oscar, dies at 87
Louis Gossett Jr., the first Black man to win a supporting actor Oscar and an Emmy winner for his role in the seminal TV miniseries 'Roots,' has died. He was 87.
Weather alerts issued for 7 provinces, 1 territory
Warnings of up to 60 millimetres of rain and other alerts have been issued for seven Canadian provinces and one territory ahead of the Easter weekend.
He didn't trust police but sought their help anyway. Two days later, he was dead
Jameek Lowery was among more than 330 Black people who died after police stopped them with tactics that aren’t supposed to be deadly, like physical restraint and use of stun guns, The Associated Press found.
Luxury cruise line selling world cruise suite for US$1.7 million
Luxury operator Regent Seven Seas Cruises is raising their price tag to eye-watering levels, with a suite on an upcoming 140-day world voyage costing US$1.7 million.
Why Kim Kardashian is being sued for 'knockoff' furniture
The estate of minimalist contemporary artist Donald Judd filed a lawsuit against Kardashian this week, claiming the fashion and beauty mogul promoted 'cheap knockoffs' of his furniture designs.
CRA no longer requiring 'bare trust' reporting in 2023 tax return
The Canada Revenue Agency announced Thursday it will not require 'bare trust' reporting from Canadians that it introduced for the 2024 tax season, just four days before the April 2 deadline.
A Filipino villager is nailed to a cross for the 35th time on Good Friday to pray for world peace
A Filipino villager has been nailed to a wooden cross for the 35th time to reenact Jesus Christ’s suffering in a brutal Good Friday tradition he said he would devote to pray for peace in Ukraine, Gaza and the disputed South China Sea.
Ontario homeowner on the hook for $27,000 when contractor severed power line
An Ontario man who built a garage on his property has been locked in a battle with his electricity provider for a year and half over a severed power line.
King Charles will attend Easter Sunday service at Windsor
Buckingham Palace officials say King Charles III and Queen Camilla will attend an Easter service at the chapel at Windsor Castle on Sunday.