Barrick Gold has completed the sale of its Alturas project in northern Chile to Singapore-based Boroo for $50-million in cash.
As part of the deal, Barrick will retain a 0.5% net smelter return royalty on gold and silver production from Alturas, which will terminate after two-million ounces of gold and gold-equivalent have been produced. Boroo has the option to repurchase the royalty for $10-million within four years.
Boroo said on Friday that the acquisition marked its entry into Chile and aligned with its strategy to become a midtier global metals producer with a diversified portfolio of long-life assets.
Located in the prolific El Indio Belt near the Chile-Argentina border, Alturas is a high-sulphidation epithermal gold system discovered by Barrick in 2015. The project hosts indicated resources of 2.2-million ounces of gold and inferred resources of 3.6-million ounces, based on more than 130 000 m of drilling.
“We are excited to complete the acquisition of the Alturas project,” said Boroo CEO Dulguun Erdenebaatar in a statement.
“We look forward to advancing Alturas in a phased manner and building on Barrick’s legacy of constructive engagement with local authorities and communities. This also represents Boroo’s entry into Chile – a country with world-class copper potential – and an important step in broadening our strategy toward a more balanced gold and copper portfolio.”