The DeLamar mine, pictured, was put on care and maintenance in 1998 due to low precious metal prices. Courtesy of Integra Resources
Integra Resources, the new venture of former Integra Gold executives, is acquiring a southern Idaho gold and silver mine from Kinross Gold for $7.5 million.
The deal for the DeLamar mine, announced Tuesday, gives Integra a 100-per cent interest in the mine and includes a share issue where Kinross Gold will receive 9.9 per cent of Integra’s total undiluted shares at the closing of the transaction.
George Salamis, president and CEO of Integra Resources, said in a statement that the transaction bears “striking similarities” to Integra’s 2014 acquisition of the Sigma and Lamaque mines in Quebec.
“The Integra Gold team delivered on the Lamaque project during some of the most depressed market conditions in recent memory,” Salamis said. “We are confident that we can once again deliver from yet another world-class gold jurisdiction, especially in this more promising precious metals market.”
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The DeLamar mine, 80 kilometres south of Boise, Idaho, was put on care and maintenance in 1998 due to low precious metal prices.
It had produced 1.6 million ounces of gold and 100 million ounces of silver. The site includes around 5,300 acres of patented and unpatented claims as well as 4,100 further acres of leased lands. It also has more than 1,500 drill holes and more than 145,900 metres of drilling in historic databases.
Similarly, Integra Gold’s acquisition of the formerly-producing Sigma and Lamaque mines in Val d’Or came with 75 years’ worth of mining and exploration data. In 2015 the company started the Gold Rush Challenge, offering a $1-million prize for the team or person who could use what amounted to six terabytes of data to locate Integra’s next big gold discovery.
“This property hasn’t seen any modern exploration work for almost 30 years,” Salamis said. The company news release stated “the potential to expand existing mineralization and outline further near-surface bulk tonnage resources is high.”
Integra also announced Tuesday it is acquiring patented claims in the Florida Mountain gold and silver project that borders DeLamar to the east for US$2 million.
