Franco-Nevada takes 12.4% stake in Kenorland Minerals
Kenorland Minerals Ltd. [KLD-TSXV, 3WQ0] said Franco-Nevada Mining Corp. [FNV-TSX, NYSE], a leading gold-focused royalty and streaming company, has acquired 10 million common shares of Kenorland. That amounts to a 12.42% of the company’s outstanding common shares.
Kenorland shares rallied on the news, rising 9.4% or 21 cents to $2.44 in early trading Tuesday. Kenorland shares trade in a 52-week range of $3.59 and $1.75,
The common shares were acquired by Franco-Nevada via a private placement at a price of $2.22 per share from financier John Tognetti and Zach Flood, President and CEO of Kenorland. The company said 7.95 million were acquired from Tognetti and the balance of 2.05 million from Flood for an aggregate purchase price of $22.2 million.
Kenorland is a well funded exploration company with a focus on project generation and early-stage exploration in North America. Its exploration strategy is to advance Greenfields projects through systematic, property-wide, phased exploration surveys financed primarily through exploration partnerships, including option to joint venture agreements. Kenorland holds a 4.0% net smelter return royalty on the Frotet Project in Quebec, which is owned by Sumitomo Metal Mining Canada Ltd.
The Frotet Project hosts the Regnault gold system, a Greenfields discovery made by Kenorland and Sumitomo in 2020. It contains an inferred mineral resource of 14.5 million tonnes at 5.47 g/t gold or 2.55 million ounces of gold.
Back in February, 2024, Kenorland closed a transaction to exchange its 20% participating interest in the Frotet joint venture with Sumitomo to a 4.0% NSR royalty.
As a result of the transaction, Tognetti now holds 3.16 million common shares, of which 1.76 million are held directly, 812,175 through a Canadian numbered company and 587,928 via San Jacopo Trading Inc., representing 3.93% of the outstanding shares. Tognetti has now ceased to be an insider of Kenorland. Flood continues to hold 3.4 million common shares following completion of the transaction.
In a press release on September 18, 2026, Kenorland said Centerra Gold Inc. [CG-TSX, CGAU-NYSE] and Sumitomo had indicated that it was their intention to exercise their “top up right’ as it relates to certain share issuances completed by the company and to retain their respective (10.1% for Sumitomo and 9.9% for Centerra) interests in the company. An aggregate of 45,794 shares were issued at a price of $2.498 per share for gross proceeds of $114,393.41. Of that amount, 23,126 were issued to Sumitomo and 33,668 were issued to Centerra.
Kenorland was in the news recently when it said it had entered into a definitive agreement with Thompson Creek Metals Co Inc., a subsidiary of Centerra Gold. Under the deal, Centerra has been granted to right to acquire up to a 70% interest in the Flora, Western Wabigoon, and Algoman projects in northwestern Ontario.