Newmont selling Yukon gold project to Fuerte for $150 million
Newmont Corp. [NGT-TSX, NEM-NYSE, ASX, PNGX] has agreed to sell its Coffee Project in the Canadian Yukon to Fuerte Metals Corp. [FMT-TSXV] for up to $150 million.
Coffee is one of the largest and highest-grade heap leach projects in the world, with 3.0 million in measured and indicated resources within 80 million tonnes at 1.15 g/t (0.18 g/t cut-off). At a higher 0.4 g/t cut-off, Coffee has approximately 2.8 million ounces of measured and indicated resources within 60 million tonnes at 1.44 g/t gold.
“The acquisition of Coffee is highly transformational for Fuerte,” said the company’s CEO Tim Warman. “Fuerte is targeting completion of a preliminary economic assessment in the first half of 2026 and a feasibility study in the second half of 2026. A collaboration agreement with the Tro’ondek Hwech’in First Nation was agreed in 2018, and an impact and benefits deal was signed with the White River First Nation in 2021 that includes life of mine activities.
Under the agreement with Newmont, which is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2025, Newmont expects to receive $10 million in cash upon closing, $40 million worth of Fuerte shares (34 million shares), and a 3.0% net smelter return royalty on the Coffee Project which Fuerte retains the option to repurchase for $100 million.
“The sale of the Coffee Project reflects our ongoing efforts to streamline our portfolio and sharpen our focus on core operations,” said Newmont CEO Tom Palmer. “Throughout the process, we were committed to identifying a buyer who shares our values and can develop the Coffee project in a socially and environmentally conscious manner,” he said. “We are pleased to be selling this asset to Fuerte and have full confidence in their ability to honour agreements and relationships with First Nations partners and other stakeholders that are connected to the project.”
Fuerte shares were unchanged Monday at $1.95 and trade in a 52-week range of $2.16 and 54 cents.
Formerly known as Atacama Copper Corp., Fuerte Metals is a Vancouver-based resource company with a focus on acquiring, exploring and developing base and precious metals properties in the Americas. The company is advancing the exploration and development of its Christina and Yecora projects in Mexico and its Placeton/Caballo Muerto copper project in Chile.
In February 2024, Newmont announced its intention to divest its non-core assets, including six operations and two projects from its Australian, Ghanian, and North American business units. Upon completion of the sale of Coffee to Fuerte, Newmont will have divested all six operations and both projects that were classified as held for sale in financial statements.
Fuerte has said Cristina project is similar and grade to Fresnillo’s nearby and very profitable San Julian underground mine, which hosts mineralization in two different types of orebodies. They are a narrow low-sulphidation veins and broader zones of lower-grade disseminated sulphides in subvolcanic and volcanic felsic rocks. San Julian is the third largest silver mine in Mexico.