Emerging Nevada gold producer Pershing Gold Corporation has acquired the exclusive mining and surface use rights to about 1 600 acres of new long-term mining leases and 74 unpatented lode mining claims, comprising about 1 300 acres, from gold corporation Newmont USA for a consideration of $6-million.

The transaction also includes the acquisition of a new 20-year mining lease from Nevada private landowner New Nevada Lands.

The recently acquired mining leases and claims are located adjacent to Pershing’s 100% owned Relief Canyon mine, in Pershing County, Nevada.

Pershing formerly held these lands and claims under a minerals lease and sublease agreement with Newmont and the transaction substantially upgrades Pershing’s mining rights and surface use rights by converting a portion of the mineral sublease to new long-term mining leases.

In terms of the new agreement, Pershing remains the lessee of the mining claims and the sublessee of the lands leased by Newmont under a new long-term mining lease.

The amended minerals lease and sublease also establish a new $2.6-million exploration work commitment to be completed by the seventh anniversary of the effective date of the amendment. Pershing has already satisfied about $2.4-million of this work commitment.

The company explains that this transaction, in effect, consolidates the Relief Canyon mine with Newmont’s mineral interests in adjacent properties. In addition, the deal reduces the potential royalty and terminates Newmont’s back-in joint venture rights and other contract rights to the land.

“With this transaction, Pershing paves the way to significantly expand the Relief Canyon mine.

“Not only did we gain complete control of the gold discovered to date on the acquired lands, we know that the original Relief Canyon deposit extends into the acquired lands and, with additional drilling, we expect to expand the gold resource on these lands,” Pershing chairperson and CEO Stephen Alfers says.

“Moreover, our new 20-year mining lease secures our mining rights well into the future and achieves control over where we can locate future mine facilities and optimise expanded mine plans,” he adds.

The company says that it believes that future exploration core drilling on these lands has significant potential to increase the size of the Relief Canyon gold deposit.

In the transaction, Pershing also acquired surface rights to areas suitable for new and expanded mine support facilities, including waste rock storage areas.

In addition, the transaction gives Pershing increased control over land adjacent to the Relief Canyon mine that the company believes is prospective.