Photo by: Bloomberg
PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Gold miner Northern Star Resources has completed a A$175-million capital raise to fund the acquisition of the Pogo underground gold mine, in Alaska.
The company on Monday said that the placement was completed at A$6.70 a share, with some 26.1-million new shares placed with institutional investors, with current shareholder BlackRock Investment Management committing to A$57-million of new shares, in advance of the launch of the placement.
Northern Star told shareholders that the placement had been heavily oversubscribed, demonstrating shareholder support for the Pogo acquisition, and the company’s business model.
“Exiting shareholders, fund managers and analysts from around the world have said they share our view that Pogo is an exceptional acquisition which meets our criteria of owning tier one assets with strong growth potential in tier one locations,” said Northern Star executive chairperson Bill Beament.
“They also share our view that the acquisition is consistent with Northern Star’s policy of maximizing financial returns, rather than growing production for the sake of it.”
Northern Star will spend $260-million to acquire the 4.1-million-ounce Pogo underground mine, which produced 271 273 oz of gold at an all-in sustaining cost of $882/oz in 2017.
The balance of the acquisition price will be funded through existing cash reserves, Northern Star previously said.