AngloGold Ashanti submits proposal to acquire Corvus Gold
AngloGold Ashanti has announced that a non-binding proposal has been submitted to the Board of Directors of Corvus Gold Inc. under which its direct wholly owned subsidiary, AngloGold Ashanti Holdings plc, would be willing to acquire for cash all of the issued and outstanding common shares of Corvus, which the Company does not already beneficially own .
AngloGold Ashanti currently holds a 19.5% indirect interest in Corvus, which is incorporated in British Columbia, Canada. Corvus owns North Bullfrog, Mother Lode and other exploration assets located in southern Nevada’s Beatty District, which are in close proximity to, or contiguous with, AngloGold Ashanti’s exploration assets of Silicon, Transvaal and Rhyolite.
Christine Ramon, AngloGold Ashanti’s Interim Chief Executive Officer, said: “The Proposal is fully aligned to our strategy of growing Ore Reserve, building low-cost production and generating sustainable returns. We have a unique opportunity to combine Corvus’ assets with our own – in the world’s top-ranked mining jurisdiction – to create a meaningful new production base for AngloGold Ashanti in the medium and longer term.”
The combination of Corvus’ and AngloGold Ashanti’s Nevada assets further consolidates one of the largest new gold districts in Nevada and provides the opportunity for AngloGold Ashanti to establish, in the medium and longer term, a meaningful, low-cost, long-life production base in a premier mining jurisdiction. Consolidation of the Beatty District has the potential for significant synergies from economies of scale and integrated infrastructure including processing facilities.
AngloGold Ashanti has a long track record of operating gold mines in the United States, where it operated the Cripple Creek & Victor mine in Colorado from acquisition in 1999 through to its sale to Newmont Corporation in 2015 and the Jerritt Canyon Gold mine in Nevada from acquisition in 1999 through to its sale in 2003 and where it is still conducting closure monitoring activities at the Big Springs mine in Nevada that was closed in 1994.
The Company has a North American regional office in Denver, Colorado, from where it manages its U.S. business interests as well as a global greenfield exploration portfolio, including its portfolio in the United States.
Following the submission of the Proposal, AngloGold Ashanti expects to engage with Corvus’ Board of Directors regarding the Proposed Transaction and in parallel complete certain limited confirmatory due diligence relating to Corvus and its assets. The Company has completed all technical, legal and financial due diligence that would impact the value of the Proposal.
