The financing was completed with Sprott Private Resource Lending and Beedie Investments and is comprised of an $80 million senior credit facility with a five-year term from Sprott bearing interest at the greater rate of three-month LIBOR and 1.5% plus 7%, and 5.75% per annum. The loan has a fixed $13/oz production-linked payment on the first 450,000oz produced.
The $25 million subordinated convertible facility from Beedie and Sprott has a three-year term and bears interest at 8%/y.
"We have achieved our objective of securing a flexible financing package on terms that are competitive and protect the upside for our shareholders. The optionality of repayment of both the senior facility and the convertible facility in a rising gold price environment provides the company financing flexibility," said Ascot Resources president and CEO Derek White.
Combined with an equity financing completed in June, Ascot has secured about $45 million of immediate funding to enable it to order long lead-time equipment, undertake pre-construction activities, advance permitting and refinance its existing convertible note.
Ascot is looking at peak annual production of 180,000oz gold-equivalent from a restart of operations centred on its Premier and Red Mountain gold projects in the Golden Triangle of British Columbia with a 2,500 tonnes per day mill at Premier.
The April 2020 feasibility study detailed underground mining operations at Silver Coin, Big Missouri, Premier and Red Mountain to feed a centralised 2,500tpd processing facility with total production of about 1.1Moz of gold and 3Moz of silver over eight years forecast, and peak annual output of 180,000oz/y of gold-equivalent.
The Premier site benefits from existing road access, historical mining, milling, the nearby Long Lake Hydro power plant, tailings and mine waste stockpile infrastructure resulting in a low initial capital refurbishment cost. Premier is on care and maintenance with existing permits for continued reclamation and mine water discharge.
In 2018, Ascot received confirmation from both the BC Environmental Assessment Agency and the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency that Premier will not need to undergo an environmental assessment pursuant to provincial and federal environmental assessment legislation.
Shares in Ascot Resources are trading at C1.11c, valuing the company at $306 million.
