The assets include Coeur's C-Horst, SNA, Secret Pass and Daisy ore bodies, as well as the decommissioned Sterling mine. These are immediately south of AngloGold Ashanti's Silicon and Merlin properties and they surround AngloGold's Mother Lode property.
"This acquisition further enhances the value proposition we are building in the Beatty district. The addition of these properties consolidates our ownership position in one of North America's most promising new gold districts and gives us the ability to develop it in a way that will realise its full potential for the benefit of all stakeholders," said AngloGold Ashanti CEO Alberto Calderon.
"The divestiture of Crown Sterling unlocks significant value for Coeur stockholders and demonstrates our ongoing commitment to allocating capital into our existing portfolio of near-term core growth projects, highlighted by the Rochester expansion in northern Nevada," Coeur Mining president and CEO Mitchell Krebs.
Coeur estimates that the properties host mineral resources of 914,000 ounces of gold. AngloGold will make an additional payment of $50 million if additional exploration increases the resources to more than 3.5Moz.
C-Horst is near the Merlin orebody and they are expected to provide additional economies of scale to AngloGold Ashanti's Silicon project. Mother Lode is adjacent to Coeur's SNA orebody which together with Coeur's Secret Pass and Daisy orebodies, could enhance its ultimate development
AngloGold Ashanti published a resource at Silicon of 3.37Moz. The company expects to produce some 300,000oz/y from the Beatty district commencing in about three years.
The Coeur assets were always an obvious consolidation target for AngloGold following its $370 million deal to acquire Corvus Gold at the start of the year.
Coeur acquired the assets in 2018 through its acquisition of Northern Empire for $90 million. Northern Empire acquired the Sterling assets in 2017 for $20 million.
