Taseko Mines Ltd. has signed a deal to buy the 12.5 per cent interest in the Gibraltar mine it does not already own from Dowa Metals & Mining Co. Ltd. and Furukawa Co. Ltd.
The company says the acquisition price consists of a minimum of $117 million payable over a period of 10 years and potential contingent payments depending on copper prices and Gibraltar’s cash flow.
Under the agreement, Taseko will make initial payments of $2.5 million to Dowa and $2.5 million to Furukawa. The remaining amount will be settled with annual payments starting in March 2026 based on the average copper price of the previous calendar year, subject to an annual cap based on a percentage of cash flow from the mine.
Any outstanding balance on the minimum acquisition price of $117 million will be repayable in a final payment in March 2034.
Total consideration is capped at $142 million, limiting the contingent payment to a maximum of $25 million.
Taseko also has the option to settle the full acquisition price for the copper-molybdenum mine in B.C. at any time before 2029 by making total payments of $117 million.
Located near McLeese Lake about 40 kilometres north of Williams Lake, the mine is Canada’s second-largest open pit copper mine and among the the largest employers in the Cariboo region.
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