Agnico Eagle to Acquire Canadian Gold Miner After Ottawa Rejects Bid by China’s Shandong Gold
Canadian gold mining company Agnico Eagle is to aquire Toronto-based TMAC Resources which has operated the Doris North gold mine in Hope Bay, Nunavut, since 2017. (Photo: TMAC Resources).
Agnico Eagle signs deal to buy Canadian gold miner TMAC Resources. In December, Canada rejected the sale of TMAC Resources and the Hope Bay gold mine in Nunavut to Chinese state-owned company Shandong Gold Mining.
Canadian gold miner Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd. has signed a C$286.6million deal to buy TMAC Resources Inc.
Agnico Eagle and TMAC Resources announced Tuesday that they have entered into agreements pursuant to which Agnico Eagle has agreed to acquire all of the outstanding common shares of TMAC at a price of C$2.20 per share. That represents an increase up from the price of C$1.75 offered by Shandong under the original Arrangement Agreement, a press release states.
Canadian TMAC owns and operates the gold mining district Hope Bay in western Nunavut, an area approximately 80 kilometers long and 20 kilometers wide in Canada’s northernmost territory.
Blocked bid after lengthy review
In December, the federal government blocked the sale of TMAC Resources and its Hope Bay gold mining project to Chinese state-owned company Shandong Gold, following a national security review under the Investment Canada Act.
Initially, the transaction whereby Shandong would acquire 100% of TMAC was approved by 97% of TMAC’s shareholders in June, 2020.
Several people have voiced national security concerns regarding the Chinese bid, highlighting increased Chinese influence in the Arctic. Among them is retired Canadian Major-General David Fraser who is quoted in the Globe and Mail on concerns over Arctic access and the proximity of the mine to sensitive military installations, particularly the NORAD warning system radar at Cambridge Bay about 100 kilometres away, Radio Canada International reports.