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Nova Royalty (TSXV: NOVR) is adding another high-quality copper project to its portfolio with the acquisition of a 0.25% net smelter return (NSR) on the Tatogga property, which contains the Saddle North deposit owned by Newmont.
Saddle North is a gold-rich copper porphyry deposit located in northwest British Columbia, Canada.
Prior to Newmont’s acquisition in 2021, Saddle North was owned by GT Gold, which published an initial resource estimate of 1.81 billion lb. of copper, 3.47 million oz. of gold and 7.58 million oz. of silver in the indicated category, and 2.98 billion lb. of copper, 5.46 million oz. of gold and 11.64 million oz. of silver in inferred.
Nova’s royalty covers nearly 37,000 hectares of British Columbia’s Golden Triangle, considered to be one of Canada’s premier mining camps. It is part of a broader, existing 2% NSR royalty on Tatogga. The seller – an arm’s length party – is the sole beneficial owner of half of the 2% NSR, thereby owning a 1% NSR royalty on Tatogga.
Pursuant to an agreement with the seller, the purchase price will be paid C$1 million in cash and C$2.75 million in shares. Nova will also be granted a right of first refusal with respect to an additional 0.25% NSR royalty owned by the seller covering the same area as the royalty.
“The acquisition of the Tatogga royalty further demonstrates Nova’s ability to execute on our strategy of sourcing and securing royalties on high-quality copper projects from third party holders,” Nova’s interim CEO Hashim Ahmed said in a news release. “The Saddle North deposit has a significant copper-gold-silver resource and is situated in BC’s Golden Triangle, one of Canada’s premier mining camps.”
According to the company, the potential merger between Newmont and Australia’s Newcrest Mines, which owns 70% of the nearby Red Chris copper-gold mine, could unlock synergies for the development of Saddle North and the larger Tatogga property.
Shares of Nova Royalty gained 2.5% by 12:15 p.m. EDT Thursday. The copper and nickel focused royalty company has a market capitalization of C$146 million ($110m).
