The company now has a 1% NSR royalty on Rio Tinto's Janice Lake copper-silver project in Saskatchewan.

The miner said most of its efforts are going to be on this property, adjacent to Melkior Resources- Kirkland Lake Gold’s Carscallen project.

The multi-year permit encompasses 100 reverse circulation and 20 diamond drill hole sites.

Newcrest says it had seen increased interest from North American investors in the gold sector over the last six months.

Golden Hill is an advanced-stage exploration project located within the Houndé greenstone belt.

Once reopened, the mine will produce 236,000 ounces of gold and 5.81 million ounces of silver a year.