SolGold plc announced the execution of the Amended Investment Protection Agreement ("AIPA") with the Government of Ecuador for its Cascabel Copper-Gold Project ("Cascabel" or the "Project"). Following formal approval by the Committee for the Strategic Promotion and Attraction of Investments (" CEPAI"), the AIPA was signed between SolGold's 100% owned subsidiaries, Exploraciones Novomining S.A. ("ENSA") and Solgold-Ec Ecuador S.A. ("SGE"), and the Ministry of Production, Foreign Trade, Investments and Fisheries, marking a significant milestone in securing long-term legal, fiscal, and regulatory certainty for the advancement of the Cascabel Project. The AIPA updates the original Investment Protection Agreement signed earlier in the Project's life cycle, affirming the legal and fiscal framework to reflect Cascabel's transition toward development and recognizing USD311.5 million in historical investment made by SolGold through 2023 during the exploration stage.
Completion of the AIPA also satisfies a key condition precedent for the release of the second tranche of funding under SolGold's syndicated gold stream financing agreement with Franco-Nevada (Barbados) Corporation and Osisko Bermuda Limited. The signing reflects SolGold's continued commitment to progressing Cascabel in partnership with the Ecuadorian Government and demonstrates Ecuador's support for ESG-aligned, long-life mining investments. SolGold completed and released a staged development plan, Pre-Feasibility Study on 16 February 2024.
The study, completed at USD 1750/oz gold, USD 3.85/lb copper and USD 22.50/oz for silver, delivered an NPV (based on a discount rate of 8%) of USD 3.22 billion on a capex of USD 1.55 billion for an initial 12 Mtpa underground block caving operation. The evaluation also showed an after-tax IRR of 24% and a first 10-year free cash flow generation of USD 7.1 billion. The PFS assessed Mineral Reserves 539.7 Mt tonnes, which represents only 18% of the total resource over an initial 28-year project life.
