Private entity Boroo has agreed to acquire Victoria Gold for up to $140 million (about US$100 million), advancing plans to potentially rehabilitate and restart its Eagle gold mine more than two years after a heap-leach collapse shut the Yukon operation, though production could be at least four years away.
The Singapore-based buyer would pay $40 million upfront and another $100 million as permitting and commercial-production milestones are met, Yukon government officials and a representative of receiver PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) said Thursday at a news conference in Whitehorse, Yukon. Eagle lies about 375 km north of Whitehorse, in the traditional territory of the First Nation of Na-Cho Nyäk Dun.
“It’s not certain when commercial production will be achieved,” PwC representative Michelle Grant told reporters. “First, we need to get through the re-permitting process for the mine…which is about approximately four years. And then commercial production would follow after that.” The agreement offers a route out of receivership for Victoria following the June 2024 failure, which released contaminated material beyond the mine’s containment system. Court approval is still required, and the proposed purchase leaves important questions about the division of cleanup liabilities and recovery of public funds.
PwC plans to publicly release its agreement with Boroo in the coming weeks, which will give a timeline for the re-permitting process, Grant said.
“Our agreement to acquire Victoria Gold and the Eagle gold mine marks a pivotal turning point for this foundational Yukon asset,” Boroo CEO Dulguun Erdenebaatar said in a statement. “Over the past year, our technical and environmental teams have spent countless hours on the ground conducting rigorous due diligence to ensure that the Eagle mine can be restarted responsibly and that the site’s environmental challenges are addressed.”
Discussions with the Na-Cho Nyäk Dun remain ongoing, the company said.
Boroo expects to spend about $800 million between 2027 and 2029 on rehabilitation, water treatment, site stabilization and a phased restart. It anticipates spending more than $600 million over the initial mine life to support and extend operations.
Those plans, together with the purchase price, underpin its announced commitment of more than $1.5 billion into Canada.
Wholly owned subsidiary Gatsuurt Mining would become Victoria’s sole shareholder. PwC intends to seek approval from the Ontario Superior Court of Justice in early December, targeting closing around Dec. 31.
Boroo said it would assume certain remediation obligations and provide financial security to Yukon at closing. Under the proposed court order, some existing liabilities would remain with Victoria while others would transfer to a separate company that stays in receivership. Boroo would provide $104 million in reclamation security, Grant said.
The company had settled terms of a framework agreement with Yukon authorities covering remediation, restart and closure, effective when the acquisition closes, Boroo said.
Yukon is expected to recover the $80 million it advanced directly to PwC after it was made receiver of Victoria Gold in 2024, Grant said.
“If all of the milestones are achieved, we expect to repay the Yukon government the full amount that they advanced to the receiver directly, plus interest,” she said.