Canadian firm Equinox Gold has raised $75-million through private placements to fund part of its acquisition of the Mesquite gold mine, in California.
The company is buying the 135 000 oz/y mine from New Gold for $158-million.
The brokered and nonbrokered private placements were conducted at C$0.95 for each subscription receipt, raising C$97.5-million (about $75-million).
Ross Beaty, Equinox Gold’s chairperson and largest shareholder, invested $10-million in the private placement to purchase an additional 13 684 211 common shares upon conversion of the subscription receipts.
The brokered placement consisted of 34 215 000 subscription receipts issued pursuant to an underwriting agreement entered into with Scotia Capital and BMO Nesbitt Burns as co-lead underwriters, together with a syndicate including TD Securities, CIBC World Market, Haywood Securities, Raymond James, National Bank Financial, Macquarie Capital Markets Canada and Cormark Securities.
The non-brokered private placement consisted of 68 416 603 subscription receipts issued pursuant to subscription agreements with investors.
Equinox announced in September that it would buy the Mesquite mine, which is about 320 km north of its Castle Mountain project. The miner also owns the 136 000 oz/y construction-stage Aurizona gold mine, in Brazil.