Pan American Silver gets Canada regulatory approval for sale of La Arena

Pan American Silver (PAAS) announced that the sale of its 100% interest in La Arena S.A., which owns the La Arena gold mine as well as the La Arena II project in Peru, to Jinteng Mining Pte. Ltd., a subsidiary of Zijin Mining Group Co., Ltd., has received approval from the Government of Canada under the Investment Canada Act. The approval is subject to a joint undertaking from Pan American and Zijin to enter into an offtake agreement in respect of the La Arena II project, which will enable Pan American to secure 60% of the future copper concentrate supply from the La Arena II project on commercial terms for sale in North American markets, following the commencement of commercial production. The transaction now has all of the necessary regulatory approvals and is expected to close by the end of the fourth quarter of 2024. Under the terms of the agreement for the La Arena sale, upon closing, Zijin will pay $245M in cash and grant to Pan American a life-of-mine gold net smelter return royalty of 1.5% for the La Arena II project. Upon commencement of commercial production from the La Arena II project, the agreement provides for an additional contingent payment from Zijin of $50M in cash.