Genesis Minerals has agreed to acquire the Laverton Gold Project from Focus Minerals via a binding share purchase agreement, valued at A$250m ($162m).
This acquisition enables Genesis Minerals to integrate its existing assets with those of Focus Minerals in Western Australia’s Laverton District.
The project, located around 30km from Genesis Minerals’ operational Laverton mill, is projected to enhance synergies through the optimal combination of deposits and processing infrastructure.
The Laverton Gold Project boasts a global Mineral Resource of 73 million tonnes at 1.7 grams per tonne, totalling approximately 3,900 kilokoz in open pit and underground deposits. The project also includes 455km2 of prospective gold tenure, promising significant exploration opportunities both locally and regionally.
In addition to the mineral resources, Genesis Minerals will inherit essential site infrastructure such as workshops, haul roads, and bore fields. Historically, the Laverton Gold Project has yielded around 3.6 million ounces of gold.
The agreed acquisition price will be settled in cash upon completion, anticipated in early June 2025. Various third-party royalties ranging from 1% to 5% will apply to the acquired package.
Genesis Minerals plans to finance the purchase through its existing cash reserves and an expanded corporate revolver facility that has been increased from A$120m ($78m) to A$225m ($146m).
Post-acquisition, Genesis Minerals expects to maintain financial flexibility with approximately A$350m ($227.7m) in available funding. This aligns with the company’s “ASPIRE 400” growth strategy and aims to realise significant synergies between deposits and processing facilities at its Leonora and Laverton sites.
Genesis Minerals managing director Raleigh Finlayson said: “This is the perfect bolt-on acquisition. It delivers a substantial 4Moz Resource with immense exploration upside right next to our Laverton mill.
“It offers supplementary open pit and underground ore to our Laverton mill and in the process gives us flexibility regarding the most efficient pairing of deposits and processing infrastructure between Laverton and Leonora.
“With more ore available at Laverton, our flagship Tower Hill deposit can potentially be processed at Leonora resulting in significantly lower operating costs. With both the Laverton and Leonora mills now ‘long ore’, studies into staged plant expansions continue apace.
“These benefits make the transaction entirely consistent with our ‘ASPIRE 400’ accelerated growth strategy.”
Genesis Minerals revealed that its immediate priorities post-acquisition include in-fill and extensional drilling to secure and expand resources, along with optimisation studies for multiple pits feeding into the Laverton mine plan.
The company will also focus on securing necessary approvals with most resources on granted mining leases, conducting staged mill expansion studies at Laverton and Leonora, and undertaking extensive exploration across the tenement package.
