Royal Gold will pay the upfront cash consideration of $200m in three tranches.
The financing will support all activities leading to a final investment decision and settle existing debt with Orion Mine Finance Management. Royal Gold will disburse the $200 million in three tranches: $100 million upon closing, $50 million after the pre-feasibility study (PFS) and environmental impact assessment approval, and $50 million on the first anniversary of closing. Solaris expects to publish the PFS in Q3 2025 and secure environmental approval by mid-2025.
Matthew Rowlinson, Solaris President and CEO, stated: “This transaction is a clear endorsement of the potential scale, geological qualities and its near surface nature, economics and stage of development of Warintza, one of the few remaining near-term, globally significant copper development opportunities not controlled by a major.” He added: “Further, it is a reflection of the strong investor confidence in Ecuador as a mining jurisdiction… The stream is expected to represent a small percentage of the gold over the life of mine and together with the royalty, enables the company to maintain the project’s strategic flexibility.”
Under the agreement, Royal Gold will receive 20 ounces of gold per million pounds of copper produced in a designated area, with purchase prices at 20% of the spot price for the first 90,000 ounces and 60% thereafter. Additionally, a 0.3% NSR royalty applies to all metal production in an expanded area, with provisions for annual increases. The structure preserves Solaris’ exploration and commercial flexibility, with terms for stream termination or royalty adjustments in case of a change in control.
Royal Gold’s President and CEO, Bill Heissenbuttel, noted: “Warintza is at an early stage in its development and is one of the only large-scale copper-gold-molybdenum projects that is not controlled by a major mining company, and the creative transaction structure offers Solaris flexibility as they consider strategic alternatives to advance the project while protecting Royal Gold should development not proceed according to current plans.”
Discovered in 2000, Warintza holds measured and indicated resources of 1,082 million tonnes at 0.48% copper equivalent and inferred resources of 3,135 million tonnes at 0.27% copper equivalent. Solaris is conducting over 82,000 meters of infill drilling to update its resource estimate by Q3 2025. Royal Gold will also support Solaris’ environmental and social initiatives, emphasizing sustainable mining practices.
