Augusta receives EXIM letter for $50M loan to build Nevada gold mine

Augusta Gold (TSX: G; US-OTC: AUGG) has received a letter from the Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM) expressing its interest in providing up to $50 million for the company’s Reward project in Nye county, Nevada.

In a press release Monday, the Vancouver-based gold developer said the letter outlines EXIM’s preliminary interest in providing a “direct, competitively priced loan” with a potential 10-year repayment term, including an interest-only period.

According to the company, its Reward gold project meets EXIM’s policy goals of job creation and required export nexus, with the letter citing Augusta’s experienced management team and potential support from state and local governments.

The Reward project is located along the prolific Walker Lane Trend — which has emerged as a hotbed for gold exploration due to its rich production history and discovery potential. Work to date on the property has delineated an estimated 370,000 oz. in reserves grading 0.86 gram per tonne.

According to a feasibility study released last September, the Reward project is expected to produce approximately 39,000 oz., with peak production of 47,000 oz., over a 7.6-year life. First production could occur as early as fall 2025, pending funding, the company has said.

Designed as a conventional open-pit, heap-leach operation, the mine project is fully permitted and construction-ready. It is expected to have an initial cost of nearly $90 million, plus $32 million in sustaining capital.

“This letter of interest from EXIM for over 50% of the project construction cost, marks a significant milestone for Augusta Gold and underscores the strategic importance of the Reward project to domestic mineral production and economic development,” said Don Taylor, CEO of Augusta Gold, in the statement.

Once built, Reward would be Augusta’s first mine operation in a highly prolific gold district of Nevada.

Moving forward, the Reward project is likely to be integrated with the company’s larger Bullfrog project located 11 km to the northwest. “Our goal is to be a low cost, 150,000 oz. per annum producer in Nevada by 2027,” Taylor previously said.

The Reward project is one of several projects for which the EXIM has lined sizeable loans. Also on Monday, the bank expressed its interest in funding the Tanbreez rare earth project in Greenland and the K.Hill manganese project in Botswana.

Shares of Augusta Gold closed Monday’s session 4% higher at C$1.02 apiece, for market capitalization of C$87.7 million ($64.6 million).