REACHING FOR THE NORTHERN STAR

WHAT DOES NORTHERN STAR RESOURCES' POTENTIAL ACQUISITION OF DE GREY MINING MEAN FOR THE WESTERN AUSTRALIAN GOLD SECTOR?

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The Australian gold industry saw multiple mergers and acquisitions (M&A) take place in 2024.

Red 5 merged with Silver Lake Resources to create Vault Minerals, Westgold Resources and Karora Resources joined forces, while Greatland Gold took the helm of Newmont’s Telfer gold mine and gained full ownership over the Havieron gold-copper project.

Also joining the fray in December was Northern Star Resources’ play for De Grey Mining.

Northern Star holds the title as the largest ASX-listed gold miner, while De Grey is the owner of the Hemi gold project in WA, one of the world’s largest undeveloped gold projects.

For these reasons and more, the potential $5 billion acquisition has set the mining industry abuzz. But how will it shape WA’s gold sector?

Hemi

As of November 2024, the Hemi gold project has a mineral resource estimate (MRE) of 264 million tonnes at 1.3 grams per tonne (g/t) of gold for 11.2 million ounces (Moz).

Forecasted to produce 530,000 ounces of gold per annum over its first 10 years, Hemi is considered to be a Tier 1 project that, once production has commenced, will be a top five Australian gold mine. Its first gold is expected in mid-2026.

By acquiring De Grey, Northern Star will add a globally significant development project to its Tier 1 gold portfolio.

"The acquisition of De Grey is strongly aligned with Northern Star’s strategy and contributes to our purpose of generating superior returns for shareholders," Northern Star managing director and chief executive officer Stuart Tonkin said in December 2024.