TL;DR
Get smart everyday buys delivered free with Prime
- Fast, free delivery on millions of items
- Prime Video, Amazon Music and more included
- Member-only deals all year
Bonterra Resources’ new preliminary economic assessment puts the Barry gold project’s after-tax net present value at $665 million, compared with $48.3 million in a 2022 study. The updated plan adds underground mining and assumes a long-term gold price of US$3,500 an ounce; Gold Fields has not endorsed the study, and no development decision has been approved.
Bonterra Resources says a new preliminary economic assessment values its Barry gold project in Quebec at $665 million in after-tax net present value, using a 5% discount rate. The study adds underground mining to the existing open-pit plan, but its economic projections rely on a long-term gold-price assumption of US$3,500 an ounce, and project partner Gold Fields has not endorsed it.
The PEA estimates a 54% internal rate of return and a 2.5-year payback period. Its projected mine life is 7.2 years, with about 697,000 ounces of gold produced and average annual output of 87,097 ounces. The 2022 open-pit-only assessment projected 145,050 ounces over the mine life and average annual production of 30,000 ounces.
The expanded plan calls for mining about 8.4 million tonnes of ore, with an estimated gold recovery rate of 93%. Open-pit mining would account for 4.9 million tonnes; underground mining would contribute 3.4 million tonnes at an average grade of 4.05 grams of gold per tonne. The ore is assumed to be processed at a nearby third-party mill, rather than at a new plant built for Barry.
Bonterra’s study projects $119 million in initial capital, $354 million in sustaining capital and $7.3 million in closure costs, for total capital costs of $480 million. It forecasts operating cash costs of $2,411 per ounce and all-in sustaining costs of $3,017 per ounce. At the base-case assumptions, the project is estimated to generate $1.18 billion in pre-tax cash flow and $827 million in after-tax free cash flow over its mine life.
A Larger Plan, With Higher Costs
The revised assessment presents Barry as a substantially larger production concept than the 2022 open-pit-only plan. It also estimates a much higher project value, alongside a higher expected output and a longer mine life. For investors and other readers assessing the project, those figures describe Bonterra’s current development case; they are projections from a preliminary study, not evidence that construction or production is approved.
The headline valuation depends on assumptions that changed materially between studies. The new PEA uses a US$3,500-per-ounce long-term gold price, compared with US$1,600 in 2022, and includes underground mining. Its initial capital estimate is $119 million, against $22.1 million in the earlier study. These differences make the two NPVs useful as a record of the updated scenario, but not as a like-for-like measure of a change in value under identical inputs.
The estimated all-in sustaining cost of $3,017 per ounce is also close to the PEA’s assumed gold price. That relationship makes the price assumption especially relevant to the projected economics. Actual costs, gold prices, development plans and operating results could differ from the study’s assumptions.
As an affiliate, we earn on qualifying purchases.
Barry’s Resource and Joint Venture
Barry is a joint venture between Bonterra and Gold Fields in Quebec’s Abitibi Greenstone Belt, about 700 kilometres north-northwest of Montreal. The past-producing mine yielded about 44,000 ounces of gold between 2008 and 2010. Bonterra later built an underground exploration ramp reaching about 100 metres deep.
The February 2026 resource cited in the report contains 11.9 million measured and indicated tonnes grading 2.29 grams of gold per tonne, for 874,000 ounces of contained gold. It also lists 8.9 million inferred tonnes grading 3.41 grams per tonne, for 972,000 contained ounces. The new PEA incorporates about 40% of the contained ounces in that resource, according to the report.
Gold Fields can earn a 70% stake by investing in the project, including a commitment to spend at least $10 million annually over three years. The report said the partner may earn that stake this year through a program to invest $30 million. More than 88,000 metres had been drilled at Barry as of May, and the deposit remains open at depth, according to Bonterra and analyst commentary cited by The Northern Miner.
“The study doesn’t represent an approved development decision.”
— Bonterra Resources
As an affiliate, we earn on qualifying purchases.
Partner Support and Project Approval
Gold Fields has not endorsed the PEA, according to the report. The study also does not constitute an approved development decision. The available information does not establish whether the partners will adopt the PEA’s mine plan, secure the assumed third-party milling arrangement, or proceed with construction.
The estimates depend on the gold-price, cost, recovery and operating assumptions in the assessment. The source material does not provide a confirmed construction schedule or a production start date. It also does not establish how much of the resource not included in the PEA could ultimately be mined economically.
As an affiliate, we earn on qualifying purchases.
Gold Fields’ Earn-In Milestones
The next reported milestone is the Gold Fields earn-in program. Under the joint-venture terms described in the report, the company can earn a controlling 70% stake through spending commitments, including at least $10 million annually over three years; Bonterra’s report said Gold Fields may reach the 70% interest this year through a $30 million program. The source material does not specify a date for a decision on development.
Further drilling or resource updates could change the mine plan, as mineralization extends beyond the current resource boundary. Until the partners make a development decision and provide additional project milestones, the PEA remains Bonterra’s preliminary economic case for Barry.
As an affiliate, we earn on qualifying purchases.
Key Questions
What value did Bonterra’s new study assign to Barry?
The PEA estimates an after-tax NPV of $665 million at a 5% discount rate. The report also gives a US-dollar equivalent of US$465 million.
Why is the new estimate much higher than the 2022 figure?
The updated plan combines open-pit and underground mining and assumes a long-term gold price of US$3,500 an ounce, compared with US$1,600 in the 2022 PEA. The studies therefore use materially different mine plans and price assumptions.
Has Gold Fields approved the project?
No such approval is reported. Gold Fields has not endorsed the PEA, and Bonterra said the study does not represent an approved development decision.
How much gold does the new plan project?
The PEA projects about 697,000 ounces over a 7.2-year mine life, with average annual production of 87,097 ounces. These are study estimates, not confirmed production.
When could Barry begin production?
The source material gives no confirmed construction schedule or production start date. The project would require further decisions, and the PEA’s assumptions and development plan have not been approved.
Source: rss
Halloween Picks
halloween
As an affiliate, we earn on qualifying purchases.
