Mining News
Agnico Eagle and Kirkland Lake Gold shareholders approve merger
(Kitco News) - Agnico Eagle Mines (TSX: AEM) (NYSE: AEM) announced that at a special meeting of shareholders held earlier today, Agnico Eagle shareholders voted overwhelmingly in favour of the resolution approving the issuance of Agnico Eagle common shares in connection with the proposed merger with Kirkland Lake Gold.
According to the company’s statement, the resolution was approved by approximately 99.86% of the votes cast by Agnico Eagle shareholders at the meeting, with a shareholder turnout of 69.62%.
In addition to the approval by Agnico Eagle shareholders, Kirkland Lake Gold shareholders approved the merger at the special meeting of Kirkland Lake Gold shareholders held earlier today, the company said in a statement.
"I would like to thank our shareholders and the shareholders at Kirkland Lake Gold for supporting the merger of the two companies. We are very excited about the transaction as it positions Agnico Eagle as the leading low risk global gold company with growing production, low costs and strong ESG leadership," said Sean Boyd, Agnico Eagle's Chief Executive Officer.
"Our near-term focus will be on completing the integration plan for the two companies while we await the final regulatory approvals. We look forward to providing additional information on the combined businesses once the transaction has been finalized, which is expected to occur in the first quarter of 2022," he added.
Completion of the merger is subject to the granting of the final order by the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, approval of the Australian Foreign Investment Review Board and the satisfaction or waiver of other customary closing conditions. It is currently expected that the effective date of the merger will occur during the first quarter of 2022.
Agnico Eagle is a senior Canadian gold mining company, producing precious metals from operations in Canada, Finland and Mexico. It has a pipeline of high-quality exploration and development projects in these countries as well as in the United States and Colombia.
Kirkland Lake Gold is a low-cost senior gold producer operating in Canada and Australia that is targeting 1,300,000 – 1,400,000 ounces of production in 2021. The production profile of Kirkland Lake Gold is anchored by three high-quality operations, including the Macassa Mine and Detour Lake Mine, both located in Northern Ontario, and the Fosterville Mine located in the state of Victoria, Australia.
