Equinox Gold Completes US$299 Million Bought Deal Financing

Rhea-AI Summary

Equinox Gold successfully completes a bought deal financing, raising US$299 million through the issuance of common shares. The financing will be used to acquire the remaining 40% of the Greenstone Mine and for general corporate purposes.

Insights

Financial Analyst

The successful closure of Equinox Gold's bought deal financing indicates their ability to secure capital in substantial amounts, a sign of market confidence. The involvement of prominent underwriters also adds a layer of credibility to the operation. Looking critically at the numbers, the acquisition of additional interest in the Greenstone Mine suggests a strategic move to consolidate assets, which could result in increased operational efficiencies and potentially higher output in the future. However, investors should consider the dilutive effect of issuing over 56 million new shares on their current holdings. While the immediate influx of capital is positive, it's essential to assess how this will affect earnings per share and the company's valuation in the medium term.

Mining Sector Analyst

From a sector perspective, Equinox Gold's move to acquire a larger stake in the Greenstone Mine is indicative of their growth strategy, particularly in a commodity market where consolidating high-quality assets can lead to economies of scale and cost saving. This is important in the mining sector where operational costs can be volatile and influenced by external factors. The key for investors is to watch how Equinox Gold manages the integration of this asset and leverages it for production increases or cost improvements. The deal's success hinges not just on the acquisition but on the subsequent asset optimization and management.

Risk Management Expert

From a risk assessment angle, the deployment of the net proceeds towards the partial funding of a mine acquisition and debt repayment is a balanced approach to capital allocation. Repaying debt helps reduce financial risk and interest expenses, potentially improving net income margins. On the other hand, investing in a mining asset like the Greenstone Mine can be seen as a risk mitigation strategy by spreading operational risk across a broader asset base. Nevertheless, this needs to be weighed against the execution risk of integrating the new asset and the potential exposure to commodity price fluctuations.

Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - April 26, 2024) - Equinox Gold Corp. (TSX: EQX) (NYSE American: EQX) (the "Company") is pleased to announce the closing of its "bought deal" public offering of 56,419,000 common shares of the Company (the "Common Shares"), including 7,359,000 Common Shares issued pursuant to the full exercise of the Underwriters' (as defined below) over-allotment option, at a price of US$5.30 per Common Share for aggregate gross proceeds of US$299,020,700 (the "Offering"). The Offering, announced on April 23, 2024, was conducted by a syndicate of underwriters led by BMO Capital Markets, National Bank Financial Inc. and Scotiabank as joint bookrunners (the "Lead Underwriters") and including ING Bank N.V., CIBC World Markets Inc., Merrill Lynch Canada Inc., Desjardins Securities Inc., RBC Dominion Securities Inc., TD Securities Inc., Canaccord Genuity Corp., Cormark Securities Inc. and Haywood Securities Inc. (together with the Lead Underwriters, the "Underwriters").

The Company intends to use the net proceeds of the Offering to fund a portion of the cash consideration to acquire the remaining 40% of the Greenstone Mine, as announced on April 23, 2024, and for general working capital and corporate purposes, including repayment of certain indebtedness.

Equinox Gold Contacts

Greg Smith, President & CEO
Rhylin Bailie, Vice President, Investor Relations
Tel: +1 604-558-0560
Email: ir@equinoxgold.com

About Equinox Gold

Equinox Gold is a growth-focused Canadian mining company with seven operating gold mines, commissioning underway at a new mine, and a plan to achieve more than one million ounces of annual gold production by advancing a pipeline of expansion projects. Equinox Gold's common shares are listed on the TSX and the NYSE American under the trading symbol EQX.

Cautionary Notes

This news release contains certain forward-looking information and forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. Forward-Looking statements and forward-looking information in this news release relate to, among other things: the intended use of net proceeds from the Offering; the Company's ability to successfully consolidate ownership of the Greenstone Mine ("Transaction"); the strategic vision for the Company and expectations regarding exploration potential, production capabilities and future financial or operating performance; and the Company's ability to successfully advance its growth and development projects. Forward-Looking statements or information generally identified by the use of the words "will", "advancing", "plan", "expect", "achieve", "strategy", "intends" and similar expressions and phrases or statements that certain actions, events or results "could", "would" or "should", or the negative connotation of such terms, are intended to identify forward-looking statements and information. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements and information are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on forward-looking statements as the Company can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. The Company has based these forward-looking statements and information on the Company's current expectations and projections about future events and these assumptions include, but are not limited to: the proposed benefits of the Transaction to the Company's business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations and to its shareholders being attained, including with respect to life of mine, production, cash flow, EBITDA and cash costs estimates, and with respect to exploration and growth opportunities; the receipt of TSX and NYSE American approval relating to the Transaction; the completion and closing of a term loan in connection with the Transaction ("Term Loan"); the use of funds available pursuant to the Term Loan; the anticipated costs of the Transaction; commissioning at Greenstone being completed and performed in accordance with current expectations, including estimated capital costs remaining as expected; availability of funds for the Company's projects and future cash requirements; Equinox Gold's ability to achieve the production, cost and development expectations for its respective operations and projects; prices for gold remaining as estimated; currency exchange rates remaining as estimated; no labour-related disruptions and no unplanned delays or interruptions in scheduled commissioning, construction, development and production, including by blockade; the expansion projects at Los Filos, Castle Mountain and Aurizona being completed and performed in accordance with current expectations; tonnage of ore to be mined and processed; ore grades and recoveries remaining consistent with mine plans; all necessary permits, licenses and regulatory approvals are received in a timely manner; successful relationships between the Company and its joint venture partner and between the Company and its indigenous partners at Greenstone; and the Company's ability to comply with environmental, health and safety laws. While the Company considers these assumptions to be reasonable based on information currently available, they may prove to be incorrect. Accordingly, readers are cautioned not to put undue reliance on the forward-looking statements or information contained in this news release.

The Company cautions that forward-looking statements and information involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results and developments to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements and information contained in this news release and the Company has made assumptions and estimates based on or related to many of these factors. Such factors include, without limitation: fluctuations in gold prices; fluctuations in prices for energy inputs, labour, materials, supplies and services; fluctuations in currency markets; operational risks and hazards inherent with the business of mining (including environmental risks, geotechnical failures, industrial accidents, equipment breakdown, unusual or unexpected geological or structural formations, cave-ins, flooding and severe weather); inadequate insurance, or inability to obtain insurance to cover these risks and hazards; employee relations; relationships with, and claims by, local communities and Indigenous partners; the Company's ability to obtain all necessary permits, licenses and regulatory approvals in a timely manner or at all; changes in laws, regulations and government practices, including environmental, export and import laws and regulations; legal restrictions relating to mining; increased competition in the mining industry; and those factors identified in the section titled "Risks and Uncertainties" in Equinox Gold's Management's Discussion & Analysis dated February 21, 2024 for the year ended December 31, 2023, and in the section titled "Risks Related to the Business" in Equinox Gold's most recently filed Annual Information Form, both of which are available on the System for Electronic Document Analysis and Retrieval at www.sedarplus.ca and on the SEC's Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis and Retrieval system at www.sec.gov. Forward-Looking statements and information are designed to help readers understand management's views with respect to future events and speak only as of the date they are made. Except as required by applicable law, Equinox Gold assumes no obligation to update or to publicly announce the results of any change to any forward-looking statement or information contained or incorporated by reference to reflect actual results, future events or developments, changes in assumptions or changes in other factors affecting the forward-looking statements and information. If Equinox Gold updates any one or more forward-looking statements, no inference should be drawn that Equinox Gold will make additional updates with respect to those or other forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements and information contained in this news release are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/206942

FAQ

What is the purpose of Equinox Gold's US$299 million bought deal financing?

The financing will be used to fund a portion of the cash consideration to acquire the remaining 40% of the Greenstone Mine and for general working capital and corporate purposes.

How many common shares were issued in Equinox Gold's bought deal financing?

Equinox Gold issued 56,419,000 common shares in the bought deal financing.

What was the price per common share in Equinox Gold's bought deal financing?

The price per common share was US$5.30 in Equinox Gold's bought deal financing.

Who were the lead underwriters in Equinox Gold's bought deal financing?

The lead underwriters were BMO Capital Markets, National Bank Financial Inc., and Scotiabank.

How will Equinox Gold use the net proceeds from the bought deal financing?

Equinox Gold intends to use the net proceeds to fund the acquisition of the remaining 40% of the Greenstone Mine and for general working capital and corporate purposes.