Mackay Gold and Silver Company (Mac-TSXV, MKGSF-OTCQB) has finalized a deal with Comstock Inc. Privately owned to purchase 100% of Comstock’s mining assets, known as Silver Lode Properties (SLP) in Story County and Leon County Nevada. The acquisition expands Mackay’s total land holdings by 70% to 4,343 hectares, enhancing the largest real estate package owned by a single company in the history of the Comstock region.
Under the agreement, Mackay will pay $20 million in cash and deliver 2.0 million shares upon closing, followed by another $7 million payable within 18 months in a combination of cash and shares, plus future consideration as detailed later in the company’s press release. “With a balance sheet of over $60 million, Mackay is fully funded to make all cash payments while maintaining a very strong treasury to fund the company’s exploration activities,” Mackay said in a press release.
The deal unites the region’s three major vein systems, the Silver City Lode, Occidental-Brunswick Lode and Comstock Lode, under one ownership for the first time, MacKay said.
Mackay Gold & Silver shares advanced on the news, rising 9.35%, or 23 cents, to $2.69. Shares are trading in a 52-week range of $5.00 to $1.96.
Mackay Gold & Silver is a Nevada gold and silver mining company with 100% control of a large, consolidated land package in one of the richest, most productive and oldest mining regions in America. With an estimated 8.2 million ounces of historical gold production, and 192 million ounces of silver produced between 1859 and 1926 from so-called “Bonanza Lodes” that averaged 35 g/t gold and 726 g/t silver, the Comstock District is known as one of the highest thermal systems in America and an attractive environment for modern discovery.
The SCL properties are contiguous with the southern boundary of the existing Mackay land package, which covers the entire length of the multi-kilometre Silver City Lode and its southern projection at Spring Valley. SCL’s properties include several historic producing gold and silver mines and two gold and silver deposits with historic resource estimates dating back to 2022. These include the Lucerne deposit located in Silver City and the Dayton deposit located approximately 3.0 kilometers south of the Lucerne deposit.
The properties also include a permitted mine and processing infrastructure at American Flats.
“Territory consolidation has been key to opening up modern exploration of the Comstock area,” said Mackay CEO Darwin Green. “By removing the ownership boundaries that have long divided this camp, we can test objectives and structural continuities that previous operators could never pursue.” “This area has historically produced a significant amount of gold and silver at very high grades, and has seen remarkably little recent exploration, a rare combination that provides an attractive opportunity for significant new discoveries.”
Comstock will retain net smelter royalties on the acquired properties.
