Agnico Eagle Moves to Consolidate Finland's Central Lapland Belt With Three‑Part Acquisition Push

By Adriano Marchese

Agnico-Eagle Mines is making three separate acquisitions to consolidate properties along Northern Finland's Central Lapland Greenstone Belt, expanding the miner's presence the country.

The Canadian gold miner said Monday that it is acquiring Rupert Resources and Aurion Resources, and will also purchase B2Gold's 70% stake in the Fingold Ventures joint venture. Since Aurion owns the remaining 30%, these transactions will give Agnico Eagle full ownership of the Fingold JV.

The proposed acquisitions in the Central Lapland Greenstone Belt aligns with Agnico's strategy of regional consolidation. The company already has a large presence in the country, owning Kittila, Europe's largest gold mine.

By acquiring Rupert and Aurion, along with full ownership of the Fingold JV, the company adds the Ikkari project and a large, highly prospective land package to its existing Kittila platform, it said.

The combination adds operational synergies of up to 500 million Canadian dollars, the equivalent of US$365.1 million, and the potential to create a 500,000-ounce-a-year gold hub in Finland. The consolidation removes boundary constraints, enables a larger integrated mine plan, and leverages Agnico Eagle's financial strength and local expertise to accelerate development across the district.

For the Rupert portion of the transaction, Agnico will offer a total upfront consideration valued at C$2.87 billion. For each Rupert share, Agnico will give 0.0401 of its common share and a contingent payment of up to C$3.00 in the form of a contingent value right that is payable in cash once Rupert's properties reach a specified milestones.

The value represents a 67% premium to the closing price of Rupert's shares on the TSX as of Friday. It's stock is up 11% year-to-date and closed on Friday at C$7.17 apiece.

For Aurion, Agnico will pay C$2.60 in cash for each Aurion share for a total consideration of C$481 million. The deal represents a 46% premium to Aurion's closing price on Friday of C$1.78, up 32% since the beginning of the year.

Agnico will also pay US$325 million in cash to B2Gold for the remaining 30% interest in the Fingold JV.

Write to Adriano Marchese at adriano.marchese@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

April 20, 2026 07:32 ET (11:32 GMT)