Teck Resources' Highland Valley Copper Mine near Logan Lake, B.C., in September, 2025.DARRYL DYCK/The Canadian Press
Across the country, there are university buildings named after the OGs – original gangsters − of Canadian mining.
The likes of Pierre Lassonde, Ross Beaty, Norm Keevil and Seymour Schulich didn’t build the fortunes needed to make multimillion-dollar donations by selling the companies they founded at an early stage and walking away, despite opportunities to cash out at lofty takeover prices.
The OGs got seriously wealthy by patiently developing mines and building platforms with global scale. Of late, their growth strategies meant rolling their stakes in companies such as Orla Mining Ltd. and Teck Resources Ltd. into larger entities in all-share deals without receiving premiums that typically come with takeovers.
Now, a generation of mining executives in their 70s and 80s are making a short-term sacrifice to ensure their legacy is a vibrant domestic mining sector and even greater wealth, along with their names on walls at a few postsecondary schools.
“Canada is home to the best mining schools in the world and the world’s best mining capital markets,” Mr. Lassonde said in an interview. “What we need to create is mining companies that are Canadian champions.”
Last week, he took steps to do just that by agreeing to swap a 9.3-per-cent stake in Vancouver-based Orla, worth roughly $650-million, for a stake in crosstown peer Equinox Gold Corp., a $7-billion deal with zero takeover premium for the seller.
“At the new Equinox, we’re trying to recreate one of those Canadian champions,” said Mr. Lassonde, who became a billionaire in part by helping create Denver-based Newmont Corp., the world’s largest gold miner.
Mr. Beaty, the chair of Equinox and himself a prolific builder of mining companies, made his own sacrifice to create a champion by agreeing to hand over board leadership to Orla chair Chuck Jeanes. Mr. Beaty, a long-time supporter of the University of British Columbia and Queen’s University, holds a 3-per-cent stake in Equinox worth roughly $500-million.
Mr. Keevil, Teck’s founder, similarly agreed to a zero-premium merger of the country’s largest base metal miner with Anglo American PLC. The US$50-billion deal stipulates that the combined company keep its head office in Vancouver.
There would have been a long lineup of bidders willing to pay more for Orla or Teck, a major copper producer, had the companies been put up for auction.
The OGs are attempting to atone for the sins of the past generation, when Canadians were sellers and foreign miners were buyers during a furious round of consolidation.
Equinox Gold bids $7-billion for Orla Mining to create Canada’s second-largest gold producer
“What I lament is the government’s decision 20 years ago to allow our Canadian champions − Inco, Falconbridge and Alcan − to all be acquired,” Mr. Lassonde said. Between 2006 and 2007, the country’s three largest miners went to buyers based in Brazil, Switzerland and England, respectively.
While Mr. Lassonde, a significant donor to six Canadian universities, is an economic nationalist, his M&A strategy is also rooted in creating long-term wealth.
In a traditional mining takeover, Orla might have found a buyer willing to pay a 20-per-cent premium for the company’s properties in stable jurisdictions such as Ontario, Nevada and Mexico.
Mr. Lassonde, the Orla board and Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd., another significant shareholder in the miner, are playing a longer game.
By selling to Equinox in an all-stock takeover, they intend to be part owners of what will rank as the second-largest gold miner in Canada, behind Toronto-based Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd., which in turn is the world’s second-largest gold producer.
“Our goal is to build a baby Agnico,” Mr. Lassonde said.
Agnico Eagle unveils capital plan for Ontario gold mining operations
Investors place a premium on scale that comes with promotion to the senior ranks of gold miners. The increase in wealth coming Mr. Lassonde’s way if Equinox’s takeover of Orla works as planned will dwarf any takeover premium.
Shares in Equinox and Orla, both intermediate gold producers, trade at roughly 5.5 times their forecast 2026 earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, or EBITDA. Investors also value the two miners at a discount to their net asset value. Together, Equinox and Orla pumped out 1.1 million ounces of gold last year.
Agnico Eagle stock trades at 8.2 times EBITDA and 125 per cent of its net asset value, a top-tier valuation for a company that produced 3.4 million ounces of gold in 2025.
Once it takes over Orla, Equinox has a clear path to mining more than two million ounces of gold each year by expanding existing facilities and developing new mines. That production that should command a stock market valuation similar to Agnico’s lofty multiple.
If what the street calls a “re-rating” of Equinox’s valuation takes place, Mr. Lassonde, Mr. Beaty and Fairfax stand to nearly double their money on a Canadian champion. And a few universities are likely to receive another massive donation.