Victoria Gold's Eagle gold mine site north of Mayo, Yukon, in a handout aerial photo taken in July, 2024.HO/The Canadian Press
A Singapore-based private company has been chosen as a potential buyer for the defunct Eagle Gold mine, where a catastrophic failure in 2024 sent cyanide-soaked ore into the Yukon environment.
A statement from the territorial government on Tuesday said the court-appointed receiver has entered into an exclusivity agreement with Boroo Ltd. for the sale of the Eagle Gold mine and “certain related assets.”
No price tag has been disclosed, but the agreement signed on April 23 gives the potential buyer 90 days to complete additional due diligence and negotiate sales terms.
The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Yukon government said it gave the sale process input to help ensure the interests of Yukoners are protected.
“This includes setting out criteria to ensure that any potential buyer is responsible, experienced and well-resourced,” the statement said.
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The website for receiver PricewaterhouseCoopers said that along with negotiating the sale, Boroo will start discussions with the Yukon government and the First Nation of Na-Cho Nyak Dun about agreements that would need to be in place for mining operations to restart.
“The due diligence work during this period will be essential to shaping the key supporting agreements, including a comprehensive plan for restarting mine operations,” it says.
The mine, near Mayo, Yukon, suffered a catastrophic failure in June of 2024 when part of the heap leach facility used in the extraction process collapsed, spilling about two million tonnes of cyanide-soaked ore into the environment.
Its previous owner, Victoria Gold VITFF, was put into receivership by an Ontario judge months later.
An independent review of the failure found that a series of factors, including an “over-steepened” slope and a rising water table at the facility contributed to the collapse that took about 10 seconds.
The Yukon government has agreed to loan the receiver up to $220-million to help with the cleanup and says selling the mine would be a chance to recover that money.
The PricewaterhouseCoopers website describes Boroo as a private mining company that operates, develops, and acquires mining assets around the world, and is recognized as a specialist in operational turnarounds and responsible mine development.
The company’s website lists assets in Peru, Chile and Mongolia.
It trumpets Boroo’s acquisition of the Lagunas Norte mine in Peru in 2021 for US$81-million after it was placed into care and maintenance.
Boroo says a “disciplined strategy centred on innovation and efficiency” means the mine is now the third-largest gold producer in Peru by output with a mine life expected to extend beyond 2040.
In 2025 the company bought the Alturas project site in Chile from Barrick Mining Corporation for an upfront cash payment of US$50-million.