AngloGold Ashanti [JSE:ANG] has agreed to buy the 50% of
Brazil’s Crixas gold mine it does not already own for $220m cash from Kinross
Gold Corp as part of its drive to expand in the Americas.
AngloGold Ashanti said on Tuesday it expected the deal to
increase its annual attributable production from Brazil to over 500,000 ounces
and the contribution from the Americas region as whole to more than 1 million
ounces.
“This deal further simplifies our portfolio and gives us
greater exposure to Brazil, where we’ve had significant success in growing our
production as well as our reserve and resource base,” said AngloGold Ashanti
chief executive Mark Cutifani.
“We see long-term, lower risk, potential from Serra Grande
(Crixas), which is a key component of our strategy to grow the contribution
from the Americas.”
AngloGold Ashanti said the deal would be funded by existing
cash reserves and debt facilities.
The transaction is the latest in a series of disposals by
Kinross as it looks to sell off non-core assets.
Last year, it sold an 8.5% equity interest in diamond miner
Harry Winston for about C$100m, while in 2010 it sold a 22.5% interest in the
partnership holding Harry Winston’s 40% interest in the Diavik Diamond Mines
joint venture.
Kinross’s share of Crixas’s proven and probable gold
reserves was about 375,000 ounces as of December 31, and its share of forecast
production for 2012 was about 70,000 gold equivalent ounces.
Kinross said the deal was expected to be completed during
the second quarter of 2012.
