Mining Press Roundup: Equinox-Orla Forge $18.5B Gold Giant as Lithium Faces Tariff Headwinds

Equinox Gold and Orla Mining announced a definitive agreement to combine in an all-share transaction valued at approximately $18.5 billion, creating one of North America's largest gold producers with expected annual production of 1.1 million ounces . The merger, announced May 13, positions the combined entity as Canada's second-largest gold producer after Agnico Eagle Mines , anchored by three long-life Canadian operations that collectively represent a major consolidation play in a sector riding near-record gold prices.

Equinox Gold: Creating a North American Gold Powerhouse

The combined company will be anchored by three long-life Canadian gold mines, with a clear path to more than 1.9 million ounces of annual gold production from an internally funded North American growth pipeline . According to the companies, Equinox's Greenstone and Valentine mines are expected to produce approximately 450,000 ounces of gold in 2026, while Orla's Musselwhite mine is projected to add another 235,000 ounces .

Upon completion, Equinox shareholders will own approximately 67% of the combined company, while Orla shareholders will hold approximately 33% . The deal structure offers Orla shareholders one Equinox share plus a nominal cash payment of $0.0001 per share, with shareholder votes expected in July 2026 and closing anticipated in the third quarter of 2026 .

The transaction comes as gold miners seek scale, lower operating risk and stronger balance sheets as bullion prices remain near record highs . According to market data, gold traded at $4,536 per ounce on May 18, down just 0.1% as the metal consolidates after recent volatility tied to inflation concerns.

Nouveau Monde Graphite: Building the G7's Largest Graphite Mine

Nouveau Monde Graphite reported that, following major financing milestones, it has begun construction at its Phase-2 Matawinie Mine in early Q2 2026, backed by a US$335 million debt package, US$213 million in private placements and an oversubscribed US$96.5 million offering, bringing contemplated total gross proceeds to about US$645 million . The Quebec project represents a critical step in building Western battery supply chains independent of Chinese graphite dominance.

The Matawinie Mine sits approximately 120 kilometres north of Montreal in Quebec's Lanaudière region, where Quebec's electricity grid is powered overwhelmingly by hydroelectric generation, giving the province some of the lowest-carbon and lowest-cost industrial electricity in North America . According to the company, the mine and concentrator will produce approximately 106,000 tonnes per annum of graphite concentrate .

Construction activities are already underway, with over 50% of CAPEX under contract and within feasibility estimates, and an integrated project team with Pomerleau and AtkinsRéalis mobilized . The project has received strong government backing, with the Canada Growth Fund investing approximately US$82 million (C$113 million) in Nouveau Monde Graphite as part of Canada's critical minerals strategy.

Lithium Americas: Thacker Pass Faces $120M Tariff Hit

Lithium Americas is estimating that U.S. steel tariffs and the Iran war will add $80 million to $120 million to this year's construction expense for the Thacker Pass project in Nevada . The cost increase highlights the challenges facing Western governments and miners attempting to build domestic battery-metal supply chains while geopolitical tensions reshape global trade routes.

The company said more than three-quarters of structural steel for the project, sourced from the United Arab Emirates, is either in transit or already at site after shipments were rerouted through Saudi Arabia's Port of Jeddah to avoid regional disruptions . According to Lithium Americas, more than 1,300 workers are now on site, with peak construction expected to exceed 2,000, and CEO Jonathan Evans said lithium market conditions are improving ahead of the project's expected startup in late 2027 and ramp-up through 2028 .

Once complete, the mine is expected to produce 40,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate annually, well above output from Albemarle's Silver Peak mine, currently the only operating lithium brine mine in the U.S., and Lithium Americas ended the quarter with about $1.2 billion in cash and restricted cash, including $529 million at the Thacker Pass joint venture level after receiving another $432-million advance from a Department of Energy loan facility .

According to market data, the Lithium ETF (LIT) traded at $83.43 on May 18, down 0.8%, reflecting continued pressure on battery metals despite long-term demand optimism.

Lithium Argentina: RIGI Approval Unlocks $1.24B Expansion

Lithium Argentina announced that the expansion of the Cauchari-Olaroz lithium brine operation under Argentina's Large Investment Incentive Regime (RIGI) has obtained the approval of the Evaluation Committee, with the Stage 2 expansion targeting production capacity for an additional 45,000 tonnes per annum of lithium carbonate equivalent, building on Cauchari-Olaroz's Stage 1 operating capacity of 40,000 tpa, and the approval was announced by Luis Caputo, the Minister of Economy, following completion of the final technical evaluation under the RIGI review process, with the formal resolution expected in June 2026 .

RIGI provides substantial benefits for the Cauchari-Olaroz Stage 2 project, including 30 years of fiscal, customs, and foreign exchange stability, with key financial incentives comprising a reduced corporate income tax rate of 25% (down from 35%), duty-free imports of capital goods, exemptions from export duties after three years, and flexible offshore retention of export proceeds .

The approval represents a major de-risking milestone for Argentina's lithium sector under President Javier Milei's pro-investment reforms. The expansion necessitates a minimum investment of US$200 million in verifiable assets, with at least US$80 million to be deployed within the first two years post-approval .

Agnico Eagle: $14B Ontario Investment Signals Confidence

Agnico Eagle Mines plans to spend $14 billion (US$10.2 billion) in Ontario by 2030 as the province moves to accelerate mine permitting and development, the government said Tuesday . The announcement represents one of the largest private-sector commitments in Ontario's mining history and underscores the province's improving competitiveness following regulatory reforms.

About $2 billion of Agnico's planned $14 billion outlay will go toward the Detour Lake underground project and the Upper Beaver gold-copper project, creating up to 1,600 jobs, and the investments could boost gross domestic product by nearly $5 billion, according to the province . According to the company, Detour Lake is Canada's largest gold mine and holds the country's biggest reserves of the yellow metal .

News of Agnico's Ontario expansion comes after the provincial government introduced rules in October designed to cut mine approval times by half, and Ontario climbed to No. 2 behind Nevada in the most recent Fraser Institute global survey of mining jurisdictions, which was released in February .

Elemental Royalty: $327M Vizsla Acquisition Targets Panuco Silver

Elemental Royalty announced the total consideration for the acquisition of Vizsla Royalties is approximately C$327 (US$239) million or C$4.13 per Vizsla Royalties Share on a fully-diluted basis, with the transaction price representing a premium of 31% and 22% to the unaffected closing price and the 20-day volume weighted average trading price, respectively, of the Vizsla Royalties Shares as at May 12, 2026 .

The acquisition gives Elemental a 2%-3.5% uncapped net smelter return royalty on Vizsla Silver's Panuco development project in Jalisco state, with no buyback or step-down provisions, and the royalty includes a 3.5% NSR on the Silverstone concessions and 2% on the Rio Panuco concessions . According to the companies, Vizsla Royalties projects the asset could contribute about 7,500 oz. of gold equivalent annually once production begins .

The transaction is the largest in Elemental's history and its first since the November 2025 merger between EMX Royalties and Elemental Altus Royalties , signaling continued consolidation in the royalty sector as companies seek scale and diversification.

NGEx Minerals: Ultra-High-Grade Gold at Lunahuasi

Highlight hole DPDH070 cut 17.3 metres grading 207.79 grams gold per tonne, 2.02% copper and 16.2 grams silver from about 335 metres depth, NGEx said Wednesday in a statement . The results from the Lunahuasi project in Argentina continue to demonstrate exceptional grades that rank among the world's richest emerging copper-gold systems.

CEO Wojtek Wodzicki said in the statement that today's news release highlights the high-grade gold component of this remarkable deposit, with two new intersections showing grades comparable to some of the best gold-only deposits worldwide, and it is becoming clear that these high-grade gold quartz veins occur throughout the deposit . Located inside the Vicuña district along the Chile-Argentina border, Lunahuasi is a relatively new discovery, having been first identified in 2023, and the project has quickly gained attention for delivering some of the highest copper and gold grades encountered in the district, which hosts major deposits such as Josemaria and Filo del Sol .

NGEx shares jumped 6.1% to $30.08 in Toronto trading Wednesday morning, valuing the company at about $6.5 billion (US$4.7 billion) , reflecting strong market appetite for high-grade discovery stories in stable jurisdictions.

Australia Orders Northern Minerals Divestment

Australia's government has directed the largest shareholders of rare earths company Northern Minerals Ltd. to divest their holdings, marking the second such order in two years as Canberra aims to safeguard the firm from investors with ties to China due to national security concerns, and six investors in the firm, valued at A$229 million (US$163 million), must sell their shares within a two-week period starting Monday, the Treasury said in a statement .

Data compiled by Bloomberg shows four of the entities are the largest holders, including top investor Vastness Investment with approximately 7% ownership, and collectively, the six entities hold nearly 27% of the outstanding shares . Northern Minerals' Browns Range project, located in Western Australia's Pilbara region, has not yet been developed but represents a significant deposit of heavy rare earth elements used in military applications and advanced electronics, and the project has received non-binding letters of support from the U.S. and Australian governments for its future development .

The action underscores escalating Western efforts to secure critical minerals supply chains independent of Chinese influence, particularly for heavy rare earths essential to defense and clean energy applications.

What It Means

This week's announcements reveal three dominant themes shaping the mining sector in mid-2026: consolidation among gold producers seeking scale at elevated prices, mounting geopolitical pressures on critical minerals supply chains, and the growing role of government incentives in de-risking battery metals projects.

The Equinox-Orla merger exemplifies how gold companies are leveraging strong balance sheets and near-record bullion prices to build production platforms capable of sustaining investor interest through commodity cycles. Meanwhile, lithium developers face a bifurcated reality—tariffs and geopolitical disruptions add unexpected costs to U.S. projects like Thacker Pass, even as Argentina's RIGI framework demonstrates how fiscal certainty can unlock billions in private capital for South American developments.

The forced divestment at Northern Minerals signals that Western governments are willing to use regulatory tools aggressively to prevent Chinese influence over strategic mineral assets, even at the cost of short-term market disruption. For investors, the message is clear: critical minerals projects in allied jurisdictions carry a geopolitical premium that traditional mining economics alone cannot capture.

According to market data, the Copper Miners ETF (COPX) traded at $81.99 on May 18, down 1.3%, while the Uranium ETF (URA) fell 2.1% to $48.88, suggesting continued volatility in battery and energy metals despite strong long-term fundamentals.

This roundup covers press releases published on May 18, 2026. Company announcements are sourced from mining industry wire services. For corrections or updates, contact contact@stakeandpaper.com.