SSR Mining (TSX, Nasdaq: SSRM) has agreed to buy Nevada-focused explorer Roxmore Resources (TSX: RM) for C$660.1 million ($464 million), according to MINING.COM. The all-cash deal would give SSR Roxmore's Converse project, which sits just 6 km west of the producing Marigold mine. SSR released the offer together with an updated Marigold report that raises the mine's life to 20 years. The pairing shows a producer using a nearby development asset to extend its footprint in a district it already operates in. It is also the pattern running through today's other announcements, as miners work on growth pipelines.
SSR Mining: All-Cash Offer for Roxmore, Longer Life at Marigold
Converse is about 275 km northeast of Nevada's capital, Carson City. MINING.COM reported that an April 2026 preliminary economic assessment gives the project a post-tax net present value of $2.7 billion at a consensus gold price of $3,600 per oz., discounted at 5%. The same study shows a post-tax internal rate of return of 42.8%. A March resource update put Converse at 103 million indicated tonnes grading 0.65 gram gold per tonne for 2.2 million contained oz., plus 218 million inferred tonnes at 0.43 gram gold for 3 million oz.
The Marigold update is the second part of the story. SSR's new life-of-mine plan raises probable gold reserves by 43% to 4.6 million oz. and lengthens active mine life by five years. MINING.COM said the report more than triples the mine's post-tax NPV to $3.3 billion, assuming a gold price of $3,948 per ounce. Life-of-mine capital costs also rose, to $1.3 billion. The update includes an initial life-of-mine plan for Buffalo Valley, with 700,000 oz. of probable reserves and first production expected in 2029.
SSR Executive Chairman Rod Antal said in a release, "SSR Mining is the natural acquiror of this exciting deposit," Scotia Capital analyst Ovais Habib said the acquisition "appears consistent with management's low-capital-intensity growth strategy."
The market reaction was mixed. Roxmore shares surged 30% to a new 52-week high of $6.96 each, for a market value of $502.1 million. SSR shares fell 7% to C$46.72 ($32.86) on Tuesday morning in Toronto, possibly due to relatively high initial costs at Converse of $829 million, according to the April 2026 PEA, MINING.COM reported. The deal comes about six months after SSR sold its 80% stake in Turkey's Çöpler mine, where operations were suspended in 2024 after a heap-leach pad landslide that killed nine miners.
Equinox Gold: Merger Lifts Quarterly Production, South Railroad Advances
Equinox Gold (TSX, NYSE: EQX) increased third-quarter gold production by 34% following its merger with Orla Mining. The company reported production of 237,019 oz in the September quarter, up from 176,836 oz in the previous three months. Those results included two months of output from the Musselwhite mine in Canada and Camino Rojo in Mexico. Gold sales rose 39.6% to 248,484 oz from 177,959 oz.
Equinox president Jason Simpson said, "The third quarter was transformational." The company expects the combined business to produce 1.1 million oz annually, with growth potential exceeding 1.9 million oz.
Equinox produced 611,483 oz in the first nine months of 2026 and says it is on track for full-year guidance of 870,000 to 920,000 oz. MINING.COM noted that hitting guidance would require fourth-quarter output of about 258,500 to 308,500 oz, above the September quarter's total.
On the development side, South Railroad in Nevada secured a federal record of decision and final federal permits, and early construction work has begun. A 2026 feasibility study completed by Orla outlined average annual production of 130,000 oz during the first five years at all-in sustaining costs of about $1,500 per oz., with first gold scheduled for 2028.
Arafura Rare Earths: Traxys Offtake Grows for Nolans
Arafura Rare Earths (ASX:ARU) has agreed to supply Traxys North America with 850 tonnes of neodymium-praseodymium (NdPr) oxide a year from its Nolans project, up 70% from the original term sheet volume. The binding agreement runs for five years, with an option to extend by two years by mutual consent.
The buyer matters as much as the volume. Traxys is one of three commodity trading and procurement companies selected to source and manage materials for the US government's strategic reserve program for critical minerals. Australia's A$1.2 billion Critical Minerals Strategic Reserve has also committed to buying 500 tonnes of NdPr oxide annually from Nolans.
Nolans, about 135 km from Alice Springs, began construction this month, with first production expected in mid-2029. Hancock Prospecting, controlled by Gina Rinehart, holds a 17.5% stake in Arafura.
