AngloGold invests $39M in Thesis for 5% stake

AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE: AU) has taken up a 5% stake in Thesis Gold (TSXV: TAU), whose main project is the Lawyers-Ranch site in northern British Columbia.

The major is to acquire about 13.86 million of Thesis’ shares at a price of C$2.79, for a total investment of $38.7 million, Vancouver-based Thesis said in a release on Thursday. Lawyers-Ranch is about 750 km north of Vancouver.

“The investment adds competitive tension with a deep pocketed gold producer now in the mix for Thesis’ 5 Moz AuEq Lawyers-Ranch Project and its large-scale land package in the emerging Toodoggone district,” Haywood Capital Markets analyst Jamie Spratt said in a note on Thursday.

The investment is “a strong validation of the quality and scale” of the company’s Lawyers-Ranch project and the work the Thesis team has completed to date, Thesis CEO Ewan Webster said. 

“AngloGold Ashanti’s global operating experience, technical depth, and long-term approach to building high-quality mining districts create meaningful opportunities for collaboration as we continue to advance, de-risk, and unlock the full potential of the project,” Webster stated in the release.

Centerra stake

The new stake comes almost one year after Centerra Gold (TSX: CG), acquired a 9.9% stake in Thesis. Centerra notified the company of its intention to exercise its own investor right and buy another 2.06 million shares at the same price AngloGold paid, for a total of $5.75 million. Centerra’s Kemess project is just 45 km southeast of Lawyers-Ranch.

“Lawyers Ranch would provide synergies and potentially game-changing upside to the project economics of Centerra’s Kemess project,” Spratt said. “With Anglo now in the mix with a significant equity toehold, we speculate that Anglo may see Lawyers Ranch as a viable standalone high margin gold project with significant district upside + consolidation potential. We believe this is a positive development for the stock.”

Thesis Gold’s shares surged 11% following the announcement to $3.17 apiece, near its 52-week high of $3.27 set back in January. The company has a market capitalization of $822.9 million.

As part of the investment agreement, AngloGold will be granted the rights to maintain its 5% ownership in Thesis through the participation of future financings.

AngloGold closed a deal last October to acquire Canadian explorer Augusta Gold for about $152 million (US$111 million) in cash to further expand its Nevada footprint. 

Advanced-stage project

Thesis’ Lawyers-Ranch is an advanced-stage gold-silver project located in the Toodoggone mining district of B.C., which has drawn geological similarities to the prolific Golden Triangle to the west.

The property encompasses a former mine that produced over 173,000 oz. of gold and 3.6 million oz. of silver between 1989-1992. Thesis has since consolidated a 495-sq.-km land package around the historic site by merging the Lawyers and Ranch assets.

Following extensive drill programs on various prospects, the company first produced a preliminary economic assessment for the Lawyers-Ranch project in 2024, then advanced it into the pre-feasibility stage in December 2025. That study outlined a post-tax net present value of $2.37 billion and a 54% internal rate of return. The project is expected to have a 15-year mine life.

Lawyers-Ranch hosts 117.5 million measured and indicated tonnes grading 0.88 gram gold per tonne, 25.9 grams silver for 3.3 million oz. gold, 97.8 million oz. silver, 2,000 lb. copper, according to the pre-feasibility study’s updated resource.

There are also 16.2 million inferred tonnes grading 1.05 grams gold, 14.7 grams silver and 0.04% copper for 547,000 oz. gold, 7.6 million oz. silver and 7,000 lb. copper.