Coffee Gold Project PEA: $2.20B NPV, 43.5% IRR
Fuerte Metals Corp.'s Coffee Gold Project in Yukon, Canada has a Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) outlining an after-tax NPV of $2.20B, an after-tax IRR of 43.5%, and initial capital of $998M. The mine plan runs 13 years at about 217 koz Au (LOM average); 249 koz/yr first 5 full years per year.
Fuerte Metals Corp.'s Coffee Gold Project has reported Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) results for the gold project in Yukon, Canada. The study headlines an after-tax net present value of $2.20B at a 5% discount rate. It reflects Fuerte Metals Corp.'s (FMT.V) latest disclosed economics for the asset.
Economics. The after-tax NPV is $2.20B using a 5% discount rate. After-tax IRR is 43.5%. Initial capital expenditure is estimated at $998M, with life-of-mine sustaining capital of $693M. The study models a payback period of 1.97 years. All-in sustaining costs are pegged at 1386 USD/oz. Economics are based on Consensus gold prices used in the PEA are $4,110/oz for 2029 and $3,620/oz in 2030 and beyond; spot price is $5,000/oz. Exchange rate assumes 1.39 CAD per 1.00 USD. Resource estimate used a gold price of US$2,500/oz..
Production and mine plan. The project envisions an open-pit (truck & shovel), heap leach operation. Life of mine is 13 years. Average annual production is approximately 217 koz Au (LOM average); 249 koz/yr first 5 full years. Average head grade is 1.25 g/t Au (LOM ore mined). Metallurgical recovery averages 77.5%. The open-pit strip ratio is 7.6:1.
Resources and ownership. The company holds a 100% interest in the project. Royalties and streams: 3% NSR, re-purchasable for US$100M until 1-year after commercial production (from acquisition of Coffee from Newmont).
These figures are extracted from Fuerte Metals Corp.'s technical disclosures and reflect the most recent PEA on file. Compare this project against other developers and producers in our project economics database, and always verify the numbers against the original technical report before making any investment decision.
Reserves & Resources
| Category | Tonnage | Grade | Contained |
|---|---|---|---|
| Measured | 1,200 kt | 1.80 g/t Au | 69 koz Au |
| Indicated | 78,846 kt | 1.14 g/t Au | 2,888 koz Au |
| Measured & Indicated | 80,046 kt | 1.15 g/t Au | 2,957 koz Au |
| Inferred | 21,200 kt | 1.17 g/t Au | 800 koz Au |
| Measured & Indicated (0.4 g/t cut-off) | 60,445 kt | 1.44 g/t Au | 2,789 koz Au |
| Measured & Indicated (1.0 g/t cut-off) | 30,720 kt | 2.19 g/t Au | 2,162 koz Au |
Our Analysis
- IRR after-tax
- 43.5%
higher than 63% of 118 projects we track
- NPV after-tax
- $2.20B
higher than 90% of 180 projects we track
- Initial capex
- $998M
45% of NPV
costlier than 87% of 166 projects we track
- Payback
- 2yrs
slower than 45% of 100 projects we track
- Mine life
- 13yrs
- Discount rate
- 5%
- Study price assumption
- Consensus gold prices used in the PEA are $4,110/oz for 2029 and $3,620/oz in 2030 and beyond; spot price is $5,000/oz. Exchange rate assumes 1.39 CAD per 1.00 USD. Resource estimate used a gold price of US$2,500/oz.
- Spot gold today
- $4,212.00/oz
Across the 118 gold projects we track, this one's 43.5% after-tax IRR sits above 63% of them, and its $2.20B after-tax NPV ranks above 90% of the 180 projects in that set. That gap between the two ranks is the interesting part: the NPV is near the top of the cohort, the IRR merely upper-half. A two-year payback, faster than 55% of the 100 projects we track, reinforces the same reading. This is a large, quick-returning asset rather than an exceptional one on rate of return, and the practical test is whether 43.5% clears the roughly 15% after-tax hurdle developers typically need to attract project finance. It does, with room.
The constraint is not the returns, it is the study that produced them. These are PEA numbers, scoping-level, potentially built on inferred resources, with a capital estimate that typically carries a plus or minus 50% band. The $998M initial capex is 45% of NPV, capital-light against the 166 gold projects we track (lower than 87% of them), but that ratio is only as good as the estimate behind it, and at this stage it is not yet an estimate an investor should underwrite. Yukon is a favourable jurisdiction, and the company holds four projects, so this is not a story about a single asset carrying a balance sheet. It is a story about a study that has not yet been de-risked.
The price deck deserves a mention. The PEA used $4,110/oz for 2029 and $3,620/oz from 2030, against a live spot of $4,212/oz, so the near-term assumption is close to market while the long-run deck sits below it. That is not an aggressive deck, but it is also not the question. The question is whether a feasibility-level study, with a firmer capital number and reserves rather than inferred material, still shows an IRR anywhere near 43.5%. Until then, the rank is a promise, not a result.
Our take, benchmarked against the project economics in the Mining Stocks database. Figures are estimates drawn from company technical reports — not investment advice; always verify against the source filing.
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