Fox Complex Expansion (IA Mine Plan Excluding Inferred Mineral Resources) PEA: $126M NPV, $359M Capex
McEwen Mining Inc.'s Fox Complex Expansion (IA Mine Plan Excluding Inferred Mineral Resources) in Timmins, Northeastern Ontario, Canada has a Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) outlining an after-tax NPV of $126M and initial capital of $359M. The mine plan runs 9.1 years at about 57718 oz Au/year per year.
McEwen Mining Inc.'s Fox Complex Expansion (IA Mine Plan Excluding Inferred Mineral Resources) has reported Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) results for the gold project in Timmins, Northeastern Ontario, Canada. The study headlines an after-tax net present value of $126M at a 5% discount rate. It reflects McEwen Mining Inc.'s (MUX.TO) latest disclosed economics for the asset.
Economics. The after-tax NPV is $126M using a 5% discount rate. Initial capital expenditure is estimated at $359M. All-in sustaining costs are pegged at 1223.6 USD/oz. Economics are based on US$1,650/oz gold base case.
Production and mine plan. Life of mine is 9.1 years. Average annual production is approximately 57718 oz Au/year. Average head grade is 4.28 g/t Au (diluted). Metallurgical recovery averages 88.7%.
These figures are extracted from McEwen Mining Inc.'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.
Our Analysis
- NPV after-tax
- $126M
higher than 17% of 145 projects we track
- Initial capex
- $359M
286% of NPV
costlier than 68% of 144 projects we track
- Mine life
- 9.1yrs
- Study price assumption
- US$1,650/oz gold base case
- Spot gold today
- $4,470.30/oz
This sits in the bottom fifth of the 145 gold projects we track on after-tax NPV, and the ranking is the honest headline: at US$126M, the Timmins asset is not competing for capital on the strength of its headline number. The one genuinely distinguishing feature is the funding profile. The US$359M initial capex is roughly 0.3x the company's US$1.25B market cap, which is a build a small-cap can contemplate without a transformational raise, and it sits below 32% of the 144 gold projects we track on that measure. That is the constraint that matters least here, and it is worth saying so plainly.
The constraint that does bite is scale against cost. Capex at 286% of NPV is a lopsided ratio, and a 9.1-year life does not give much runway to absorb overruns. The study is a PEA, scoping-level, potentially carrying inferred material and a capital estimate with a plus or minus 50% band. A 286% ratio inside that band can move a long way in either direction, and the 0.1x NPV-to-market-cap gap should be read both ways: the market may not have priced this, or it may be discounting exactly these economics, the development-stage risk, and the fact that this is one of 22 projects in a diversified portfolio where it need not be prioritised.
The price assumption is the other live question. US$1,650/oz against a current spot of US$4,470.30/oz means the study was built on a fraction of today's market, so the returns are not stretched by an aggressive deck. The deciding question is whether a scoping-level study can be advanced to a feasibility standard that holds its capital estimate together.
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.