Sleeper PEA: $402M NPV, 45% IRR
Paramount Gold and Silver Corp.'s Sleeper in Humboldt County, Northern Nevada, USA has a Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) outlining an after-tax NPV of $402M, an after-tax IRR of 45%, and initial capital of $201M. The mine plan runs 17 years at about 65 koz Au per year.
Paramount Gold and Silver Corp.'s Sleeper has reported Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) results for the gold project in Humboldt County, Northern Nevada, USA. The study headlines an after-tax net present value of $402M at a 8% discount rate. It reflects Paramount Gold and Silver Corp.'s (PZG) latest disclosed economics for the asset.
Economics. The after-tax NPV is $402M using a 8% discount rate. After-tax IRR is 45%. Initial capital expenditure is estimated at $201M, with life-of-mine sustaining capital of $343M. The study models a payback period of 1.4 years. All-in sustaining costs are pegged at 2407 USD/oz. Economics are based on Base Case $3,600/oz; Upside Case $4,700/oz.
Production and mine plan. Life of mine is 17 years. Average annual production is approximately 65 koz Au. Metallurgical recovery averages 85%. The open-pit strip ratio is 1.52.
Resources and ownership. Mineral resources: 1.99 Moz M&I Gold Resources; 2.30 Moz Inferred Gold Resources. The company holds a 100% interest in the project.
These figures are extracted from Paramount Gold and Silver 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.
Our Analysis
- IRR after-tax
- 45%
higher than 60% of 90 projects we track
- NPV after-tax
- $402M
- Initial capex
- $201M
50% of NPV
- Payback
- 1.4yrs
- Mine life
- 17yrs
- Discount rate
- 8%
- Study price assumption
- Base Case $3,600/oz; Upside Case $4,700/oz
- Spot gold today
- $4,135.70/oz
A 45% after-tax IRR places this project in the upper half of the 90 gold developers we track and well above the 20% hurdle typical for single-asset juniors. The 8% discount rate used for NPV reporting is standard but low, which flatters the $402M after-tax NPV; a higher rate would compress that figure. The NPV sits at roughly 3.8x market cap—a gap that could signal the market has not yet priced in the asset, or that it is discounting financing, permitting, or jurisdictional risk. The $201M initial capex is 50% of NPV, a moderate capital intensity that still poses funding risk given the developer’s size.
The base-case gold price of $3,600/oz is well below today’s spot of $4,135.70/oz, implying meaningful upside to the returns if prices hold. The 1.4-year payback and 17-year mine life reduce near-term risk, but the single most important watch-item is the financing path: a $201M build relative to a market cap far below that figure suggests significant dilution or debt risk. The upside case at $4,700/oz is aggressive but not implausible given the current spot.
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.