Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - March 25, 2022) - Bear Creek Mining Corporation (TSXV: BCM) (OTCQX: BCEKF) (BVL: BCM) ("Bear Creek" or the "Company") wishes to update the status of its acquisition ("Acquisition") from Equinox Gold Corp. ("Equinox Gold") of a 100% interest in the Mercedes gold-silver mine ("Mercedes") located in Sonora, Mexico, which was originally announced in the Company's press release dated December 17, 2021.
(All dollar amounts are in United States dollars unless otherwise specified)
The completion of the Acquisition remains subject to anti-trust approval which the Company expects to receive in April 2022. On March 24, 2022, the Company and Equinox Gold agreed to extend the outside date for the completion of the Acquisition to April 30, 2022.
In addition, the completion of the Acquisition, as well as the Company's previously announced gold purchase agreement (the "Gold Purchase Agreement") with Sandstorm Gold Ltd. ("Sandstorm"), and the previously announced private placement by the Company to Sandstorm of a 6%, three-year convertible debenture ("Convertible Debenture") remain subject to a number of other customary closing conditions, including final approval from the TSX Venture Exchange.
The Company has become aware that on March 23, 2022, TRR Offtakes LLC ("Trident") - a subsidiary of Trident Royalties Plc which in January 2022 acquired a non-material offtake agreement with subsidiaries of Equinox Gold - brought an application for an order of an arbitrator restraining and enjoining the closing of the Acquisition (the "Application"). Bear Creek believes the Application is without merit. The Company intends to hold Trident fully responsible for all loss and damage Bear Creek may suffer as a consequence of Trident's interfering conduct. The Company also will take all available steps to have Trident post security for such amounts which will reflect the Company's reasonably foreseeable gains over the production life of Mercedes, in the unlikely event that an order is granted in respect of the Acquisition which prevents or obstructs its closing.
"It is disappointing that Trident did not meaningfully engage with us prior to initiating an arbitration to disrupt an ordinary course mining transaction. However, we look forward to a timely resolution of their dispute with Equinox. Bear Creek has valued relationships with a number of well-established royalty & streaming companies as both commercial partners and shareholders and looks forward to strengthening those relationships," states Anthony Hawkshaw, President and CEO of the Company.
For further information in respect of the Acquisition, the Gold Purchase Agreement and the Convertible Debenture, please refer to the company's news releases dated December 17, 2021 and January 26, 2022.
On behalf of the Board of Directors,
Anthony Hawkshaw
President and CEO
For further information contact:
Barbara Henderson - VP Corporate Communications
Direct: 604-628-1111
E-mail: barb@bearcreekmining.com
www.bearcreekmining.com
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release contains forward-looking statements regarding: the anticipated closing date; customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals, including anti-trust approval, of the Acquisition, the Gold Purchase Agreement and the Convertible Debenture; the merits of the Application; Trident's posting of security with respect to the Application; the anticipated order granted in respect of the Application; and other statements regarding future plans, expectations, guidance, projections, objectives, estimates and forecasts as well as the Company's expectations with respect to such matters. These forward-looking statements are provided as of the date of this news release, or the effective date of the documents referred to in this news release, as applicable, and reflect predictions, expectations or beliefs regarding future events based on the Company's beliefs at the time the statements were made, as well as various assumptions made by and information currently available to them. In making the forward-looking statements included in this news release, the Company has applied several material assumptions, including, but not limited to: that the Acquisition, the Gold Purchase Agreement and the Convertible Debenture will be approved by regulators; that an arbitrator will not grant an order in Trident's favour with respect to the Application; and that customary closing conditions will be met. Although management considers these assumptions to be reasonable based on information available to it, they may prove to be incorrect. By their very nature, forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties, both general and specific, and risks exist that estimates, forecasts, projections and other forward-looking statements will not be achieved or that assumptions on which they are based do not reflect future experience. We caution readers not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements as a number of important factors could cause the actual outcomes to differ materially from the expectations expressed in them. These risk factors may be generally stated as the risk that the assumptions expressed above do not occur, but specifically include, without limitation, risks relating to general market conditions and the additional risks described in the Company's latest Annual Information Form, and other disclosure documents filed by the Company on SEDAR. The foregoing list of factors that may affect future results is not exhaustive. Investors and others should carefully consider the foregoing factors and other uncertainties and potential events. The Company does not undertake to update any forward-looking statement, whether written or oral, that may be made from time to time by the Company or on behalf of the Company, except as required by law.
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulatory Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.