Agnico, Aya and Gunnison in MDC December rankings: project and cashflow notes for mine planners
Reviewed by Joe Ashwell

First reported on MINING.com
30 Second Briefing
Agnico Eagle, Aya Gold & Silver and Gunnison Copper led MINING.COM’s December Global Mining Power Rankings, with Agnico securing 11.9% of large-cap votes on the back of a reaffirmed 2025 output of 3.3–3.5 Moz, about $3.1 billion free cash flow in nine months and full debt elimination targeted by Q4 2025. Aya’s Zgounder mine in Morocco reached commercial production post-expansion and a PEA for its 85%-owned Boumadine project outlines an 11-year, multi-pit and underground polymetallic operation, supported by a roughly 160% silver price surge. Micro-cap winner Gunnison Copper produced first copper cathode at Johnson Camp in Arizona in 2025, began sales in September and secured about $13.9 million in US DOE Section 48C tax credits, signalling momentum for US in-situ copper supply.
Technical Brief
- Agnico’s Canadian Malartic underground expansion is reported on schedule and within original guidance parameters.
- Share price performance for Agnico reached +116% in Toronto and +125% in New York over 12 months.
- Avenir Minerals Limited was launched by Agnico to deploy roughly $80 million into early-stage critical minerals.
- Agnico previously committed $180 million to Perpetua Resources’ Stibnite gold–antimony project in Idaho, expanding US-facing exposure.
- Around $1 billion of Agnico’s 2025 free cash flow has been allocated to share buybacks alongside higher dividends.
Our Take
With Agnico Eagle’s free cash flow run-rate of $6.8 billion and a 2025 production outlook of 3.3–3.5 million oz of gold, the company sits at the capital-rich end of our gold coverage universe, giving it unusual latitude to fund both brownfield expansions like Meliadine and opportunistic stakes such as Perpetua’s Stibnite without balance-sheet strain.
Aya Gold & Silver’s 85% ownership of the Boumadine polymetallic project and an 11-year envisaged mine life place it among the more leveraged silver names in our database at a time when the 2025 silver price surge of about 160% has sharply improved project economics for similar North African polymetallic assets.
Gunnison Copper’s receipt of $13.9 million in US DOE Section 48C tax credits aligns with other North American copper items in our coverage where public incentives are increasingly decisive for in-situ and lower-footprint projects, especially as deep seabed mining for critical minerals remains legally blocked according to the December 30, 2025 seabed-governance piece.
Prepared by collating external sources, AI-assisted tools, and Geomechanics.io’s proprietary mining database, then reviewed for technical accuracy & edited by our geotechnical team.
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