Freeman Gold’s Lemhi project: NPV, capex and mine plan takeaways for engineers
Reviewed by Joe Ashwell

First reported on MINING.com
30 Second Briefing
Freeman Gold’s Lemhi open pit project in Idaho now carries a post-tax NPV5 of US$696 million and a 34% IRR, with a 15-year mine life and 1 million oz of gold reserves, tripling value versus its 2023 PEA as higher gold price assumptions and mine plan changes take effect. The feasibility study outlines life-of-mine production of 972,000 oz at all-in sustaining costs of US$1,718.95/oz and initial capex of US$329.7 million, following 92,696 metres of drilling and upgraded crushing and grinding capacity. Freeman plans to seek FAST-41 federal permitting fast-track status, while its shares rose nearly 20% to C$0.34, valuing the company at about C$93 million.
Technical Brief
- Initial capital for the Lemhi open pit increases 73% to US$329.7 million versus the 2023 PEA.
- Feasibility assumes a base case gold price of US$3,650/oz, materially above historic study assumptions.
- Life-of-mine production is now estimated at 972,000 oz, about 120,000 oz higher than the 2023 plan.
- Enhanced mine plan includes upgraded crushing and grinding capacity in the mill to support higher throughput.
- Lemhi lies ~300 km northeast of Boise, Idaho, in a jurisdiction with existing advanced gold projects (Stibnite, Black Pine, DeLamar).
- All-in sustaining costs are projected at US$1,718.95/oz, defining the operating cost envelope for pit optimisation.
- Freeman intends to seek FAST-41 federal permitting fast-track status, potentially compressing the approvals schedule relative to peers.
Our Take
Lemhi’s updated post‑tax NPV of US$696 million and 34% IRR put Freeman Gold’s Idaho project in a very different scale bracket from Perpetua Resources’ Stibnite, which in our coverage is framed around multi‑billion‑dollar EXIM financing and a US$1.3 billion build, signalling that Lemhi is more likely to appeal to mid‑tier or specialist developers than to sovereign‑backed megaproject lenders.
Within our 1201 Mining stories, Idaho gold projects such as Stibnite, Black Pine and DeLamar recur as a cluster, suggesting Lemhi’s feasibility‑stage economics could benefit from an emerging regional services ecosystem (EPCM, labs, permitting consultants) already mobilised for Perpetua Resources and Liberty Gold.
The 73% rise in Lemhi’s initial capex relative to the 2023 PEA, alongside a 227% NPV uplift driven largely by a 130% gold price move, underlines how exposed single‑asset gold developers like Freeman Gold are to price cycles; if gold retraces towards levels seen when the war‑linked 22% price drop was recorded in our database, project robustness will hinge on further cost and design optimisation rather than price alone.
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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