Zijin to buy Allied Gold for $4B: asset quality and risk notes for mine planners
Reviewed by Joe Ashwell
First reported on MINING.com
30 Second Briefing
Zijin Gold will acquire Canada’s Allied Gold for about C$5.5 billion in cash, paying C$44 per share—a 5.4% premium to Allied’s last close and 27% above its 30‑day average—as it accelerates overseas expansion amid record bullion prices. The deal adds three African producing mines expected to deliver up to 400,000 oz/y of gold, with Mali’s Sadiola contributing roughly half, plus the Kurmuk development project in Ethiopia and operations in Ivory Coast. A C$220 million break fee, Mali jurisdiction risk and the all‑cash structure may deter rival bids from peers such as Endeavour Mining and Fortuna.
Technical Brief
- Agreement includes a C$220 million termination fee payable by Allied under specified conditions.
- Transaction requires Allied shareholder approval plus clearance under the Investment Canada Act before closing.
- Sadiola mine in Mali currently provides roughly 50% of Allied’s ~400,000 oz/y group output.
- Remaining production comes from additional African operations, including assets in Ivory Coast.
- Kurmuk gold project in Ethiopia is expected to be a key re‑rating catalyst around 2026 commissioning.
- Analyst commentary notes upside risk to valuation if Kurmuk ramps successfully versus current implied pricing.
- Mali jurisdictional risk and operational uncertainty are cited as key deterrents for rival bidders such as Endeavour and Fortuna.
- Higher gold prices are driving large producers towards M&A over greenfield builds to secure long‑life ounces.
Our Take
Zijin’s move to acquire Allied Gold’s African gold assets comes just days after commissioning the Phase 2 expansion at its Julong copper mine in China, signalling that the company is deploying capital simultaneously into large-scale copper at home and multi-mine gold exposure abroad.
In our database of 750 Mining stories, Zijin appears frequently in copper- and gold-linked items, and its recent milestone of surpassing 1,000 MW of installed clean energy capacity suggests it will likely bring relatively advanced in-house power and decarbonisation solutions to Allied’s operations in Mali, Ivory Coast and Ethiopia.
The presence of Mali, Ivory Coast, Ethiopia and the Democratic Republic of Congo across this deal and other recent Africa-focused coverage underscores that Zijin is concentrating growth in jurisdictions where Chinese and Western capital are now competing for gold and critical minerals, which may influence future permitting dynamics and community negotiations around assets like Sadiola and Kurmuk.
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.
Related Articles
Related Industries & Products
Mining
Geotechnical software solutions for mining operations including CMRR analysis, hydrogeological testing, and data management.
CMRR-io
Streamline coal mine roof stability assessments with our cloud-based CMRR software featuring automated calculations, multi-scenario analysis, and collaborative workflows.
HYDROGEO-io
Comprehensive hydrogeological testing platform for managing, analysing, and reporting on packer tests, lugeon values, and hydraulic conductivity assessments.
GEODB-io
Centralised geotechnical data management solution for storing, accessing, and analysing all your site investigation and material testing data.