In an investment that will see Rio Tinto Canada purchase close to 3.5 million common Western Copper and Gold shares for aggregate gross proceeds close to CA$6m (US$4.4m), Rio Tinto will continue its development of Western's upcoming casino project in Yukon, which Western will be the sole owner and operator of.
The purchase will result in Rio Tinto owning roughly 9.7% of Western's outstanding common shares.
The funds from the investment are set to be used to fund studies into how best to provide the project with infrastructure, as well as to streamline the regulatory process to gain permission for the project's development phase.
Alongside the investment, Rio Tinto will also enter into an amended and restated investor rights agreement with Western. For 18 months, Rio Tinto will be entitled to certain benefits including the ability to appoint one member to the Casino Project Technical and Sustainability Committee and one non-voting observer to attend all of Western’s board of directors' meetings.
However, at this time Rio Tinto will not be able to sell, transfer or dispose of purchased shares and will not be able to acquire any securities in Western, unless under certain circumstances.
On the agreement and investment, President and CEO of Western Copper and Gold Paul West-Sells said: "We are pleased that Rio Tinto has elected to continue to invest and work with Western to advance the Casino Project, with a focus on furthering infrastructure development and streamlining the regulatory process."
Subject to regulatory approval, the investment is expected to close around 12 December 2023.
