A view of the Cripple Creek & Victor (CC&V) gold mine in Colorado. Credit: Newmont.
SSR Mining (Nasdaq, TSX: SSRM) said a new technical study for the recently acquired Cripple Creek & Victor (CC&V) gold mine in Colorado extends the asset’s mineral reserve estimate and projected life.
CC&V’s mineral reserves are now estimated at about 2.8 million oz. gold, up from about 2.4 million oz. at the end of 2024, Denver-based SSR said Tuesday in a statement. This would allow about 12 more years of mining and stacking to take place at the site, followed by about 14 years of residual leaching, the company says.
“Today’s initial life of mine plan already demonstrates a long-lived operation,” executive chairman Rod Antal said in the statement.
SSR acquired CC&V from Newmont (NYSE: NEM; TSX: NGT) in February, and the operation has already paid back the buyer’s $100 million upfront payment in after-tax free cash flow. CC&V is on track to produce 90,000 to 110,000 oz. gold this year, with annual output projected to average 141,000 oz. from 2026 to 2028.
Net present value
At an average gold price of $3,240 an oz. over the mine’s life, CC&V would have an after-tax net present value of $824 million, the company says. NPV would nearly double to about $1.5 billion if gold averaged $4,000 an ounce.
Based on cash payments as well as past and projected cash flow, the acquisition has an implied internal rate of return of more than 100%, SSR says.
The new technical report factors in a proposed expansion of the mine’s open pits and leach pads. Most of the ore mined is expected to be sourced from the Globe Hill, Schist Island and South Cresson pits, which are all in operation today.
CC&V holds 235.1 million proven and probable tonnes grading 0.37 gram gold per tonne for contained metal of 2.8 million oz., SSR says. Measured and indicated resources are pegged at 344.8 million tonnes grading 0.44 gram gold for 4.8 million oz. of contained metal, with another 149.6 million inferred tonnes grading 0.41 gram gold for 2 million oz. of contained metal.
More extensions
Since these 6.8 million oz. of additional resources are not included in the current mine plan, SSR “maintains significant optionality to further extend CC&V’s mine life in the future,” Scotia Capital mining analyst Ovais Habib said in a note.
CC&V is “a generational asset for the company, providing significant free cash flow with leverage to a higher gold price,” Habib said.
SSR sees all-in sustaining costs averaging $2,051 per oz. gold sold during the 2026-28 period, and $2,135 for the 2026-30 period.
“The higher life-of-mine unit operating costs comes as a surprise, exceeding our estimates and actual costs realized by both SSR and Newmont to date,” Habib said.
Prolific district
Located about 160 km southwest of Denver, CC&V covers about 61 sq. km within one of the most prolific U.S. gold mining districts. More than 2.8 million metres of drilling have been completed across more than 17,000 holes on the property.
SSR shares fell 0.2% to C$29.11 Tuesday morning in Toronto, giving the company a market capitalization of about C$5.9 billion ($4.2 billion). The stock has traded between C$7.30 and C$36.45 in the past year.