RUA Gold has announced a definitive agreement to acquire all shares of Reefton Resources, a wholly owned subsidiary of Siren Gold in New Zealand.

The transaction includes a cash payment and share issuance totalling an implied value of A$20m (C$18.5m).

Under the agreement, Siren will receive A$2m in cash, with half already paid and the remainder due at the deal's closure.

Additionally, RUA Gold will issue 83,927,383 fully paid shares valued at A$18m, which will be subject to resale restrictions.

The acquisition price of $25/oz of gold equivalent (AuEq) is based on Reefton's 500,000oz AuEq resource.

Upon completion, Siren will hold a 30% stake in RUA Gold and Siren chairman Brian Rodan will join the RUA Gold Board.

The transaction awaits regulatory approvals and is due to complete in the fourth quarter of 2024.

Post-acquisition, RUA Gold is expected to establish itself as the preeminent gold explorer in New Zealand, with a pro forma market capitalisation of C$60m.

Shareholders of RUA Gold are expected to benefit from the increased scale and resources as the merger of projects and exploration teams will enhance the company's footprint in the highly prospective Reefton Goldfield.

The combined tenements, spanning around 120,000ha, contain a JORC-compliant inferred mineral resource estimate of 444,000oz Au at 3.81 grams per tonne (g/t) Au and 8,700t antimony (Sb) at 1.5% Sb, with significant potential for further discoveries.

Additionally, the deal will ensure that shareholders maintain their exposure to the company's promising Glamorgan asset on the North Island of New Zealand.

RUA Gold COO Simon Henderson said: “This transaction creates a significant opportunity in an underexplored orogenic gold district.

“The company has focused on the Reefton Goldfield and in four years combined rapid geochemical sampling, ultra-detailed geophysical surveying and mapping to highlight the potential of exploring old workings at depth as well as several new greenfield prospects.

“It is very exciting to combine RUA Gold and Siren data sets, combined knowledge and have the whole orogenic district to explore. We will be looking at a combination of new discoveries and scalability of historic high-grade gold mines to develop the next major gold producer in the region.”