MONTREAL, April 12, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Osisko Gold Royalties Ltd (the “Corporation” or “Osisko”) (OR: TSX & NYSE) is pleased to provide an update on its first quarter sales and announces the acquisition of additional royalties on the Spring Valley gold project (“Spring Valley”) in Nevada as well as an additional royalty in Idaho for aggregate cash consideration of US$26 million.

PRELIMINARY Q1 2021 RESULTS

Osisko received approximately 19,960 attributable gold equivalent ounces1 (“GEOs”) in the first quarter of 2021. This figure excludes GEOs earned from the Renard diamond stream given the net proceeds from the diamond stream were reinvested through the bridge loan with the operator of the mine.

Osisko recorded preliminary revenues2 of C$66.9 million during the first quarter and preliminary cost of sales2 (excluding depletion) of C$20.4 million, resulting in a cash operating margin3 of approximately C$46.5 million. Excluding offtakes, Osisko’s cash operating margin for royalties and streams3 was approximately 94% during the first quarter of 2021. Osisko will provide full production and financial details with the release of its first quarter 2021 results after market close on Tuesday, May 11th, 2021.

ASSET ADDITIONS

Through a subsidiary, Osisko has entered into binding purchase agreements to acquire six royalties and one precious metal offtake, from two private sellers, for total cash consideration of US$26 million. The purchase agreements are subject to certain conditions precedent which are expected to be fulfilled in the coming weeks. The acquisitions will be funded through cash on hand. Four of the royalties are on claims overlying the multi-million ounce Spring Valley project, and increase our current net smelter return (“NSR”) royalty on Spring Valley from 0.5% to between 2.5% – 3.0% (sliding scale royalty percentages as long as gold prices are above US$700/oz). Immediately to the north of Spring Valley, lies the Moonlight exploration property (“Moonlight Project”), where Osisko has agreed to acquire a 1.0% NSR royalty. Osisko has also agreed to acquire a 0.5% NSR royalty and 30% gold and silver offtake right covering the Almaden Project in western Idaho

Sandeep Singh, President and CEO of Osisko commented: “First quarter deliveries were above our expectations as our portfolio continued to perform well. We are particularly pleased with the quarter given that our GEOs grew by 6% over the fourth quarter, despite the planned deferment of ore stacking at the Eagle mine during the winter months. Production from the Eagle mine should continue to ramp up throughout the year. Moreover, the acquisition of additional royalties on the Spring Valley project will add additional exposure to a high quality asset in a proven mining jurisdiction. It has the potential to become a significant North American gold mine and builds on our already strong growth profile.”

SPRING VALLEY ROYALTY

Spring Valley is a pre-feasibility stage, heap-leach, open-pit gold project located in Pershing County, Nevada, USA. The asset is 100%-owned by Waterton Global Resource Management (“Waterton”), a mining-focused private equity firm. The project hosts a historic NI 43-101 resource of 49Mt grading 0.94g/t gold for 1.49Moz of gold in the measured resource category, 80Mt grading 0.79g/t gold for 2.03Moz of gold in the indicated resource category and 21Mt grading 0.73g/t gold for 0.49Moz of gold in the inferred resource category. These resources were reported within a US$1,500/oz gold resource shell by Midway Gold in its 2014 technical report available on SEDAR. A qualified person has not done sufficient work to classify the historical estimate as current mineral resources. Historical estimates are not to be treated as current mineral resources.

Osisko has agreed to acquire four separate royalties on Spring Valley:

A sliding scale 2.5% NSR royalty (with the maximum royalty percentage of 2.5% applicable when the gold price is above US$700/oz. This royalty is payable once 500,000 ounces of gold are recovered from Spring Valley) on claims overlying the core of the current Spring Valley deposit. Along with its existing 0.5% NSR, Osisko now holds, in aggregate, a 3.0% NSR over these core claims;
Two separate 1.0% NSR royalties (for a total 2.0% NSR royalty) on key Spring Valley claims overlying the prospective high-grade northeastern portion of the deposit;
A 0.5% NSR royalty over the broader Spring Valley property which is additive to the two royalties covering the northeastern portion of Spring Valley described in the bullet above.
Figure 1. Map showing the distribution of grade thickness over the Spring Valley royalty claims. The grade thickness map and resource pit outline was produced by Barrick Gold but published by Midway. The royalty labels represent totals and include the 0.5% NSR royalty already owned by Osisko.

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at: https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/4eace196-7654-4d91-862e-693a5880d6bc

MOONLIGHT ROYALTY

Osisko has agreed to acquire a 1.0% NSR royalty on the Moonlight Project, which lies immediately to the north of Spring Valley. The Moonlight Project, which is also operated by Waterton, is a large (approximately 20km2), prospective, exploration-stage property along the same structural trend as Spring Valley, Rochester and Relief Canyon mines. No mineral resources have been identified on the property, however, there are a few historical mine workings and several gold and silver showings have been identified.

ALMADEN ROYALTY AND OFFTAKE

Osisko has also agreed to acquire a 0.5% NSR royalty and a 30% precious metal offtake covering the Almaden Project in western Idaho, USA, which is 100% owned by Gold Mining Inc. The project is a low-sulphidation epithermal gold deposit which hosts a resource of 43.5Mt grading 0.65g/t gold for 0.91Moz of gold in the indicated resource category and 9.2Mt grading 0.56g/t gold for 0.16Moz of gold in the inferred resource category.

Q1 2021 RESULTS AND CONFERENCE CALL DETAILS

Osisko also provides notice of the first quarter 2021 results and conference call details:

Q1 2021 Results Release: Tuesday, May 11th after market close
Conference Call: Wednesday, May 12, 2021 at 10:00 am EDT
Dial-in Numbers: North American Toll-Free: 1-833-979-2852
Local and International: 236-714-2915
Replay (available until May 19, 2021 at 11:59 pm EDT): North American Toll-Free: 1-800-585-8367
Local and International: 416-621-4642
Access code: 6796690
Replay also available on our website at www.osiskogr.com