Gold Fields will buy Gold Road Resources in a deal valuing its Australian joint venture partner at A$3.7 billion ($2.4 billion), a sweetened offer following weeks of negotiations over their key project in Western Australia.

The Johannesburg-listed miner will use cash to acquire all outstanding shares at A$3.40 each — 12% higher than a previously rejected proposal put forward by Gold Fields in March, Perth-based Gold Road said in a statement Monday.

Shares in the firm jumped as much as 12% after the announcement and closed 9.4% higher at A$3.25 per share. Gold Fields shares rose as much as 2.8% in Johannesburg.

Bullion’s record-breaking rally over the past three years — with prices topping $3 500 an ounce last month — has renewed interest in deal-making across the sector after years of overspending and operational setbacks curbed appetite for assets. While that means some deals may be negotiated toward the top of the market, large producers have been encouraged to sell smaller mines that without fresh investment are approaching the end of their lives.

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