Sandstorm Gold Ltd. (formerly Sandstorm Resources) is a Canadian company that provides funding to mining companies in exchange for
royalties, principally in the form of
net smelter return Net Smelter Return (NSR) is the net revenue that the owner of a mining property receives from the sale of the mine's metal/non metal products less transportation and refining costs. As a royalty it refers to the fraction of net smelter return that ...
s and
streams
A stream is a continuous body of surface water flowing within the bed and banks of a channel. Depending on its location or certain characteristics, a stream may be referred to by a variety of local or regional names. Long large streams ...
. The company focuses on
precious metal
Precious metals are rare, naturally occurring metallic chemical elements of high economic value.
Chemically, the precious metals tend to be less reactive than most elements (see noble metal). They are usually ductile and have a high lu ...
s but did
spin off Sandstorm Metals & Energy Ltd. in 2010 as a separate
TSX Venture Exchange
The TSX Venture Exchange is a stock exchange in Canada. It is headquartered in Calgary, Alberta, with offices in Toronto, Vancouver, and Montreal. All trading through the Exchange is done electronically, so the Exchange does not have a "trading f ...
-listed company to make
volumetric production payment transactions in the
base metal
A base metal is a common and inexpensive metal, as opposed to a precious metal such as gold or silver. In numismatics, coins often derived their value from the precious metal content; however, base metals have also been used in coins in the past ...
and
fossil fuel sectors, then bought it back in 2014. Sandstorm Gold graduated from the TSX Venture Exchange to the
Toronto Stock Exchange
The Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX; french: Bourse de Toronto) is a stock exchange located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is the 10th largest exchange in the world and the third largest in North America based on market capitalization. Based in th ...
and began listing shares on the
New York Stock Exchange
The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE, nicknamed "The Big Board") is an American stock exchange in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It is by far the world's largest stock exchange by market capitalization of its listed ...
in 2012.
Business model
Like
Franco-Nevada,
Wheaton Precious Metals
Wheaton Precious Metals Corp. is a Canadian multinational precious metals streaming company. It produces over 26 million ounces and sells over 29 million ounces of silver mined by other companies (including Barrick Gold and Goldcorp) as a by-prod ...
and
Osisko Gold Royalties
Osisko Gold Royalties Ltd is a Canadian company that holds royalties in gold, silver and diamond mines, principally in the form of net smelter returns and streams. The company also invests in mineral exploration companies in the form of purchase ...
, Sandstorm Gold makes financial investments in the mining industry in exchange for
volumetric production payments or
royalties in the forms of
net smelter return Net Smelter Return (NSR) is the net revenue that the owner of a mining property receives from the sale of the mine's metal/non metal products less transportation and refining costs. As a royalty it refers to the fraction of net smelter return that ...
s and
precious metals streaming Precious metals streaming is a term for when a company makes an agreement with a mining company to purchase all or part of their precious metals production at a predetermined discounted price to which both parties agree. In return, streaming compani ...
contracts.
These contracts are made with companies involved in mineral exploration or mine development; as an alternative to debt financing or issuing additional shares, the mining company seeking capital funding may agree to a contract with the royalty company to pay a percentage of its future income or products from the mine. For example, in Q1 2017 Sandstorm acquired 22 new net smelter return royalties for US$1.9 million. The Company completed transactions with multiple junior mining companies including Kivalliq Energy, Evrim Resources, Tower Resources, Copper Fox Metals, Millrock Resources and Condor Resources.
Corporate history
The company was incorporated as Sandstorm Resources Ltd on March 23, 2007, headquartered in
Vancouver
Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the city, up from 631,486 in 2016. Th ...
,
British Columbia
British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include ...
.
Nolan Watson had been the
chief financial officer of
Wheaton Precious Metals
Wheaton Precious Metals Corp. is a Canadian multinational precious metals streaming company. It produces over 26 million ounces and sells over 29 million ounces of silver mined by other companies (including Barrick Gold and Goldcorp) as a by-prod ...
which had pioneered the use of
volumetric production payments in the gold mining industry and, along with co-worker David Awram, sought to spin off that business model into a separate company.
During its
initial public offering
An initial public offering (IPO) or stock launch is a public offering in which shares of a company are sold to institutional investors and usually also to retail (individual) investors. An IPO is typically underwritten by one or more investme ...
it raised CAD$200,000 in August 2007 with the shares being listed on the
TSX Venture Exchange
The TSX Venture Exchange is a stock exchange in Canada. It is headquartered in Calgary, Alberta, with offices in Toronto, Vancouver, and Montreal. All trading through the Exchange is done electronically, so the Exchange does not have a "trading f ...
at 20 cents per share. It raised over CAD$100 million in further public offerings throughout 2009-10. The company used the funds raised from the public stock offerings to negotiate the terms of the streaming contracts. In 2010, the company
spun off Sandstorm Metals & Energy Ltd. to hold its
base metal
A base metal is a common and inexpensive metal, as opposed to a precious metal such as gold or silver. In numismatics, coins often derived their value from the precious metal content; however, base metals have also been used in coins in the past ...
and
fossil fuel contracts, at the time it had interests in a copper mine and a natural gas project. Sandstorm Metals existed as a separate
TSX Venture Exchange
The TSX Venture Exchange is a stock exchange in Canada. It is headquartered in Calgary, Alberta, with offices in Toronto, Vancouver, and Montreal. All trading through the Exchange is done electronically, so the Exchange does not have a "trading f ...
-listed company, with Watson as CEO, until it was bought back by Sandstorm in 2014 after its first few investments, in coal and natural gas, proved unprofitable. In the meantime, Sandstorm Resources changed its name to Sandstorm Gold in February 2011.
In 2012, after a 5:1 share consolidation, its shares graduated to the
Toronto Stock Exchange
The Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX; french: Bourse de Toronto) is a stock exchange located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is the 10th largest exchange in the world and the third largest in North America based on market capitalization. Based in th ...
where it raised a further CAD$150 million at $10 per share and became listed on
New York Stock Exchange
The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE, nicknamed "The Big Board") is an American stock exchange in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It is by far the world's largest stock exchange by market capitalization of its listed ...
. In 2013, Sandstorm Gold acquired Premier Royalty, which was the royalty-only spin off company of Premier Gold, and in 2014 it acquired a
Diavik Diamond stream from
Iamgold. Further acquisitions included Mariana Resources Ltd for their 30% interest in the Hot Maden gold-copper project in
Artvin, Turkey.
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References
External links
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{{Vancouver Corporations
Companies listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange
Companies based in Vancouver
Financial services companies of Canada