Evolution Mining is moving to finish its takeover of Carnaby Resources, with about 20.78 million new Evolution shares due to be issued on 13 November 2026 to Carnaby holders under the scheme of arrangement. The deal, first flagged in July in an ASX announcement, values Carnaby at roughly $213 million and gives the gold and copper producer a new feeder project for its Queensland operations.
What Carnaby shareholders receive
Carnaby investors get 0.0682 Evolution shares for each Carnaby share, which implied about $0.77 a share when the deal was announced, a premium of around 60 per cent to the prior close. Carnaby’s board unanimously backed the scheme. Once the shares are issued, former Carnaby holders will own just under 1 per cent of Evolution, so dilution for existing shareholders is small.
Why Greater Duchess matters
The prize is the Greater Duchess copper-gold project in north-west Queensland, which sits close to Evolution’s Ernest Henry mine. Carnaby has a resource of 29.2 million tonnes at 1.3% copper and an ore reserve of 8.4 million tonnes at 1.7% copper. Evolution believes the project could add around 10,000 tonnes of copper a year by using spare mill capacity and existing infrastructure at Ernest Henry. Carnaby’s old tolling arrangements with Glencore will be terminated and ore will be sold under Evolution’s existing offtake terms. An updated feasibility study is planned over the next 12 to 18 months, so production is still some way off.
What it means for ASX gold investors
The takeover shows how the larger ASX gold miners are using strong cash flow to build copper exposure, a trend we have also followed in our recent coverage of Evolution’s September quarter result and the wider copper sector. Bolt-on deals that use existing mills tend to carry lower capital risk than greenfield builds, but investors should still weigh the long study timeline and the fact that copper prices are exposed to different drivers than bullion. For context, gold is trading near US$4,200 an ounce, and World Gold Council data on gold supply and demand remains a useful guide to the backdrop. More stories are collected on our gold news hub.
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