Mining Company Accelerates Development of High-Grade Gold in Chile

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Rio2 Ltd. (RIO:TSX.V; RIOFF:OTCQX; RIO:BVL) announced an update on the ongoing development of its wholly owned Fenix gold project, which is under construction in the Atacama region of Chile.

As of the close of the second quarter in 2025, the project is 41% complete, staying on course and within the budget set for the commencement of gold production in January 2026, the company said in a release.

The company recently secured a significant boost for Fenix, receiving a third installment of CA$50 million from Wheaton Precious Metals. This funding is part of a comprehensive construction finance package that includes a flexible prepayment option and a gold stream agreement, ensuring the full financing of the Fenix project's construction phase, reported Jeff Clark for The Gold Advisor.

"It’s always great for us investors when a company has access to a non-dilutive form of financing," noted Clark.

Despite Friday's positive movement in the stock, it remained 7% below last week’s high, Clark said, which could present a buying opportunity for those not yet invested in this promising pre-production gold venture. For those holding positions that have doubled, it might be time to consider realizing some profits.

Here are some key construction milestones the company said were achieved between October 1, 2024, and June 30, 2025:

• Health and Safety: The project has accumulated 1,270,141 person-hours of labor so far, with one lost-time incident involving a finger injury, leading to a lost-time incident frequency rate (LTIFR) of 0.79. As of June 30, 2025, the total incident frequency rate (TIFR) stood at 6.30.
• Budget: The total expenditure since October 2024 has reached US$56.4 million against a budget of US$57.8 million. These figures exclude corporate overheads and do not account for preconstruction costs incurred in 2022.
• Schedule: The project is currently 41 percent complete, with the company on track to start gold production in January 2026. All critical long lead time procurement items have been secured.
• Construction Progress: As of the end of June 2025, construction teams have installed 12.7 hectares (ha) of geosynthetics on the leach pad, ensuring sufficient capacity for the first six months of production. Additionally, 4 ha of overliner material have been placed on the leach pad, which will be ready to receive mineral by August 2025.

First Gold Pour Coming Next Year?

Regarding infrastructure, Haul Road 1 is 90% complete, and Haul Road 4 is 40% complete, Rio2 said. These roads are crucial as they link the Fenix South pit to the leach pad, facilitating the start of operations.

At the ADR plant, efforts are ongoing in the adsorption area, reagent handling facilities, and chemical reagent storage. The structural assembly of the plant building has been finished, with the cladding now 90% complete, according to the release. The first of three electrical switch rooms is currently en route from Santiago to the project site, marking another step forward in the project's progression.

Atrium Research Analyst Ben Pirie rated the stock a Buy with a CA$2.40 per share price target.

The project currently employs a total of 1,514 personnel, including contractors, the company said. The workforce is predominantly Chilean, with 94% being nationals and 41% hailing from the Atacama region. Additionally, women make up 10% of the workforce.

According to the company, key upcoming milestones for the Fenix gold mine include: commencement of mining and ore stacking on the leach pad in August; completion of the PLS pond in August; installation of all three electrical switch rooms in August; commissioning of the ADR plant in November; and finalization of the mine expansion study in December, with the first gold pour in January 2026.

Analysts Note Positive Developments

Analyst Matthew O'Keefe of Cantor Fitzgerald wrote in an updated research note on July 31 that the developments were positive.

"Rio2 Ltd. remains well-funded for the CA$122 MM construction CAPEX," wrote O'Keefe. "The stock continues to offer good value as a near-term low-cost gold producer trading at 0.5x NAV vs producing peers at 0.6 – 0.8x. Our Buy rating and CA$2.50/share price target are unchanged."

He continued, "A mine expansion study that looks to increase capacity to 80,000 tpd and raise gold production from 100 Koz to 250-300 Koz annually is targeted for late 2025 should also be a positive catalyst" for the stock."

Similarly, Atrium Research Analyst Ben Pirie noted in a new note on July 31 that the update was "encouraging." He rated the stock a Buy with a CA$2.40 per share price target.

"We are impressed by the Company’s ability to hit its timelines and work beneath its budget, as almost all construction projects we have seen across the globe have been far over budget and time (especially considering the elevated inflation)," Pirie wrote. "This speaks to the team’s experience, operational skillset, and excites us as the company moves towards first gold."

Conditional Approval for New Listing

Rio2 also announced that it has received conditional approval from the Toronto Stock Exchange to transition from the TSX Venture Exchange and list its common shares on the TSX.

The final approval of this listing is contingent upon the company fulfilling certain standard conditions set by the TSX. Rio2 is actively working to meet these conditions, and further details along with a timeline for the graduation will be shared in due course, the company said.

Once the final approval is granted by the TSX, Rio2's common shares will begin trading on the TSX and will be delisted from the TSX-V. Shareholders will not need to exchange their share certificates or take any other action regarding the TSX listing, as there will be no change to the trading symbol or Cusip of the common shares.

The Catalyst: Gold Set to Boom Even More?

Gold futures opened at US$3,342.70 per ounce on Friday, reflecting a 1.5% rise from Thursday's close of US$3,293.20, as reported by Catherine Brock for Yahoo! Finance on August 1.

Throughout the week, gold prices saw a range from a low of US$3,263.90 on Wednesday to a high of US$3,352 on Friday morning. This increase in gold prices follows Trump's announcement of new tariffs ranging from 10% to 41% on international imports, according to Brock. These tariffs are scheduled to take effect on either August 7 or October 5, depending on when the goods were shipped, with Mexico being the only exception.

Trump announced on social media on Thursday that he has extended Mexico's trade negotiation period by 90 days. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 experienced a modest drop of 0.37% in Thursday's trading, setting the stage for a strong start for gold on Friday, Brock noted.

Gold and silver prices have been relatively stable this summer, but according to Florian Grummes in a July 29 interview with Jeremy Szafron of Kitco News, a major breakout is expected. Patient investors are likely to see significant rewards.

"We're in a crack-up boom overall," Grummes, managing director of Midas Touch Consulting, told Kitco News. "That means everything will move higher because they destroy the purchasing power of your fiat money — whether it's the euro, the dollar, or the Canadian dollar."

Ownership and Share Structure

According to Refinitiv, about 8% of the company is owned by insiders and management, about 7% by holding companies, and about 23% by institutions. The rest is retail.

Top shareholders include Mackenzie Investments with 8.74%, 2176423 Ontario Ltd. with 7.3%, Knowave AG with 4.62%, Alexander Black with 4.27%, and SSI Wealth Management AG with 3.29%.

Its market cap is CA$639.44 million with 425.55 million shares outstanding. It trades in a 52-week range of CA$0.50 and CA$1.64.