Equinox Gold (TSX, NYSE-A: EQX) has made its first pour at the Valentine mine located in Newfoundland and Labrador, a milestone that the company says would firmly place it amongst Canada’s gold mining elites.The first pour, says chief executive officer Darren Hall, was achieved earlier than expected on Sept. 14, due to the process plant operating at nearly half (47%) of its nameplate since its commissioning. The facility first began processing ore at the end of August and has a capacity of 2.5 million tonnes per annum.Hall adds that the mine will ramp up to its nameplate in the second quarter of 2026 as planned.Equinox’s shares rose on the news, with the stock price trading near the three-year high of C$5.29 from last week. The Vancouver-based gold miner has a market capitalization of approximately C$11.5 billion ($8.3 billion).Largest in Atlantic CanadaOnce fully operational, Valentine would be the largest gold mine in Atlantic Canada. Equinox projects that it could produce between 175,000 and 200,000 oz. of gold annually for the first 12 years of its 14-year reserve life.The deposit currently hosts 2.7 million oz. in proven and probable reserves grading 1.62 grams per tonne gold, contained within nearly 4 million oz of measured and indicated resources grading 1.90 g/t gold. This resource base, which Equinox contemplates expanding through additional discoveries, could anchor a new gold district in central Newfoundland, the company has said.Valentine is the second Canadian mine that Equinox has brought online within the span of two years. In November 2024, it kicked off commercial production at the larger Greenstone mine in Ontario, which is expected to deliver 330,000 oz. of gold during an initial 15-year life.“Commencing production at Valentine marks the beginning of a new chapter for Equinox Gold,” stated Hall in a press release. “With both Valentine and Greenstone now ramping up to capacity, the company is set to become the second largest producer of Canadian gold.”
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