Generation Mining said it’s shovel ready to build a $1-billion open-pit copper and palladium mine, north of Marathon, once it secures all of its construction financing in the new year.
Company president-CEO Jamie Levy and chair Kerry Knoll delivered a year-end wrap-up on a 6ix webinar, Dec 18, on what’s been accomplished at its Marathon project in 2025 and what’s in store for 2026.
With all its permits in place, the company executives said they expect to make a major announcement in early 2026 to put the funds in place to proceed with development of the mine, price-tagged at $992 million. The main deposit is located 10 kilometres north of the community on Lake Superior.
A construction decision hasn’t been officially made, but Generation Mining expects to make one by late 2026, followed by a two-year build that points toward a mine commissioning by the summer of 2028.
The Toronto company snagged its final permit in May.
At last count, construction would generate 800 jobs on the north shore with the promise of 400 full-time mining jobs.
The plan is to produce 42 million pounds of copper a year with 168,000 ounces of palladium. There's also some platinum, gold and silver in the mix.
Copper is essential for power generation, distribution, and storage. Palladium is used in hybrid electric vehicles.
The life of mine is 13 years, but a large swath of its extensive property base contains more resources and remains unexplored.
Delays on development have been a hallmark of the project.
Generation Mining burst on the scene in 2019, taking over a dormant project from Sibanye-Stillwater, with ambitious plans to put an already existing resource into production quickly.
But the company ran straight into an onerous and lengthy government permitting process followed by plummeting palladium prices that have since rebounded.
The company rejigged its feasibility study to reduce its construction costs and to put them in a better economic position to build.
Aside from the detailed engineering underway, the only work left is to lock up the construction capital. The proposed financing package involves many players.
There’s a $240-million gold and platinum streaming arrangement with Wheaton Precious Metals and a mandate letter from a commercial lending syndicate of Export Development Canada, ING Capital and Societe Generale for $540 million, plus $200 million in debt financing from other lending institutions.
The company is aiming to have definitive agreements in place early in the new year.
The last investment into the Marathon project will likely to be coming from government.
Levy said they’re in discussions with various federal agencies to source funding for critical minerals projects. While the province is a step behind, he expressed confidence that the Ontario government will be a funder at some point.
Generation Mining has made some recent additions to the project.
This month, the company acquired claims to physically grow its footprint around the town of Marathon by 36 per cent to 36,400 hectares.
The company hasn’t divulged its exploration plans for this new ground other than to say it’s to better understand the area’s geological structure. Levy mentioned there are prospects in this extra area for other critical minerals and rare earths.
Some additions have also been made to the senior management team.
To oversee construction, Clinton Swemmer was added to the roster as the vice-president of projects. His 25-year mining engineering has taken him to several platinum group metals development projects in Africa and Canada.
A third-party builder for Marathon will be named in the new year with the company assembling a team of 10 to 12 to oversee construction.
An often taboo subject on mining investment webinars are questions directed to exploration companies' relationships with area Indigenous communities.
But Generation Mining disclosed it enjoys a tight relationship with nearby Biigtingong Nishnaabe (Pic River First Nation). A community benefits agreement was signed in 2022.
Knoll said they’ve had “tremendous” support from the First Nation and regards them as a project partner. He said solid Indigenous relationships are equally as important as the quality of a project and the financing.
“You can’t build a mine without it.”