E2 Metals Ltd. executed a binding agreement to acquire an 80% interest in a 90,000-hectare portfolio of epithermal gold-silver projects in Argentina from private explorer Circum Pacific Pty. Ltd.

The company said Dec. 20 it will purchase an 80% stake in Los Domos Pty. Ltd., which holds titles in all the Santa Cruz and Rio Negro projects, by issuing 15.0 million shares and committing to exploration expenditures of at least A$2.1 million over 2.5 years.

The companies will enter a joint venture and Circum Pacific will be free-carried to completion of the pre-feasibility study on each project.

Meanwhile, Circum founder Todd Williams will assume the managing director role at E2 Metals. Circum Pacific also has the right to nominate a nonexecutive director on the board of E2 Metals.

The transaction is expected to complete Feb. 8, 2019.

In a separate same-day release, E2 Metals said it terminated its purchase of the Neavesville gold-silver project in New Zealand due to uncertainty surrounding the status of exploration and mining activities in the area.