Donlin Mine
RSSDonlin Mine in Alaska is a proposed open-pit gold mine in the Yukon-Kuskokwim region. Also called Donlin Gold, it is developed by NovaGold and Barrick Gold near Crooked Creek, facing permitting disputes, tribal and environmental litigation, and a proposed Cook Inlet gas pipeline for power.
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Canadian court approves NovaGold deal that would put Donlin Gold under one owner
A British Columbia court on Monday approved NovaGold's deal to take its partner's share of Donlin Gold, putting the proposed gold mine near Crooked Creek in Southwest Alaska on track to have a single owner when the deal is expected to take effect Dec. 1.
NovaGold and the investment firm Paulson Advisers have owned Donlin 60-40 since they bought out Barrick's half in 2025, but they've had equal say over the project, each naming two of Donlin Gold's four board members. When the deal closes, a new Delaware company, NovaGold Corporation, would own all of it.
Paulson would trade its 40% for stock and become the new company's largest shareholder, with about 39.7% of its economic interest. Its voting power would be capped at 19.99%. John Paulson and NovaGold Chairman Thomas Kaplan would be co-chairs.
NovaGold says one owner would widen its access to money for the mine, including from what it calls "official-sector capital," such as government agencies and sovereign wealth funds. Donlin Gold's general manager gave legislators a rough estimate in May of about $10 billion to build it, saying the final number would come from a feasibility study.
The deal doesn't decide whether it gets built. Donlin Gold expects to finish that study in the first half of 2027, the general manager said, and then be in a position to make an investment decision. NovaGold's filing on the court approval lists among its risks "whether or when a positive construction decision will be made."
If the mine goes ahead, construction would need 2,000 to 3,000 workers and run through 2031, and the mine would then employ about 750 people directly, the general manager said. NovaGold's 2025 technical report puts about 40 million ounces of gold in the deposit's measured and indicated resources and projects production averaging more than 1 million ounces a year over a 27-year mine life.
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Latest
November 2026
NovaGold shareholders approve trading stock for Paulson's share of Donlin Gold
NovaGold shareholders voted to swap stock for Paulson's 40% of Donlin Gold, which would give one company the project. Building it waits on a 2027 study.
by Melinda Communities.News1w ago3 min read
October 2026
Contango begins drilling the east end of the historic Lucky Shot gold mine
Contango started underground drilling Oct. 22 on the east end of the old Lucky Shot gold mine's veins, a stretch it says no modern program has tested.
by Alaska News2w ago2 min read
NovaGold sets Nov. 3 vote on owning all of Donlin; filing details a dropped three-way deal
Shareholders vote Nov. 3 on putting all of Donlin Gold under one company, nearly 40% owned by Paulson's firm. The filing details a 3-way deal that fell apart.
by Walter AlaskaNews4w ago4 min readFrom 
September 2026
Court-ordered review models what a large Donlin Gold dam failure would do downstream
A court-ordered review modeled what a Donlin Gold dam failure would do downstream. The Corps calls any failure extremely unlikely; the worst cases are severe.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago4 min readFrom 
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August 2026
NovaGold moves to consolidate the Donlin gold project, a potential next Red Dog for Alaska Native corporations
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by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 2mo ago4 min read
About Donlin Mine
Donlin Mine, also called Donlin Gold or the Donlin Gold Project, is an open-pit gold mine project near Crooked Creek in the Yukon-Kuskokwim region of Alaska, in the Kuskokwim River watershed. It belongs under the broader subject of mining in Alaska, and power for the mine would come through a natural gas pipeline from Cook Inlet.
The questions that recur around Donlin are about its ownership and financing, its federal permits, and the safety of its tailings dam. Court-ordered reviews have modeled what a dam failure would do downstream on the Kuskokwim. Yupik and other regional tribes have opposed the project in court.
Donlin is often compared to Red Dog Mine, because it could bring returns to Alaska Native corporations, as Red Dog has.