Premier Gold Mines Limited Annual Information Form
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PREMIER GOLD MINES LIMITED ANNUAL INFORMATION FORM FOR THE YEAR ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2019 March 27, 2020 TABLE OF CONTENTS General Matters ............................................................................................................................................................. 1 Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Information .......................................................................................... 1 Technical Information ................................................................................................................................................... 4 Corporate Structure........................................................................................................................................................ 5 General Development of the Business ........................................................................................................................... 7 Description of the Business ......................................................................................................................................... 15 Mineral Projects ........................................................................................................................................................... 19 Description of Share Capital ........................................................................................................................................ 99 Dividends and Distributions ...................................................................................................................................... 101 Trading Price and Volume of Securities .................................................................................................................... 101 Prior Sales of Unlisted Securities .............................................................................................................................. 102 Directors and Officers ............................................................................................................................................... 102 Audit Committee Disclosure ..................................................................................................................................... 107 Risk Factors ............................................................................................................................................................... 109 Legal Proceedings and Regulatory Actions ............................................................................................................... 126 Interest of Management and Others in Material Transactions ................................................................................... 127 Registrar And Transfer Agent ................................................................................................................................... 127 Material Contracts ..................................................................................................................................................... 127 Interest of Experts ...................................................................................................................................................... 128 Additional Information .............................................................................................................................................. 129 Schedule "A" Mandate of the Audit Committee Schedule "B" Whistleblower Policy Schedule "C" Hardrock - History Schedule "D" McCoy-Cove Property - Exploration History Schedule "E" McCoy-Cove Property - Production History GENERAL MATTERS References to the Corporation Unless otherwise indicated or the context otherwise indicates, use of the terms "Corporation" and "Premier" in this annual information form (this "AIF") refer to Premier Gold Mines Limited and its direct and indirect subsidiaries, or other entities controlled by them, on a consolidated basis. Financial Information Unless otherwise indicated, all financial information referred to in this AIF was prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards ("IFRS"). Currency References and Exchange Rate Information This AIF contains references to the Canadian dollar and the United States dollar. Unless otherwise indicated, all references to "$" or "C$" or "dollars" in this AIF are references to Canadian dollars. United States dollars are referred to as "U.S. dollars" or "US$". As at December 31, 2019, the rate of exchange between the United States dollar and the Canadian dollar as reported by the Bank of Canada was US$1.00 = C$0.7699 or C$1.2988 = US$1.00. CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION This AIF contains certain forward-looking information and forward-looking statements, as defined in applicable securities laws (collectively referred to herein as "forward-looking statements"). These statements relate to future events or the Corporation's future performance. All statements other than statements of historical fact are forward-looking statements. Often, but not always, forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as "guidance", "plans", "expects", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "continues", "forecasts", "projects", "predicts", "intends", "anticipates" or "believes", or variations of, or the negatives of, such words and phrases, or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "should", "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved. All forward-looking statements contained in this AIF speak only as of the date of this AIF or as of the date or dates specified in such statements. Forward-looking statements in this AIF include, but are not limited to, statements with respect to: • future financial or operating performance of the Corporation and its mines and projects, including anticipated production rates; • targeted milestones for the Corporation's mines and projects; • expectations, strategies and plans for the Corporation's mines and projects, including with respect to mineral reserve and resource estimates and the quantity and quality thereof, expected mine life, development schedule, production, capital and operating cost estimates, availability of capital for development and overall financial analyses; • supply and demand for gold and silver; • realization of mineral resource and reserve estimates; • timing of exploration and development projects; • costs, timing and location of future drilling; • results of future exploration and drilling and estimated completion dates for certain milestones; • the ability of the Corporation to obtain and maintain all government approvals, permits and third party consents in connection with the Corporation's activities; • government regulation of mining operations; • evolution and economic performance of development projects; • timing of geological and/or technical reports; • future strategic plans; • operating and exploration budgets and targets; • continuity of a favourable gold market; • contractual commitments; • environmental risks; • continuous availability of required manpower; • continuous access to capital markets; and • any other statement that may predict, forecast, indicate or imply future plans, intentions, levels of activity, results, performance or achievements. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Corporation to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Such factors include, among others: • risks normally incidental to the nature of mineral exploration, development and mining; • general business, social, economic, political, regulatory and competitive uncertainties; • the actual results of current mining operations and development activities; • operating and/or project delays or interruptions; • capital requirements, including increases in operating and capital costs; • the uncertainty of mineral resource or mineral reserve estimates and mineral resources not having demonstrated economic viability; • the speculative nature of mineral exploration and project development, including the risk of diminishing quantities or grades of mineralization and the inherent riskiness of inferred mineral resources; • geological, hydrological and climatic events that may adversely affect infrastructure, operations and development plans and the inability to effectively mitigate or predict with certainty the occurrence of such events; • fluctuating commodity prices; • financing risks and debt and liquidity risks; • risks associated with inaccurate capital and operational costs estimates; • risks related to accounting policies and internal controls; • risks related to the failure or breach of network systems or other digital technologies; • labour difficulties; 2 • dependence on key personnel and risks associated with management being unable to successfully apply their skills and experience to attract and retain highly skilled personnel; • reliance on third parties and experts outside of Canada; • risks related to joint ventures; • conflicts of interest; • there being no assurance of title to mineral projects; • risks related to future production estimates and guidance; • aboriginal claims and consultation issues; • maintenance or provision of infrastructure; • risks associated with the construction and start-up of new mines;