A new buyer and operator has been found for the former Rambler Mines operation on the Baie Verte Peninsula.

Australia-based AuTECO Minerals Limited will pay about $65 million for the business, calling it a rare and outstanding acquisition.

It includes the Ming Mine and Nugget Pond gold and copper processing sites, as well as concentrate storage facility at the nearby deep-water port in Goodyear’s Cove.

The operation has been shut down since March when costs overtook revenue, plunging Rambler into creditor protection and sparking the search for a buyer.

The sale must still be approved by the Supreme Court, which is expected to happen next week.

Rambler followed a similar process as the recently revived fluorspar mine in St. Lawrence, with both finding renewed interest and financing after being pummeled by the pandemic.

The news is welcome relief for the entire Baie Verte area and the hundreds of people who benefit directly and indirectly from the region’s biggest private employer.

In a statement, managing director Steve Parsons said it’s very rare for a copper asset of this size, grade, magnitude and potential to come up anywhere in the world, let alone a “tier-one location” such as Newfoundland and Labrador.”