I-80 Gold appoints Richard Young as CEO
I-80 Gold Corp. has announced that Richard Young has been appointed as chief executive officer and a director effective immediately, succeeding Ewan Downie following his retirement as CEO.
Downie will continue as an advisor to the company, and said Young will be a strong leader as the company moves into its development phase.
I-80 Gold's projects, which are all in Nevada, include Granite Creek south of the Turquoise Ridge Mine, Ruby Hill near Eureka, McCoy-Cove south of the Phoenix Mine, and Lone Tree north of the Marigold Mine.
Young has held senior positions at multiple companies over the past several decades, working in finance, development and operations. His Nevada experience includes operational positions at Barrick's Goldstrike Mine.
Young was the founder and CEO of Teranga Gold Corporation and was involved in its transformation from a single asset producer into a low-cost, mid-tier gold producer which was ultimately acquired by Endeavour Mining in 2021 for more than $2.5 billion Canadian.
Most recently, Young was president and CEO of Argonaut Gold, which owned the Florida Canyon Mine south of Winnemucca along with properties in Mexico. Argonaut was acquired by Alamos Gold in July 2024.
During his career, Young has been involved in implementing award-winning sustainability programs and received the 2008 and 2017 PDAC Sustainability Award and the 2020 UN Global Compact Canada SDG Accelerator Award.
"I am excited to join i-80, owner of the largest gold and silver resource base in the United States not owned by a senior gold company," Young said. "Ewan and the team have assembled an incredible group of projects that collectively have the potential to create a United States mid-tier gold producer over the next few years.
"Our focus in the short term will be to more fully assess the portfolio with a vision of developing both the sulfide and oxide deposits." Young said. "I am pleased that Ewan has agreed to continue to serve as an advisor to the company on the development and expansion of this already significant portfolio of gold, silver and base metal projects."
"I am proud of the platform we have built, a world-class project portfolio situated in one of the world's premier mining jurisdictions where we have realized numerous exploration successes over the past three years," Downie said. "Now, with efforts shifting from a focus on exploration to mine development, it is time for a leader with broad development and operational experience to lead the impressive management team at i-80 through its next phase of growth to deliver substantial returns to shareholders."
"The board is incredibly pleased we have been able to attract a new CEO of Richard's caliber and skills," said Ron Clayton, chairman of i-80 Gold's board of directors. "We look forward to Richard leading our company in developing our world class assets in one the best districts for mining in the world. Richard is well equipped to lead our team in unlocking the value our assets represent."
