D&L Mining bankrupt after cost overruns at B.C. gold project

D&L Mining Corp., a British Columbia gold exploration and development company operating the Wingdam Mine near Barkerville, made an assignment into bankruptcy on October 9, 2026, with MNP Ltd. appointed as licensed insolvency trustee. The company reported approximately $19.3 million in liabilities against assets valued at $545,000, following significant cost overruns associated with underground gold mining operations and a determination by its newly appointed director that the business was no longer financially viable.

Incorporated on May 2, 2023, D&L operated the Wingdam Mine under a Transfer and Agency Agreement with Omineca Mining and Metals Inc., which holds title to the mine. According to the trustee, the company incurred substantial costs associated with exploring and maintaining the underground operation. Its financial difficulties became apparent following the death of its former principal, after which a newly appointed director concluded that continued operations were unsustainable and authorized the bankruptcy filing.

D&L's statement of affairs disclosed approximately $18.7 million in unsecured liabilities and a further $545,000 in secured debt. Its assets consisted of $35,000 in cash and approximately $510,000 in machinery and equipment, although the trustee cautioned that actual realizable values could differ materially from the amounts reported. The trustee has also identified approximately $1.5 million in potentially unremitted payroll source deductions, which could give rise to a deemed trust claim by the Canada Revenue Agency, together with an estimated $16,850 priority claim by Service Canada relating to unpaid wages.

Shortly after the bankruptcy filing, MNP visited the Wingdam Mine to meet with former employees and inventory the company's equipment, which remains secured on Omineca's property. The trustee also received an unsolicited verbal offer from a third party interested in acquiring D&L's rights under the operating agreement, ultimately entering into a non-binding letter of intent contemplating a transfer of those rights. However, the agreement provided Omineca with purported consent and right-of-first-refusal protections, and negotiations among the trustee, Omineca and the prospective purchaser failed to produce an acceptable transaction structure. With the trustee unable to satisfy the ongoing monetary and environmental obligations associated with maintaining the mine, MNP disclaimed D&L's interest in the operating agreement effective October 22.

The trustee will now concentrate on realizing value from D&L's remaining machinery and equipment, subject to resolving third-party ownership claims over certain assets. MNP is also assisting former employees with claims under the Wage Earner Protection Program and intends to review pre-bankruptcy transactions for potential preferences and transfers at undervalue.

MNP is the bankruptcy trustee, represented by Burnet, Duckworth & Palmer.