Barely 16 months after it beat BHP in a battle for the affections of rock star copper and gold explorer Solgold, Newcrest Mining is faced with another opportunity to buy the Brisbane-based junior at heavily reduced prices.

After a solid but unspectacular maiden resource estimate and a wrap over the knuckles from Canadian regulators in recent days, Solgold shares are 54 per cent lower than they were nine months ago, and are back near the levels at which Newcrest took its initial 10 per cent stake.