Engineering firm Fluor Corporation has been appointed to lead the bankable feasibility study (BFS) for the Donlin Gold project in Alaska, developer Novagold reported on Monday.

Fluor has been selected following a competitive bidding process involving several major engineering firms, the company noted.

The BFS will be undertaken using an integrated approach that combines engineering, cost, scope and scheduling, with the aim of producing an investment-grade study. Completion is targeted for 2027, with a detailed schedule and budget expected to be released in the coming months.

Fluor will be responsible for integrating major work packages and coordinating with specialist contractors covering key infrastructure and processing components, including the power plant, natural gas pipeline, pressure oxidation circuit and oxygen plant.

The company will also oversee the delivery of the overall engineering, cost and schedule framework, drawing on its experience in executing large-scale mining and infrastructure projects in challenging environments.

The BFS work will be primarily conducted at Fluor’s offices in Canada, supported by its high-value centres, with coordination from Donlin Gold’s office and project site in Alaska.

Requests for proposals for specialist contractors were issued in the fourth quarter of 2025 for the power plant, pipeline and pressure oxidation and oxygen plant scopes. These workstreams will be incorporated into the BFS.

In parallel, Donlin Gold management has begun recruiting key personnel to build the owner’s project team, while advancing site activities to support the next development phase.

Current work includes geotechnical drilling and materials assessments along the planned upriver port and access road to inform detailed design and feasibility work.

Donlin Gold is regarded as one of the largest undeveloped gold projects in the US, with about 40-million ounces of gold in the measured and indicated resource categories and an expected average production rate of more than one-million ounces a year over a 27-year mine life once in operation.