SANDPOINT -- In an announcement the industry has anticipated for some time, Hecla Mining Company of Coeur d'Alene confirmed Tuesday that it had signed an agreement to purchase Spokane's Mines Management Inc. and the undeveloped Montanore Mine in Lincoln County, Mont.

“Located in northwest Montana, Montanore is considered one of the largest undeveloped silver and copper deposits in North America,” Hecla officials said.

The deal involves the exchange of stock in MMI's favor, with the actual purchase valued at nearly $30 million, according to the Seattle Times. The purchase should be complete by the third quarter of this year, given that MMI secures shareholder approval, said Hecla representatives.

The Spokane-based firm has been in financial straits for at least a year, according to multiple sources. In its March 31 report to the SEC, the company showed current assets of $683,200 and current liabilities of $514,582. It also cited an operational loss of $1,013,579.

Hecla Mining Company is a large corporation that owns operational silver and gold mines in the U.S., Canada and Mexico, including Lucky Friday, Greens Creek and San Sebastian. In June 2015, it purchased Revett Mining Company, along with its Rock Creek Mine project in Sanders County, Mont. The Rock Creek copper and silver deposit is adjacent to the Montanore deposit, positioning Hecla atop a considerable motherlode.

Acquired by MMI in 2002, the Montanore project did not receive federal sanction to commence exploratory drilling until early this year, but it was still lacking a full permit from the Montana Department of Environmental Quality.

Because the minerals lie deep in the heart of the Cabinet Mountains Wilderness, a 94,272-acre area set aside by the federal government for preservation and protection, the proposed mine has undergone close scrutiny by state and federal agencies concerned with environmental protection. What's more, the mine's tailings impoundment, processing facilities and headquarters would be situated on federal land in the Kootenai National Forest.

Since Montanore acquired a federal operating permit, a host of environmental groups, including Clark Fork Coalition, Earthworks and Save Our Cabinets, has filed lawsuits to block its development, according to a press release from CFC.

Two of the issues that have inspired litigation include water degradation and destruction of endangered species habitat. Cabinet-Yaak grizzlies, bull trout and Canada lynx are some of threatened and endangered species that mine development would put at increased risk, according to MMI documents. These and additional concerns have kept the Montanore project at a standstill for more than a decade.

“Hecla is the logical company to move Montanore forward, with its close proximity to Rock Creek, as well as its similar geology and scale,” said Phillips S. Baker, Jr., Hecla’s president and CEO. “We have considerable experience operating Greens Creek in a National Monument which will, combined with our financial strength and commitment to the community and environment, help Montanore reach its full potential.”

However, Hecla Mining Company is not without its own environmental baggage. In June 2015, EPA and the U.S. Department of Justice fined the company $600,000 for contaminating the South Fork Coeur d'Alene River, according to Boise Weekly. Effluent from Hecla's Lucky Friday Mine tailings impoundment had been seeping into the waterway. In 2009, EPA fined Hecla $177,500 for seepage containing high levels of lead, cadmium, and zinc, according to Law360.com.

Hecla Mining Company plans to take the Montanore project forward into an exploratory drilling phase to confirm the existence of silver and copper deposits, according to a press release.