Modern Mining June 2015

MINING IN AFRICA

of AngloGold Ashanti’s Siguiri mine in Guinea. African Gold is targeting a 1,6 Mt/a open-pit, gravity concentration and concentrate leach- ing operation which it anticipates will cost US$46,6 million to develop and which will have an average annual production of 44 000 ounces over a 15-year mine life. African Gold has just received the environmental approval for the project, now in the feasibility stage. Although more a brownfield than a green- field development, also worth mentioning in connection with Mali is Resolute Mining’s plans for its Syama mine (see also page 51). The company stated in March this year that the mine – which produced 165 000 ounces of gold in Resolute’s 2014 financial year – would move to underground mining by 2017 with portal and decline development from within the Stage 1 pit expected to start in early 2016. Ghana – arresting the decline By far the biggest gold producer in the West African region is Ghana, which produced about 88 tonnes of the metal in 2014. While the coun- try’s gold output has been on a downward trend since peaking in 2012, there are some encour- aging signs that the decline will be arrested with several new projects in various stages of development. The most significant of these is Asanko Gold’s new Asanko open-pit gold mine (which we cover in more detail on page 44 of this issue), which represents an amalgamation of the Obotan and Esaase projects. The company

gold mine in Namibia. Fekola, which became part of B2Gold’s stable last year after it merged with Papillon Resources, has the potential to be a substantial gold mine with the PEA – completed by Papillon in 2013 – outlining a conventional 4 Mt/a open-pit, CIL operation producing 2,8 Moz over a mine life of nine years (for an average annual production of 306 000 ounces). The PEA estimated a capital cost of US$292 million to develop the mine. The Final Feasibility Study on the project is due to be released this month (June). Reporting on Fekola in May this year, B2Gold – a Canadian company listed in Toronto and on the NYSE – said the early works pro- gramme included improving the existing access road between Kenieba and the site, construc- tion of an on-site airstrip, and making a start on camp construction as well as excavations within the mill footprint. “The goal is to com- plete the critical tasks by June 30, 2015, prior to the rainy season so construction work can continue uninterrupted through all seasons,” the company stated. It added that it believed that Fekola could be complete and in the early commissioning phase by as early as the fourth quarter of 2017. Another Canadian company active in Mali is African Gold Group, Inc, listed on the TSX-V, which holds the Kobada property. The proj- ect is located approximately 115 km SSW of Mali’s capital, Bamako, and adjacent to the Niger River and the international border with Guinea – in fact, it lies just 80 km to the east

feature GSR is planning to bring one of Ghana’s oldest gold mines, Prestea (seen here), back into production (photo: GSR).

36  MODERN MINING  June 2015