• Good performance for Essakane
• The Yaramoko mine too
• Orezone wants to produce more in 2023
MDespite the terrorist threat hanging over the mining sector in Burkina Faso, most of the country’s gold mines continue their operations. In the last quarter of 2022, we can mention the good performance of the Yaramoko gold mine.
The company delivered 106,108 ounces in 2022. In a press release published by the Canadian Fortuna Silver Mines, the company specifies that it has achieved its objectives. And plans, for 2023, to produce at least (between 92,000 and 102,000 ounces).
It consists of two underground gold mines: Zone 55 and Bagassi Sud.
480,000 ounces delivered for Essakane
Another mine that achieved its objectives and even exceeded its forecasts is the Essakane gold mine. Production reached 480,000 ounces last year, of which 432,000 ounces were attributable to Iamgold. This is one of the information in the preliminary report for 2022 published on January 17 by the Canadian company, which owns the project at 90%, which specifies that this performance slightly exceeds its forecasts.
Production also increased by 5% year-on-year, according to calculations by the Ecofin Agency. An increase that the mining company attributes mainly to the higher gold grades of the ore extracted during the year.
As a reminder, Essakane has been in commercial production since July 2010. It is 10% owned by the Burkinabe government and is one of the largest gold mines in the country.
Declining production for Endeavor
The Canadian company Endeavor Mining recorded an 18% drop in its production in 2022. This is the announcement made on January 23 by the mining company, which specifies that its mines in Burkina Faso have brought in 740,000 ounces on the period, compared to 907,000 ounces in 2021.
In detail, the Boungou gold mine delivered 116,000 ounces, once morest 295,000 ounces for Houndé, 195,000 ounces at Mana, 124,000 ounces at Wahgnion and 10,000 ounces at Karma. While the drop in production in Burkina Faso can be explained by the sale of Karma in early March 2022, the significant decrease in Boungou (174,000 ounces in 2021) and Wahgnion (147,000 ounces in 2021) also played a role.
Note that in West Africa, Endeavor Mining currently operates six gold mines in three countries: Côte d’Ivoire, Senegal and Burkina Faso. Burkina is home to four mines and annually represents more than half of the Group’s total production.
The company’s gold production in the 3 countries reached 1.41 million ounces in 2022. o
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Orezone: higher production forecasts for 2023
Lhe Orezone mine wants to produce at least 140,000 ounces at Bomboré in 2023. The announcement was made in a statement signed by company boss Patrick Downey on January 18. “Our guidance for 2023 builds on the strong operating performance we saw in December 2022 and includes a number of important initiatives that will immediately strengthen the long-term value of the mine and position the company for future growth. “commented the CEO of the company.
In Burkina Faso, the Bomboré gold mine is expected to deliver 140,000 to 155,000 ounces in 2023.
The Bomboré gold mine entered commercial production last month, following the first gold pour in early September 2022. Owned 10% by the Burkinabè state and 90% by Orezone, the mine has the capacity to produce annually approximately 118,000 ounces over more than 13 years.
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The impact of terrorism on production
L’Gold, which since 2009 has been Burkina Faso’s leading export product, is seeing its production threatened. The main reason, terrorism, which has been raging in Burkina Faso for 7 years now, has a lasting impact on mining production. Mining companies have shut down due to terrorist attacks, and others are in minimal activity. As a result, tax revenues take a hit, as does job creation. The August 2022 indicator and development monitoring report, published in September 2022 by the Ministry of the Economy, Finance and Prospective, is quite instructive on the subject. The said document reveals that at the end of August 2022, the total production of fine gold stood at 38.737 tonnes, down 13.4% compared to August 2021. This drop in production is explained, among other things, by the cessation of production at the mining companies Somita, Samtenga, Bouéré and BMC.
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