West African Resources is confident that its Sanbrado mine, located in Burkina Faso, will yield a gold production of 190,000 oz to 210,000 oz this year, in line with the company's established mining strategy.
The output at Sanbrado will be lower than the 226,823 ounces of gold produced in 2023.
This is due to a decrease in ounces from open-pit mining, but an increase in ounces from underground operations will partially make up for it.
The mining operations in the M5 South open pit are expected to finish in the first quarter of this year. The majority of the open-pit ore will be sourced from M5 North, and it is anticipated that larger quantities and improved quality will result in higher gold production from the M1 South underground mine.
This year, the company is anticipating an all-in-sustaining cost (AISC) of less than $1,300/oz, which is higher than the AISC of $1,126/oz in 2023.
This increase is mainly due to reduced projected gold production as well as higher gold royalty rates and forecasted fuel prices.
Capital development costs are projected to rise from $25 million last year to an estimated range of $28 million to $38 million this year.
The planned sustaining capital expenditure (capex) is projected to range from $7 million to $12 million, consistent with the previous year's $11 million.
Last year, Sanbrado completed several capital improvement projects.
This year, the focus is on continuing the construction of a tailings storage facility (TSF) by completing another lift and establishing the life-of-mine TSF footprint.
The company is also expecting growth capex to fall between the $230 million and $270 million ranges, with the main focus being on the development of the Kiaka gold mine in Burkina Faso.
West African executive chairperson and chief executive Richard Hyde said that Kiaka is progressing according to plan and within the allocated budget, and anticipates the first gold production to commence in the latter part of 2025.
“We look forward to releasing our updated resources, reserves, and ten-year production plan in the coming weeks,” he said.
Mathew Nyaungwa, Editor in Chief of the African Bureau, from Cape Town, South Africa, Rough&Polished
