B2Gold plans to build $129m underground mine in Namibia

CANADIAN gold miner B2Gold said a preliminary economic assessment of the Antelope deposit near Otjikoto mine in Namibia supported development of an 65,000 ounce a year underground gold mine requiring pre-production capital of $129m.The production target includes processing of low-grade stockpiles at Otjikoto with production from the Antelope deposit, located four kilometres from the original Otjikoko pit, totalling 65,000 oz a year, from 2029 through 2032. All-in sustaining costs (AISC) at the Antelope mine was forecast to be $1,095/oz.B2Gold will spend $10m this year derisking the Antelope deposit, it said. This will include early work planning, getting project permits and committing to long-lead orders. Technical work will also continue while cost assumptions would be refined, it said.In terms of permitting, the Antelope deposit is contained within the existing Otjikoto mining lease, the company said.Production from Antelope comes at Otjikoto – a deposit that once figured in the reckoning of former South African mining house Avmin – ramps down in 2026. Underground mining operations at the mine’s Wolfshag reserve are expected to continue through 2026, according to the company in January last year.B2Gold said the project had strong economics. Using a gold price assumption of $2,400/oz, which astonishingly looks conservative given today’s price for the metal o $2854/oz), the mine will yield an after-tax cash flow of $185m.Assuming a discount rate of 5%, the net present value after tax of the project is $131m, generating an internal rate of return of 35% and a project payback on pre-production capital of 1.3 years.There is also the potential for expansion. B2Gold said the Antelope deposit remains open along strike in both directions “highlighting strong potential for future resource expansion”.B2Gold said last month it would also continue to invest in Mali, where the military government is currently in an arm-wrestling match with Barrick Gold amid allegations of unpaid taxes.The Canadian miner plans to invest $10m in exploration at its Mali mine, Fekola. “From a B2Gold perspective, we have seen a reduction in risk since the signing of our settlement agreement,” Clive Johnson, CEO of B2Gold, told Reuters.B2Gold was one of the first companies to negotiate a settlement with Mali over its new Mining Code, settling an income tax demand in September and agreeing to move one part of its exploration to the new regulations.The post B2Gold plans to build $129m underground mine in Namibia appeared first on Miningmx.Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Mining.com Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Mining.com