B2Gold Corporation, a Canadian-based senior gold producer with operations around Mali, Namibia, and the Philippines, recently announced an updated resource estimate for its Anaconda area, showing a significant uptick in indicated gold resources. The Anaconda area sits 20 kilometers from B2Gold’s Fekola gold mine in Mali.
B2Gold conducted an Anacona area resource estimate for June 2023, which revealed a few critical higher-than-expected figures. The company used an optimized gold price of $1,800 per ounce when calculating all results.
To start, the new indicated material resources now show 57.1 million tons grading at 1.11 grams per ton, totaling 2.03 million ounces of gold. This expanded estimate reflects an 80% increase compared to the resource estimate conducted in March of 2022.
The resource estimate released this past Wednesday also showed inferred ounces in the region. Using the $1,800 per ounce gold price, the company estimates now that the Anaconda area can yield inferred resources of 46.6 million tons grading at 1.33 grams per ton, totaling 2 million ounces. The data from March 2022 included an estimated 2.28 million inferred ounces of gold.
Another significant mention in the company’s press release was their intention to continue expanding the Anaconda area’s oxide and sulfide deposits immediately after the cut-off date for the June 2023 assays. B2Gold clearly has plans to ramp up figures again for next year.
The Anaconda area’s oxide mineral resources, combined with the Dandoko oxide mineral resources, will be the basis of an engineering study of the stand-alone mill and the Fekola region’s oxide processing facilities.
“The Company’s optimization study analysis indicates that the combined Fekola Mine and Fekola Regional processing facilities could have the potential to produce more than 800,000 ounces of gold per year from the Fekola Complex, subject to delineation of additional mineral resources and development, completion of feasibility studies, and the receipt of all necessary regulatory approvals and permits,” B2Gold revealed in the press release.
Throughout 2023, B2Gold has been completing its $35 million program to explore the Fekola complex, icnluding the Fekola mine, the Anaconda area (Bantako North, Bakolobi, and Menankoto), the nearby Cardinal zone within the Medinandi permit, and the Dandoko permit.
With this expansion and exploration, the company has also increased sulfide mineral estimates on the June 2023 report. The indicated sulfide mineral resource estimate came to 17.4 million tons, grading at 1.4 grams per ton to reach a total of 780,000 ounces of gold. The inferred resource estimate totaled 37.1 million tons, grading at 1.44 grams per ton to reach a total of 1.72 million ounces of gold.
When compared to last year, the sulfide inferred mineral resource gold grade increased by 15%. These indicated oxide mineral resources highlight the potential of the stand-alone mill and oxide processing facilities.
The indicated oxide mineral resource estimate with a 0.6 gram-per-ton cut-off grade came to 23.5 million tons at 1.37 grams per ton of gold, totaling 1.04 million ounces of gold.
“Oxide Mineral Resources at Anaconda Area and Dandoko are anticipated to be mined and processed at a lower per tonne unit cost relative to Fekola sulphide ore due to being located closer to surface (lower strip ratio), and cheaper mining and milling costs. Additionally, there is significant synergies between the Fekola Mine and the Fekola Regional deposits due to the sharing of existing infrastructure at Fekola,” B2Gold explained in the release.
The company budgeted $63 million this year for Fekola Regional development and is still conducting the $35 million exploration program. The Mamba Zone continues to be one of the most significant factors in this year’s level of resource growth. So far, B2Gold has completed 30,000 meters of drilling at the Mamba Zone and plans to target further efforts.
B2Gold maintains its name as a low-cost senior gold producer with operations in numerous countries. Headquartered in Vancouver, Canada, B2Gold has been around since 2007, though continues working hard to expand its efforts. Today, the company owns mines in Mali, Namibia, and the Philippines, plus numerous exploration projects in other locations, allowing it to yield an average forecasted production of around 1 million ounces this year.
As gold prices and demand continue to rise, we can likely expect to see more major mining corporations following in B2Gold’s footsteps, especially as resource estimates update to show unmined gold. Rising gold prices offer an ideal opportunity to capitalize on demand. As always, investors should consult their advisors before making any financial decisions.
