PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Dual-listed gold miner Perseus Mining has accepted committed letters of offer from Macquarie Bank for $60-million in debt financing to fund its growth strategy.

The miner on Monday said the financing included a $40-million project debt facility that will be used to finance the completion of the Sissingué gold mine, in Côte d’Ivoire.

As of March 10, the Sissingué project was estimated to require some $64-million to complete, with Perseus saying the project will be funded through a combination of internal cash and the Macquarie loan.

First gold from Sissingué is expected in the March 2018 quarter, and the project is forecast to produce 385 000 oz at an all-in sustaining cost of $632/oz over a 5.25-year period.

The Macquarie debt will also include a $20-million debt facility that was offered to Perseus’s Ghanaian subsidiary, which will be used as required to provide general working capital for the Edikan gold mine, over the next 12 months, while production is being ramped up and Perseus’s corporate cash resources are being applied to the Sissingué development and exploration.

Perseus on Monday said the operating performance at the Edikan mine had materially improved in terms of the head grade of the ore being processed, and the performance of the mill following an upgrade of the Edikan plant in October 2016.

The mine has been cash flow positive since December.

Gold production between January and March 10 this year reached 37 789 oz, which is 17% higher than the total December quarter production, and in line with the half-year production expectations.

Perseus CEO and MD Jeff Quartermaine told shareholders that accessing the funding required to finance the company’s corporate growth strategy, without the need for the equity capital markets, was a positive and important step forward for the company on its path to transforming into a multimine, midtier gold producer.

“As well as continuing the strong recent operating performance at Edikan, we can now also look forward to successfully completing the Yaore definitive feasibility study in the September quarter and commencing gold production and cash flow from Sissingué in early 2018.”