Precious metals producer B2Gold says its Fekola mining operation, located in Mali, has the potential to significantly increase production.

The Toronto miner’s optimisation study analysis indicates that the combined Fekola mine and Fekola regional processing facilities have the potential to produce more than 800 000 oz/y of gold, subject to the delineation of additional mineral resources.

This is substantially more than what the mine is expected to produce this year, with a guidance of 580 000 oz to 610 000 oz for 2023. In the first quarter, Fekola produced 165 864 oz at an all-in sustaining cost of $964/oz.

Fekola produced its three-millionth ounce of gold on April 27. This milestone was accomplished five years and seven months from construction completion and three years earlier than estimated in the Fekola feasibility study from June 2015. B2Gold notes that Fekola production has met, or exceeded, production projections in each year of its operation.

To further expand Fekola, the company is advancing an engineering study for a regional standalone mill and oxide facilities, which are expected to be located on the Anaconda area.

The engineering study will be based on processing four-million tonnes a year of saprolite and transitional (oxide) resources.

The current Anaconda area mineral resource estimate (MRE), released in March last year, included indicated resources of 32.4-million tonnes at 1.08 g/t gold for 1.13-million ounces of gold, all of which was weathered oxide ore, and inferred resources that included 19.1-million tonnes of oxide ore at 0.81 g/t gold for 0.50-million ounces of gold, and 44.6-million tonnes of sulphide ore at 1.25 g/t gold for 1.79-million ounces of gold.

B2Gold has since completed about 120 000 m of additional drilling at the Anaconda area, which included infill drilling to upgrade a significant portion of the inferred oxide resources to the indicated category, as well as extending both oxide and sulphide resources in the area.

The company says it will publish an updated MRE for Anaconda by the end of the second quarter. To allow for incorporation of this updated estimate into the engineering study, results of the study are now expected in the fourth quarter of 2023.