https://www.miningweekly.com

Bristow commends Tongon mine performance through turbulent time

5th February 2021

By: Marleny Arnoldi

Online News Editor

     

Font size: - +

NYSE- and TSX-listed Barrick Gold Corporation has advised that its Tongon mine, in Côte d’Ivoire, produced 284 863 oz of gold in 2020, meeting the top end of its guidance for the year.

The company says the performance was driven by strong plant throughput, with a runtime record of 95.2% having been set in October.

This improved throughput, coupled with cost-reduction initiatives at the mine, should have a positive impact on per ounce costs for the full year.

Barrick CE Mark Bristow says Tongon had to overcome enormous obstacles to achieve this "exceptional" performance.

The mine was built and commissioned in the midst of a civil war and has since operated in an unstable socio-political environment, while being impacted by a mill fire, recurring technical issues and erratic grid power supply.

“Despite all these challenges, Tongon has been consistently profitable and, in 2020, again paid a $150-million dividend to its shareholders. It provided $1.2-million to the government to support its campaign against Covid-19, while implementing effective prevention measures at the mine to protect its people and the business.

“The mine also maintained its commitment to its host community with the installation and startup of a number of income-generating projects,” Bristow points out.

The Tongon mine had the best safety record in the global Barrick portfolio, until it suffered one lost-time injury on October 28 last year. The mine had recorded more than 15-million lost-time injury-free work hours over 1 120 days.

The mine spent $105-million, or 66% of its procurement budget for the year, with local contractors and suppliers in 2020.

Since Tongon poured its first gold in 2010, it has paid more than $1.6-billion into the Ivorian economy in the form of taxes, infrastructure development, salaries and payments to local suppliers.

The company states that the mine life currently extends to 2023, but opportunities for replacing reserves are being pursued.

Edited by Chanel de Bruyn
Creamer Media Online Managing Editor

Article Enquiry

Email Article

Save Article

Feedback

To advertise email advertising@creamermedia.co.za or click here

Showroom

EKATO Africa
EKATO Africa

Established in 1933, EKATO is the world leader in agitation technology, supplying agitators for processes and applications such as chemicals and...

VISIT SHOWROOM 
Alco-Safe
Alco-Safe

Developed to exceed the latest EN 15964 standards for police breathalysers proving that it will remain accurate and reliable for many years to come.

VISIT SHOWROOM 

Latest Multimedia

sponsored by

Option 1 (equivalent of R125 a month):

Receive a weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine
(print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
Receive daily email newsletters
Access to full search results
Access archive of magazine back copies
Access to Projects in Progress
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format

Option 2 (equivalent of R375 a month):

All benefits from Option 1
PLUS
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports, in PDF format, on various industrial and mining sectors including Electricity; Water; Energy Transition; Hydrogen; Roads, Rail and Ports; Coal; Gold; Platinum; Battery Metals; etc.

Already a subscriber?

Forgotten your password?

MAGAZINE & ONLINE

SUBSCRIBE

RESEARCH CHANNEL AFRICA

SUBSCRIBE

CORPORATE PACKAGES

CLICK FOR A QUOTATION







sq:0.086 0.909s - 110pq - 2rq
Subscribe Now