An environmental decree from Senegal’s Ministry of Environment and Ecological Transition was awarded to precious metals miner Fortuna Mining last month, thereby approving the environmental- and social-impact assessment for the Diamba Sud gold mine, says Fortuna Mining CEO, president and director Jorge Ganoza.

The decree certifies that the project, in eastern Senegal, complies with all applicable environmental regulations and has been socially accepted by the project stakeholders.

This progress marks a decisive step towards obtaining the mining permit, following the submission of its application to the Ministry of Energy, Petroleum and Mines on February 4, 2026.

“Obtaining the environmental permit for our future Diamba Sud gold mine, just nine months from submission to approval, is a clear testament to the quality of our work and demonstrates that mining projects in Senegal can advance on a highly competitive timeline.”

The decree also reflects government’s commitment to allowing for the responsible development of its mining sector. With this key approval in hand, Fortuna will continue advancing early construction works as it moves towards completing the feasibility study, followed by a final construction decision expected in mid-2026, he elaborates.

Going for Gold

The preliminary economic assessment and mine plan for Diamba Sud outline an openpit gold mining operation feeding a central gold processing facility over the eight-year life-of-mine.

Diamba Sud’s mineral resource estimate comprises an indicated mineral resource of 26-million tonnes at an average gold grade of 1.5 g/t containing 1.25-million ounces of gold and an inferred mineral resource of 2.1- million tonnes at an average grade of 1.13 g/t gold containing 77 000 oz of gold.

Conventional openpit techniques will be used to mine, whereby oxide and fresh mineralised zones will be drilled and blasted, with truck-and-shovel fleets used to transport material.

The Diamba Sud processing plant will be designed around a metallurgical flowsheet aimed at producing gold doré with optimal recovery processes while keeping initial capital and operating costs low, says Ganoza.

The processing circuit will include conventional crushing, and single-stage semi-autogenous grinding in a closed circuit with cyclones, gravity recovery, carbon-in-leach processing, carbon elution and final gold recovery.

The tailings management system will include a tailings pipeline and a water return pipeline routed within a geomembrane-lined trench, together with the necessary tailings pumps.

The tailings storage facility (TSF) will be fully lined with geomembrane and developed as a side-valley impoundment formed by robust, multi-zoned earth-fill embankments.

Designed to store 17.8-million tonnes of tailings, the TSF will be built using the downstream method, in accordance with industry best practices and according to guidelines of the Global Industry Standard on Tailings Management.

A water storage dam will function as the primary collection and storage point for clean, raw and process water.

Process water from the TSF will be recycled to the plant, with site operations configured as a closed-loop system to maximise reuse and reduce impacts on local communities.

In line with the mine plan, raw water supply will be sourced from a pipeline connecting to the Falémé river, supplemented by pit dewatering. However, Ganoza points out that studies are ongoing to assess the feasibility of a water-harvesting facility as an alternative source.

Power for Diamba Sud is planned to be self-generated using an on-site power plant.

The current configuration anticipates a heavy fuel oil plant with an independent backup component arrangement, and supported by additional light fuel oil generators to meet site demand.

Concurrently, a hybrid solar PV solution is being evaluated as part of the preparation for the feasibility study.