Mid-tier miner Iamgold on Wednesday announced that Gordon Stothart had stepped down from his role of president and CEO and that he had also resigned from the board of directors with immediate effect.

The Canadian company said that it had engaged an executive firm to immediately conduct a search for its next leader. In the interim, CFO Daniella Dimitrov would act as CEO.

Chairperson Don Charter said that Dimitrov brought “extensive mining industry and capital markets experience” to the interim CEO position.

Charter did not give a reason for Stothart’s resignation, but thanked him for the role he played in the evolution of the company over 15 years, and in particular the “championing” of the Côté gold project, in Ontario, Canada.

Stothart joined the miner in 2007 as COO and became president and CEO in March 2020.

Meanwhile, Iamgold provided an update on construction of its Côté project, stating that it remained on track for commercial production in the second half of next year.

Iamgold broke ground on the project in September 2020 and the project is about 43% complete.

The Cote mine, a 70:30 joint venture (JV) with Sumitomo Metal Mining, will cost between C$1.13-billion and C$1.18-billion. The mine will produce 460 000 oz/y in the first six years of its 18-year mine life.

Iamgold last month appointed Jerzy Orzechowski as executive project director for Côté. Orzechowski is a senior executive specialising in project development, management, engineering, construction and strategic planning with 40 years of experience working in various project execution strategies and in all phases of large capital projects implementation and execution.

The management of the project now reports to Orzechowski and he reports directly to the CEO and is involved in the oversight by the Côté Project Review Committee of the Board.

2021 OPERATIONAL RESULTS
Iamgold produced 601 000 attributable ounces in 2021, which was near the top of the updated production guidance. Its all-in sustaining costs (AISC) would be within the updated guidance range of $1 395/oz to $1 435/oz, the company said.

Annual attributable gold production for Essakane, in Burkina Faso, was 412 000 oz, exceeding  the upper end of the updated guidance range of 390 000 oz to 400 000 oz, as the mine continued to benefit from the mill debottlenecking project completed earlier in the year.

Annual attributable gold production for Rosebel, in Suriname, was 154 000 oz, at the upper end of the updated guidance range of 140 000 oz to 160 000 oz.

Gold production for Westwood, in Quebec, was 35 000 oz in 2021, at the lower end of updated guidance of 35 000 oz to 45 000 oz, following the restart of underground operations in June.

Iamgold said that, although underground mine productivity was improving, the pace of the ramp up remained cautious in keeping with the safety-first culture of the group, as the company continued to prioritise the implementation of enhanced ground support and additional safety measures, coupled with continued pressures associated with general labour shortages in the region.

Iamgold expects to produce between 570 000 oz and 640 000 oz at an AISC of $1 650/oz and $1 690/oz in 2022.