Tongon permit review confirms opportunities to extend mine life
MARK BRISTOW Tongon is on track to achieve its production guidance of 285 000 oz of gold for 2017
Photo by Duane Daws
A review of Africa-focused gold producer Randgold Resources’ Nielle permit, which hosts the company’s Tongon mine, in Côte d’Ivoire, has confirmed a number of opportunities to extend the life of the operation beyond the current four-year projection, company CEO Mark Bristow said during a site visit last month.
In a statement released following a media briefing, he said near-mine targets with high resource potential had been the prime focus of the exploration programme at Tongon, while elsewhere in Côte d’Ivoire Randgold had been building its permit portfolio towards its next big discovery, as the company believed the country to be one of West Africa’s most prospective gold regions.
“Tongon was born in the midst of a political crisis in Côte d’Ivoire and has since had to overcome many challenges, of an external as well as an operational nature,” Bristow noted, adding that Randgold’s team had tried to overcome the challenges, which resulted in the mine posting record gold production of 84 856 oz in the fourth quarter of 2016.
“Building on that base, with a strong emphasis on costs, as well as maximising the benefits of its plant upgrades and expansion, Tongon is on track to achieve its production guidance of 285 000 oz of gold for 2017,” Bristow asserted.
Randgold’s engagement with Côte d’Ivoire started in 1996 with the acquisition of the Nielle permit. The prefeasibility study on Tongon was completed in 2001 but plans to develop the mine were halted, owing to the outbreak of civil war the following year.
However, despite the conflict, Randgold retained its confidence in the country’s future and resumed work on the project in 2007. The mine was commissioned in 2010 amid another political upheaval.
Bristow noted that Côte d’Ivoire had been experiencing further nation building challenges in the past year, including a string of strikes and protest actions that impacted negatively on civil society, as well as the country’s economy and mining industry.
Comments
Press Office
Announcements
What's On
Subscribe to improve your user experience...
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?
Receive 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)
➕
Recieve 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
RESEARCH CHANNEL AFRICA
R4500 (equivalent of R375 a month)
SUBSCRIBEAll benefits from Option 1
➕
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports on various industrial and mining sectors, in PDF format, including on:
Electricity
➕
Water
➕
Energy Transition
➕
Hydrogen
➕
Roads, Rail and Ports
➕
Coal
➕
Gold
➕
Platinum
➕
Battery Metals
➕
etc.
Receive all benefits from Option 1 or Option 2 delivered to numerous people at your company
➕
Multiple User names and Passwords for simultaneous log-ins
➕
Intranet integration access to all in your organisation