Name: La Libertad mine.

Location: La Libertad is located about 110 km east of Managua, the capital city of Nicaragua.

Holding and Controlling Company: B2Gold. The company indirectly holds a 100% interest in one exploitation concession for La Libertad covering 10 950 ha, through its subsidiary Desarrollo Minero de Nicaragua (Desminic). 

Brief Description: La Libertad is currently in production, producing from two openpits – Mojon and Jabali Central. A third pit, Jabali Antenna, is expected to start production in the second half of 2017.

Brief History: La Libertad was put into production as a large-scale heap leach from 1994 to 1996. It was returned to production in 2001 and operated as a heap leach until 2007. In May 2007, a scoping study was completed following testwork and a study of the potential for conversion of the heap-leach process to conventional milling. Results of the study were positive and openpit mining was halted in March 2007 to proceed with the process upgrade. In August 2007, Central Sun commissioned a feasibility study and investigated sources of mill equipment. B2Gold acquired Central Sun on March 26, 2009, completed the construction of the mill in the fourth quarter of 2009 and started ore processing at La Libertad Mine on December 15, 2009. 

Products: Gold.

Geology/Mineralisation: The Libertad mining district covers about 150 km2, and is situated within a broad belt of Tertiary volcanic rocks that have been differentiated into two major units – the Matagalpa and Coyol groups. Oligocene to Miocene in age, the Matagalpa group is the oldest unit and comprises intermediate to felsic pyroclastic rocks. Unconformably overlying the Matagalpa group are Miocene-aged mafic lavas of the Lower Coyol unit. The rocks of the Lower Coyol unit host the gold-bearing quartz veins in the Libertad district. 

La Libertad’s epithermal gold/silver deposits are hosted by andesitic volcanic rocks of late Miocene age. The bulk of known gold mineralisation at the mine is contained within vein sets along two parallel trends separated by about 500 m. The Mojón-Crimea trend is nearly 4 km long, strikes 65 ° and dips on average 80 ° to the south-east. The down-dip dimension is commonly about 200 m to 250 m. The massive quartz veins and adjacent stockwork/stringer zones range in width from 2 m to 70 m for an average of 15 m, often narrowing at depth.

The Santa Mariá-Esmeralda trend is discontinuous, with the Santa Mariá and Esmeralda veins separated by about 1 000 m. The Santa Mariá vein averages 10 m wide and is an estimated 450 m long. The Santa Mariá, Crimea and Esmeralda veins have been mined out. The San Juan vein zone extends for about 1 km along strike and is located 5 km south of the plant. This vein zone averages about 3.4 m wide and has been drill-tested to a depth of 170 m. 

Gold mineralisation is hosted by epithermal quartz and occurs as free particles up to 40 in diameter. Average grain sizes are 3 to 15 in diameter. Gold has a close affinity with pyrite and occurs as a nucleus for pyrite crystallisation and as a coating on pyrite crystals. Subsequent oxidation has destroyed the pyrite and freed the gold to depths of up to 150 m below surface. Mineralisation also occurs as native silver and electrum, a gold/silver alloy. 

Reserves: Total probable mineral reserves as at December 31, 2015, were estimated at 2.97-million tonnes grading 2.23 g/t gold.

Resources: Total indicated mineral resources as at December 31, 2015, were estimated at 4.94-million tonnes grading 2.61 g/t gold. Inferred mineral resources were estimated at 2.51-million tonnes grading 4.53 g/t gold.

Mining Method: Mining is a traditional truck-and-loader (excavator) surface operation, with drilling and blasting performed by B@Gold subsidiary Desminic, and loading and haulage to the plant or the dumps provided by contracting firm Santa Fe.

Major Infrastructure and Equipment: Ore is processed through a mill and leach facility with an agitated leach and a carbo-in-pulp circuit. The metals are recovered using adsorption, desorption and recovery with electrolytic recovery resulting in the production of gold and silver doré.

Prospects: B2Gold must finish the related resettlement activities with regard to the Jabali Antenna pit, before completing the mine permitting process. Meetings with the Nicaraguan government and stakeholders were scheduled to be held with the Nicaraguan government in 2016, but were temporarily postponed until after the Nicaraguan presidential election on November 6, 2016. As a result, mining from the Jabali Antenna pit, previously scheduled to begin in the second quarter of 2016, is now forecast to start in the second half of 2017.

Contact Person: Manager – investor relations and public relations Katie Bromley.

Contact Details:
B2Gold
Tel +1 604 681 8371
Fax +1 604 681 6209
Email: kbromley@b2gold.com
Website http://www.b2gold.com