Aim-listed gold developer Kefi Minerals on Wednesday confirmed that development of the Tulu Kapi gold mine, in Ethiopia, will start in October.
The mine has a 24-month development schedule and should achieve full production in 2021.
Kefi chairperson Harry Anagnostaras-Adams stated that Tulu Kapi would be the first modern mine to be developed in the country in decades.
The mine will make use of a conventional openpit drill-and-blast, load-and-haul mining method and will produce about 145 000 oz/y of gold.
A preliminary economic assessment completed in early 2016 indicated that the addition of an underground mine had the potential to increase total openpit and underground gold production to more than 150 000 oz/y over four years.