Tietto Minerals Ltd (ASX:TIE) has finished process plant commissioning at its 100%-owned 4.5 million tonnes per annum Abujar Gold Mine – West Africa’s newest gold mine – in Côte d’Ivoire and is ramping up to full production.
Abujar poured first gold on January 14, 2023, and since February 15, the mine has operated on grid power with the process plant performing well on oxide ore, processing more than 11,000 dry tonnes per day on wet oxide material.
Tietto is making big strides now.
The company, which is unhedged with no debt and is fully funded to ramp up into free cash generation, expects to release CY2023 production and cost guidance in late April after overcoming difficult ground conditions and ramping up mining production.
Mining will deepen and TIE will start fresh rock ore mining in early April. Blasting of fresh material began with the first blast completed safely on March 14, 2023.
With all this work being taken into account, the Abujar DFS forecasts gold production averaging around 200,000 ounces per year over the first six years of production at a weighted average all in site cost (AISC) of approximately US$800/oz.
Major milestones still to come include:
- updated Abujar MRE expected in April 2023, including recent drilling data; and
- updated Abujar Life of Mine Plan due for release in June 2023 quarter.
Tietto chairman Francis Harper credits COO Matt Wilcox and his team with the company’s current level of success.
“Matt Wilcox and his team have overseen the construction and long-term operation of some of the largest CIL and heap leach gold projects in West Africa," Harper said.
"His team’s extraordinary achievement in bringing the Abujar Gold Mine into production on time and below budget in the height of COVID-19 and during a period of rapidly escalating construction costs cannot be overstated."
Wilcox has also recently been appointed as executive director.
“His operating and financial skills are first class and we are delighted that he has accepted the position of executive director and chief operating officer as Tietto ramps up to full gold production during the first half of 2023 and we progress advanced studies into the heap leach potential for a substantial second mine at Abujar," Harper said.
“Executive director Mark Strizek will leave the company after overseeing rapid resource growth and project development from his appointment in 2017, and the board thanks him for his contribution to the growth of the company during this time.”
Production ramps up
The team at Abujar is focused on optimising the performance of the Abujar Gold Mine as it ramps up gold production.
The Abujar DFS forecast 260,000 ounces of gold in its first full year of production.
Notably, nameplate tonnages on fresh rock are expected to be consistently achieved in the June quarter.
Images from the first blast of fresh rock at Abujar.
Further encouragement comes from the performance of Abujar’s SAG mill, with low power draw on oxide ore. All reagent and consumable consumptions are at or below levels predicted in the Abujar DFS.
Initially, Abujar is processing lower-grade oxide ore mainly from largely depleted artisanal mining zones prior to accessing the higher-grade fresh ore from the AG Main Pit in April 2023.
The Abujar Gold Project is comprised of three contiguous exploration tenements, Middle, South and North tenements, with a total land area of 1,114 square kilometres, of which less than 10% has been explored. It features an NNE-orientated gold corridor over a 70-kilometre strike across three tenements.
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