Mining’s old guard needs strong medicine
A new report details subpar investor returns in the mining industry over the last decade, particularly big cap diversified companies which have not adapted to new realities.
Canada’s Avesoro Resources (TSX, LON: ASO) has resumed operations at its Youga gold mine in Burkina Faso after being forced to halt mining and processing last week over disagreements with a proposed open pit mining contractor.
Former open-pit employees had refused to work as a result of a “temporary” reduction in operating performance and “associate inefficiencies” derived from Orkun Group Sarl’s involvement.
As a result of the disruption, Avesoro has axed its 2019 production guidance to between 180,000-200,000 ounces of gold, from the previous 210,000-230,000 ounces.
Chief executive, Serhan Umurhan, said his focus remains to be minimizing the impact of the temporary production stoppage, while successfully delivering the remaining transition to contractor mining operations at both Youga and New Liberty mines.
Umurhan said the company was assessing several project optimization options, including ore sorting and heap leach scenarios at the two mines, with aims to further improve the economics of both projects.
Avesoro acquired Youga, about 180 km southeast of the capital Ouagadougou, adjacent to Burkina Faso’s border with Ghana, in 2016.
The licence contains seven open-pit deposits and a 1.1 million tonne per year carbon-in-leach processing facility.
Comments
Tom Setterlund
awesome article