Hummingbird Resources sees net gold estimates fall

Yanfolila in Mali, Hummingbird’s first producing mine. (Image courtesy of Hummingbird Resources.)

Africa-focused Hummingbird Resources (AIM: HUM) unveiled on Wednesday that its net gold reserves and resources have fallen following updated estimates at the company’s mines.

The gold miner said its reserves now total 4.03 million ounces of gold, while resources stand at 6.95 million ounces. The figures represent a net decrease of 98,000 gold ounces and 327,000 silver ounces.

Hummingbird Resources said the revised numbers are the result of a fall in reserves and resources at its Yanfolila mine in Mali, where estimates dropped 18% and 17% to 593,000 ounces and 1.71 million ounces, respectively.

The drop happened as the mine went through a transition following the curtailing of exploration activities in 2022 and operational depletion.

The company’s recently opened Kouroussa mine in Guinea, and instead saw both estimated reserves and resources jump by 4% and 2% to 676,000 ounces and 1.23 million ounces, respectively.

The company left estimates for its Dugbe mine in Liberia unchanged.

“We are confident that our asset base has material life-of-mine upside, with exploration plans being developed, in particular at Kouroussa, where we are targeting to increase reserves to one million ounces and a 10-plus year life-of-mine,” chief executive Dan Betts said.

A mineral resource that has been fully evaluated and is deemed commercially viable to mine is known as a mineral reserve.