Teranga achieves commercial production at Wahgnion

Processing facilities at Teranga’s Wahgnion open-pit gold mine in Burkina Faso. Image from Teranga Gold.

Teranga Gold (TSX: TGZ) has declared commercial production at its second mine, Wahgnion, located 510 km southwest of Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.

After achieving first pour ahead of schedule in late August, the new mine is expected to achieve the upper end of its 2019 production guidance of 30,000-40,000 oz.

“The Wahgnion plant is running at or above nameplate capacity, recovery rates are well above 90%, and costs are tracking in line with our 2019 guidance,” COO Paul Chawrun stated in a press release. The company has a consolidated production guidance of 245,000-270,000 oz gold for 2019.

“Now that we have achieved commercial production, in the new year our attention will turn to conducting a reserve development program focused on optimizing the mine plan and adding reserves to extend the current 13-year mine life,” he added.

The Wahgnion mine is forecast to produce 132,000 oz/year at an all-in sustaining cost of $761/oz in the first five years. It is Teranga’s second gold operation after the Sabodala mine in Senegal.