Gold Fields reaches “amicable” deal with Ghana
GOLD Fields has reached an “amicable agreement on a transitional plan” over the Damang gold mine with the Government on Ghana which last week took it over on the expiry of Gold Fields’ mining lease on April 18.Terms of the agreement are that a new, 12-month mining lease has been issued to Gold Fields subsidiary Abosso Goldfields “pending parliamentary ratification in May this year.”A joint management team consisting of representatives from the Government of Ghana and Gold Fields has been set up and the long-term aim is “Ghanaian ownership” of the mine. A statement from the Ghanaian Presidency said that, under the new arrangements, “ Gold Fields will resume open-pit mining during the transition period, safeguarding jobs and conducting feasibility studies to establish Damang’s reserves and mine life.”Gold Fields stopped mining operations at Damangduring 2024 because management decided “the remaining metal no longer meets reserve economic criteria under Gold Fields’ conservative gold pricing approach.”Since then Gold Fields has been treating only surface dump material at the mine which still hosts a gold resource totalling 2.27m oz that could be mined in the future at higher gold prices but this would require a “push back” of the wall of the existing open pit to get at the ore. The surface stockpiles will now be processed under the supervision of the joint management team which “will work in good faith to secure a successful transition and eventual transfer of a viable mine to Ghanaian ownership.”According to Felix Kwakye Ofusu – spokesperson to the President and Minister, Government Communications – “both parties have agreed to advance discussions in good faith on the renewal of the lease for the Tarkwa mine, due in 2027, and pledged to work together to enhance Ghana’s potential in the mining sector as a favourable investment destination.”The post Gold Fields reaches “amicable” deal with Ghana appeared first on Miningmx.Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Mining.com
Quelle: Mining.com
