Modern Mining January 2018

GOLD

said: “We have optimised the Ity CIL project by maximising the construction and operational synergies between Agbaou, Houndé and Ity, and by leveraging the same designs, components, equipment and spare parts where possible from one project to the other, along with incorporat- ing our extensive construction expertise. The construction team is excited to transition from Houndé to Ity and to continue to build on its construction track-record.” The “track-record” referred to by Langford includes the construction of both the Agbaou and Houndé mines under budget and ahead of schedule, with Agbaou having entered commer- cial production in early 2014 and Houndé on 1 November 2017. Both, remarkably, were built without a single LTI being recorded. Successful as Agbaou’s start-up was, Houndé seems to have done even better, with commercial pro- duction being achieved two months early and with a saving of US$15 million being achieved on the initial US$328 million budget. The mine is currently running at nameplate capacity with all key parameters in line with the DFS. According to the OS, at a gold price of US$1 250/oz, the Ity CIL project delivers an after-tax IRR of 40 % (compared to 36 % in the FS) and an after-tax NPV 5% of US$710 mil- lion (a 73 % increase on the US$411 million

of the FS). Average annual gold production over the first five years has increased by 42 % over the FS figure to 235 koz while the AISC has decreased by 3 % to US$494/oz. Average annual production over the first 10 years has increased by 51 % to 204 koz and AISC has decreased by 2 % to US$549/oz. The mine life has increased by plus 4 % from 13,7 years to 14,3 years. As envisaged in the OS, mining for the Ity CIL project will be undertaken by an owner- operated mining fleet using 90-tonne haul trucks with seven pits to be mined over the life of mine at an average strip ratio of 1,9 (waste to ore). A maximum mining movement of 16 Mt a year with a vertical advance rate of approximately 40 m a year is envisaged. Whereas previously the mining period was nine years followed by the processing of stockpiled low-grade ore for another five years, the current mine plan is based on 12 years of mining followed by the pro- cessing of stockpiled low-grade ore for another two years. The overall grade profile declines gradually over the life of mine as higher-grade deposits such as Bakatouo, Daapleu and Mont Ity/Flat are mined upfront. The mining fleet contract has been awarded to Komatsu to benefit from synergies relat- ing to minimising spare parts inventory and

The process plant at Endeavour’s Houndé mine in Burkina Faso. The Ity CIL plant will utilise the Houndé design but will be optimised for the increased throughput.

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32  MODERN MINING  January 2018