Modern Mining June 2020

expand into the rest of Africa and open up newmines at lower investment and mine easier-to-access ore on the surface at a lower operating cost per ounce. There are more countries, she says, now open for mining investment, thus the competition for invest- ment is higher than it has ever been. West Africa is one such destination that has seen a favourable surge in gold investment in recent years. “We have seen a lot of gold mines opening up in West Africa in the past few years. West African countries are developing and their governments want to attract foreign investment, especially in the mining industry,” she says. Governments have incentives to attract invest- ment, and in return new mines opening up create jobs, payments into the state coffers in respect of taxes and royalties and an upskilling of the local workforce. “Mining companies negotiate mining conven- tions which are generally beneficial, especially in the early years, with regards to tax rates and, crucially such rates are generally fixed for the life of the mine, which ensures stability and certainty. It is these benefits and the likely higher return on investment, coupled with stability that makes West Africa an attractive investment opportunity,” she concludes. 

mining is not only safer but can increase production and thus lower the cost of mining. “The key focus on the use of technology is mainly twofold – the first is in more accurately mapping the ore body and getting a better understanding of the resource and more precision on the grade through- out the ore body,” she says. “The other is on improving efficiencies and increasing production by optimising material and equipment flow to decrease downtime, anticipating breakdowns and monitoring production and perfor- mance on a ‘real-time’ basis. These efficiencies and production increases can lead to a decrease in the mining cost/oz. Technology can also be used in other areas such as in optimising supply chains, enabling mines to free up working capital,” adds MacRae. Competition is rife In fact, it’s not just new investment that is being deterred. MacRae says even the leading gold min- ers headquartered in South Africa are now focusing elsewhere, with Anglo Gold Ashanti recently selling the last of its South African mining assets and exit- ing the market to focus on “looking offshore for less risky investments”. One of the reasons, according to MacRae, is that mining companies are finding it more cost-effectiveto

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