(Ecofin Agency) - In October 2023, Orezone unveiled a $168 million project to double the production capacity of its Bomboré gold mine in Burkina Faso. The project was initially planned to be developed in one phase but will be in two now. The first phase should be completed by the end of 2025.

Orezone Gold wants to boost its annual gold output in Burkina Faso to 185,000 ounces by 2026, from 125,000 ounces projected for this year. The Canadian mining company announced this in an update, stating that an $80 million investment will be required to achieve this goal.

The investment falls under an expansion project announced in October 2023, focusing on the firm’s only gold mine in the country, the Bomboré mine. The expansion involves building a new processing plant with an annual capacity of 4.4 million tonnes. Due to financing constraints, Orezone has decided to allocate half of the initially planned amount for a plant with an annual processing capacity of 2.5 million tonnes.

$ORE.TO $ORZCF Provides Bomboré Hard Rock Expansion Update and Three-Year Production Forecast https://t.co/4Frhk0CRhW via @OrezoneC pic.twitter.com/cIGvOsG4bM

— Orezone Gold Corporation (@OrezoneC) May 6, 2024

Orezone plans to complete the work and commission the new plant by the end of 2025, using debt financing from its long-time partner, Coris Bank, and cash flows from the mine. The expected production from 2026 will range between 170,000 and 185,000 ounces of gold, compared to 110,000 to 125,000 ounces in 2024. A subsequent investment will increase the plant's throughput to 5 to 7 million tonnes per year, eying an output of 250,000 ounces annually at Bomboré.

The Bomboré gold mine has been in production since September 2022. It delivered 141,425 ounces in 2023.

Emiliano Tossou