Dual-listed Barrick Gold Corporation is actively seeking to extend the life of its Tongon gold mine, in Côte d’Ivoire, while also exploring for new opportunities elsewhere in the country.

In a release issued following a media briefing at the mine on Friday, president and CE Mark Bristow noted that Tongon was now in its tenth year of operations.

“Tongon was discovered and developed in the midst of a civil war and since then has had to contend with almost every conceivable challenge including social and political unrest in the region, a protracted work stoppage and an erratic power supply,” he said.

Commending his management team – comprised almost entirely of Ivorian nationals – Bristow noted that the mine had, nevertheless, been consistently profitable. He stated that it had delivered considerable value to all its stakeholders and pointed the way for the growth of the country’s mining industry and economy.

“On current reserves, Tongon has under three years of life left, but we hope to extend that by converting near-mine resources to reserves, exploring the potential of satellite deposits and probing targets along the Badenou trend in the Tongon lease area.

“We are also seeking to advance the agribusiness projects designed to provide economic opportunity and food security for the local community after the mine’s closure.”

Elsewhere in Côte d’Ivoire, extensive exploration work is under way on all the permits within the company’s large portfolio, which covers the most prospective parts of the country.

Bristow said the success of this programme was dependent in part on the government’s continued support in the processing of applications and facilitating access to permits.

He added that since the introduction of a dedicated Mines Minister in Côte d’Ivoire, there had been a significant change in how the government was working with the industry to address key issues that had proved to be impediments in the past.

Regarding the mine’s current performance, Bristow said Tongon had rebuilt the capacity compromised by last year’s extended work stoppages, and at the halfway stage of this year was on track to achieve its production target of about 290 000 oz of gold.

He indicated that Barrick’s continuing engagement with the government and the national power utility had resulted in a considerable improvement in the stability of the power supply on the back of the expansion of the regional infrastructure.

Moreover, it is maintaining a positive industrial relations climate at the mine.

The mine’s safety record remains notable and, to date, Tongon has operated for more than 8.7-million lost-time injury-free hours.

Its safety and environmental certifications have been renewed and its water management has improved further.