B2Gold Corp recorded C$219.1 million (N$4.04 billion) in gold revenue for the six months ended 30 June 2024, with 99,790 ounces sold at an average price of C$2,195 per ounce at the Otjikoto Mine in Namibia.
Ore milled totalled 1,677,126 tonnes, with a grade of 1.76 grams per tonne and a recovery rate of 98.5% during the half year period.
“Gold production was 93,559 ounces, with production costs at C$61.1 million (N$1.13 billion). Cash operating costs per ounce sold rose to C$612 (N$11,294), and all-in sustaining costs were C$1,000 per ounce,” the company’s Q2 results stated.
Capital expenditure for the six months was C$25.5 million (N$470.6 million), with exploration costs at C$3.3 million (N$60.7 million).
The Otjikoto Mine in Namibia reported gold revenue of C$112.9 million (N$2.08 billion) for the three months ended June 30, 2024 (second quarter), up from C$77.9 million (N$1.43 billion) in 2023.
“The mine sold 48,340 ounces of gold, with an average realised price of C$2,335 per ounce, compared to 39,550 ounces at C$1,969 per ounce in the prior year. Ore milled totalled 850,649 tonnes, with a grade of 1.79 grams per tonne and a recovery rate of 98.6%.,” said B2Gold.
For the quarter, gold production reached 48,143 ounces, while production costs were C$32.2 million (N$593.8 million).
“Cash operating costs per ounce sold increased to C$666, and all-in sustaining costs were C$1,044 per ounce. Capital expenditures for the period were C$11.7 million (N$215.3 million), with exploration costs at C$1.5 million (N$27.6 million),” said B2Gold.
For the year, the Otjikoto Mine is now expected to produce between 185,000 and 205,000 ounces of gold in 2024 (original guidance of between 180,000 and 200,000 ounces).
The miner is expected to produce the gold at cash operating costs in the upper end of its guidance range of between C$685 and C$745 per ounce and all-in sustaining costs of between C$960) and C$1,020 per ounce.
“Gold production at Otjikoto is expected to be relatively consistent throughout 2024. For 2024, Otjikoto is expected to process a total of 3.4 million tonnes of ore at an average grade of 1.77 g/t gold with a process gold recovery of 98.0%,” said B2Gold.
Processed ore will be sourced from the Otjikoto pit and the Wolfshag underground mine, supplemented by existing medium and high-grade ore stockpiles.
Ore production from the Wolfshag underground mine for the second quarter of 2024 averaged over 1,500 tonnes per day at an average grade of 4.69 g/t gold.
“As of the beginning of 2024, the Probable Mineral Reserve estimate for the Wolfshag deposit included 100,000 ounces of gold in 0.6 million tonnes of ore at an average grade of 5.02 g/t gold,” said the report.
This comes as earlier this year the company reported positive drilling results from the Antelope deposit, three km south of Otjikoto Mine.
In June an initial Inferred Mineral Resource estimate for the Springbok Zone, part of the Antelope deposit, was announced, totalling 390,000 ounces of gold from 1.75 million tonnes.
“The Company is planning a Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) for underground mining. If approved, mining could start by 2026, potentially enhancing gold production at Otjikoto. However, the Inferred Mineral Resource is not yet economically viable or guaranteed to convert into a Mineral Reserve,” said B2Gold.
Open-pit mining operations at the Otjikoto Mine will continue to ramp down in 2024 and conclude in 2025, while processing operations are expected to continue until economically viable stockpiles are exhausted in 2031.
Underground operations are currently projected to continue until 2026 with the potential to extend underground operations if the ongoing underground exploration program is successful in identifying more underground mineral deposits.
