WEST African Resources ended the June quarter of its 2020 financial year with cash of $83.2m after selling 22,225 ounces in gold at an average price of $1,727oz. It said that it remained unhedged and continued “… to benefit from recent high gold prices”.
The company, listed in Sydney, mines Burkina Faso’s Sanbrado mine which produced 32,626 oz of gold during the quarter, and 40,458 oz year to date. It generated cash from operating activities of $52.4m during the quarter.
The mine was recently commissioned and achieved commercial production during the quarter. First gold at Sanbrado was poured on March 19. Sanbrado is scoped to produce 300,000 oz annually for ten years.
Richard Hyde, executive chairman of West African Resources, said the ramp-up of Sanbrado had “… gone smoothly. We expect underground stoping ore to come online late third quarter 2020 which will see the production profile and cashflows increase further”.
In April, West African Resources said it had agreed to buy the Toega gold deposit from B2Gold and its partner, GAMS-Mining F&I for $45m. “We intend to kick off drilling and feasibility studies in the near future, with the aim of bringing Toega ore into the Sanbrado mine plan within three years,” said Hyde at the time.
West African Resources had reported on one infection of Covid-19 – a returning employee – but it said challenges remained.
Production guidance for 2021 will be set in in the fourth quarter “… providing there are no material impacts from Covid-19 and management consider normal operations can be maintained,” it said.
