Name of the Project
Back River Gold – Goose mine gold project.

Location
Back River district, in Nunavut, Canada.

Project Owner/s
B2Gold acquired Sabina Gold & Silver Corp in April 2023.

Project Description
The project involves the underground development at the Umwelt deposit and openpit mining at the Echo deposit.

B2Gold has opted for an accelerated underground development plan, which will increase gold output in the first five years to more than 300 000 oz/y.

Potential Job Creation
Not stated.

Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
The project has an estimated after-tax net present value, at a 5% discount rate, of C$1.1-billion and an internal rate of return of 28%, with a payback of 2.3 years.

Capital Expenditure
C$1.05-billion.

Planned Start/End Date
Ramp-up to full production is expected in the third quarter of 2025.

Latest Developments
The project is running slightly behind schedule, with first gold pour delayed to the second quarter of 2025.

The project is behind schedule because of equipment availability, adverse weather and prioritisation of critical path construction activities.

The current schedule indicates that an additional three months of mining must be added to the schedule to ensure that the Umwelt openpit, underground development and crown pillar activities align, and that there is sufficient tailings storage capacity in the Echo openpit.

With the schedule change, the mill is now scheduled to produce first gold in the second quarter of 2025, with ramp-up to full production in the third quarter of 2025.

As a result of the updated mining schedule, B2Gold estimates that gold production in 2025 will be between 120 000 oz and 150 000 oz, compared with the previous estimate of between 220 000 oz and 260 000 oz. This is owing to the deferral of 100 000 oz of quarterly gold production from the fourth quarter of 2025 to the first quarter of 2026.

B2Gold has indicated that the updated mining schedule does not impact on the total number of gold ounces it expects to produce over the project’s life-of-mine.

Average yearly gold production from 2026 to 2030 will increase to more than 310 000 oz/y.

Meanwhile, the construction of the Goose mill is on schedule.

B2Gold has also successfully completed the Goose 2024 winter ice road campaign. Construction of the 162 km road started in December 2023 and the campaign was completed at the end of April 2024.

Materials trucked from the marine laydown area to the Goose project site during the 2024 campaign exceeded 2 100 total loads and included 400 loads of diesel fuel. The 2 100 loads completed during the 2024 campaign are double the loads completed during the 2023 campaign.

Key materials delivered in 2024 included all modular units necessary to expand the camp to 500-person capacity; all steel and rebar necessary to complete the mill and concrete work; 19-million litres of fuel that will be used between May 2024 and March 2025; all the required cement to complete the construction project; more than 4 500 m³ of cement in one-tonne bags; and all reagents necessary to commission and operate the mill that will start in 2025.

Key Contracts, Suppliers and Consultants
None stated.

Contact Details for Project Information
B2Gold, tel +1 604 681 8371 or email investor@b2gold.com.