Toronto-listed bullion producer Iamgold on Tuesday reported a strong finish to 2024, achieving total attributable gold production of 667 000 oz – up 43% from the previous year – thanks to the rapid ramp-up of its Côté gold mine, in Canada, and an “exceptional year” at Essakane, in Burkina Faso.

The miner’s attributable gold production was line with its guidance range of 625 000 oz to 715 000 oz, which was revised upwards mid-year.

CEO Renaud Adams said the ramp-up of Côté was “among the quickest” for a large-scale openpit gold mine in Canada.  

The mine contributed 124 000 oz to Iamgold’s production in 2024. The plant poured first gold on March 31, achieved commercial production on August 1, and completed a mill shutdown in September to deploy improvements to stabilise the crushing circuit.

"At the start of 2024, we set goals to achieve initial production in March, commercial production in the third quarter, and exit the year at 90% throughput. We were able to hit the first two of these milestones, which were monumental achievements, though we were unable to achieve the goal of sustained throughput at 90% at Côté in December due to ramp-up-related challenges which required downtime to implement solutions.

“We have and continue to see multiple days where the plant operates above nameplate, so our focus continues to be on stability and operating consistency.

“As we see continuous improvements at Côté, we are confident in the capability of the mine to potentially double the gold production in 2025 as outlined in our guidance,” said Adams.

Essakane remained the jewel in Iamgold’s production crown, contributing 409 000 oz to the group’s overall production in the year. The mine benefitted from a strong first-half performance.

Westwood, in Canada, delivered 134 000 oz in the year, exceeding the top-end of the updated guidance range of 115 000 oz to 130 000 oz.

Looking ahead, Iamgold is positioned for a strong 2025. The group is guiding consolidated output of 885 000 oz to 980 000 oz at an all-in sustaining cost of $1 625/oz to $1 800/oz.