Name of the Project
Koné gold project.

Location
About 350 km north-west of Yamoussoukro, Côte d’Ivoire.

Project Owner/s
Canada-based mineral resources company Montage Gold.
 
Project Description
The project is based on three openpit gold deposits feeding a central gold-processing facility. The project has an average yearly mining rate of 42.4-million tonnes and will produce an average of 223 000 oz/y of gold over the 16-year life-of-mine for total gold production of 3.57-million ounces.

There is upside potential through regional exploration and identification of satellite pits similar to Koné’s Gbongogo Main deposit that could be mined and trucked to a central processing facility. The process plant will have a nominal throughput of 11-million tonnes a year with a grind size of 80% passing (P80) 75 µm.

The treatment plant design incorporates crushing, screening, high-pressure grinding rolls, grinding and classification, preleach and tailings thickening, a carbon-in-leach (CIL) circuit, carbon recovery and acid wash, carbon elution, electrowinning trains and smelting.

Potential Job Creation
As at October 6, the project had a workforce of more than 2 800 employees and contractors.

Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
The project has a pretax net present value, at a 5% discount rate, of $1.44-billion and an internal rate of return of 34.6%, with a payback of 2.6 years.

Capital Expenditure
Initial capital expenditure is estimated at $835-million.

Planned Start/End Date
The project started construction in December 2024. First gold production is scheduled for the second quarter of 2027.

Latest Developments
Montage Gold is making rapid construction progress, with the first gold pour through the oxide circuit expected late in the fourth quarter of this year.

The company has said its hard-rock comminution circuit is also on track, with completion expected in the second quarter of 2027.

Some of the key construction milestones have included the installation of 14 CIL tanks, a pipe rack, grid mesh walkways and an oxide sizer, as well as the receipt of a ball mill on site.

The company has also made progress with a tailings storage facility and the assembly of transmission line towers.

Montage has spent $545-million on the project to date, which represents 63% of the total upfront capital expenditure.

The company also continues to unlock value through its exploration programme, with 115 000 m having been drilled last year, including preproduction drilling at the Koné and Gbongogo Main deposits.

Montage aims to publish an updated mineral resource estimate before the end of March for these deposits, as well as several satellite targets.

A $16-million drill programme is under way comprising 90 000 m of planned drilling at Koné and 9 000 m on the recently granted Wendé project, in Côte d’Ivoire.
The company will consolidate a project pipeline through the acquisition of African Gold where recent drill results confirmed the prospectivity of the Didievi project, which is also in Côte d’Ivoire.

The transaction is expected to close in April.

Key Contracts, Suppliers and Consultants
Lycopodium Minerals (engineering, procurement and construction management).

Contact Details for Project Information
Montage Gold, tel +1 416 963 5777.