On August 1st, Zijin Mining issued a statement, announcing that the Ghanaian parliament had reviewed and ratified that the Akim Gold Mine would be granted mining leases in the eastern and western areas by the Ghana Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources in September 2024. The validity periods of these leases are until January 18, 2037 and January 18, 2030 respectively. All the resources, reserves and production facilities of the Akim Gold Mine are within the scope of the eastern mining lease. On October 9th last year, the company announced that it would invest 1 billion US dollars to acquire 100% of the rights and interests of the Akyem project in Ghana held by Newmont. On April 16th this year, the transaction was completed.
According to the agreement, the 10 billion US dollars will be paid in two installments. 9 billion US dollars will be paid upon the completion of the transaction, and the remaining 100 million US dollars will be paid after the eastern mining lease is approved by the Ghanaian parliament. After adjusting for cash, operating funds, etc., the actual payment for the first installment was 8.88 billion US dollars. On July 31, the company paid the remaining 100 million US dollars to Newmont.
The Akim Gold Mine is one of the largest gold mines in Ghana. The project has favorable geological conditions for mineralization and great potential for exploration and reserve expansion. According to the previous owner's previous exploration, the project's remaining gold resources (excluding reserves) are 54.4 tons, with an average grade of 3.36 grams per ton; reserves are approximately 34.6 tons, with an average grade of 1.35 grams per ton; and about 83 tons of gold are classified as underground mining resource reserves. Against the backdrop of a significant increase in gold prices, the company is further enhancing the project's available resource reserves, service life and output through measures such as deepening resource exploration, re-evaluating economic and technical aspects, and technological upgrades. This project employs the conventional carbon leaching process, with the plant design handling capacity of 85 million tons per year. The gold output from 2021 to 2024 is expected to be 11.9 tons, 13.1 tons, 9.2 tons and 6.4 tons respectively. Since the completion of the transaction, the project has been operating smoothly, and all production and operation indicators have met expectations. In the year of the acquisition, the project can contribute output and profits to the company. Currently, efforts are being made to improve mining efficiency and supply of high-grade ore, accelerate production release, and strive for higher benefits.
