DRC's Kibali gold mine continues to shine

KINSHASA, DR Congo

The Barrick Gold has achieved its top-end production guidance for the year 2020 by producing 808,134 ounces of gold in Kibali Joint Venture in the DRC.

Barrick Gold Corporation is a mining company that produces gold and copper with 16 operating sites in 13 countries.

According to a press release issued by the world gold giant, the performance was driven by its underground operation which achieved record monthly and quarterly ore production in December 2020. 

Operated by Barrick Gold Corporation, Kibali gold mine is located in the northeast of the Democratic republic of Congo, approximately 220 kilometers east of the capital of the Haut Uele province, Isiro, 150 kilometers west of the Ugandan border town of Arua.

The mine is own by Kibali Goldmine SA which is a joint venture company effectively owned 45% by each of Barrick and AngloGold Ashanti and 10% by  Société Minière de Kilo Moto.

Kibali is a world leader in automated underground mining, through systems that allow multiple autonomous machines to operate on the same haulage and production levels, and provide real-time visibility of all operations as well as automated control of the ventilation fans. 

Kibali has, since commissioning, consistently lowered its carbon emissions through its three hydropower stations and the implementation of predictive maintenance monitoring at the plants.

At the same time, Kibali has retained its focus on exploration and resource conversion and looks set to once again replace the ounces depleted by mining, thus extending the life of the mine.  Its open-pit operation is set up for a solid year with development of the access to the Sessenge orebody completed ahead of plan. 

Effective Covid-19 prevention protocols also remain in place.  Having donated more than $2 million to the DRC government in the form of equipment to support the national campaign against the pandemic, Kibali is currently partnering with the National Laboratory Institution in training medical staff to diagnose the disease.

Barrick president and chief executive Mark Bristow said the pandemic response had once again demonstrated the company’s value as a partner to its host countries and communities.

“While protecting our people and our business from the impact of Covid-19, we have continued to invest in community improvement projects, skills development programs to deliver more Congolese managers and technicians, and the implementation of the second phase of the Watsa/Durba concrete road construction. 

Kibali’s policy of supporting and mentoring local contractors and suppliers has created a new economic frontier in the remote region. 

Last year the mine spent more than $200 million with local businesses on services such as civil construction, roadworks, plant maintenance, trucking and catering,” he said.

Over the past 10 years, Kibali has pumped $3.4 billion into the Congolese economy in the form of taxes, permits, infrastructure, salaries and payments to local suppliers.

Early this year, Barrick Gold announced preliminary full year and fourth quarter 2020 results which indicate that it has met its 2020 guidance targets.

Preliminary gold production for the full year of 4.8 million ounces is at the midpoint of the 4.6 to 5.0 million ounce guidance range, while preliminary copper production of 457 million pounds is also within the guidance range of 440 to 500 million pounds.