(Kitco News) - The Séguéla mine in Côte d’Ivoire and the recently acquired Diamba Sud gold project in Senegal are “the two high-value opportunities,” says Jorge Ganoza, president & CEO of Fortuna Silver Mines (TSX:FVI).
In February Ganoza spoke to Kitco Mining at the 33rd BMO Global Metals, Mining & Critical Minerals Conference in Hollywood, Florida.
The Canadian-listed precious metals company has mines in Côte d’Ivoire, Burkina Faso, Mexico, Argentina and Peru. In 2021 Fortuna expanded from Latin America into West Africa. Production is split about 50-50 between the two regions, but Ganoza said the growth is in West Africa. 2024 guidance is nearly 500,000 gold-equivalent ounces.
Asked why Séguéla is the current flagship, Ganoza replied “meaningful production, low-cost, long life of reserves, and tremendous exploration upside.” He said the mine bettered second-half guidance and analyst expectations, delivering 78,000 ounces of gold.
Fortuna has faced labour unrest at its San Jose silver-gold mine in Mexico, and defended itself in court against the Mexican government over environmental authorizations. After this interview, Fortuna announced it would shut down San Jose six months earlier than expected due to rising costs and depleted reserves; it also booked a $90.6 million charge related to the anticipated closure.
Notwithstanding jurisdictional risks, Ganoza said, “what we have in Fortuna is a team of business executives — mining professionals that have built their careers in these regions, so we're comfortable playing in that field.”
At Diamba Sud in Senegal, Fortuna is budgeting $11 million for a 45,000-metre drill program in 2024. The aim is to push the historical resource past a million ounces, and to deliver a preliminary economic assessment (PEA) by the end of the year.
Ganoza noted that many miners have seen costs go up, but it is not just due to scarce equipment with higher price tags. Qualified people are hard to come by.
"This industry has a lot of bottlenecks, and talent is certainly one of them," said Ganoza. "We are all under pressure. That's why we see blowouts on capital projects. The shortages are not just on equipment and tires. When the expansion comes, it is the talent."
Coverage of the BMO Global Metals, Mining & Critical Minerals Conference sponsored by First Majestic Silver (NYSE:AG).
Subscribe to Kitco Mining Interviews podcast on YouTube Music.
Listen to this podcast on Buzzsprout Amazon Music Spotify |