Vancouver — Goldbelt Resources (GLD-V, GLDRF-O) has entered an agreement to acquire all the exploration assets of Barrick Gold (ABX-T, ABX-N) in the West African countries of Burkina Faso, Mali and Guinea.
Neither terms of the deal nor specific project descriptions were included in Goldbelt’s announcement, but the acquisitions are expected to complement the company’s current tenement-holdings of 4,441 sq. km in Burkina Faso.
The junior’s Belahouro tenement, located 220 km north of the capital Ouagadougou and about 45 km south of the Malian border, is the most advanced of its licence areas. It contains 10 projects, five of which have established gold resources.
A recent prefeasibility study put proven and probable reserves at Goldbelt’s Inata project at 9.2 million tonnes grading 2.15 grams gold per tonne for about 635,000 contained ounces. Open-pit operations are modelled to produce 107,000 oz. annually over the first five years of operation in the projected 6.1-year mine life. Cash operating costs are expected to come in at US$290 per oz.
Following the news, Goldbelt shares closed up 12 at $1.20 apiece on modest volume. The company posts a $77-million market capitalization based on its 63.8 million shares outstanding; the stock has traded in a 52-week range of 85-$1.55.
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