Randgold: Kibali gears up for earlier construction start

Monday, 26 July 2010 10:17

Construction on the Kibali project, potentially one of the world’s largest gold mines, is being targeted to start in mid 2011, six months earlier than originally anticipated, project manager Randgold Resources announced recently.

Mark Bristow, chairman of Kibali and chief executive of Randgold Resources, said the earlier start-up target date was attributable to the encouraging progress that had been made on the pre-development programmes as well as the active cooperation of the local community and the government of the Democratic Republic of Congo, which holds a 10% stake in the project through the parastatal OKIMO. Randgold Resources (LSE:RRS) (NASDAQ:GOLD) and AngloGold Ashanti (JSE:ANG) (NYSE:AU) (ASX:AGG) (LSE:AGD) (GhSE:AGA/AAD) each have a 45% interest.

International-standard baseline studies on the project’s environmental and social impact are well advanced, as is the public participation process, and a resettlement programme is in the final stages of planning. The new 178 kilometre road to neighbouring Uganda, which is central to the project’s logistics, is now at a stage which allows normal non-four wheel drive vehicular access and it is planned to continue upgrading it in phases. In addition, the road between the Ugandan and DRC border posts has been upgraded. The project partners are also making progress with the development of a power supply strategy designed to supply the mine with affordable and adequate power.

In the meantime, the update of the feasibility study has been advanced significantly, with the sizing of the plant, the mining plans and the optimisation between the underground and open pit operations on track for completion by year-end. Bristow said the aim was to ensure that the mine would match the world-class nature of the deposit and maximise the production rate in relation to the potential size of the reserves and resources. The total probable mineral reserves currently stand at 9.2 million ounces of gold, with the indicated mineral resource at 13.9 million ounces and inferred mineral resources at 5.8 million ounces.

“With all our basic homework done and the critical pre-development deliverables taking shape, we have now turned our attention to looking at ways to bring the construction schedule forward. Among other things, this means that we can accelerate the involvement of the local community in the development of the project, in line with our partnership philosophy,” Bristow said.

As a first step in this regard, Kibali is creating new employment opportunities through the establishment of community-based businesses that will supply construction materials to the project. One of these is a brickmaking facility which will be producing 16 000 bricks per day by September, while others will provide gravel and sand.

“Kibali is not only a mining development; it is also a major infrastructural project which will have a positive impact on the whole of the north-eastern DRC. The new road link with Uganda, for example, has already slashed living costs in the Kibali region by substantially reducing the cost of transporting food and other essentials there,” Bristow said. He was speaking at an open day for media at the Kibali project site. The event was also attended by the Minister of Portfolio, Her Excellency Madame Jeanine Mabunda, senior government officials and executives from Randgold Resources, AngloGold Ashanti and Okimo.

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