Endeavour Mining Corp (TSE:EDV) (OTCQX:EDVMF) has increased its resource base at the Houndé mine in Burkina Faso by an additional 554,000 ounces, the company said Wednesday.
The added ounces, which fall under the higher-confidence measured and indicated category, bring Houndé’s total resource base to 4.5 million gold ounces.
The resource increase came from the highly prospective Kari area on the gold property and included extensions at the Kari West and Kari Centre deposits as well as maiden resources for the adjacent Kari Gap, Kari South and Kari Pump NE deposits. Nearly 2.5 million ounces, or 57% of Houndé’s total measured and indicated resource, were discovered at the Kari area over the last three years.
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“We are very excited to announce this resource update as it continues to demonstrate the Houndé mine’s potential,” Endeavour CEO Sebastien de Montessus said in a statement Wednesday. “Our ability in moving the Kari Area from discovery to production in under three years underscores the success of aggressive exploration strategy and the value of our strong and established government partnerships in West Africa.”
In 2019, the 1 million ounce indicated resource delineated at Kari Pump led to a reserve conversion of over 700,000 ounces, de Montessus told shareholders, adding that Endeavour plans to quickly complete the work to convert the additional 1.5 million ounces of indicated resources delineated for the other deposits.
“With 84% of the Kari Area resource grading above 2 grams per ton gold, we are confident we will achieve our goal of producing 250,000 ounces per year over a 10+ year mine life at Houndé by displacing lower grade material,” de Montessus said.
Endeavour plans to publish a maiden reserve at Kari West and an updated Houndé mine plan in 3Q 2020, followed by a maiden reserve for Kari Centre and Kari Gap the following quarter.
The miner is also planning an additional 20,000-metre drill program on the deposits that will continue into 2021.
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