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Mali

Morila Mine

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Overview

Mine TypeOpen Pit
StatusActive
Commodities
  • Gold
Mining Method
  • Truck & Shovel / Loader
Production Start... Lock
Mine Life... Lock
SnapshotThe Morila Gold Mine is one the world’s great open pit gold mines.

Between September 2022 and November 2022, Firefinch Limited undertook process to raise further Capital to support its 80% owned Malian subsidiary, Société des Mines de Morila SA (Morila SA).

The recapitalisation was necessary to enable Morila SA to continue to operate. On 3 November 2022, the Company announced recapitalisation efforts would not proceed and that Firefinch Ltd would no longer provide funding to Morila SA.

As a direct result of the withdrawal of funding support, Firefinch Limited lost the ability to instruct the General Manager of Morila SA under Malian Law.

A formal sale process was announced to the market on 14 December 2022 and remains in process.

Owners

SourceSource
CompanyInterestOwnership
Government of Mali 20 % Indirect
Firefinch Ltd. 80 % Indirect
Societe des Mines de Morila SA. (operator) 100 % Direct
The Firefinch purchased its interest in the Morila Gold Mine in November 2020 from Barrick Gold Corporation (Barrick) and AngloGold Ashanti (AngloGold), who each held an effective 40% interest in Morila with the State of Mali owning the remaining 20%.

As announced on 2 June 2023 , non-binding indicative term sheets were executed with a number of a suitable parties for the purchase of the Company’s interests in Societe des Mines de Morila SA. These non-binding term sheets form the basis for negotiation of a definitive sale and purchase agreement in relation to 100% of Firefinch’s shares in Morila Limited (which in turn holds 80% of Morila SA).

Firefinch has selected a substantive West African mining contractor (“Proposed Purchaser”) as the preferred bidder out of the parties that executed non-binding indicative term sheets to acquire the Company’s interest in Morila SA.

Contractors

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Deposit type

  • Metamorphic
  • Vein / narrow vein
  • Orogenic

Summary:

The Morila permit is situated in the northern portion of the West African craton between the NNE trending Birimian volcano-sedimentary belts of Kalana-Yanfolila and Syama. The region is underlain predominantly by Lower Proterozoic meta-volcanic and metasedimentary sequences (Birimian) and large areas of granitoids. The whole package of rocks has been deformed by the Eburnean Orogeny. The permit area locates along a contact between Birimian metasediments and the Eburnean granitoids.

The Morila orebody is developed within upper greenschist to amphibolite facies of pelitic and psammitic rocks. Their mineralogy is dominated by biotite (30%), plagioclase (30%) and quartz (30%).

The package has been intruded to the southwest by a tonalite body similar in composition to the Morila sediments. The sediments have been locally metasomatised by the tonalite to produce a feldspar porphyroblastic texture.

Arsenopyrite is generally associated with mineralisation and is by far the most dominant sulphide (80%) followed by lesser amounts of pyrrhotite (15%) and pyrite (5%) The pyrrhotite is ubiquitous throughout the metasediments and occurs as irregular grains which often contain inclusions of chalcopyrite. It is not uncommon for visible gold to be present.

Gold mineralisation is predominantly associated with coarse arsenopyrite, occurring as individual grains on arsenopyrite grain boundaries or as intergrowths or as free gold in a silicate mineral matrix in the proximity of arsenopyrite grains. A small percentage of the gold occurs as inclusions within the sulphides and occasionally the gold is locked within silicate minerals (<5%).

Mineralisation is hosted in a sequence of relatively flat lying stacked veins located 70 - 130m below surface. Mineralisation does steepen due to shearing and faulting in certain places.

Various theories have been derived for the genesis of mineralisation at Morila and several internal and academic studies have been completed and published. Most agree that the key factors influencing the location of mineralisation are competency contrasts in the host sediments (fine grained vs coarse grained), fluid and heat from proximal granitoids, and proximity to regional structures.

The N’Tiola, Viper and Koting deposits are shear vein hosted orogenic style gold deposits. This style of mineralisation typically forms as veins or disseminations in altered host rock. Deposits of this type often form in proximity to linear geological structures.

Surficial geology within the project area typically consists of indurated gravels forming plateau, and broad depositional plains consisting of colluvium and alluvial to approximately 5m vertical depth. Lateritic weathering is common within the project area. The depth to fresh rock is typically 35m vertical.

Reserves

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Mining Methods

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Comminution

Crushers and Mills

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Processing

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Production

On and from 3 November 2022, Firefinch has not had active operational engagement over the Morila Gold Mine and has not been kept apprised of current operational matters since that date. As a result of this FFX has ceased to receive reliable information regarding production and operations at the Morila Gold Mine and therefore FFX is reporting production figures only up until 2 November 2022.

2022 Gold production is given for the period 1 January 2022 to 2 November 2022.
CommodityUnits202220212018201720162015
Gold oz  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe74,53070,01954,022122,374
All production numbers are expressed as metal in doré.

Operational metrics

Metrics20212018201720162015
Annual processing capacity  ....  Subscribe5.5 Mt4.3 Mt4.3 Mt3.7 Mt
Ore tonnes mined  ....  Subscribe1,124 kt502 kt939 kt
Tonnes processed  ....  Subscribe4,880 kt5,453 kt3,774 kt3,063 kt
Total tonnes mined  ....  Subscribe5,824 kt2,291 kt3,425 kt

Production Costs

CommodityUnits202120182017
Cash costs Gold USD 911 / oz  
Total cash costs (sold) Gold USD 1,082 / oz   988 / oz  
All-in sustaining costs (AISC) Gold USD  ....  Subscribe

Financials

Units2021202020182017
Capital expenditures M USD 2.9   1.9  
Revenue M  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe 96  USD 86.1  USD
Operating Income M -7.6  USD 3.4  USD
Pre-tax Income M  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe -0.2  USD
After-tax Income M  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe -0.2  USD

Heavy Mobile Equipment

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Personnel

Mine Management

Job TitleNameEmailProfileRef. Date
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Sep 27, 2023
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Sep 27, 2023
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required ........... Subscription required Subscription required Sep 27, 2023
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Sep 27, 2023
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Sep 27, 2023
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Sep 27, 2023
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Sep 27, 2023

EmployeesContractorsTotal WorkforceYear
...... Subscription required ...... Subscription required ...... Subscription required 2018
...... Subscription required ...... Subscription required ...... Subscription required 2017
...... Subscription required ...... Subscription required ...... Subscription required 2016
...... Subscription required ...... Subscription required ...... Subscription required 2015
...... Subscription required ...... Subscription required ...... Subscription required 2014

Aerial view:

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