On 8 February 2018 Avocet Mining plc sold its subsidiaries in Burkina Faso, including the Inata gold mine to the Balaji Group.
Balaji Group of Companies owns 90% of Société des Mines de Bélahouro SA (‘SMB’), owner of the Inata mine, the remaining 10% is owned by the Burkinabe Government.
On 9 February 2023, the transitional government took the decision to withdraw the industrial exploitation permit for the Inata gold mine of the Belahourou Mining Company (SMB) SA.
On April 25, 2023, the Burkinabe state sold its gold mine Inata to Afro Turk Inata SA.
Since the sale of the asset, Afro Turk Inata SA has not paid the amounts owed to the Burkinabe state. This indicates a failure by Afro Turk Inata SA to fulfill its obligations arising from Article 3 of the transfer agreement. As a result, on March 20, 2024, the Council has decided to revoke the industrial operating permit for the Inata mine from Afro Turk Inata SA. and to hand it over to new investors.