Orezone Gold (TSX:ORE) has outlined a 14-year plan targeting production of 1.63 million ounces (Moz) of gold at its Casa Berardi gold mine in Québec, Canada.
The life-of-mine (LOM) plan estimates average annual production of 116,000 ounces from 2027–2040 at an all-in sustaining cost (AISC) of US$1,877 ($2,632) per ounce.
Production is forecast to average 132,000 ounces annually from 2030–2038 at an AISC of US$1,776 per ounce as underground development, equipment investment, and open pit waste stripping support higher mining rates.
The plan assigns Casa Berardi an after-tax net present value (NPV) of US$1.05 billion at a 5% discount rate and base-case consensus gold prices. At a spot price of US$4,350 per ounce, the estimated NPV rises to US$1.43 billion.
The valuation incorporates a gold stream held by Franco-Nevada (TSX:FNV), covering fixed deliveries of 6,500 ounces annually from 2027–2030 and 5% of production thereafter. Orezone receives 20% of the spot price for each ounce delivered under the stream.
The LOM plan includes inferred mineral resources and is therefore classified as a preliminary economic assessment. No mineral reserves are defined for Casa Berardi, and there is no certainty the plan will be realised.
President and CEO Patrick Downey says the plan reinforces the rationale behind Orezone’s acquisition of the mine earlier this year.
“The result of the life-of-mine plan clearly underscores the opportunity and value proposition identified by Orezone in acquiring the Casa Berardi mine,” Downey says.
“Its transformational acquisition positions the company as an established multi-asset producer, with a significant and fully funded growth profile.”
Rebuilding underground production
Underground operations will focus on the active Casa Berardi West mine from 2027–2038, while production at the past-producing East mine is scheduled to restart in 2029. Orezone says it has mobilised a contractor to increase lateral development and is progressively adding underground equipment through 2029.
Casa Berardi resumed operations in July following a four-day wildfire-related shutdown, with the company maintaining its 2026 production guidance.
Open pit production will move across four pits. Mining at the current F160 phase is scheduled to finish at the end of 2026 before shifting to F134 for 2027, with production from an expanded F160 pit expected to resume in late 2028.
Ore will be processed at the Casa Berardi mill, which has a nameplate capacity of 3,730 tonnes per day. Orezone says average throughput has reached about 4,025 tonnes per day since the acquisition, exceeding the 3,835-tonne-per-day rate assumed in the plan.
The company says it is increasing exploration to 100,000m of drilling annually, targeting extensions to existing underground zones, higher-grade mineralisation, and new discoveries. Orezone will file the supporting National Instrument 43-101 technical report within 45 days.
Orezone Gold is a Canadian gold producer operating the Casa Berardi mine in Québec, and the Bomboré mine in Burkina Faso, West Africa. Casa Berardi has produced more than 3.2Moz of gold, while Orezone brought Bomboré into production in late 2022.
Write to France Pinzon at Mining.com.au
Main image: Orezone Gold
