JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – ASX-listed junior Gryphon Minerals has become the first Australian company to be granted a mining permit in Burkina Faso, Mines and Energy Minister Lamoussa Salif Kabore announced on Monday.
The mining licence completes the regulatory approvals needed for Gryphon to start the development phase of its 3.6-million-ounce Banfora gold project, in the Leraba province, paving the way for the junior to transition from a gold explorer to a producer.
“Being permitted to develop and operate the Banfora gold project is a significant achievement and milestone for Gryphon. It confirms the Burkina Faso government is committed and supportive of the development of a two-million-ton-a-year heap-leach plant at Banfora,” commented MD Stephen Parsons.
The permit encompasses all four main deposits making up the Banfora gold project – Nogbele, Fourkoura, Samavogo and Stinge – and is valid for heap leach processing.
The licence is valid for an initial 20-year period and can be extended under the Mining Code for successive terms of five years each.