Gold major AngloGold Ashanti said last week it did not have a firm timeframe for its exit from South Africa, but that the move would be “sooner rather than later”.

In May, the miner announced the start of a process to divest from its remaining assets in South Africa, which include the Mponeng underground mine and a surface rock dump processing business and its mine waste treatment operation, Mine Waste Solutions.

AngloGold Ashanti VP for corporate affairs, community and human resources Andrea Maxey told delegates at Diggers & Dealers that the Mponeng operation would require “significant” investment to extend the mine life beyond the current eight years.

“Relative to the other higher-return assets in our portfolio, and given the limited capital, we have come to the conclusion that we are unlikely to be in a position to fund a mine life extension at Mponeng,” Maxey said.

Speaking on the sidelines of the conference, AngloGold Ashanti senior VP Mike Erickson said that the investment required at Mponeng would likely run into “hundreds of millions” of dollars.

However, he noted that it was not only the capital spend required at Mponeng that would be the deciding factor for AngloGold Ashanti’s departure from South Africa but also operational safety.

“I think we consider the political climate, the Reserve Bank . . . all sorts of aspects come into play in the decision,” Erickson said.

Maxey noted that the company would maintain an office in South Africa, which would act as a central office for its remaining assets in Africa, including the Obuasi project, in Ghana.

Acquired in 2004 in its merger with Ashanti Goldfields, the Obuasi project was placed on care and maintenance in 2013, following a fall in the gold price.

The miner last year announced that it would invest $495-million to $545-million to restart the operation and produce 350 000 oz/y to 400 000 oz/y over a 21-year mine life.

The capital spend would be spread over six years, with Maxey noting that about $500-million would be spent in the first two-and-a-half years.

Obuasi is on track to produce its first gold by the end of this year.