In a recent report, Ghana is now Africa’s leading gold producer, overtaking South Africa.
The Bloomberg report suggests that Ghana is now the top producer of Gold in Africa due to the fact that the country has friendlier policies, lower-cost mines and new development projects.
The report further revealed that South Africa dropped because of its ever-dwindling gold production is due to high costs, regular strikes and geological challenges of tapping the world’s deepest mines.
Additionally, it was also stated in the report that South African industry stalwarts AngloGold Ashanti Ltd. and Gold Fields Ltd. are also shifting their focus to other countries, including Ghana, where deposits are cheaper and easier to mine.
And also, the largest remaining gold miner in South Africa, Sibanye Gold Ltd., is cutting thousands of jobs and diversifying into platinum-group metals as it struggles to contain costs.
Citing figures from the Ghana Chamber of Mines and the Minerals Council of South Africa, the report said Ghana produced 4.8 million ounces of gold in 2018 as opposed to South Africa’s 4.2 million ounces.
According to Ghana’s Chamber of Mines, gold output jumped to 12 per cent, with small producers accounting for the largest share of the total.
The report further noted that Ghana’s gold output will get a further boost when AngloGold Ashanti’s Obuasi operation, previously overrun by illegal miners, restarts later this year. Production from Obuasi is forecast at 350,000 to 450,000 ounces of gold annually during the first 10 years.
Source: ghgossip.com
