Fortuna Mining exits Burkina Faso for $130M

Fortuna Mining (NYSE: FSM, TSX: FVI) announced on Friday it has agreed to sell its Burkina Faso operations to Soleil Resources International (SRI), a private local company, for $130 million cash.The sale, says Fortuna CEO Jorge Ganoza, represents “a prudent exit that optimizes value” given the increasingly challenging business climate in Burkina Faso, and that the Yaramoko mine — the company’s main asset in the country — has approximately one year remaining on its reserves.Fortuna estimates the transaction would allow the company to offload about $20 million in future liabilities and provide additional funds for its other mine operations.The Vancouver-based precious metals miner currently has operations in three other countries: Argentina, Côte d’Ivoire and Peru. Its biggest by annual gold production is the Séguéla mine in Côte d’Ivoire, which came online two years ago, followed by Yaramoko. Earlier this year, the company sold its non-core San Jose mine in Mexico for $6 million, also to a private local company.For the Burkina Faso assets, Fortuna will receive a much larger payout, including US$70 million upon closing the deal with SRI, plus a further $57.5 million in cash dividends. The company also has the right to receive up to approximately $53 million of value-added tax receivables upon the completion of certain conditions.“We believe that Soleil, as a private local company, is well positioned to continue operations at the Yaramoko mine to the benefit of employees and local stakeholders,” Ganoza stated in a news release. SR currently operates three mines, holds exploration permits and owns a drilling company, all in Burkina Faso.Fortuna is coming off a record year of gold-equivalent production in 2024 with about 370,000 oz. of gold and 3.72 million oz. of silver, but is expecting a 7%-17% decline this year after selling the San Jose mine in January.Fortuna Mining’s shares surged to a 52-week high of C$9.18 on Friday, before retreating to around C$9.00 apiece. The company’s market capitalization is approximately C$2.75 billion.Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Mining.com Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Mining.com