Canadian miner B2Gold Namibia will scale down employment by approximately 400 jobs at its Otjikoto Gold Mine by the end of 2025 due to a transition from open pit to underground mining.
It will, however, continue to look for new projects in the country and has set its sights on the nearby Antelope deposit.
Located a mere four kilometres southwest of B2Gold’s existing Otjikoto open pit, the Antelope deposit is believed to hold the potential to become a small-scale, low-cost, underground gold mine.
During a one-on-one interview with Inside Business, B2Gold Namibia’s country manager John Roos said the Antelope deposit could supplement Otjikoto’s low-grade stockpile production from 2028 to 2032 and result in a meaningful production profile for Otjikoto into the next decade.
“The decision to restructure and reduce the workforce was not driven by profitability and gold production but rather by the natural progression of the Otjikoto Mine’s lifecycle and operational requirements. With the open-pit operation nearing completion toward the end of 2025, the mine is transitioning to underground mining, which requires a smaller and more specialised team.
“The employees involved in open pit mining cannot be integrated into the underground operations, as this entails a different skill set and a different type of mining,” he stated.
He said the scaling down means not all affected employees can be provided with alternative placements and are, therefore, retrenched.
Roos pointed out that approximately 75% of personnel retrenched to date have been through a voluntary retrenchment process, which forms part of the retrenchment policy compiled with the Mine Workers Union of Namibia (MUN) and subsequently signed in December 2023.
“It was essential for the company to acknowledge and recognise the emotional impact the retrenchments would have on all employees – those leaving and those remaining behind. As a responsible employer, the company provided employees with sufficient time to plan (mentally and financially), alleviate immediate concerns, mitigate associated safety risks and maintain a positive overall staff morale for the remaining workforce.
“Recognising the strain this transition would place on employees, a strategic decision to expand the wellness department was made. One of the key support mechanisms would be the focus on the well-being of the employees,” he added.
Antelope potential
Meanwhile, B2Gold Namibia continues to invest significantly in exploration around the existing operations at Otjikoto.
Thus far, US$7 million has been earmarked for exploration around the Antelope deposit.
A further US$10 million has been allocated to early works on the Antelope project.
Roos said, in February this year, B2Gold Namibia announced positive Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) results for the Antelope deposit.
Based on these results, B2Gold believes the Antelope deposit can result in a meaningful production profile for Otjikoto into the next decade.
“The PEA for Antelope indicates an initial mine life of five years and total production of 327 000 ounces averaging approximately 65 000 ounces per year over the life of mine.
In combination with the processing of existing low-grade stockpiles, production from Antelope has the potential to increase Otjikoto Mine production to approximately 110 000 ounces per year from 2029 through 2032,” he added.
So far, B2Gold Namibia’s approved budget is to de-risk the Antelope deposit development schedule by advancing early work planning, project permits and long lead orders.
Technical work, including geotechnical, hydrogeological and metallurgical testing, is anticipated to be completed over the next several months.
Roos noted: “Cost and schedule assumptions will continue to be refined by working with suppliers and contractors, including running a competitive bid process for the development phase of the Antelope deposit.
A development decision is expected in the third quarter of 2025”.
B2Gold Namibia has stated that the Inferred Mineral Resource estimate for the Antelope deposit that formed the basis for the PEA included 1.75 million tonnes for a total of 390 000 ounces of gold, the majority of which is hosted in the Springbok Zone.
He said, given current gold prices, the processing of low-grade stockpiles is economically viable.
He noted that the Otjikoto Mine’s gold production per annum will decrease dramatically from the current 150 000-200 000 ounces range to around 40 000 ounces per annum should the mine only process low-grade stockpiles.
“The integration of the Antelope zone with this low-grade stockpile processing, however, changes the picture completely. It increases gold production to approximately 110 000 ounces per year for 2029 through 2032,” Roos stated.
-ebrandt@nepc.com.na