(Ecofin Agency) - Canadian Teranga Gold has invested about $430 million to acquire 90% in the Senegalese project gold Massawa. Teranga is already active in the country on the Sabodala project.

The agreement was concluded with mining giant Barrick and its joint venture partner, the Senegalese transatlantic transport company West Africa (CSTTAO). Teranga will first invest $380 million, including $300 million in cash and 80 million in shares. The transaction also includes a contingent payment of up to $50 million based on the average gold price over the three years following its closing.

For Richard Young, Teranga's CEO, the acquisition of Massawa is “transformational” for the company. It will create opportunities for synergies with the company's Sabodala mine in the country.

“We anticipate that production from the Sabodala-Massawa Complex, together with our Wahgnion gold mine, in Burkina Faso, will increase Teranga’s targeted consolidated annual gold production and reposition Teranga as the next multi-asset, low-cost, mid-tier gold producer in West Africa, one of the world’s premier gold mining regions,” he said.   

Louis-Nino Kansoun