(Ecofin Agency) - South African mining company Gold Fields will spend $1.4 billion to extend the lifespan of its Damang gold mine in Ghana to 2024 from 2017, the firm announced while updating output for the third quarter.

The extension will help the company produce 1.5 million oz of gold for $950/oz. To this end, it plans to process 32 million tons of ore grading 1.65g/t Au.

It should be recalled since mining at the Damang project started in 1997, 4 million ounces of gold were produced, however due to the production which started slumping in 2013, the firm considered closing the mine.

Concerning its results of the previous quarter ended in September, 537,000 oz of gold was produced, thus 4% less compared to the previous year, during the same period. Despite the slight decrease, the miner maintained its forecasts for output for the year, knowingly 2.1-2.15 million ounces.

To boost its annual output in the coming years, the JSE-listed company, it should be highlighted, plans to make things easier by increasing its assets portfolio in West Africa. It eyes Anglogold Ashanti’s Induapriem mine in Ghana, as well as other gold projects in Burkina Faso, Mali and Senegal.

In Ghana, Gold Fields which is also listed on the New York stock market has among its other assets the Tarkwa and Damang projects.

Louis-Nino Kansoun