Yatela

Overview

The Yatela mine is situated some 25km north of Sadiola and approximately 50km south-southwest of Kayes in the west African country of Mali. Ore extraction is conducted from the Yatela main pit as well as the satellite pit at Alamoutala. The ore mined is treated at a heap-leach pad together with carbon loading. The carbon is then eluted and the gold smelted at nearby Sadiola.

Yatela is 80% owned by the Sadiola Exploration Company Limited, a joint venture in which AngloGold Ashanti and IAMGOLD each have an interest of 50%, giving AngloGold Ashanti an effective stake of 40% in Yatela. The government of Mali owns the remaining 20% stake in the mine.

Mine is expected to close at the end of 2013.

The Yatela mine is situated some 25 km north of Sadiola mine and approximately 50 km south-southwest of Kayes in Mali, West Africa.

Mali is a landlocked country in West Africa. The country was once part of three famed West African empires which controlled trans-Saharan trade in gold, salt, slaves, and other precious commodities.

Geology & Mineralization

Gold mineralization at Yatela is predominantly of a supergene nature and occurs mainly as very fine grained free gold in an iron-rich zone which has been interpreted as being formed by karstification of overlying dolomites along a mineralized sheared contact between the dolomites and a diorite intrusive.

On the Yatela property, the deposit is called the Yatela deposit (also called the Niamboulama sector) while the same deposit which extends south onto the Sadiola II concession is called the Kourketo West resource (also called the Kourketo West sector) or the Alamoutala deposit.

The deposit is open along strike and down dip. Gold mineralization occurs as free gold in an oxidized iron-rich regolith or hydrothermal breccia. Gold recoveries exceeding 96% have been achieved on the oxidized material. Drill holes indicate that there is potential for primary mineralization in both saprolitic and unweathered Birimian rock. Oxide ore is predominately free-digging.

Mining & Operation

Open pit mining is done through contract mining and is being carried out by African Mine Services.

In addition to mining of the Yatela main pit, from time to time a number of satellite pits have provided ore feed to the Yatela processing plant.

In 2011, the mine produced 2.8 million tonnes ore at an average grade of 1.0 g/t.

Mine life is estimated to the end of 2013.

Processing

The process plant consists of a standard heap leaching facility. It consists of a two stage crusher circuit feeding an agglomeration drum to produce a pelletized product. 

The discharge from the agglomeration drum is transported by an overland conveyor to the "grasshopper" conveyor and radial stackers which build each heap leach pad in up to three lifts. Cyanide solution is fed through drip irrigation piping on the pads. The pregnant solution is collected after it has percolated through the pad and is eventually pumped through carbon filled columns which strip out the gold. The gold loaded carbon is later treated at the Sadiola Gold Mine elution plant to produce gold doré bars.

In 2011, the mill produced 72,000 oz gold.

Environment & Community

The mine maintained its OHSAS 18001 certification in 2010. ISO 14001 recertification of Yatela was achieved following an audit.

Annual workshops comprising government, national and regional authorities, local communities, media, Non- Governmental Organisations (NGOs) and other associations have been held since 2003. These workshops provide a forum to communicate the activities planned by Sadiola and Yatela, while providing an opportunity for the relevant stakeholders to comment and make recommendations.

The Integrated Development Action Plan (IDAP) has been in place since 2004. Covering villages located around the Sadiola and Yatela mines, it focuses on agricultural capacity-building and micro-financing activities. The plan is managed by the communities themselves and includes a general assembly with representatives from each village. The IDAP has received funding from Sadiola and Yatela which enables it to function successfully and independently.

Community members from the villages surrounding Sadiola and Yatela have been trained in malaria mitigating techniques, which has aided a decline in the incidence of the illness since the implementation of the programme in 2005.

It is the responsibility of both Sadiola and Yatela to contribute to an HIV/AIDS programme. Initiatives focus specifically on awareness, testing and peer educators in the workplace. The company partnered with NGOs during the soccer World Cup 2010 to attract villagers to central locations to watch games and participate in voluntary testing. 

As at December 31, 2011, the recorded amount of estimated restoration and closure costs for the property was $36.0 million.