Perseus Extends Life of Yaouré GOLD MINE to 2035
NEWS RELEASE
18 SEPTEMBER 202 3
PERSEUS MINING LIMITED
ADDRESS: LEVEL 2, 437 ROBERTS ROAD, SUBIACO WA 6008
ABN: 27 106 808 986
PERSEUSMINING.COM
1
PERSEUS EXTENDS LIFE OF YAOURÉ GOLD MINE TO 2035
Perth, Western Australia/September 18, 2023/Perseus Mining Limited (ASX/TSX: PRU) is pleased to
announce an updated Life of Mine Plan (“LOMP”) for its Yaouré Gold Mine in Côte d’Ivoire, West Africa
(“Yaouré”).
HIGHLIGHTS
• Perseus has extended Yaouré’s operational life to 12+ years (to at least 2035), with potential for further
extension through additional discoveries adjacent to existing infrastructure and further resource
definition drilling of known deposits, including the Yaouré open pit and CMA underground (“CMA UG”)
structure.
• Yaouré’s updated LOMP incorporates for the first time an UG mining operation below the CMA Open
Pit, as well as the existing CMA Open Pit and an expanded Yaouré Open Pit.
• Yaouré Gold Mine Ore Reserves1,2 now total 37.2 million tonnes of ore grading 1.73 g/t gold, containing
2.07 million ounces of gold from open pits and underground.
• Updated Measured and Indicated Mineral Resources1 are estimated at 54.7 million tonnes grading 1.59
g/t gold, containing 2.80 million ounces of gold. Inferred Resources1 are estimated at 11.3 million
tonnes, grading 1.9 g/t gold, containing 0.70 million ounces of gold.
• CMA UG Ore Reserves are based on drilling to 185m below the base of the CMA open pit, with Inferred
Mineral Resources extending to 350m below the base of the pit and remaining open down plunge and
at depth.
• Key parameters arising from the revised LOMP for Yaouré Gold Mine are as follows:
Key Parameters Units
Annual Average
FY24 – FY29
Annual Average
FY30 – FY35
September 2023
LOMP 1,2
Total Ore + waste mined Mt 28.6 1.04 176.4
Strip ratio t:t 4.7 : 1 0.2 : 14 3.8 : 1
Ore processed Mt 3.5 3.4 41.9
Head grade g/t gold 2.0 1.1 1.58
Gold recovery rate % 91.6 89.8 90.8
Gold production Moz 0.210 0.110 1.93
Production costs US$/oz 949 1,002 969
Royalty 3 US$/oz 87 85 86
Sustaining capital US$/oz 68 47 61
Average All-in site costs US$/oz 1,104 1,134 1,116
CMA UG pre-production & ongoing mine development 5 US$M 98.8 5.3 104.1
CMA UG infrastructure US$M 27.6 - 27.6
CMA UG Development Capital US$M 126.34 5.3 131.7
Notes:
1. For detailed disclosures on updated Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves estimates refer to ASX Release “Perseus Mining Announces Open Pit and
Underground Ore Reserve Growth at Yaouré”, dated 23 August 2023. Mineral Resources are inclusive of Ore Reserves.
2. Assumes gold price of US$1,500 /oz for Reserve calculation in September 2023 LOMP.
3. Assumes a flat gold price of US$1,700 /oz for royalty calculation in September 2023 LOMP.
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4. CMA UG Mining in September 2023 LOMP ends in FY34 hence average is calculated over 5 years FY30 to FY34.
5. All CMA UG Mining costs are capitalised in accordance with IFRS up to declaration of Commercial Production in H2 FY27.
Perseus’s Managing Director and CEO Jeff Quartermaine said:
“Our increase to the life of Yaouré Gold Mine to 12+ years announced today ensures Yaouré will continue to be
an important part of Perseus’s geopolitically diverse asset portfolio for many years to come and will enable us
to continue delivering on our Corporate Mission of generating material benefits for all of our stakeholders,
including our host governments and communities.
When Perseus acquired Yaouré as a development project in 2016, the possibility of extending the life of the
mine through development of an underground operation was not part of the plan. However, our discovery,
and subsequent engineering and planning, that has led to today’s announcement , bears testament to
Perseus’s in-house ability to create significant value through organic growth.
An underground mine planned for Yaouré, will be Perseus’s first foray into underground mining, with all
previous operations having been open cut operations. While the underground mine represents a new style of
mining and a new challenge for us as a company, it is certainly not new to many of our technical team
members, who are very keen to demonstrate their skills in an underground mining setting.
With the prospect of further extending the mine life through further exploration success, we expect that the
Yaouré Mine will live up to its reputation as one of the leading mines in C ôte d’Ivoire, if not in all of West
Africa.”
OVERVIEW OF YAOURÉ
Yaouré is located in a rural area in central Côte d’Ivoire, West Africa, on the southern edge of Lake Kossou,
35 km north-west of the capital city of Yamoussoukro and 25 km east-north-east of the city of Bouaflé. The
Kossou hydroelectric power station is located 6 km east of the mine site, while the villages of Angovia and
Allahou-Bazi are adjacent to the mine site.
Perseus Mining poured first gold at the Yaouré Gold Mine in December 2020, becoming its third operation.
Perseus declared commercial production at Yaouré in March 2021. Since 2020, ore at Yaouré has primarily
been mined from the CMA open pit, with some contributions from minor satellite pits. CMA open pit stage
2 and stage 3 cutbacks are due to be completed during FY24 and FY25 financial years respectively, whereafter
mining will move on to satellite pits and the recently expanded Yaouré open pit.
Perseus recently completed a CMA UG feasibility study (see ASX release dated 23 August 2023), proving the
technical and economic viability of underground mining of the CMA orebody, down dip and down plunge of
the stage 3 CMA open pit. Underground mining of the CMA orebody is expected to begin in early FY26, once
all related approvals have been received.
Consistent with current operations at Yaouré, the LOMP calls for ore to be transported from various sources
to the existing Yaouré processing plant. Waste is taken to a primary, large waste dump located to the west
of the site, as well as to several supplementary waste dumping locations across the Yaouré lease. Tailings
from the process plant are stored in a single, HDPE lined, tailings storage facility located to the south of the
process plant.
Most of Yaouré’s workforce live in five local communities located near the mine site. An on-site camp
accommodates those who are not local residents. This camp will be substantially expanded (+75 senior and
+14 junior rooms) to accommodate an underground workforce concurrent with the open pit operations.
Infrastructure upgrades relating to underground mining, including establishment of underground offices and
workshops, additional local high voltage power reticulation and processing plant engineering upgrades have
been accounted for in the LOMP.
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Figure 1: Yaouré Gold Mine Layout
MINERAL RESOURCES AND ORE RESERVES SUMMARY
For further detail on Yaouré’s Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves, please refer to Perseus’s ASX release,
Perseus Mining Announces Open Pit and Underground Ore Reserve Growth at Yaouré, dated 23 August 2023.
Table 1 to Table 3 below summarise the currently estimated Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves for the
Yaouré Gold Mine.
Table 1: Yaouré Gold Mine Measured & Indicated Mineral Resources9,10,11
DEPOSIT DEPOSIT TYPE
MEASURED RESOURCES INDICATED RESOURCES MEASURED & INDICATED
RESOURCES
QUANTITY GRADE GOLD QUANTITY GRADE GOLD QUANTITY GRADE GOLD
Mt g/t gold ’000 oz Mt g/t gold ’000 oz Mt g/t gold ’000 oz
CMA1,3,4, 6 Open Pit - - - 16.7 1.32 710 16.7 1.32 710
Yaouré2,3,4, 6 Open Pit - - - 19.2 1.27 784 19.2 1.27 784
Satellite deposits5,6 Open Pit - - - 6.6 0.97 206 6.6 0.97 206
Sub Total - - - 42.6 1.24 1,700 42.6 1.24 1,700
CMA8 Underground - - - 7.3 4.17 976 7.3 4.17 976
Heap Leach3,7 Stockpile - - - 0.4 0.61 8 0.4 0.61 8
Stockpiles Stockpile 4.4 0.84 119 - - - 4.4 0.84 119
TOTAL 4.4 0.84 119 50.3 1.66 2,684 54.7 1.59 2,804
Table 2: Yaouré Gold Mine Inferred Mineral Resource9,10
DEPOSIT DEPOSIT TYPE
INFERRED RESOURCES
QUANTITY GRADE GOLD
Mt g/t gold ’000 oz
CMA 1,3,4, 6 Open Pit 2.6 0.7 58
Yaouré 2,3,4,6 Open Pit 3.0 1.3 124
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DEPOSIT DEPOSIT TYPE
INFERRED RESOURCES
QUANTITY GRADE GOLD
Mt g/t gold ’000 oz
Satellite deposits 5,6 Open Pit 1.3 0.8 34
CMA 8 Underground 4.4 3.4 485
TOTAL 11.3 1.9 701
Notes:
1. Based on June 2022 Mineral Resource estimate.
2. Based on June 2023 Mineral Resource estimate.
3. Depleted for previous mining and to 30 June 2023 mining surface.
4. 0.4 g/t gold cut-off applied to in situ open pit material.
5. Based on Angovia 2 April 2021, Govisou June 2022, and CMA SW August 2022 Mineral Resource models.
6. In situ open pit resources constrained to US$1,800/oz pit shells.
7. Heap leach resources are stated at 0 g/t gold cut-off; only heap leach components with average grade above 0.4 g/t included.
8. June 2023 Mineral Resource estimate, below Stage 3 pit and above 1.5 g/t block grade cut-off.
9. Mineral Resources current as of 30 June 2023.
10. Rounding of numbers to appropriate precision may result in summary inconsistencies.
11. Mineral Resources are reported inclusive of Ore Reserves.
Table 3: Yaouré Gold Mine Ore Reserves5,6
DEPOSIT DEPOSIT TYPE
PROVED PROBABLE PROVED + PROBABLE
QUANTITY GRADE GOLD QUANTITY GRADE GOLD QUANTITY GRADE GOLD
Mt g/t gold ’000 oz Mt g/t gold ’000 oz Mt g/t gold ’000 oz
CMA1,2 Open Pit - - - 11.9 1.81 692 11.9 1.81 692
Yaouré2,3 Open Pit - - - 11.8 1.49 565 11.8 1.49 565
Satellite deposits2,3 Open Pit - - - 4.1 1.03 137 4.1 1.03 137
Sub-Total - - - 27.8 1.56 1,394 27.8 1.56 1,394
CMA4 Underground - - - 4.9 3.51 559 4.9 3.51 559
Stockpiles Stockpile 4.4 0.84 119 - - - 4.4 0.84 119
TOTAL 4.4 0.84 119 32.8 1.85 1,953 37.2 1.73 2,072
Notes:
1. Based on depletion to 30 June 2023 mining surfaces.
2. Variable gold grade cut-offs for each material type, ranging from 0.35 g/t to 0.75 g/t.
3. Pit designs are based on US$1,300/oz gold price for satellites and US$1,500/oz for CMA and Yaouré open pit.
4. Based upon cut-off for development and stoping of 0.5 g/t and 2.5 g/t.
5. Inferred Mineral Resource is considered as waste for optimisation purposes.
6. Rounding of numbers to appropriate precision may have resulted in apparent inconsistencies.
LIFE OF MINE PLAN
Perseus’s updated LOMP for Yaouré is based upon detailed mining and processing schedules for the current
Yaouré Gold Mine, combined with feasibility-level studies of the CMA UG. The key parameters for the LOMP
are summarised in Table 4, along with a comparison against the last published Yaouré LOM P, released in
August 2021.
Open pit mining cost estimates in the updated LOMP are based on contracted prices provided by the Spanish
mining contractor, EPSA, which has been carrying out mining activities on site since mining operations started
in the September 2020 quarter. Where LOMP activities are within existing contracts, those rates have been
used, otherwise current rates have been extrapolated to accommodate new waste dump and open pit
material sources and destinations. EPSA currently perform the full mining, drilling and grade control service
required at Yaouré. Explosive costs are based on the contracted prices provided by a subsidiary of the EPC
Groupe, the existing explosives supplier at Yaouré.
Costs for CMA UG include contractor pricing estimates, capital costs generated by Perseus based upon
experience in West Africa, and supplier cost quotes to feasibility level. Where possible, known costs from the
Yaouré Gold Mine were included in the CMA UG study, including for local labour, site -based costs and
consumables common to the underground and the existing open pit operation (such as diesel).
Gold recovery rates and processing costs are based on actual costs incurred and gold recoveries achieved,
since processing of ore commenced in the December 2020 quarter, combined with forward projections
based on a comprehensive metallurgical test work program for the CMA UG and supplementary ore sources
which have not yet been processed. All processing assumptions are estimated to feasibility level. Processing
operating costs include costs associated with all consumables including maintenance, electricity, fuel, labour
and other processing overheads.
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General & Adminis tration (“G&A”) and other costs are based on actuals and budget projections. G&A
operating costs include all labour costs, Abidjan regional office costs, human resource, administration costs
as well as all costs associated with the management of the environment, occupational health and safety,
security, government and community relations, general administration including insurances and other
contracts.
Sustaining capital costs include stage d lifting of the TSF, closure costs, land and crop compensation ,
contractor demobilisation, and plant modifications. The total sum estimated for sustaining capital is US$117
million, which equates to US$61 per ounce, compared to US$36 per ounce in 2021. The major variances are
the increase in land compensation, waste dump construction and relocation of a tailings pipeline to make
way for expanding operations activities.
Development capital includes underground development up until Commercial Production rates of 50 ktpm
are achieved. The underground development and mobilisation accounts for US$112.4 million of the overall
LOMP development capital. Total development capital for the CMA UG is US$131.7 million.
Table 4: LOMP Key Parameters
Units August 2021
LOMP
September 2023
LOMP
Annual Average
FY24 – FY29
Annual Average
FY30 – FY35
Open Pit Mining
Total ore + waste mined Mt 158.81 170.01 28.1 1.74
Waste mined Mt 129.91 138.21 22.9 1.14
Ore mined Mt 28.91 31.81 5.2 0.64
Mined grade g/t gold 1.711 1.321 1.4 1.84
Strip ratio t:t 4.6 : 11 4.3 : 11 5.0 : 1 1.8 : 14
Underground Mining
Total ore + waste mined Mt - 6.4 0.86 0.75
Waste mined Mt - 1.4 0.36 0.15
Ore mined Mt - 4.9 0.46 0.65
Mined grade g/t gold - 3.51 3.46 3.55
Processing
Quantity ore processed Mt 28.9 41.9 3.5 3.4
Head grade processed g/t gold 1.71 1.58 2.0 1.1
Contained gold Kozs 1,583 2,123 229 123
Gold recovery rate % 90.4 90.8 91.6 89.8
Gold production Mozs 1.43 1.93 0.210 0.110
Operating Costs
Average open pit mining costs US$/t mined 2.832 3.932 3.76 10.14
Average CMA UG mining costs US$/t mined - 55.082 38.3 70.65
Average processing costs US$/t
processed 10.60 13.23 13.91 12.61
Average G&A costs US$/t
processed 6.01 7.05 7.41 6.73
Production costs US$/oz 649 969 949 1,002
Royalty3 US$/oz 60 86 87 85
Sustaining capital US$/oz 36 61 68 47
All-in site costs US$/oz 745 1,116 1,104 1,134
CMA UG pre-production & ongoing
mine development7 US$M - 104.1 98.8 5.3
CMA UG infrastructure US$M - 27.6 27.6 0
UG Development Capital US$M - 131.7 126.4 5.3
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Notes:
1. Includes all ore and waste mined ex-pit plus ore drawn from stockpiles and Heap Leach pads.
2. Excludes pre-strip, pre-Commercial Production UG mining and capital development costs which have been capitalised.
3. Assumed gold price of US$1,500/oz for the LOMP (2021), and US$1,700/oz for the LOMP (2023)
4. Open Pit Mining scheduled to end in FY30 hence average reflects 1 year of Open Pit Mining operations in FY30.
5. CMA UG Mining in the LOMP (2023) ends FY34 hence the average is calculated over 5 years FY30 to FY34
6. UG Development is scheduled to commence FY26 hence average is calculated over 4 years FY26 to FY29
7. All CMA UG Mining costs are capitalised in accordance with IFRS up to declaration of Commercial Production in H2 FY27
Figure 2: CMA Underground Mining Schedule
MINING AND PROCESSING SCHEDULES
The life of the Yaouré Gold Mine has changed from planned cessation of processing in FY29 to an updated
LOMP extending to the end of FY35. An average of more than 200 koz per annum is forecast to be produced
over the first seven years of the LOMP until FY30.
LOMP strategy is aimed at maximising the NPV of Yaouré by optimising the mining sequence, including with
respect to grade, cost, recovery and throughput. The mill feed profile has been scheduled accordingly, and
annual processing throughput from 3.1 Mtpa to 3.8 Mtpa are forecast, with lower throughput coinciding
with smaller grind size for the CMA UG, and increased hardness of the Yaouré open pit ore. The result of this
optimisation strategy delivers solid cash flows with consistent gold production and low risk profile
throughout the forecast mine life.
The Life of Mine schedule for Yaouré is based on Ore Reserve shown in Table 3, with the inclusion of some
additional marginal mineralised material stockpiled over the course of the mine life. Ore Reserves are
estimated at a gold price of US$1,500 per ounce, while the LOMP revenue is evaluated at a gold price of
US$1,700 per ounce. Perseus LOMP are based upon Ore Reserves and therefore do not include Inferred
Mineral Resources within the processing feed.
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The mining production profile for Yaouré is shown in Figure 3 below. Of note in the production profile is a
production dip in FY27 , which Perseus believes can be filled with additional drilling and technical work.
Optimisation of the LOMP is underway, supported by additional studies and test work which is expected to
substantially improve forecast production in year 4 of the plan.
Figure 3: Yaouré Gold Mine Annual Gold Production and AISC
Yaouré LOMP ore and waste will be mined from 5 sources, including the CMA pit, Yaouré pit, CMA UG,
satellite pits and stockpiles (see Figure 4 and Figure 5 below). LOMP open pit mining ceases in FY30, and
underground mining is planned to be completed in FY34. Processing continues until the end of FY35.
Resource definition drilling is underway to increase Mineral Resources and convert Ore Reserves at the CMA
UG and Yaouré open pit during FY24, which are expected to further extend the LOMP.
Figure 4: Yaouré Gold Mine – LOM additional ounce production contribution by ore source relative to August 2021 LOMP.
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Perseus expects to produce over 1 Moz of gold from Yaouré over the next 5 years. The overall LOMP includes
processing of 41.9 Mt of ore, at an average grade of 1.58 g/t, and average metallurgical recovery of 90.8%.
Gold production is expected to be 1,929 koz of gold at an AISC of US$1,116 per ounce.
Figure 5: Yaouré Gold Mine – Annual tonnes by source and grade to mill
This announcement was authorised for release by Jeff Quartermaine, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer