Each one in plain English, with the numbers worked through for a shareholder.
30 Jan 2025debt financing● NeutralMajor
Raised US$460 million of 2.75% convertible senior unsecured notes due February 2030, having launched at US$350 million on 22 January, upsized to US$400 million at pricing and taken the full US$60 million over-allotment at closing on 28 January. The conversion price is about US$3.17 a share, or 315.2088 shares per US$1,000.
Filed the Fekola Complex technical report as at December 2023, consolidating the mine, Cardinal, Anaconda and Dandoko: probable reserves of 61.8 million tonnes at 1.70 g/t for 3.39 million ounces and indicated resources of 155.4 million tonnes at 1.28 g/t for 6.39 million ounces, on a 100% basis. B2Gold holds 80% of the Fekola pit and 90% of Anaconda and Dandoko, with Mali entitled under its 2023 mining code to acquire up to a further 20% plus 5% in the latter two.
More Fekola Complex drilling, including 14.60m at 9.48 g/t in hole BND_119, some of the highest-grade sulphide yet at Anaconda, published alongside consecutive monthly production records at Fekola in October and November and a reaffirmed 2022 guidance of 990,000-1,050,000 ounces including 40,000-50,000 attributable from Calibre.
Closed the Oklo acquisition, issuing 10.74 million shares and paying about A$27.4 million cash, and folding the Dandoko project into the Fekola Complex. Oklo had reported a March 2021 measured and indicated resource at Dandoko of 8.70 million tonnes at 1.88 g/t for 528,000 ounces. B2Gold's 2022 Mali drilling programme was about 161,000 metres for US$35 million.
Drilling confirmed the Mamba Main sulphide shoot at Anaconda over more than 700 metres down plunge, with 28.70m at 5.89 g/t in hole BND_108, and returned first results from the Cobra zone 2km east including 13.80m at 6.75 g/t. B2Gold now describes Fekola, Cardinal, Anaconda, Bakolobi and Dandoko together as the Fekola Complex.
Agreed to acquire Oklo Resources for 0.0206 B2Gold shares plus A$0.0525 cash per share, about A$91.3 million in total including roughly A$27.4 million of cash, issuing about 1% of its own stock. The purchase adds 1,405 square kilometres in Mali including the 550 square kilometre Dandoko project.
The Anaconda area, 20km from Fekola, was given a maiden indicated resource of 32.4 million tonnes at 1.08 g/t for 1.13 million ounces plus 63.7 million tonnes at 1.12 g/t for 2.28 million ounces inferred, a 196% increase in inferred ounces. B2Gold said selective saprolite averaging 2.2 g/t could be trucked to the Fekola mill from as early as late 2022, subject to permits.
Mali granted a new exploration permit over the same ground as the disputed Menankoto permit, restoring access to the Anaconda area, and B2Gold published an increased resource for the Cardinal-FMZ zone 500 metres from the Fekola pit. Drilling was to restart by 15 February 2022.
Reached agreement in principle with Mali: the state will grant a new exploration permit over the same Menankoto ground to a new B2Gold subsidiary, and in exchange B2Gold will withdraw the ICSID arbitration it started in June. The permit was formally received on 2 February 2022.
30 Nov 2021asset acquisition disposition● NeutralMajor
Closed the Kiaka sale, receiving US$22.5 million cash and 22.19 million West African Resources shares plus the royalties, with US$45 million still deferred. B2Gold also closed the sale of its 90% of the Toega project to the same buyer for US$18 million in total plus a further 2.7% royalty, exiting Burkina Faso.
25 Oct 2021asset acquisition disposition● NeutralMajor
Agreed to sell 81% of the Kiaka project in Burkina Faso to West African Resources for US$45.45 million payable up front and on closing, a further US$45 million on the earlier of a construction start, a positive feasibility study or October 2022, and net smelter royalties of 2.7% on the first 2.5 million ounces and 0.45% on the next 1.5 million. Kiaka came with the 2013 Volta acquisition and was never built by B2Gold.
Escalated the Menankoto dispute into ICSID arbitration against the Republic of Mali under the 2012 mining code convention, to be heard in Paris. A producing company suing its host government over exploration ground, three months after the renewal was refused.
Mali told B2Gold in March 2021 that the Menankoto exploration permit, part of the Anaconda area 20km north of Fekola, would not be renewed, despite the company's view that renewal was its right in law. Fekola's own life-of-mine plan and its 530,000-560,000 ounce 2021 guidance do not depend on Anaconda, so the immediate production risk was limited.
Sold out its limited-edition Rhino Gold Bar inventory, made from 1,000 ounces donated from the Otjikoto mine and sold at spot plus a 15% conservation premium, raising about US$1.7 million for black rhino conservation in northwest Namibia.
Drilling extended the Cardinal and FMZ zones near Fekola to more than 3.5 kilometres of strike and the Mamba zone in the Anaconda area to about 2.2 kilometres, on an US$18 million Mali programme. B2Gold guided to a maiden inferred resource for Cardinal in the first quarter of 2021 and an updated Anaconda resource by the end of 2020.
The updated Gramalote assessment put a 13.6-year open pit at 3.85 million ounces, averaging 416,600 ounces a year for the first five years and 283,990 over the life at US$544 cash cost and US$648 all-in sustaining cost. B2Gold took over as manager of the joint venture with AngloGold Ashanti from 1 January 2020.
Fekola's indicated resource at December 2019 rose to 110.6 million tonnes at 1.70 g/t for 6.052 million ounces, up 1.29 million ounces or 15.4% on a year earlier after allowing for the 455,810 ounces mined in 2019, and up 79% on the 2015 feasibility estimate after allowing for 1.006 million ounces of cumulative production. Fekola passed its first million ounces produced in late December 2019, two and a half years after start-up.
Year-end drilling across roughly 114,000 metres in Mali kept extending Fekola to the north, converted inferred to indicated inside the pit, expanded the Mamba and Adder saprolite zones and the Mamba sulphide discovery, and returned first results from the Cardinal and FMZ zones close to the Fekola pit.
16 Oct 2019asset acquisition disposition● NeutralMajor
Closed the Nicaragua sale to Calibre, taking 87.99 million Calibre shares for about 28.35% of the company, US$40 million cash, a US$10 million 2% convertible debenture due October 2021 and a further US$10 million payable in October 2020.
Drilling extended the shallow high-grade saprolite zone at Mamba, 20km from Fekola, to more than a kilometre of strike and found a wide sulphide zone directly beneath it, which B2Gold read as a possible second Fekola-type deposit. Infill drilling also upgraded 19% of Fekola's inferred resource toward indicated, and B2Gold raised its 2019 Mali exploration budget by US$3 million to US$20.5 million.
Agreed to sell the El Limon and La Libertad mines, the Pavon project and other Nicaraguan concessions to Calibre Mining for US$100 million in cash, Calibre shares and a convertible debenture, leaving B2Gold with about 31% of Calibre, a board seat and an advisory role. The two mines had produced over 1.4 million ounces since 2010 and were guided at 150,000-160,000 ounces for 2019.
Filed the NI 43-101 technical report backing the Fekola expansion preliminary economic assessment announced in March 2019, with no material differences from that announcement. The expansion is a mine fleet increase plus a plant upgrade centred on more ball mill power.
Approved the Fekola expansion on the strength of a preliminary economic assessment, lifting plant throughput by 1.5 million tonnes a year to 7.5 million without a new ball mill or extra power generation. The study was driven by the much larger resource declared in October 2018 rather than by new ground.
Fekola's indicated resource was raised to 92.81 million tonnes at 1.92 g/t for 5.73 million ounces, plus 1.37 million inferred, on 192,000 metres of drilling in 928 holes. Against probable reserves of 3.7 million ounces at the start of production this is a substantial increase, and it underpinned a mill expansion study then in progress.
More West African drill results, including 15.50m at 8.49 g/t north of Fekola, 26m at 5.44 g/t in a new saprolite zone, and 16m at 4.16 g/t at Kiaka. On the strength of them B2Gold decided to build the Fekola mill with a 25% design margin, potentially 5 million tonnes a year against the feasibility 4 million, for an extra US$15-20 million.
Put together the balance of the Fekola construction funding: gold prepaid sales of up to US$120 million approved by members of the revolving credit syndicate led by HSBC, a mining equipment facility of about US$81 million, and an increase to the Otjikoto equipment loan. The prepaid sales are forward metal deliveries over 33 months at an average all-in funding cost of 4.00%, not a loan, so the gold is committed rather than the cash borrowed.
The 2015 exploration update extended Fekola 700 metres down plunge below the feasibility pit, with 45.38m at 4.77 g/t in hole FKD_181, and found a new zone near Kiaka at 106m of 2.21 g/t. Fekola remained open along strike to the north and down plunge.
The NI 43-101 technical report itself for the optimised Fekola feasibility study, effective 30 June 2015, prepared with Lycopodium Minerals and Knight Piesold.
Announced the filing of the Fekola technical report and restated its headline figures, confirming no material difference between the report and the June news release: 3.72 million ounces of probable reserves at 2.35 g/t, 350,000 ounces a year at US$418 cash cost for seven years.
The optimised Fekola feasibility study set out a 12.5-year open pit averaging 350,000 ounces a year at US$418 cash cost for the first seven years, on probable reserves of 49.2 million tonnes at 2.35 g/t for 3.72 million ounces, for US$395 million of pre-production capital plus US$67 million of leased fleet. B2Gold started construction and closed a US$350 million revolving credit facility the same day.