IAMGOLD Corporation recently announced on August 2 that the Côté Gold Mine has reached commercial production. Côté Gold is located in Ontario, Canada and is operated as a joint venture between IAMGOLD, as the operator, and Sumitomo Metal Mining Co., Ltd.
Commercial production is defined as the achievement of reaching a minimum of 30 consecutive days of operations during which the mill operated at an average of 60% of nameplate throughput of 36,000 t/d.
“I would like to commend our teams at Côté Gold who have come together to achieve another great milestone as we progress and ramp up what we believe will be one of Canada’s largest gold mines and a model for modern mining in Canada,” said Renaud Adams, President and Chief Executive Officer of IAMGOLD. “Since achieving the first pour of gold on March 31, 2024, our teams have spent the last four months methodically and iteratively testing and ramping up all facets of the mine. This process has required remarkable commitment, ingenuity and teamwork to bring all the systems online together to achieve this milestone.”
“With commercial production behind us we continue to focus on improving plant availability towards our goal of Côté exiting the year at 90% of nameplate throughput. Further, in May we completed our equity financing which has positioned us well to repurchase the 9.7% interest in Côté this November and return to 70% ownership thereby gaining more exposure to this foundational and keystone asset for the benefit of all our stakeholders.”
The ramp up of the plant continues to progress, with all major equipment demonstrating the capability to operate at or above design levels. After the initial pour, focus early in the second quarter was on testing the processing circuits to handle nameplate loads. The primary components of the overall plant responded well achieving at or above nameplate throughput, though availability of the dry-side of the processing facilities was limited, in particular in the crushing and screening circuits. The company is planning a multi-day shutdown in September to address and mitigate the impact of traditional wear and tear on availability of the circuits, in support of the goal to ramp up throughput to 90% by the end of the year.
