Caledonia Mining Corporation, a Toronto Stock Exchange-listed company with a secondary listing on the Victoria Falls Stock Exchange, is advancing plans to become a multi-asset gold producer in Zimbabwe.
A new feasibility study for its flagship Bilboes Gold Project, poised to become the country’s largest gold operation, is set to be released in the first quarter of 2025.
The company owns several significant gold mining assets in Zimbabwe, including the Blanket Mine in Matabeleland South Province, as well as the Motapa gold project near the Bilboes site in Matabeleland North Province. Other key projects include Maligreen Goldfields and the Glen Hulme project in Gweru, Midlands Province.
In 2022, Caledonia acquired the Bilboes project from businessman Victor Gapare for $53.3 million. Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) results indicate that Bilboes has the potential to transform the country’s gold mining landscape, with production expected to reach 150,000 ounces annually.
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The PEA confirmed findings from a previous feasibility study by the project’s former owner, identifying Bilboes as a highly promising open-pit mining opportunity.
“The company intends to publish a new feasibility study for the project in the first quarter of 2025,” Caledonia announced in its latest update.
According to the PEA, the first gold pour at Bilboes could occur by 2028. The mine is projected to produce 1.52 million ounces of gold over a 10-year lifespan.
In June 2024, Caledonia released an updated technical report for Bilboes, which replaced earlier studies. The report, prepared under Canada’s National Instrument 43-101, outlined mineral resources and initial plans for implementing open-pit mining. The company said additional work is required for feasibility-level studies to fully assess the project.
Meanwhile, gold production at Caledonia’s Blanket Mine reached 56,815 ounces in the first nine months of 2024, up from 55,244 ounces in the same period in 2023. The company has maintained its annual production guidance for 2024 at between 74,000 and 78,000 ounces.
Gold remains Zimbabwe’s largest export commodity. Fidelity Gold Refinery, the sole buyer of locally produced gold, reported that the country produced 32 tonnes in the first 11 months of this year. Of this total, 20.3 tonnes came from artisanal and small-scale miners, while large-scale producers contributed 11.7 tonnes.
Last year, Zimbabwe produced 30.1 tonnes of gold. The government has set a production target of 35 tonnes for 2024.
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