Orezone Gold Corporation has released an updated life-of-mine plan for Casa Berardi, its recently acquired Quebec-based gold mine, that positions the company as an established multi-asset producer with an after-tax net present value of US$1.05 billion at base case consensus gold prices. The plan outlines a 14-year mine life spanning 2027 to 2040, with total gold production of 1.63 million ounces and life-of-mine average annual production of 116,000 ounces at an all-in sustaining cost of US$1,877 per ounce.
What makes this particularly significant for investors is the production ramp-up embedded in the plan. While early years focus on ramping up operations through equipment investments and underground development, the 2030 to 2038 period is forecast to deliver average annual production of 132,000 ounces at a lower all-in sustaining cost of US$1,776 per ounce. This production profile demonstrates that Casa Berardi has the operational characteristics to sustain profitability across a full mine cycle, with years of peak production anchoring the plan’s value creation.
The economic returns are attractive across multiple gold price scenarios. At the base case gold price assumptions derived from September 2026 consensus pricing, the project’s after-tax NPV5 percent equals US$1.05 billion. Sensitivity to gold prices is meaningful: at a US$4,350 per ounce spot price, the NPV5 percent rises to US$1.43 billion. This suggests investors benefit from significant leverage to gold prices beyond the base case assumption, while the base case itself reflects a conservative scenario relative to recent gold price environments.
Orezone management clearly sees Casa Berardi not as a mature, optimized asset but as one with material upside potential. The company is reinitating exploration at the mine and ramping drilling to 100,000 metres per annum. The plan explicitly acknowledges “multiple actionable exploration fronts” with opportunities to increase underground grades, expand production, and reduce costs further. This suggests the announced life-of-mine plan is a baseline scenario rather than a ceiling, with exploration likely to extend mine life, improve grade profiles, and lower the cost structure beyond what has been modeled.
One structural feature to note is the Franco-Nevada Corporation gold stream arrangement, which entitles Franco-Nevada to fixed deliveries of 6,500 ounces annually from 2027 to 2030, followed by variable deliveries of 5 percent of gold production thereafter. Orezone receives 20 percent of spot gold price for each ounce delivered. While this dilutes per-ounce economics, it demonstrates the asset quality that justified attracting a third-party streaming partner and provides early-stage cash support for the operation.
Investors should track the ramp-up execution, exploration results from the aggressive drilling program, and any reserve or resource estimate updates that might support the company’s commentary on production and cost expansion. This announcement is price sensitive and has been flagged as material by the ASX.
View the full ASX announcement (PDF)
About Orezone Gold Corporation (ASX: ORE)
Orezone Gold Corporation is a gold mining company engaged in the exploration, development and production of gold. The company operates the Bombore Gold Mine located in Burkina Faso, West Africa, which commenced commercial production in 2022. Combined oxide and hard rock operations are forecasted to produce between 170,000 and 185,000 ounces of gold annually.
If you would like to discuss this announcement or how it might affect your portfolio, request a callback or call us on 1300 889 603.
