After Vancouver-based mid-tier gold producer B2Gold Corp. (TSX:BTO) raised US$259 million in debt financing last summer, mining analysts and investors questioned whether the company was eyeing a large-scale purchase.
Speculation was put to rest October 28 when the company announced it had acquired Volta Resources Inc. (TSX:VTR) for US$63 million.
As part of the deal, B2Gold receives an 81% interest in the Kiaka gold project in Burkina Faso. The Kiaka development is an "advanced-stage" project. Based a on a preliminary feasibility study, the project is expected to produce 340,000 ounces of gold per year over a 10-year lifespan of the mine.
Also included in the purchase are two additional exploration projects in Burkina Faso.
"This acquisition significantly enhances our gold leverage with the addition of the Kiaka gold project," said B2Gold president and CEO Clive Johnson.
"Kiaka is a significant, high-quality and well-defined resource with low technical risk that adds to our portfolio an asset with the potential to contribute meaningfully to B2Gold's already impressive future production growth profile."
The acquisition is subject to approval of Volta's shareholders. The company's board of directors has voted in favour of the deal.
B2Gold owns one other project, Otijkoto, in Africa. Otijkoto, a gold deposit located in Namibia, is expected to begin production in 2015.
B2Gold currently has three mines in operation: Masbate in the Phillipines and Limon and La Libertad in Nicaragua.
