Mali’s gold production dropped by 23% in 2024

Mali’s industrial gold production fell 23% to 51 metric tons last year from 66.5 tons in 2023, the West African country’s mines ministry said.

Mali is one of the leading gold makers in Africa and has industrial mines run by foreign companies like Barrick Gold, B2Gold Corp, Resolute Mining, and Hummingbird Resources.

A government document revealed on Friday that the production number does not include Barrick Gold’s December output because of a disagreement with Mali’s military government over a new mining law from 2023.

Last month, Barrick stopped work at its Loulo-Gounkoto plant because officials took its gold stocks by helicopter. Four workers have been held since November on charges of money laundering and supporting terrorism, which the company rejects.

Mali’s updated mining rules increase taxes and require the government to own a large share of mining properties. As a result, several mining company leaders told Reuters that investing in new mines or buying existing ones in Mali is no longer profitable.

The government of Mali says that mining companies, like Barrick, are not paying enough taxes.

A government report says that Mali’s gold production dropped below 60 tons for the first time in more than three years.

If Barrick meets its December goal of 1.7 tons, the total would be 52.7 tons, according to the ministry’s monthly figures.

The ministry did not explain why output decreased.

A mine ministry source told Reuters that the government’s disagreement with mining companies might be why production is down. The industry is experiencing a lack of trust after the government required foreign companies to switch to the new mining rules and arrested some of their workers and leaders, the official said.

The ministry’s data shows that Barrick Gold is the largest gold maker in the country, producing 19.4 tons in 2024 (not including December). B2Gold follows with 13.7 tons, and Resolute Mining comes next with 7.2 tons.

Mali is projected to make a total of 58.7 tons of gold in 2024, with around 6 tons coming from small-scale mines, according to the mines ministry.