Caledonia expands footprint
BUSINESS REPORTER
Caledonia Mining Corporation has acquired Motapa Mining, which holds a registered mining lease over exploration property in southern Zimbabwe as the resources concern expands its footprint.
The company is adjacent to the Bilboes gold project which the gold miner is in the process of acquiring.
Caledonia did not disclose the price but it was below the regulatory disclosure threshold.
Motapa was formerly owned and explored by Anglo-American Zimbabwe before its exit from the Zimbabwean gold sector in the late 1990s and is situated 75km north of Bulawayo with a mining lease covering approximately 2,200 hectares.
Historical mining in the region has produced as much as 300,000oz of gold, Caledonia said, adding the workings will be a guide for future exploration.
“The Motapa asset has been mined throughout most of the second half of the 20th century. Whilst none of the mining infrastructures remains, the evidence of historical mining will guide our exploration team in best understanding the Caledonia Mining acquires property in Zimbabwe next to Bilboes prospectively of the region,” Mark Learmonth, Caledonia’s chief executive said.
“We are pleased to have concluded the purchase of Motapa. Given its large scale, excellent geological prospectivity and strategic location adjacent to Bilboes, Motapa was a high-priority acquisition for Caledonia.”
He said the company was looking forward to developing an exploration programme for Motapa as “we target a large-scale gold belt surrounding the Bilboes project”.
“Bilboes is a grade leader among large open-pit gold projects in Africa. Caledonia expects combined group production to rise to 240 000 ounces per year in 2026 with Bilboes,” Learmonth said.
He, however, said, with the central shaft at Blanket now fully operational and production targeting 80,000 ounces of gold per year, Caledonia anticipates that “we will deploy the incremental cash flow arising from Blanket into our exciting exploration and project development portfolio in Zimbabwe”.
