JERSEY, CHANNEL ISLANDS and ABIDJAN, COTE D'IVOIRE--(Marketwire - November 8, 2010) - Randgold Resources' (
The first stream of the plant was commissioned on schedule following the first ore being fed in the latter half of September. The second stream is expected to be on line in December, followed by the crushing circuit which will allow the mine to start treating sulphides in the first quarter of 2011. First gold was derived from CIL treatment with commercial production expected to start soon. When the plant has been ramped up to full production, its throughput rate will be 300 000 tonnes per month.
Randgold Resources' general manager of operations for West Africa, Samba Touré, said the commissioning of the mine on time was a significant achievement for the company's development team.
"Building a mine in a remote area such as this is always very challenging, and in the case of Tongon we also had to deal with the distraction of the political dynamics around the Ivorian presidential election during the crucial final stage. The team took this in its stride, however, and we still managed to bring the mine in on schedule," he said.
Speaking from London, chief executive Mark Bristow noted that Randgold Resources had commissioned its three existing mines at five-yearly intervals: Morila, in Southern Mali, in October 2000; Loulo, in Western Mali, in October 2005; and now Tongon on the 4 million ounce gold deposit in Northern Côte d'Ivoire.
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RANDGOLD RESOURCES LIMITED
Incorporated in Jersey, Channel Islands
Reg. No. 62686
Contact Information:
RANDGOLD RESOURCES ENQUIRIES:
Chief Executive
Dr Mark Bristow
+44 788 071 1386
+44 779 775 2288
Group Operations Manager West Africa
Samba Toure
+223 66 75 77 41
Investor & Media Relations
Kathy du Plessis
+44 20 7557 7738
Website: www.randgoldresources.com