Name of the Project
Dugbe gold project.

Location
South-eastern Liberia.

Project Owner/s
Hummingbird Resources.

Canadian miner Pasofino Gold has an earn-in agreement for a 49% stake in the Dugbe project, with Hummingbird maintaining a controlling interest of 51%.

Project Description
A preliminary economic assessment (PEA) has established Dugbe as a foundation for a new gold district in Liberia.

The project comprises the Tuzon and Dugbe F deposits, both of which are amenable to openpit mining.

The planned openpits will be mined using conventional truck-and-shovel methods to supply mill feed to the run-of-mine tip, near Tuzon, and waste to the respective pits’ waste stockpile facilities.

The processing plant design has been based on a typical semiautogenous grinding and ball milling circuit, followed by a carbon-in-leach gold recovery circuit.

The PEA envisages a five-million-tonne-a-year operation producing an estimated 2.5-million ounces of gold a year over a 14-year mine life.

Steady-state production is estimated at 188 000 oz/y, with peak production of 226 000 oz in Year 8 of operation.

Potential Job Creation
Not stated.

Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
The PEA has estimated a pretax net present value, at a 5% discount rate, of $825-million and an internal rate of return of 34%, at a conservative base gold price of $1 600/oz.

Payback is esti­mated at 2.8 years (undiscounted).

Capital Expenditure
Initial capital expenditure is estimated at $391-million.

Planned Start/End Date
Not stated.

Latest Developments
Pasofino Gold has entered into a nonbrokered private share placement to raise $5.5-million, of which about $4.5-million has been subscribed for by Turkish miner Esan.

The funding provides sufficient capital for Pasofino to complete the definitive feasibility study (DFS) on the Dugbe gold project and for he miner to finish its earn-in conditions as per the entities’ joint venture agreement.

The study is on track to be delivered in the second quarter of 2022.

This fundraise follows the mineral resource estimate update announced by Pasofino in November, which confirmed a NI 43-101-compliant measured and indicated gold resources of 3.4-million ounces.

Hummingbird CEO Dan Betts has said that Pasofino’s successful capital raise enables the company to complete the feasibility study work on the Dugbe project.

“We are particularly encouraged by the material uplift in the measured and indicated resources recently announced by Pasofino, which should pave the way for a robust DFS showcasing solid project economics”.

Further, the material investment by Esan will add “significant value” to the project as it gains momentum, he adds.

Key Contracts, Suppliers and Consultants
DRA Global (lead consultant); SRK Consulting; and Epoch Resources (PEA).

Contact Details for Project Information
Pasofino Gold, tel +1 416720 2540 or email contact@pasofinogold.com.