The long-term goal of becoming a 500 000-gold-equivalent-ounce-a-year producer that is both cost competitive and in possession of long-life assets remains a top priority for precious metals miner Fortuna Mining, which has South America-based mines in Peru and Argentina, as well as the Séguéla mine in Côte d’Ivoire.

This strategy includes continuing to develop Fortuna’s existing operating assets such as the Lindero mine in the Puna region of Argentina and exploring for additional potential through projects such as Arizaro, located near Lindero, reports Fortuna Mining CEO Jorge Ganoza.

“In 2024, our global investment in exploration and new projects was $41-million and for 2025 we have increased that budget to $51-million. We are increasing our investment in exploration and development projects taking place at Arizaro in Argentina, and Caylloma in Peru.”

He adds that Fortuna pays a lot of attention to early-stage opportunities and will continue assessing various greenfield projects that fit into the company’s strategic objectives.

Fortuna Mining’s goal is to establish sustainable production by developing assets with potential mine life of over a decade.

This is coupled with ensuring that the company’s assets and operations remain profitable, especially during market downturns – an objective undertaken through striving to ensure that mines operate at, or below, the middle of the cost curve, which means the mine’s all-inclusive sustaining costs should be at, or below, the industry average.

However, Ganoza points out that this year, Fortuna’s consolidated gold production will decline as a result of a divestment in the company’s San Jose mine, in Mexico, and the Yaramoko mine in Burkina Faso, which were no longer contributing positively towards the company’s strategic goals. This, he says, is in stark comparison to 2024, when Fortuna’s gold production totalled almost 460 000 gold-equivalent ounces.

Going forward though, Ganoza says that through the organic expansion of Fortuna’s Séguéla mine in Côte d'Ivoire, where production guidance in 2026 sees Séguéla estimated to produce up to 180 000 oz, coupled with potential contributions from the Diamba Sud project in Senegal if a positive production decision is made, and the company’s assets in Latin America, the company is in a “good position” to expand its overall production to the 450 000-gold-equivalent-ounce-a-year range over the coming years.

This strategy will be underpinned by disciplined cost management and the advancement of key assets to position the company for sustained production for at least a decade, in terms of available mineral reserves.

Market Conditions, Mine Closure Benefits

Fortuna has established itself as a precious metals miner able to maintain production, generating substantial profit margins, despite higher mining costs, with the company thus being “price-agnostic” as it is able to operate mines throughout the precious metals price cycle, says Ganoza.

“For the past 12 consecutive quarters, gold has been averaging higher and higher prices, with the exception of the third quarter of 2023. We clearly enjoy moments like this, but we don’t plan the business for moments like this . . . we plan for the business to thrive in downcycles,” he says.

The long-term benefits of the San Jose mine divestment, including savings on closure costs, are primarily centered on reducing financial and environmental liabilities and this has relieved Fortuna Mining from future financial obligations related to the mine’s closure and post-mining management, which includes the costs associated with water treatment, tailings management and the long-term monitoring of the mine site, he says.

The closure costs assigned to San Jose, by Fortuna, range between $30-million and $35-million and through the divestment of the mine, the company is able to reallocate $35-million to other growth initiatives in Latin America and West Africa.

“For many years, San Jose was a very important mine in Fortuna’s portfolio; but it aged, and we exhausted its reserves and ultimately, the mine became a high-cost operation with limited reserves. So, it just made sense to take the opportunity that this kind of market provides with high gold prices to find interested buyers,” Ganoza notes.