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Toroparu gold mine to push Canadian company’s annual production to million ounces
(Kaieteur News) – The 5.4-million-ounce Toroparu Gold Project in Region Seven (Cuyuni-Mazaruni) is expected to play a key role in lifting Canadian miner Aris Mining Corporation’s annual gold production to one million ounces.
Aris Mining operates two producing gold mines in Colombia (Segovia & Marmato). The company is also developing the Toroparu mine in Guyana and the Soto Norte project. Aris Mining Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Neil Woodyer outlined the company’s growth trajectory during an interview with BNN Bloomberg, noting that Aris is already on track to reach 500,000 ounces annually from its Colombian operations, with Toroparu and another Colombian project providing the pathway to doubling that output.
Aris Mining Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Neil Woodyer
“Okay, we started four years ago. We’ve acquired two mines and we’re now this year producing about 250,000 ounces,” Woodyer said. “We’re expanding both mines. We’ve expanded our Segovia mine which produces 200,000 the production facility and over the next year we’ll ramp it up to 300,000.”
He explained that the company is also expanding another operation. He said, “We’re also expanding…by building an industrial mine below the small mine that we have and that will take us to just over 200,000. We expect to have the first gold pour towards the end of next year.”
According to Woodyer, once those expansions are completed, Aris Mining expects to reach its initial production target. “So, in total in nearest time we’ll be at 500,000 ounces and we have two additional projects, one in Guyana and one in Colombia, which if we’re able to put that into production over the next few years, in fact, gives us a very clear road to a million ounces from our own resources,” he said.
When asked how long it could take to reach one million ounces per year, Woodyer responded, “I think by the time we have Soto Norte permitted, two and a half years, two and a half years to build, five years order of magnitude.”
The Guyana project referenced by the CEO is the Toroparu Gold Project, one of the largest undeveloped gold deposits in the country. Aris Mining, through its local subsidiary ETK Inc., has been seeking to advance the project by converting existing small- and medium-scale permits into a large-scale mining licence.
As previously reported by Kaieteur News, Toroparu is expected to produce an average of about 235,000 ounces of gold per year over a mine life of more than 20 years, yielding approximately five million ounces of gold, along with significant silver and copper by-products.
Aris has already applied to the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) and the Minister of Natural Resources to convert its small-scale claim licenses, mining permits, and prospecting permits into large-scale mining licenses to advance the project.
Notably, Aris Mining also disclosed in the Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) that the environmental permit for the Toroparu project has been renewed, allowing operations to continue until September 2029. The permit, which took effect in October 2024, will remain valid for five years. Aris Mining stated that it must apply to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) by March 31, 2029, for renewal.
Guyana is set to reap an estimated US$3.4 billion in taxes and royalties from the Toroparu Gold Project, which is expected to generate US$14.7 billion in gold sales based on a base gold price of US$3,000 per ounce over its 21-year mine life.
Under the Mineral Agreement with the Government of Guyana, the project will pay an 8% royalty on gold sales, 1.5% on silver, and 1.5% on copper. It was stated that the royalties are deductible from taxable income under Guyana’s 30% corporate tax rate. Notably, a 2011 mineral agreement between ETK and the Government of Guyana established a tiered gold royalty of 5% for prices up to US$1,000 per ounce and 8% for prices above that.
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