{"id":298433,"date":"2026-02-23T17:53:12","date_gmt":"2026-02-23T17:53:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/298433\/"},"modified":"2026-02-23T17:53:12","modified_gmt":"2026-02-23T17:53:12","slug":"burkina-fasos-25-equity-push-at-projected-mega-goldmine-unfolds-peacefully","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/298433\/","title":{"rendered":"Burkina Faso\u2019s 25% equity push at projected mega-goldmine unfolds peacefully"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n According to the minutes from the Council of Ministers’ February 19, 2026, meeting, the government is examining a draft decree to control an additional 25% equity stake in the capital of Kiaka SA, a large gold mine, in order to fulfill the legal need for ministerial consent.\n <\/p>\n

\n These conversations, coordinated by the government’s legal body, Soci\u00e9t\u00e9 de Participation Mini\u00e8re du Burkina Faso (SOPAMIB), demonstrate a collaborative approach.\n <\/p>\n

\n WAF<\/a> has been engaged constructively, ensuring that any increase in government ownership is in the financial interests of existing shareholders and financiers.\n <\/p>\n

\n Beyond Kiaka, SOPAMIB has confirmed its commitment to working with WAF on future mining projects that would increase national involvement<\/a>, create employment, and unleash more social and economic advantages from Burkina Faso’s mineral resources.\n <\/p>\n

\n Importantly, WAF’s other projects, Sanbrado and Toega, were not included in these conversations, showing a focused and measured approach.\n <\/p>\n

\n Kiaka SA, which runs the Kiaka Gold Project in Burkina Faso, is primarily controlled by ASX-listed West African Resources Limited (WAF), which has a 90% share as of late 2021. The State of Burkina Faso holds the remaining 10%.\n <\/p>\n

\n \u201cWe appreciate the constructive engagement and continued support of the Government of Burkina Faso<\/a>.\n <\/p>\n

\n Our discussions with the Government regarding the ownership structure of Kiaka and the potential for cooperation on new projects have reflected a shared vision to develop a strong and sustainable mining industry that benefits the Burkinab\u00e9 people and delivers long-term value for all stakeholders,\u201d WAF Executive Chairman and CEO Richard Hyde stated.\n <\/p>\n

\n \u201cOperations at Sanbrado and Kiaka have continued unaffected throughout this engagement with the Government,\u201d he added.\n <\/p>\n

Burkina Faso\u2019s push to centralize its resources<\/p>\n

\"Ibrahim <\/p>\n

\n Since the September 2022 coup, which put Ibrahim Traore<\/a> in power, the junta administration of Burkina Faso has consolidated gold purchases through state-linked businesses, limited artisanal gold exports to combat smuggling, and announced plans to expand local processing capacity.\n <\/p>\n

\n The case famously resulted in the government acquiring mines and paying royalties to previous owners.\n <\/p>\n

\n As part of the settlement, Lilium was ordered to hand over ownership of the mines to the Burkina Faso government.\n <\/p>\n

\n In exchange, Burkina Faso was instructed to pay Endeavour $60 million plus a 3% royalty on up to 400,000 ounces of gold produced at the Wahgnion mine, according to a statement issued on Tuesday.\n <\/p>\n

\n Furthermore, Burkina Faso\u2019s leadership, in 2025, also approved measures to boost its shareholding in mining operations across the country, shifting from 10% to 15% free-carried equity under the updated 2024 Mining Code.\n <\/p>\n

\n The modification was recorded in the company’s interim financial report for the six months ending in June 2025.\n <\/p>\n

\n Richard Hyde, at the time, said that the equity adjustment was completed in July and August for its three important projects: Sanbrado (Somisa), Kiaka, and Toega mines.\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"According to the minutes from the Council of Ministers’ February 19, 2026, meeting, the government is examining a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":298434,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[138,219,111,139,69],"class_list":{"0":"post-298433","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-economy","8":"tag-business","9":"tag-economy","10":"tag-new-zealand","11":"tag-newzealand","12":"tag-nz"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/298433","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=298433"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/298433\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/298434"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=298433"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=298433"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=298433"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}