Cluff's OK in Burkina Faso despite "troubles"; Baomahun in Sierra Leone Good
Cluff Gold confirms Kalsaka mine operating without interruption
(Toronto: CFG; London AIM: CLF)
Wednesday, April 20, 2011 by Giles Gwinnett
Cluff Gold (LON:CLF, TSE:CFG) confirmed today that its Kalsaka mine in Burkina Faso is operating without interruption, despite recent unrest in the country following a mutiny of the presidential guard – a situation which seems to be resolved now.
In an update, the West-Africa focused firm said that all of its staff were safe and that gold production and export had not been affected by the situation.
Cluff said it was continuing to monitor the situation and will update the market accordingly.CEO Peter Spivey said: "Although the situation in Burkina Faso is of concern, particularly for the people of the country, we are continuing to operate our mine.
"We hope that the current situation is resolved in the near term and we are doing all we can to ensure that our staff continue their work in complete safety. That is our current and top priority."
Trouble started in Burkina Faso last week when soldiers and members of the presidential guards in the capital Ouagadougou protested about unpaid housing allowances.
Hours before, tens of thousands of people had reportedly demonstrated against high food prices.
The country's leader Blaise Compaore last week dismissed the chiefs of staff of the army, air force and police and dissolved his government in the past week, and yestarday appointed a new prime minister - Luc Adolphe Tiao, who will replace Tertius Zongo.
Compaore, 60, has ruled the country since seizing power in a 1987 coup.
Spivey added: "We continue to focus on the significant potential at the company's flagship development project, Baomahun in Sierra Leone, with the fully funded feasibility study expected in Q3 2011 and initial results from the ongoing exploration drilling program expected in May 2011."
Cluff Gold is a developer-producer and it is focused on becoming a mid-tier producer through developing its wholly-owned Baomahun project in Sierra Leone.
This is expected to contribute an initial 157,000oz of gold per year, and has significant exploration potential along strike, said the company.
