B2Gold announces drilling results from Antelope Deposit at Otjikoto Mine

B2Gold announced exploration drilling results from the Antelope deposit at the Otjikoto Mine in Namibia. The Antelope deposit, comprised of the Springbok Zone, the Oryx Zone, and a possible third structure, Impala, subject to further confirmatory drilling, is located approximately three kilometers south of the Otjikoto Phase 5 open pit. The Antelope deposit has the potential to be developed as an underground mining operation, which could complement the expected processing of stockpiles at the Otjikoto mill from 2026 through 2031. Highlights: 20,715 meters in 37 drill holes completed at the Antelope deposit in 2023, with a plan to nearly double the meters drilled in 2024; The Antelope deposit was discovered in 2022 following deep drill testing on three-dimensional models of magnetic inversion data; The 2024 exploration budget for Otjikoto is $9 million, focused predominantly on the Antelope deposit, the largest drill program since the definition of the Wolfshag discovery in 2012; and 39,000 m of drilling planned to define and expand the Antelope deposit. High-grade, Otjikoto-style mineralization discovered approximately 3 km south of the Phase 5 open pit at Otjikoto; in several structures referred to as the Antelope deposit; Drill hole GH22-048 intersected 12.88 grams per tonne gold over 7.60 m from 485.00 m at the Springbok Zone; Drill hole GH23-056 intersected 9.86 g/t gold over 7.48 m from 517.55 m at the Oryx Zone; and The Company believes this style of mineralization could be amenable to underground mining methods similar to those used at the Wolfshag underground mine. Drill results at the Springbok Zone and Oryx Zone indicate the potential for possible underground development of the Antelope deposit, which could begin to contribute to gold production at Otjikoto in 2026; Open pit operations at Otjikoto are anticipated to conclude in 2025, while underground mining operations at Wolfshag will continue through 2026; Current gold production estimates at Otjikoto are expected to be between 180,000 to 200,000 ounces in 2024 and 2025, just under 100,000 ounces in 2026, and stepping down to sub 50,000 ounces from 2026 through 2031 during the processing of low-grade stockpiles; Underground mining of the Antelope deposit has the potential to supplement the processing of stockpiles through 2031, with the goal of increasing gold production levels to over 100,000 ounces per year from 2026 through 2031; and An initial Mineral Resource estimate at the Antelope deposit is anticipated by the third quarter of 2024, with an internal scoping study on an underground mining operation to be completed by the first quarter of 2025.