Endeavour Mining’s upgrade of the Assafou deposit at the Tanda-Iguela property in Côte d'Ivoire delivered well beyond even the most optimistic expectations, according to US broker Stifel.
“Results from the programme further demonstrated the significance of the discovery and hinted at its potential to eventually develop into another cornerstone tier-one mine,” said the broker.
“The updated resource estimate increased contained gold by over 50% and maintained the overall grade consistent at around 2.00g/t.
“In just 15 months since its discovery, the company identified a resource of over 3.0Moz, and an additional year of drilling further grew resources to 4.7Moz.”
Tanda-Iguela exhibits potential to support a tier-one mine, and warrants fast-tracking studies to determine the optimal development path added Stifel.
Completion of the Sabodala and Lafigué projects is expected to be the focus through mid-2024, but Tanda-Iguela now appears to be placed prominently at the front of Endeavour's organic growth pipeline.
'Buy' is Stifel’s investment stance.
Shares in the FTSE 100 group were little changed at 1,824p.