Galiano Gold has announced that the recent gold recovery has been lower than expected at the Asanko Gold Mine located in Ghana, West Africa. The AGM is a 50:50 joint venture with Gold Fields Ltd which is managed and operated by Galiano.

Galiano has recently detected an increase in gold grades in tailings product leaving the processing facility. The assays indicate total gold grades of approximately 0.40g/t in tailings product, which is higher than the historic and expected total gold grade in tailings of approximately 0.10g/t. Gold recovery has been negatively impacted as a result. The Company does not expect any change to its previously published financial statements or 2021 gold ounce production due to the recently observed lower recovery.

The Company’s “Asanko Gold Inc. NI 43-101 Technical Report for the Asanko Gold Mine, Ghana, dated effective December 31, 2019,” describes areas of the Esaase pit that were expected to yield lower recovery, and it is possible that material mined from these areas may be causing the lower recovery. However, given the volume and consistency of the material yielding lower recovery, the Company is working to better understand the cause(s), magnitude and impact of the observed lower recovery.

The Company has initiated a work program designed to ascertain the cause of the elevated grade in the tailings product, which includes:

Confirmatory analysis of plant stream products at independent third-party laboratories;
Diagnostic analyses on plant composite samples to determine the nature of the un-recovered gold;
A complete plant survey to investigate any possible introduction of contaminants and/or operational / mechanical reasons for the elevated tailings product grades;
Additional drilling in key areas of the Esaase pit to obtain samples for further metallurgical and diagnostic analysis; and
Review of past metallurgical test work to examine the assumptions underpinning the expected recovery.
The Company is working expeditiously to complete the program and will provide an update in due course. The impact of the lower recovery on the Company and the AGM is uncertain. Depending on the cause of this issue, the Company may be required to take further action which could include unplanned capital expenditures and/or temporarily suspending mining and/or processing activities at the AGM.

About Galiano Gold Inc.

Galiano is focused on creating a sustainable business capable of long-term value creation for its stakeholders through exploration and disciplined deployment of its financial resources. The Company currently operates and manages the Asanko Gold Mine, located in Ghana, West Africa which is jointly owned with Gold Fields Ltd. The Company is strongly committed to the highest standards for environmental management, social responsibility, and health and safety for its employees and neighbouring communities