Last Thursday, Compass Gold announced two important steps that bring us closer to receiving our Small Mine Permit (SMP) for our Massala Project. The commencement of Bulk Sample testing will allow us to put hundreds of tonnes of mineralized material from our Massala property through the neighbouring SMAT processing plant, as well as other facilities. This testing work, which will continue over the coming two weeks, will provide essential data about grades and recoveries. It will also identify specific modifications to the processing equipment to optimize operations once we receive our Small Mine Permit.
Another big step we’ve taken toward receiving that SMP has been the approval of our Environmental and Social Study, granted last Wednesday by a ten-member Inter-Ministerial Committee in Bamako. I cannot overstate the importance of this approval, which represents the culmination of more than six months of work by our Compass team in collaboration with multiple Ministries and local village leaders. The 150-page report is linked here, and this index will illustrate the exhaustive level of detail and the large number of participants involved in this study. This work was the equivalent of what would be required for a major mine application. Our Compass team got it done, and now the path is cleared for the Minister of Mining to sign off on our permit to mine at Massala. All of this work has been conducted while the gold price continues to set all-time records every few days. The current price levels have greatly improved the economic potential for a Massala small mine.
Last week, I had the privilege of meeting with a group of our core shareholders in Toronto at the original Iamgold offices—a unique place with a special connection to Mali and gold. I was able to review some images and illustrations that provide some greater context for the news we announced. Here is a copy of that brief presentation.
As I said to the group last Thursday, if you have any questions, I will be happy to connect directly to discuss.
I also want to note that on Tuesday we announced an important addition to our Compass Board, with the appointment of Stephen Eddy, a long-time executive of Iamgold with a wealth of financial, strategic, and business development experience around the world, including several transactions in Mali and other parts of West Africa. Stephen brings an important skill-set to our team as we enter this exciting next stage of our Compass Small Mine Strategy.
To further enhance our team’s capabilities, we have formed an Advisory Committee (AC) to assist Management and the Board as required. The first two members of the AC, I am pleased to say, are Carol Banducci, the former CFO of Iamgold, and Colin Galinski, senior counsel from Vancouver, who is highly experienced in advising large organizations, particularly in the international pension management field. Both Carol and Colin are strong supporters of the Compass Small Mine Strategy.
We have made excellent progress on the ground at Massala. We added to the strength of our team. Our Compass strategy to generate free cash flow from near-surface gold targets has attracted new interest from investors and participants in the gold industry. All of this progress, while the price of gold continues to test all-time highs, makes for an exciting few months to end the year.
We have an important finish line in our sights at Massala, and we firmly believe it is also the starting line for even greater success for Compass Gold and our shareholders in 2026.
Best regards
Larry Phillips