By Radarr Africa Business Desk
ADDIS ABABA, November 11 (Radarr Africa) – Allied Gold has poured its first gold at the Kurmuk mine in Ethiopia’s Benishangul-Gumuz region, the Canadian miner said, moving what it describes as one of the country’s first large-scale mechanised mining operations into production.
The company said installation of the remaining power infrastructure and mobilisation of the full haulage fleet should both be finished in November 2026, with commercial production targeted by the end of the year. Allied describes Kurmuk as its newest and lowest-cost operation.
Allied has set production guidance of 25,000 to 35,000 ounces for 2026 and 240,000 to 270,000 ounces for 2027, with the mine expected to reach its full designed capacity in early 2027. Output is forecast at about 300,000 ounces in 2028, and the company expects the mine to average about 300,000 ounces a year over its first four years and about 240,000 ounces a year for the rest of its life.
In an update in early October, Allied said Kurmuk is a conventional open-pit and agitated-leach operation. Its proven and probable reserves were about 2.7 million ounces (63.95 million tonnes at 1.32 grams a tonne of gold) at the end of 2025, with measured and indicated resources of about 3.36 million ounces and inferred resources of about 0.22 million ounces.
The company has said it is now focused on extending the mine’s life and finding higher-grade ore zones. Drilling since October 2025 covered 149 holes totalling 28,003 metres. Results included 13.86 metres at 10.07 grams a tonne at Ashashire, which remains open below 425 metres, and 16.1 metres at 2.9 grams a tonne at Dish Mountain. An initial resource estimate for the Kiftet and Hiccup Hill zones along the 9-kilometre Tsenge trend is expected in the first half of 2027. Allied aims to grow resources above 5 million ounces and extend mine life beyond 15 years.
The Ethiopian government will hold a 7% equity interest once the mine enters commercial production and certain commitments, such as road upgrades and a power line, are complete.
Allied also operates mines in Mali and Côte d’Ivoire. It guides to consolidated output of 400,000 to 435,000 ounces in 2026 and 615,000 to 670,000 ounces in 2027, and targets about 800,000 ounces a year by 2029, partly through expansion at the Sadiola mine.
On the ownership side, China’s Zijin Gold International bought a 9.2% stake in Allied for nearly $300 million in August 2026. An earlier proposed $4 billion takeover by Zijin collapsed after it failed to win Chinese regulatory approval, and the two companies then agreed a minority shareholding instead.
