TO ANALYSE. The attack perpetrated against employees of the Semafo gold site aims to deter
investors and to reduce production, which would have consequences for the States of the region and
would influence the prices of the yellow metal. By Didier Julienne, commodities market specialist
(*).
The mines of Burkina Faso produce about 60 tons of gold per year, the artisanal producers surround
about ten tons. At the current rate, a tax base of nearly 3.2 billion euros contributes
the tax revenue of the country whose budget is approximately 3.37 billion euros. The Semafo attack of 6
November 2019, a heinous massacre that mourns so many families, is probably intended to disorganize
mining activity since it was not the mine itself that was attacked, but the convoy bringing a
crew of miners on the site itself. It was therefore neither the explosives used by the mine that were
targeted nor the production insofar as it is attainable during an assault, but the existence of the mine
herself. The Boungou mine has reserves and resources of high-grade ore containing
about 60 tons of gold. The attackers probably have an interest in keeping the site in relative good condition.
state. Although he indicates the opposite, if the investor were one day to reassess his commitment, he makes little
doubt that such an abandoned site would turn into a mining craft zone, itself a vassal of forces
anxious to find income. But we are not there yet. West Africa remains a
new Peru for gold miners. They invest heavily in it. The deposits are not deep and the
ore grade is high. Ghana produces 130 tonnes of gold per year, Mali 61 tonnes, Burkina Faso 60
tons, Ivory Coast 41 tons, Guinea 27 tons and Senegal 18 tons. In total, these are nearly
340 tonnes of gold exported every year, and the number is growing. These 340 tons are to be compared
to the 3,500 tons produced worldwide in 2018 and to the 274 tons purchased by the Banque Centrale de
Russia in 2018. In other words, the disorganization of West African production, which no one wants,
would however affect 10% of world production and would have significant consequences on the prices of
gold

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