B2Gold Aktie

Thank you for standing by. This is the conference operator. Welcome to B2Gold Corporation's Second Quarter 2026 Financial Results Conference Call. [Operator Instructions] The conference is being recorded. [Operator Instructions]

I would now like to turn the conference over to Mike Cinnamond, President and CEO of B2Gold. Please go ahead.

Thank you, operator. Good morning, everyone, and thank you for joining us for B2Gold's Second Quarter 2026 Conference Call. I think first business, before we begin our discussion of the quarter, I want to address the trading halt that was implemented earlier this morning. Shortly before this call, we received confirmation that the government of Mali has granted the Menankoto exploitation permit. And given the significance of this development and our obligation to ensure that all investors receive material information at the same time, we requested a temporary trading halt pending the dissemination of the news release, which I believe will go out shortly.

This permit represents a very important milestone for the Fekola Complex, providing the framework to commence mining activities within the Menankoto permit area and supporting the continued development of the Fekola regional deposit. And we appreciate the efforts of the government of Mali and all stakeholders involved in advancing this permitting process forward. So that was the reason for the trading halt. And while we're very pleased to receive this approval, today's call will remain focused primarily on our second quarter results and operating performance. But we will, of course, provide additional comments on the Menankoto permit during the call and take questions following our formal remarks.

And with that, I'd now like to pass the call over to Kelvin, our Chairman, for some opening remarks.

Thanks, Mike, and good morning. While you've now heard the great news at Mali and before Mike and the team review that in the quarter in detail, I'd like to take a few minutes to provide a broader perspective on the principles that continue to guide our business. Before doing so, I'd like to acknowledge 3 important leadership milestones.

First, on behalf of the Board, I want to thank Clive Johnson for his extraordinary contribution to B2Gold. From founding the company to building it into the international gold producer it is today, Clive's leadership, vision and determination have been instrumental. And while he stepped down as Chief Executive Officer, we're very pleased that he'll continue to support the company as Chair of Emeritus, and we look forward to benefiting from his experience and insight.

I also want to speak to Mike Cinnamond's appointment as Chief Executive Officer. The Board and I have tremendous confidence in Mike and the leadership team. This transition represents continuity more than a change in direction. Mike has been deeply involved in the execution of our strategy and the development of our business over many years. We believe the company is in very capable hands, and we're excited about the leadership he'll provide in the next chapter of B2Gold's evolution.

And this is also why we are pleased that Michael McDonald has accepted the role of Chief Financial Officer. Michael has consistently stood out for his performance and acumen and has already begun the transition in the finance team with a view to succeeding Mike. From the Board's perspective, we couldn't be more comfortable with Michael in the role and his ability to continue to collaborate closely with Mike, who understands the B2Gold CFO function better than anyone for his many years in the role.

Our approach remains straightforward. We focus on delivering on the commitments we make. Our strategy has never been about chasing short-term opportunities or reacting to market cycles. For my part, I look very forward to working even more closely with Mike and the management team with a focus on disciplined execution and delivering value. In that respect, it's important to acknowledge that our recent share price performance has not met the standards we set for ourselves or the expectations of our shareholders. While we believe very strongly in the quality of our assets and people, this is a great team. We understand that shareholders have focused on results than they have been great, too. The Board and management are fully focused on the work required to deliver the performance expected of us.

Our operational culture remains the foundation of how we have done. Over the years, we've established credibility with our shareholders, host countries, employees and local communities by setting clear objectives and working diligently to achieve them. We are operators first with a disciplined focus on safety, execution, continuous improvement and creating value to the assets we own and operate. We also believe in reinvesting in our business to create long-term value, whether it's sustaining our existing operations, investing in exploration or advancing high-quality development projects.

At the same time, we recognize that strong cash generation must translate into meaningful returns, maintaining a balanced approach between investing in future growth and returning capital to shareholders. We recognize that our success is closely tied to the countries and communities where we operate. Being a preferred partner means more than operating safely and responsibly. It means working alongside our host governments and communities to create lasting benefits. I think today's announcement for Mali underscores this point.

Looking across our portfolio, we continue to see the benefits of this consistent approach. Our focus is on executing reliably, delivering on our commitments and generating the confidence that has always been earned through hard work and performance.

And with that, I'll turn the call over to Mike and the management team to discuss the second quarter results. Thank you.

Thank you, Kelvin. Second quarter, it was an important one for B2Gold. We delivered consolidated gold production of approximately 204,000 ounces, in line with expectations and in particular with strong operating performances from Fekola, Masbate and Otjikoto mines. And while Goose production was impacted by the crusher fire in April, as previously announced, the team there responded exceptionally well and repairs continue to progress now according to plan.

Our other key area of execution focus for 2026 is bringing Fekola Regional online. And we have recent meetings in Bamako with Mali state officials, and they have confirmed that there were no remaining obstacles to the approval of the Menankoto exploitation permit as all the required steps in the approval process has been completed and validated by the different ministries. And now as you've heard, the permit has been granted by the Council of Ministers in Mali. So the issuance of this permit, Menankoto exploitation permit by the state of Mali allows us to move forward on among B2Gold's most important near-term growth opportunities. Mining pre-stripping activities can now commence. Fekola Regional is expected to ramp up operations through the end of 2027 and to produce somewhere in excess of 150,000 ounces a year from 2028 onwards through the mid-2030s.

Then beyond Mali, we continue to strengthen our portfolio and balance sheet during the quarter. We completed the sale of our 70% interest in Fingold to Agnico Eagle for $325 million. We repurchased 19 million shares under our renewed NCIB for $92 million and completed the final deliveries into our gold prepaid contracts, which Mike will talk about a little more in a minute.

So while the second quarter reflected some temporary pressures on free cash flow from taxes, prepaid deliveries and elevated production costs, those headwinds are definitely expected to moderate. And with the gold prepaid deliveries now behind us and all remaining gold sales now exposed to spot prices, we expect a meaningful improvement in free cash flow generation as we go forward.

So with that, I'll turn the call over to Michael McDonald for a discussion on our financial results for the second quarter.

Thank you, Mike. Second quarter financial results on a consolidated basis finished in line with our expectations for the quarter. Outperformance at Fekola, Masbate and Otjikoto offset a tougher quarter for the Goose mine as it ramped up milling operations following the previously reported fire in certain areas of the crushing circuit in April 2026.

Net income attributable to shareholders was $417 million in the second quarter or $0.31 per share, benefiting from the gain on the sale of our Finland properties, combined with unrealized gains on derivatives. After backing those gains and other nonrecurring adjustments out, our adjusted net income attributable to shareholders was $41 million or $0.03 per share. It's important to note that our adjusted net income figures included approximately $71 million of realized losses related to our gold collar contracts during the quarter. Without that impact, adjusted net income per share would have been just over $0.08 per share. The gold collar contracts concluded in December of this year and B2Gold will go into 2027 completely unencumbered from gold prepayment and gold collar contracts.

Operating cash flow before working capital adjustments was $94 million during the second quarter. Assuming current gold prices remain, operating cash flow is anticipated to rise significantly into the second half of 2026 when compared to the second quarter, primarily due to the completion of the Gold Prepay contracts that finished in June 2026. Free cash flow was negative $258 million during the quarter, in line with expectations when we released our guidance at the start of 2026. Free cash flow was impacted primarily due to elevated cash tax payments, including the priority dividend payment to the state of Mali related to their 20% ownership of Fekola, plus the impact of the gold prepay contracts, which affected just over 30% of ounces sold during the quarter.

On cash tax payments, the amount we paid in the second quarter of 2026 was just under 45% of what we anticipate paying for cash taxes in all of 2026. So you will see the cash tax number moderate in the third and fourth quarters when compared to the second quarter. The negative free cash flow number also does not include the $325 million of cash proceeds received from the sale of our Finnish properties during the quarter. Despite that, our balance sheet remains very strong. At quarter end, we held $287 million in cash and cash equivalents and had working capital of $405 million. We are in a very strong financial position that will only get stronger over the coming quarters at these gold prices.

Finally, we also continue to return capital to shareholders through our normal course issuer bid and common share dividends. Year-to-date in 2026, we have now repurchased approximately 35 million shares for a total of $172 million. On top of that, in the first half of the year, we paid out $52 million in dividends. Combined, that brings total shareholder returns in the first 2 quarters of 2026 to $224 million, which is over 4% of our current market cap. Those numbers are in spite of the impact of the gold prepayment contracts and the gold collar contracts. As we finish out 2026 and enter 2027 completely unencumbered by those 2 financial instruments, we anticipate free cash flow to rise dramatically at current gold prices and should allow for increased shareholder returns as well.

With that, I'll turn the call over to Bill for an operational update.

Thank you, Michael. From an operating perspective, the quarter was largely in line with expectations. Consolidated production totaled approximately 204,000 ounces. Fekola, Masbate and Otjikoto all exceeded expectations and demonstrated the consistency and reliability that investors have come to expect from those assets. At Fekola, operations continue to perform well, and our focus remained on the efficient operations of the Fekola and Cardinal pits while preparing for the commencement of mining at the Fekola Regional.

With the issuance of the Menankoto exploitation permit, we now have a clear path forward for the development of Fekola Regional. And just to think about that, remember, we had previously received approval and constructed and prepared all the site infrastructure and all the roads, started the pre-stripping and have hired all the necessary staff to begin mining.

At Goose, the crusher fire in April affected production during the quarter. Safety remains our highest priority, and I'm pleased with the team's response to the event. Repair work and remediation activities are progressing as planned with remediation and Phase 1 of the crusher upgrades expected to be completed by the end of the third quarter. In the interim, an additional mobile crusher has been sourced and was delivered to the site in July. We expect it to be operational in early August. The crushing capacity of the new mobile crusher in combination with existing crushers already on site is anticipated to be in excess of 3,000 tonnes per day. Masbate and Otjikoto both delivered another strong quarter of operations exceeding expectations, with solid operating performance at both sites expected to continue throughout the remainder of the year.

The company has increased the production guidance of these operations. As a result of year-to-date operating performance and our updated outlook for the remainder of the year, we have narrowed our guidance range across the portfolio. We now expect consolidated gold production of between 820,000 and 920,000 ounces in 2026. The largest change relates to Fekola Regional based on the delays in issuance of the Menankoto exploitation permit as well as narrowing of the production range at the Goose mine as a result of the fire, which occurred in certain areas of the crushing circuit in April this year. These changes are partially offset by the previously mentioned guidance increase at both Masbate and Otjikoto.

Importantly, our consolidated cash operating cost guidance remains unchanged between $1,155 and $1,280 per ounce produced. We have also lowered our all-in sustaining cost guidance range to between $2,370 and $2,550 per ounce sold and currently expect full year results to be at or below the low end of that range. Overall, we remain confident in our operating outlook and are focused on delivering a strong second half of the year.

With that, I'll now turn the call back over to Mike Cinnamond.

Thanks, Bill. Thanks, everyone, for the overview of the quarter. We're obviously pleased with the results and pleased with how we look as we look forward for the balance of this year. And obviously, receipt of the Menankoto permit this morning is a great step forward for us.

We said there were 2 key things we're going to execute on this year. One was to move Fekola Regional forward. So now we're well positioned to do that and start moving ahead there. And then the second piece that we said was key was for us to get our remediation -- fire damage repair work done and remediation work done at Goose on the crushing plant so that we can bring ourselves up to steady state of around about 300,000 ounces a year by mid-'27. So I think you've seen in the materials we released that we've got a good plan for that now, and that plan is well underway.

So with that, those comments, I would open it up for questions.

[Operator Instructions] The first question comes from Wayne Lam with TD Securities.

Congratulations on a momentous milestone. Maybe at Fekola, would you be able to just provide a bit more detail on kind of what changed with the most recent discussions in country? And has anything kind of changed on the relationship in country that prompted the issuance of the permit now?

I can comment on that. I mean we've had several visits in the last few months to see the ministries. And I think the message was very consistent. Over the piece, they put the new mining code in place and the agreements with each of the operating mining companies were negotiated. And then they put some new layers of governance over how they oversee the whole mining activity in the country. And that included most recently creating the new mining commission that we talked about earlier this year. So those [indiscernible] government, they've also created a state mining company, SOPAMIM, that oversees the interest of stakeholders.

So I think the consistent message to us over the last couple of visits that certainly this year was that the state been working hard just to harmonize how each of these ministries interact, who's responsible for which pieces of the '23 mining code as it relates to the operating companies and then obviously, the mining commission that oversees it on an overall basis. So I think the message we got most recently when we traveled there was they've now harmonized a lot. They're comfortable with that we got the right structures set up and they're ready to move forward. And so we were, in some ways, the first major new permit to be granted under the 2023 mining code. And so it took some patience on both sides, ourselves and the state to get there. But as you can see, we're now there. So that's how I'd characterize it.

Okay. That's great. And then maybe just what's the timeline from here in terms of stripping and mobilizing and getting to ore at regional. The guidance at the start of the year was about 80,000 ounce contribution getting the permits at the end of Q1 and stripping through Q2. So should we just take that guidance and shift that forward? Just wondering how to think about the coming months and the ramp up to 150,000 ounce run rate.

Yes. I think we'll give some guidance for '27 when we do the budget, how we see it ramping up. But I think the way to look at this year is we'll get in there now in fairly short order, and we can start pre-stripping. And that will take us a few months. So really, it will take us basically the end of this year, I think, to get up and running. I mean there's potential for some production near the end of the year, but I think to look at the balance sheet, I think we'll assume that we strip this year and then we'll ramp up next year through '27 with the goal of being ready by the end of '27 to be producing at a rate of 150,000 ounces a year from regional.

Okay. Great. And then maybe just last one at Back River. Can you just walk us through some of the challenges with the mobile crushers and what the ramp-up in tonnage looks like through the year, particularly through Q3. Should we still expect relatively low tonnage until you're able to bring the newest mobile crusher online this month? And then I guess on the mining front, are we expecting a step change in grades as well through the balance of the year?

I'll pass this one over to Bill.

Okay. A few questions there. So on the crusher ramp-up, what we're really talking about through Q3 and Q4 is in excess of 3,000 tonnes per day. And then on the grade, I don't think you're going to continue to see the increased ramp -- increase in grade. I think you'll see it drop back to kind of what we had forecasted before, primarily because we're in the process right now of creating stockpiles basically going into 2027.

Okay. Congratulations on a pretty big milestone.

The next question comes from Fahad Tariq with Jefferies.

Just on the Fekola revised guidance for 2026, did that factor in getting the permit, I guess, today? I mean -- or is there upside to the guidance, I guess that's what I'm asking.

You want to take that one, Michael?

Yes. No, I think the best way to think about it is that we're comfortable whether there is some minor production at the end of the year or if that officially starts in 2027, we're comfortable with that range that we put out of 390,000 to 420,000. So I would say just think about it as the complex will fall within that range. And whether or not we get a small amount near the end of the year, it won't affect the numbers materially either way.

Okay. Great. And then just switching gears to Goose. The new mobile crusher says it would be operational, I guess, now in early August. Can you just tell us if that's been -- if it is operational? And just remind us like what is the difference between this mobile crusher and the previous one in terms of any different technical specifications?

Over to you, Bill.

Yes. So the first part is we are commissioning even as we speak. There is a site on team commissioning. So we think in very short order will be up to our nameplate run rate. The difference is really this is just a bigger Metso mobile crusher, very similar to what we had on site before. So basically, we've kind of twinned what we've got going on there. We just have more horsepower.

Okay. Got it. And then going into '27, is there an expectation that these mobile crushers would still be used or will they just be redundant?

Good operational question. So the answer is certainly in the first half of the year, the mobile crushers are going to be necessary as we ramp up Phase 2 of the repairs for the Goose site. And then after that, there is some discussion on whether or not you would use it as backup or would we, in fact, then supercharge some of our regional civil work that we have ongoing.

The next question comes from Ovais Habib with Scotiabank.

Yes, absolutely. Congrats on the Fekola permit. This is a huge achievement. So congrats to the entire team. A lot of my questions have been answered, specifically to the Fekola kind of Fekola ramp-up as well as the Goose crusher. But just on the Fekola side and the regional side, obviously, there's some decent mineralization that was already delineated on the certain areas. Is there other more or more potential in terms of looking at additional satellite pits around the area? Is there a plan now that you have the permit to start some sort of an exploration program in that area as well? Any sort of color on that, that would be great.

So I can -- a couple of initial comments there. We do have some exploration work planned on regional for this year. You'll see us -- we're just commencing that now, actually, just the rain season has just finished. So we will be doing some additional work. I mean I think there's definitely potential for more work to be done there, right? But we have developed plans based on what we know is there already. So in terms of any additional pits, I think we'll be able to give some more guidance later this year as to how we see regional rolling out over the next year.

Okay. And just in terms of looking at Goose again, just in terms of more towards the underground, Bill, kind of how are things progressing on the underground side in terms of mining rates, in terms of just equipment that's already in place? Are you comfortable with how things are progressing? What more do we need to see in terms of ramping that up?

No, it's a great question. We are comfortable for sure in what we're seeing. We had projected that we had to get up to 12 meters per day of development. We're currently at just over 11. So we don't see any real issues. Things are coming along very well.

The next question comes from Lawson Winder with Bank of America.

Absolute congratulations on getting the permit sorted out in Mali. Just looking into 2027 and thinking about gold production that year with the moving parts around grades and volumes from Fekola and Cardinal open pits from the Fekola underground and now regional ramping up. I mean, directionally versus 2026, it would seem we would be going higher from the current range of 390,000 to 420,000. But could you maybe talk around some of the moving parts and just give us a sense of directionally where we should be thinking about Fekola production for 2027?

Michael, do you want to give a sort of overview?

Yes. Yes, I can take that one. So I think for Fekola Complex, as you can imagine, with the point in time here now where we've got the permit for the past few years, when you look at our guidance for the Fekola Complex in '24 and '25, we performed very well in spite of at the start of each year, thinking that there would be some contribution from regional. Now we've obviously got the permit and we'll begin activities there. But Fekola still needs to go through the Phase 8 stripping campaign, which it currently is in right now. And that really unlocks what's a very robust and productive few years for the Fekola Main pit. And then you'll have regional ramped up and underground going as well.

But I think it's probably premature to speculate on '27 yet. The team will work through in the budget process exactly what contribution we think we can get from each of the components. But I wouldn't bake that '27 will be higher than '26 just because we do need to get through the Phase 8 stripping at Fekola. I think the other moving parts as you think about '27 though, is Goose will have a significant ramp-up into '27. So on a consolidated basis, we absolutely think that there's every chance as they go through the budget process that we will be higher in '27 than '26 as a company. But Fekola, we still have some work to do, and we'll come out with more clarity on that with our guidance next year.

Yes. And just thinking about the permits over the next, call it, 3 years, are there any other additional permits needed in order to operate any of the -- or to mine any of the deposits at Fekola? And then in that same thought, maybe you could just address whether you would think going forward now. There's an understanding and the permitting process should be much more streamlined now at this point.

I'll pass this one over to Randall.

Yes. I think the one permit that you would recognize that we're going to need to obtain would be the Dandoko permit, and that's a process that will start on the exploitation side probably later next year for '28. But yes, I agree that the establishment of the governance that is in Mali now, we have full confidence that the process will be much smoother going forward.

Okay. And then if I could just ask another on the sustaining CapEx. So if we just talk about the sustaining CapEx guidance in terms of millions, the original guidance from February was about $540 million between deferred stripping, underground development and maintenance plus there was about $27 million for sustaining exploration. So given that your all-in sustaining cost guidance is expected now to be lower than the original guide, what level of absolute sustaining CapEx would you advise we be modeling versus that original $540 million? And was there any change to the $27 million of sustaining exploration?

I can take that one. So you've seen with some of our disclosure that basically all the sites outside of Goose are under where we expected they would be from a sustaining capital perspective. They need to get through the year and sometimes the phenomenon that you see is that sites end up catching up, which we have disclosed, we anticipate for their sustaining capital balance. But it's been a good trend in the first 6 months of the year. So there is a chance we could come in a bit lower on Fekola, Masbate and Otjikoto.

For Goose, as you can appreciate, with the impacts of the fire, sustaining capital will probably be higher than what we would have anticipated at the start of the year. So it should overall net out to close to what we thought within your numbers at the start of the year.

The next question comes from Josh Wolfson with RBC.

I recognize you had maybe an hour to go through a lot of the questions that we're asking on the numbers in 2027. I'll ask it maybe a slightly different way. The grade for Fekola based on the updated guidance sort of look at maybe the low 1s. When we think about 2027 in that Phase 8 stripping campaign that was discussed, should we expect the grade next year versus the back half of this year to be flat? Or will they decline during that stripping campaign?

Bill, can I pass this one over to you on the Fekola expected grade for '27?

Yes. Once again, you hit it right on the head. We're still kind of working through what we're going to be able to get in from the regional versus what we're going to be able to get in from Fekola proper. So I don't really want to comment on exactly what I think the grade is going to be for 2027.

Okay. I figured I'd ask anyways, but we're all very excited. And then just on the Fekola Regional capital, I mean, it looks like you spent roughly $40 million so far year-to-date. What should we think about the remaining capital requirements in the back half of this year and maybe for 2027 to ramp up?

Yes, I can comment on the back half of the year. So what you'll see is clearly as we begin stripping, you'll see some deferred stripping capital that flows through in the back half of the year. So I think you can kind of anticipate that what we did in the first half is representative of what will happen in the second half, but the first half was more equipment purchases where the second half will be more the deferred stripping capital to get down into the ore.

And then I think for '27, again, probably the answer is it's premature at this stage. I think as Bill and the team go through their budgeting process and we look at what contribution we can get from regional in '27, then we'll have a better estimate of sustaining capital and growth capital for regional at that point.

And just on Goose, following up on one of the responses earlier about the third quarter grades not being maybe as high due to stockpiling. Could you guys maybe discuss a bit more behind why that would be? I would think typically, if you were stockpiling, you would stockpile the lower grade material, but maybe is there something behind that in terms of what the strategy is into next year?

Yes. So the grade is going to be plus 8. So I guess, what I was thinking of when I answered last time, we kind of had -- over Q2, we had some very high, high grade come through. So we are going to see plus 8 grams. And certainly, we're going to see -- we're going to be in line with what we had projected previously. But when I was talking about stockpiling. For the mobile crushers, we want to make sure that as we get into the Phase 2 ramp-up that you want to have material, which will be able to carry us through Q1 and Q2. So how do we get through the winter time with the appropriate amount of material with the mobile crusher.

The next question comes from Don DeMarco with National Bank Financial.

Congratulations on the news of the permit. I'll start off with Fekola. So how does Fekola fit into the company's strategy? I mean, given the delays on the permitting, there was some uncertainty. But does the news of the award of the permits and your relationship with the state right now, does that restore Fekola as a cornerstone asset?

I would say, Don, Fekola was a cornerstone asset. I mean if you look at -- it's been a great asset for us over the years since we have operated a world-class mine. We've had great success there. It's run well through since we started it up through COVID, through some of the political changes that we saw in the country. So we're just delighted to get this permit. It lets us make long-term plans now. Let us optimize how we can mix the mill feed from Fekola and from regional and has potential to extend Fekola's mill life.

And it took us a little longer, I think, to get this permit than we originally anticipated, as you know. But we're very happy that I think we've worked closely with the state. We're happy now that they've gone through their process. And hopefully, this opens up more opportunities for new permits for other mining companies in the country. So it's still -- it's a cornerstone asset for us. It's been historically half of our production. We can see ourselves getting back about 0.5 million ounces from the complex. It's an important asset.

And so Mike, with this, like does it mean that you might also step up exploration regionally? I suspect that was probably largely put on hold until the permits are received.

Yes. I think there'll be some more regional focus, especially looking for further sulfide material on the regional permit because Fekola is primarily a sulfide mill.

Okay. Great. And on the share repurchases, I mean, the valuation right now is discounted versus peers. In light of this, what's your plan for share repurchases over the next 12 months? I mean is it -- do you plan to get a little bit more aggressive in the near term to take advantage of this dislocation?

You want to take that, Michael?

Yes. Yes. No, we would absolutely agree with the statement that we feel that our current market valuation does not reflect the true underlying value of our business. So absolutely, share repurchases with the free cash flow that we estimate at these gold prices, we will be able to achieve over the coming sort of 12, 24 months will absolutely be on the agenda. These are discussions we have every quarter with our Board and with our management team. But absolutely, that's a tool we will utilize moving forward based on where we trade today and even in the future when we hopefully believe we will trade higher.

Okay. And another question moving over to Goose then. I heard Bill say that they're going to use the crushers into next year and some -- and I appreciate all the color you've given on Goose. But I'm wondering, can you give us a sense of the progression of the throughput rates over the next 12 months? And is there any early color on Goose cost or production in '27? I think we've deviated quite a bit from tech report at this point.

Yes, I'll give the throughput by quarter. As we ramp up into Q3, we're plus 2,500 tonnes per day. And then in Q4, we're at more than 3,000 tonnes per day. Then in H1, we're once again -- H1 2027, we're more than 3,000 tonnes a day. And then in H2, we're going to be at 4,000. That's our plan to be at run rate at the end of Q2. As far as the costs, I don't -- I'm not aware of what guidance we've given on that. So Michael, maybe you can answer.

Yes. I think, Don, you're right in the sense of we're probably deviating a bit from the tech report just with how the ramp-up has gone relative to when that report went out. But I think it's a bit premature to speculate on it. But we absolutely believe it's a large growth year next year from a production base of what we'll achieve this year. But maybe wait for the guidance to come out early next year.

Okay. Well, just as a segue to that, I mean, saw Goose AISC guidance remain unchanged despite the elevated figure that you had in Q2. So should we just take this as kind of a confidence that you're going to restore to a lower cost run rate in H2?

Yes, yes, 100%. I think you'll see as what Bill has described to end the year, we should be able to have the main crushing circuit back up and running, and there's some very good grade that's anticipated to go through the mill through Q4. And I think that should give a good representation of what we can achieve in the first half of next year. And then the second half of next year we'll be at that 4,000 tonnes per day average, and that will give a really good estimate into what we think the next few years will look like because that will be steady state for the Goose mine.

[Operator Instructions] The next question comes from Carey MacRury with Canaccord Genuity.

I'll follow the congrats on the permit. But just switching to Goose and exploration, a year or so ago, you cut the reserves there with I think a view of tightening up drill spacing. I know you've got 6 million ounces of reserves there. So just wondering if we should be expecting some of those ounces to start coming back into reserves at the end of this year.

We've got Vic King here, so I'll pass that one over to Vic.

Yes. A significant part of our budget is deeper drilling, infill drilling, particularly at the Llama deposit. And the aim of that is to actually convert what was downgraded to inferred subsequent to our acquisition back into indicated and obviously, that will convert to reserves.

In terms of exploration, we have what we call the Llama gap at Llama, which we're moving and working towards where we can fill the gap and add ounces. I think those will be fairly marginal this year, what we will add during the course of this year. And then obviously, the potential for down plunge extension of both Llama and Umwelt and also what we call the Nuvuyak deposit, which is another deep deposit, but very good grade will all add to the picture at Goose.

And how many drills do you have if I can ask?

6.

6. Okay. And then just switching to something maybe longer term with the Fekola permit now and getting Goose up and running at full capacity next year. Just wondering how things are going with Gramalote. Is that something that -- or just how you're thinking about that project? Is that something that you'd look at potentially starting next year or rather work on capital allocation anytime?

I think we're progressing things at Gramalote. So we'll continue to derisk it. We've got the permit modifications, which are ongoing. That process is going well from the most recent updates I saw. And then we're also progressing the resettlement program, as you saw in our budget. So that's going to take us into first half of next year, Carey, anyway. And then we can step back and see where we are. And in the meantime, the other key focus is to continue to execute on our 2 top priorities for this year.

Next question comes from Anita Soni with CIBC World Markets.

Congratulations on receiving this permit. I know we're all very happy for you. Just a question on the throughput levels at Goose this quarter. I think, Bill, you said that 3,000 tonnes per day in Q3. What is the -- prior to the mobile crusher being installed, what has the throughput been operating at since the beginning of Q3? I assume it's somewhat similar to what it was operating at in Q2. Was it better than that?

Yes. Well, it's kind of dribs and drabs right now as we move stuff in and out. So the answer is we can, in fact, on some days, run as much as 4,000 tonnes. But then you get a jam up. As you know, we're in the process of fixing the entire line. So we've kind of been in that 1,500 tonnes when we're running, 1,500 to 2,000. But obviously, we'll be ramping up here relatively shortly to much higher numbers.

Okay. And I think I got some clarity on the grades already from other questions. Could you also remind me with the regional permit, what the taxation -- it's the 2023 code, but what additional taxes and royalties would be on that ore rather than what's seen in the main permit? I know we're up the tax rates that are -- sorry, royalty rates that are kind of in the 17% zone. But is there anything additional with this regional ore for that ore that we should be modeling in?

Well, I'm delighted to pass this over to our new tax guy, Michael McDonald, but I can comment. Yes. So I think the primary differences that we saw overall when we move from one code to the other is that the income tax rate under the new mining code it doesn't get that reduced mining rate for very long. The 25% accommodation that you get in Fekola, that's a significant reduced period. So you basically can assume it's going to be a 30% corporate income tax rate for regional. And in addition, on the ISCP, which is for special tax, there was a bump of 2% versus what Fekola pays. The royalty structures are basically the same between the 2. So those are kind of really the primary differences.

I think I'd just add to that, that on top of what Mike talks about, which is the corporate income taxes, we also classify the priority dividend that we pay within our taxes. So Fekola proper has an effective rate of around 40% once you factor in the 20% priority dividend. And then Fekola Regional will be higher than that as well, too, in the end once the final ownership structure is set. You're allowed to deduct the priority dividend from your corporate income tax. But yes, it raises the effective rate of what we report within our financials and what flows through our current and deferred tax income line.

Yes. And to clarify that again, so the 20% interest in Fekola that the state owns is a priority interest it's characterized as a tax in Fekola Regional that we expect the state to have 35% interest. So that will be a net higher amount.

Okay. And then I think the last question I had was on some of the costs at Goose. So there was, I think, $16 million to purchase this mobile equipment that was shipped and is being installed right now and then $11 million for the installation. And I was just trying to understand like where those costs -- were they flowing through in the total cash costs? Or were they coming in through another line and excluded from the total cash cost and AISC calculations?

Yes. So the fire remediation costs will flow through our sustaining capital. So that would flow through all-in sustaining costs. But then the Phase 1 and Phase 2 capital would flow through our growth capital line. So it would not be included.

Okay. All right. And then so none of these costs went through your -- I'm just talking about the down with -- obviously, your processing facility was -- did you capitalize any costs related to the fire -- sorry, you removed some of the cost from the fire, because that's -- originally, I think we were talking much higher cash cost this quarter.

If you look within our financial statements, yes, there's a line other cost of sales that was just under $16 million in the quarter, and that was costs related to the downtime that we experienced in Q2. And that was excluded from our per ounce costs.

Okay. All right. And that $16 million and $11 million I was talking about with the purchase and that won't flow through the cost, like the $11 million to install will not be included in the cost as well, right?

Yes.

This concludes the question-and-answer session. I would like to turn the conference back over to Mike Cinnamond for closing remarks. Please go ahead.

Well, thank you very much, everyone, for all your questions. If there are any additional follow-up questions, obviously, feel free to reach out.

In conclusion for today, I just want to say we're obviously delighted about the news, delighted for ourselves, delighted for investors, our shareholders, stakeholders, and delighted for, I guess, the state of Mali as well that we can all move forward. We think this is very constructive. And it just helps move us along again back to those 2 key things that we said we're going to do. You've heard on this call how advanced our plans are for Goose and all the remediation work and the upgrade work that we're doing. And we've got a good plan to do that, and we're going to continue to focus very clearly on executing that.

And then at regional, we're pretty much ready to go to get going with the stripping activity. So we're excited to do that. We've been poised to do that for a while. Now we have the chance to actually get out there and make it happen. And so I know there's been a wait for that, but now here we are. So excited for that, very optimistic for the future here as we move the company forward and grow it.

So thanks all for your attention today and your great questions, and look forward to talking to you all in due course. So thank you.

This brings to a close today's conference call. You may disconnect your lines. Thank you for participating, and have a pleasant day.

Thank you for standing by. This is the conference operator. Welcome to B2Gold Corporation's First Quarter 2026 Financial Results Conference Call. [Operator Instructions] The conference is being recorded. [Operator Instructions]

I would now like to turn the conference over to Clive Johnson, President and CEO of B2Gold. Please go ahead.

Thank you, operator. Good morning, everyone. Thank you for joining us today for our first quarter earnings call. This has been a period of solid operational performance and disciplined cost management against the backdrop of the ongoing volatility in global commodity markets. Our focus on safety, sustainability and operational excellence continues to drive reliable production and strong cash flow generation across our portfolio. Today, we'll review our financial results, highlight key developments across our assets and discuss our outlook for the remainder of 2026.

In light of recent events in Mali involving the conflicts between government and certain groups, the company also wishes to report that its business operations in Mali continue in the normal course with such activities occurring at far distances from the company's operations. The company continues to closely monitor the situation and take precautions to ensure the safety and well-being of persons of our employees and contractors in Mali.

Next, I would like to acknowledge the important leadership transition we shared earlier this year, announcing my retirement as President and CEO effective June 4, 2026, and the appointment of Mike Cinnamond as B2Gold's next President and Chief Executive Officer. It has been a great privilege to have led B2Gold since its formation in 2017 as a start-up exploration -- junior exploration company. Since then, we've grown the business through timely and well executed acquisitions to make the company where it is today. And I'm especially proud of the fact that we have lived up to our values of fairness, respect and transparency and our reputation as an efficient and transparent operator have enabled us to attract and retain some of the best people in the mining industry.

In addition, I'm proud of the contributions to the communities in which we operate around the world, and our goal is to lead them in a better place than when we arrived. Now is the right time to pass the torch and making this decision. I'm very confident in Mike and our strong executive team to lead our next stage of growth. I'm proud of my contributions to B2Gold and look forward in my new role as Chair Emeritus to watching and create long-term sustainable value for our shareholders in the years ahead. After 19 years, this will be my last quarterly conference call with you.

And while I can't say it's always been a pleasure, I think we've overall had productive relationships and there's currently a good strong group of professional analysts. We realize you have challenging jobs as you attempt to cover all of the companies in our sector. With that, I'll turn it over to Mike Cinnamond.

Thanks, Clive. I'd like to say I've had the opportunity to work closely with you and the team for many years now, and I'm stepping into this role with a strong understanding of our business and I take confidence in the foundation that's been built on. We've got great people. We've got great assets. And as we go through this transition, my focus is going to be on maintaining that foundation while continuing to strengthen execution and deliver consistent results for our shareholders. And I look forward to working -- continue to work with Clive during the transition period as well as Kelvin Dushnisky, our Executive Chair, our Board of Directors and the management team and all of our great people at B2Gold sites around the world as we help this company achieve its full potential.

And also I want to congratulate Clive in his role as Chairman of Emeritus. And I think that reflects its recognition of his lifetime's contribution to both our company and to our industry.

Moving on to the results. The first quarter was a strong start to the year at all of our operations with the Fekola led Goose, Masbate and Otjikoto mines all outperforming expectations. Financially, it was a strong quarter. GAAP earnings were $0.15 per share and on an adjusted basis was $0.19 per share. The company recorded revenue of nearly $1.2 billion in the first quarter, and that included delivery of just over 66,000 ounces under our gold prepayment obligations. And as of today, we're in our final 2 months of delivery. So we'll have delivered into the remaining prepaid ounces by the end of June.

Operating cash flows for the first quarter were $539 million, and free cash flow was $362 million, another strong result, highlighting the continuing cash generation potential, I think, of our operating assets in this gold price environment. We've been investing for the last 2 or 3 years as we build Goose and move things along at our other sites, and now we're starting to see that free cash flow [Technical Difficulty]. This performance highlights the strength of the business and it provides us with significant financial flexibility.

Looking at our balance sheet, we remain in a strong financial position with cash and cash equivalents of $479 million at March 31, '26, and that's up from $380 million at the end of '25. And also subsequent to the quarter end, we repaid the remaining $75 million outstanding balance on our revolving credit facility, which leaves the full amount of $800 million on the facility available for future draws plus another $200 million accordion feature. So lots of financial strength and liquidity there.

And during the first quarter, we repurchased approximately 16 million shares for $80 million. And subsequent to quarter end, we repurchased a further 4 million shares for $18 million. And I think we expect to continue repurchasing shares as the year progresses. When we look at the value of our business and our share price, we don't believe that the value of our business is reflected in our share price. So I think you'll continue to see us look at that repurchase as we go through the balance of the year, like I said.

Subsequent to the quarter end, we also completed the sale of our 70% stake in Fingold Ventures to Agnico Eagle for $325 million in cash. And with that, we also have an agreement with Agnico to enter into a collaboration agreement related to our respective operations in Nunavut. I think this agreement creates a framework where we can share operational knowledge and best practices across mining, processing and logistics in Arctic environments. And we see Agnico Eagle as a strong long-term partner in the region. And I think this is also consistent with our focus on disciplined capital allocation and strengthening the overall quality of our portfolio.

Overall, we continue to remain excellent financial flexibility to repay our obligations, fund the growth initiatives and very importantly, return capital to our shareholders, both through dividends and through buybacks. And my priority for sure will be to maintain a disciplined approach to capital allocation while preserving that flexibility and optionality as we go forward.

And with that, I'd like to turn the call over to Bill for an operational update.

Yes. Thanks, Mike. It's been a minute since I've been able to start out this way, but I'd say overall, we're very pleased with the operating performance during the first quarter with our operations producing approximately 238,000 ounces, which is above expectations. In Mali, gold production at Fekola is expected to be relatively consistent throughout the year. The company expects to meet the Fekola Complex production guidance range for the year, provided the permit -- the exploitation permit for the Fekola Regional is received by the end of June 2026.

At Goose, we continue to expect the operations to ramp up throughout the year. As we reported in mid-April, we experienced a fire in certain areas of the crushing circuit. As noted, there were no injuries reported and no medical treatment was required related to the fire. The fire damage was localized to the crushing circuit. The company has developed a preliminary revised mill processing plan based on the use of mobile crushers to feed crushed ore directly to the fine ore stockpile while repairs to the crushing circuit are completed. The company has estimated the repairs to be completed in the third quarter of 2026 at a cost of approximately USD 7 million.

These repairs will coincide with the first phase of the upgrades to the Goose mine crushing circuit comprised of the previously announced addition of the run-of-mine bin and apron feeder, plus a new larger jaw crusher and rock breaker. The total cost of the first phase of crushing circuit upgrades is expected to be approximately $11 million.

B2Gold reiterates its previously disclosed estimate that the Goose Mine crushing circuit will be able to operate at an average daily capacity of approximately 3,200 tonnes per day by the end of Q3 2026. The company estimates the impact of the lower availability of the crushed ore as a result of the fire will be limited to the second quarter of 2026 and that the availability of crushed ore in the second half of 2026 will not change from previous estimates. The company now forecast second quarter production of 18,000 to 20,000 ounces versus the prior internal forecast of 29,000 ounces.

Additionally, based on studies conducted to date, B2Gold has identified a second phase of crushing circuit upgrades that are scheduled to be implemented in the first half of 2027 in order to increase the name-plate capacity of the crushing circuit and enable it to run at an average of 4,000 tonnes per day. The total cost of Phase 2 is anticipated to be between $20 million and $30 million.

The second phase of the crusher upgrade includes the installation of a larger cone crushers, additional surge bins and feeders to optimize crusher performance and upgraded conveyors to support the higher throughput.

I just want to reiterate that we -- the company reiterates its full guidance for the Goose mine of between 170,000 to 230,000 ounces in 2026. Over the medium term, B2Gold still expects gold production to average approximately 300,000 ounces per year at the Goose mine.

At Masbate, the operation continues to perform well with a world-class safety record. I think they're plus 7.5 years now, LTI-free, knock on wood. The company has secured a guaranteed fuel supply contract for the next 3 months, and we anticipate another year of consistent operations in 2026.

At Otjikoto, the operations had a solid first quarter and has admirably managed the transition from open pit mining to underground mining, processing low-grade stockpile supplemented by underground ore. The company is actively developing the Antelope underground, which is expected to provide higher-grade ore to supplement the low-grade stockpile production during the period of 2028 to 2032 and result in meaningful production profile for the Otjikoto mine well into the next decade.

With that, I'll turn it back over to Clive.

Thanks, Bill. We're opening up for questions now. Michael. Okay, we're ready to take questions, operator.

[Operator Instructions] The first question comes from Wayne Lam with TD Securities.

Just wondering as we -- at Fekola, maybe as we look out to 2027, production is expected to improve next year in the mine plan as you kind of get through the stripping phase. But just wondering what percentage of that production is expected from Fekola Regional in '27? And then just assuming you get the permit in June, I guess, would there still be a large portion of stripping that's been deferred into next year just given the delayed access?

So maybe I'll answer them in reverse order, if you don't mind. So we've already started pre-stripping at the regional project. Remember, not only did we only start pre-stripping, all the infrastructure is in place. So all is required there is the permit for us to go. So it's not like this delay is causing us to delay stuff into 2027. So as long as we get a permit by Q2, we're reiterating our regional guidance for the Fekola Complex.

The first part related to 2027, I don't think we've actually put out at this time, 2027 guidance anywhere. So clearly, it's going to depend on what happens over the next little bit with the permit and how it all -- what the percentages are. But you are correct. There is a large portion of ounces that do come from the regional permit in 2027.

Okay. Great. No, yes, I know. I was just talking about the prior mine plan. But maybe just at Goose, I just want to also understand a bit more in terms of the ramp-up of the capacity at the mill. If I take the Q1 grade recoveries, I think the 20,000 ounce guidance implies around 1,000 tonne per day run rate. So just wondering, as we look kind of ahead to Q3, is that a progressive increase in tonnage through the quarter to get from 1,000 to 3,200? Or is it a step change based on the first phase of the crusher install? And then just similarly, to get to 4,000 tonnes, again, is that a gradual increase? Or is that another step change? Just trying to understand the quarterly cadence in production profile over the coming year.

Yes. So you got the first part, absolutely correct. In kind of Q2 and as we move forward, you're right, we're kind of sub-2,000 for sure as we get going. But we will be ramping up. It will be a ramp-up to the 3,200. And that's primarily because in Q3, in September, that's when a lot of the big change out happens. So there is kind of that ramp-up between September and October. So the answer is yes. It's a ramp-up to 3,200.

And then as we get into kind of 2027, you're looking at Q1, Q2 running at that 3,200 tonnes per day rate. And that -- we definitely will see as we get towards the end of Q2, that 4,000 ounces. So it's -- I would say it's a very linear ramp up. I think you're going to see there will be days where we're not installing stuff, you're going to see 4,000 tonnes, and then you're going to see days where we're putting stuff in. So on average, you're going to see 3,200.

Okay. Great. That's really helpful detail. And then maybe just last one, just on the field situation at Masbate. Does that 3-month supply take you out to the end of June? And then just wondering what the impact on cost there is at the mine ex the hedging that you have in place?

Ex the Hedge, so I don't know. I don't want to talk about the cost. The answer is it does take us through -- really, basically, what has happened is we have a supplier that is kind of guaranteed a 90-day kind of running supply. So when you say through the end of June, the answer is yes. But if you ask me again next week, I'd say the end of June plus 1 week, right? So right now, we have a rolling 90-day supply. And the cost itself, I'll let Mike comment on versus the hedges.

Yes. I think it's fair to say Masbate is the most sensitive of our operations to price increases. I think that's the way to look at it. We obviously look at it on a consolidated basis and are pretty comfortable with the overall cost profile because we've got solar in our operations, our 3 of our operations. We've got that hedging program. And as you know, at Goose, we already bought the fuel that we're going to use this year. But Masbate is the one operation that probably is seeing the most direct fuel impacts.

The next question comes from Ovais Habib with Scotiabank.

Very congrats on a solid quarter and free cash flow that was generated. Before I jump on to my questions, I just wanted to say thanks to Clive to all the color and the guidance that you have provided on the conference calls as well as all the investor dinners over the past, I would say, 1.5 decades. I just want to say congrats on the retirement to you as well, and please stay in touch.

So just moving on to questions. Sorry, Clive?

Just thanks, Ovais. I appreciate it.

I just wanted to move on to the questions then. Again, just moving on to the situation in Mali. Really great to hear operations are not being impacted. Are you having any sort of discussions with the regulators right now in terms of the regional permit? Or are they all kind of distracted with the situation in Mali?

We are continuing to have discussions. In fact, there was some Q&A that was completed on Monday with the mining ministry. So there still is ongoing discussions, but there is no further process in this. It is really just now a decision of the ministry to put it forward to the Council of Ministers. As you say, there has been obviously some significant distractions over the last couple of weeks. So we do understand that there has been delay, but there certainly has been an ongoing dialogue.

Okay. That's great to hear. And just in terms of question asked by Wayne regarding, obviously, the diesel exposure across the group. Obviously, we're seeing pressures on the cost side on diesel. But in terms of any supply stress issues that you see on any of your sites in terms of reagents or explosives that you're witnessing, any sort of color there?

Yes. So we already talked a little bit about Masbate, right? Masbate, we -- historically we have gone shorter term and barge fuel in. So that's actually been a change on our side that we've tried to lock into a little longer-term contract.

At Fekola, yes, we have seen -- we certainly have seen some changes in the way we operate. We have a preferred contractor that we use that has basically been working through all the issues. He's actually gone out and got additional help. So we don't see it on our end. We still continue to get fuel, and there is no restriction on us and we're operating as designed. But I think some of the vendors have -- they've changed their modus of operating that.

And any sort of color on the reagent side or kind of exposal side, fuel I kind of -- I'm kind of okay with. It's more on the supplies of the fuel and reagents. Any color there?

Yes. Well, this actually goes back to -- let's actually -- remember, when we went through COVID, we operated unhindered. And one of the ways we did that is we opened up our supply chain and looked at the various different ways that we could get materials to site and really kind of put plan A, B, C and D in place. And so some of those have certainly come into play in reagents, whether it be that we're changing locations to make sure that we don't have to ship stuff from -- that goes past the Middle East, and all of that stuff is in play. So the answer is we're not seeing an impact, but we certainly are -- it's something that we are watching, and it is an active discussion inside our supply chain.

Excellent. Thanks, Bill for that. And this -- maybe this question is for Mike. Again, big free cash flow quarter. You've received the $325 million payment from Agnico as well for the sale of the Fingold and the prepays are falling off in June, which should improve your free cash flow profile heading into the second half. So are you looking to get more aggressive on the buybacks, dividends? Any sort of color that you can provide there, that would be great.

Yes. I think you've seen us ramp up there, Ovais, already from last year, what we did in Q1. And I think the answer is yes. We want to use our cash expeditiously. But I think if we continue to see a share price where it is now and the kind of asset value that we see in our assets, then I think you will see us aggressively pursue that. It will be opportunistic, right? There's no fixed formula to do it. We jump in when we see what we think is weakness in the price. And you'll see us continue to pursue that. We budgeted to do that internally through the rest of the year.

The next question comes from Carey MacRury with Canaccord Genuity.

Just maybe a follow-up on Goose. I'm just wondering how the underground mining is progressing versus your target. And I assume you're still building stockpiles ahead of the mill kind of coming back maybe this summer?

Yes. So Q1, we were down just a little bit, but I would say within what I would call kind of a normal range. Q2, we're expecting to be fully online and the stockpile does continue to build up. That's really what Q2 is about.

And what's the underground mining here again, if you can just remind us?

What are they doing right now? I can't remember, if I'm being honest. Let me -- Carey, let me look that up real quick and get back to you.

The next question comes from Don DeMarco with National Bank.

So congratulations, Clive. Best wishes on next step. Certainly, it's been a privilege working with you over the years. First question, at Goose, the fire damage focused on the crushing circuit. So I see a crusher is being brought in. What's the time line risk to the repair? And taking a step back, do you have adequate spares on site to the extent that's practical? And does this make you relook at your annual supply stocking and maybe potentially extend the inventory of other items?

Okay. So it doesn't impact. As described at the first, it doesn't impact the schedule. It basically kind of fits right in line so much so that we're now looking at where do we have double -- we have overlap in labor, right? So it doesn't impact the schedule for the upgrades. We did not have some of the key stuff on site. You wouldn't expect that you would have fully replaced a lot -- had a lot of the screens as everything on site, in particular, as much as the fact that we can [indiscernible] stuff in Canada.

So we are looking at it for sure. But remember, we just came into operation just a little bit ago. So all that's in play. Some stuff we think we may have a little bit too much of inventory because we ordered for the sea lift and we brought it in [indiscernible] some stuff we're seeing now that we need additional based on the hardness of the ore or the way we're operating. So all that stuff is in play right now. So the answer is yes, we're looking at inventory very closely.

Okay. And then over to the sale of Fingold and the collaboration agreement you have with Agnico in the north. To what extent do you already collaborate with Agnico? And looking ahead by sharing best practices, would this involve sharing labor, maybe cross appointments, across operations? Just trying to understand what the scope of this agreement might entail.

Well, in terms of what we already do, we already liaised with Agnico fair amount, like we see them periodically, and we do talk. And so this agreement, I think, really just put a bit more structure around that. We definitely want to focus on things like best practices, how you order goods in and how you get them in because we all have the same logistics issues. The mining function. Labor, I wouldn't say it's sharing labor per se, but certainly labor best practices and where we're sourcing our labor workforce from and how we bring them in and out. It's really all -- overall, it's just how can we both benefit by saying this is what's worked for us and maybe this is what hasn't.

And then also, I think you'll see us probably look at collaborating on what can we do in terms of community relations and working with the territory as we go forward. It's really -- it's a holistic sharing exercise, I'd say.

And Carey, just to your earlier question on the underground development. 10 meters -- I could remember it was 10 or 12 for Q2, but it was 10 meters for Q2 per day, ramping up to 12 meters in Q3.

Okay. And Mike, maybe just as a follow-up to that. I mean, we see the government of Canada has these initiatives to expand the development of the north of building new airports and runways and things like that. Does this potentially put any pressure on the labor availability for the mine?

I mean ultimately, they developed like significant infrastructure activities, there probably will be more competition for labor up there, but that's always the way right now. So I think for now, we watch the situation and see what unfolds, but it's going to take a while for them to build some of that infrastructure. And I think we'll remain flexible as we go forward. I think we also think there are significant labor pools out there, and we're certainly something we're focused on as well. Where do we bring people and from.

[Operator Instructions] The next question comes from Anita Soni with CIBC World Markets.

And firstly, I just wanted to say, echoing Ovais' and Don's comments, congratulations, Clive, on a long career in mining, which we know is not easy. I've known you for, I think, 20 years now. I covered BMI in 2006 that's when I first met you. So I know you've had a lot of success along the way and best wishes on your next steps here.

The first question on grades at Goose. So you had some pretty good positive grade reconciliation this quarter. Can you just talk about like was it areas of the pit or specific areas in the underground mine where you were seeing that grade reconciliation? Could we expect maybe budgeted grades for the rest of the year to also follow suit? Or is there something that we should be thinking about in different areas that you'll be mining in for the rest of the year?

Yes. So you're correct, both open pit and underground to date have been reconciling very well. And we don't see that changing. Through unwell, the open pit and the underground, all of our preliminary testing, everything shows that the grade is going to hold as designed.

Okay. And then secondly, just a question on the tonnage in Q2. I just want to get an idea of what kind of tonnage that you're expecting for the second quarter and what you would expect to exit the second quarter, just so I can kind of figure out the evolution over the next 4 or 5 months before you get the remediation measures in place in September, October.

So you're talking -- I assume you're talking about Goose?

Yes, for Goose.

Okay. Yes. We talked about Goose, where we're going to be kind of sub 2,000 for Q2. And if I'm being -- the reason is we're going to be -- within Masbate, mobile crushers are working right now, but we are, in fact, running them like on a 4-day cycle where we're running the mill. The mill still runs at 4,000 tonnes a day without a problem. So we're basically building up the stockpile in the dome, mining it and then doing the same thing. And then in Q3, we're going to be ramping up as we get the second mobile crusher, which will help us ramp up to that kind of 3,000 tonnes per day, ultimately 3,200 tonnes. That was going to come online kind of in June, July. So we see that through Q3 at kind of 3,000 or 3,200.

3,000 to 3,200 in June, July. Okay. And then just lastly on Fekola, just a point of clarification. From my understanding, the latest -- I know you haven't given any guidance for 2027, but the latest technical report shows, I think, 2 years of a stripping campaign. Is that not correct?

Yes. But we'll still be -- we need 3 months really to get going, and we'll start pushing ore through the mill after 3 months. So yes, we will be stripping while we're mining.

Yes. But I thought the idea was I think that the latest technical report had production relatively similar to 2026. Is that not correct?

No, I think '27 is a pretty good year. Yes. When I say pretty good, as in kind of -- maybe it is when I think 60 to 80 is probably in that range.

We have a follow-up question from Carey MacRury from Canaccord Genuity.

I just want to ask about the outperformance on production in Q1. Is there any of the assets we should expect lower in Q2 outside of Goose?

Well, I think we saw like outperformance across all of them. I think we'll hold on to it, right? Like I don't think we're going to see like a step down in Q2 from any of us other than what we mentioned for Goose just because of like reacting to some of the fire damage and keeping Goose bringing it back up again. So I think the other assets, they continue to perform well. I don't think we expect we'll give back any of the gains that we had.

Yes. I just -- it's Michael. I would just elaborate that Masbate, if you look at the guidance for the year, the midpoint was around 180,000 ounces. And so we think 45,000 ounces per quarter is still a good estimate. It obviously has outperformed in Q1 as it has in certain years. But I think we're not sure that's going to continue on through the year. So Masbate could give back a little bit, but it's relatively small.

Okay. That's great. Also, Clive, I just wanted to say congrats and all the best in your retirement as well.

This concludes the question-and-answer session. I would like to turn the conference back over to Clive Johnson for any closing remarks. Please go ahead.

Okay. Thank you all for your good questions.

This brings to a close today's conference call. You may disconnect your lines. Thank you for participating, and have a pleasant day.

Thank you for standing by. This is the conference operator. Welcome to B2Gold Corporation's Fourth Quarter and 2025 Year-End Financial Results Conference Call. [Operator Instructions] The conference is being recorded. [Operator Instructions]

I would now like to turn the conference over to Clive Johnson, President and CEO of B2Gold. Please go ahead.

Welcome, everyone. As you heard from the operator, we're here to review B2Gold's financial results for 2025. The fourth quarter of 2025 brought a solid end to what was an exciting year for B2Gold. The Fekola, Masbate and Otjikoto mines continued outperformance, and the first ramp-up quarter at Goose resulted in the strongest consolidated production quarter of the year. Across our portfolio, we celebrated many milestones during 2025. We achieved record revenue of $3 billion.

In Mali, we produced 4 million ounce since the inception of the mine and received the Fekola underground exploitation approval, producing over 20,000 ounces from Fekola underground in to 2025. We are excited for the future of Fekola underground as a contributor to the Fekola complex as it ramps up to full production.

At Goose, we celebrated the first gold pour in commercial production. This milestone is not the one that we celebrated on our own, and we look forward to many years of operations in Nunavut. Canada is in close collaboration with our partner, the Kitikmeot Inuit Association and Kitikmeot Communities.

In Namibia, B2Gold announced an improved construction decision of the Antelope underground deposit. Production from Antelope has the potential to increase Otjikoto mine gold production, leveraging the low-cost platform and extend the life of mine into the 2030s.

At Masbate, the operations delivered a better year consistent and safe results, achieving the incredible fee for 7 years without a lost time injury. In this strong gold price environment B2Gold is well set up to take advantage with a strong asset portfolio and a flexible balance sheet and with growth capital spending at Goose now complete, the company is in a position to add significant shareholder value over the coming years.

With that, I will turn the call over to Mike Cinnamond for a discussion of our financial results in the fourth quarter and fiscal year. Mike?

Thanks, Clive. As Clive said, financially, it was a strong quarter. GAAP earnings were $0.13 per share or $0.11 per share on an adjusted earnings basis. And those earnings would have been even stronger if it wasn't for the timing of the late shipments at Fekola. Fekola had a very strong Q4, and just the timing of shipments at year-end. We had just over 20,000 ounces that were delivered just after December 31. So not recorded in revenues for 2025, but recorded in early '26.

So revenues, we did record $1.05 billion in the fourth quarter. That included delivering 66,000 ounces -- just over 66,000 ounces under our gold prepay obligations. And as of today, we've delivered January's tranche and we're working on February. So we're nearly there. We'll have delivered into those and they'll be wound up by the end of June '26.

Operating cash flows for 2025 were $896 million, and that included $286 million in the fourth quarter, which is another strong result, and it highlights the continuing cash generation potential of our operating assets in this very strong gold price environment.

Our balance sheet-wise, we remain in a strong financial position. We had cash and cash equivalents of $380 million at the end of '25. We had drawn $150 million on our revolver at the end of '25 as well, but subsequent to year-end, we paid down another $100 million of that. So leaving us with capacity of $750 million on the revolver, a further $200 million in the accordion feature there. So lots of capacity there.

So overall, I think we maintained excellent financial flexibility to fully repay our obligations on the gold prepays, as I said, by the end of June, and complete our other sustaining and growth initiatives, all across our portfolio, and to continue to fund healthy exploration programs. I think you'll see that in our budgets to extend mine lives, and -- but at the same time, also to return capital to shareholders, and I think that's an important one.

During '25, you saw us start to repurchase shares under our NCIB. We repurchased 2 million shares for about $10 million in '25. But subsequent to year-end, we've gone back then we've purchased another 5 million shares for approximately $24 million. And I think you'll see us continue to do that as the year progresses.

Obviously, with the prepaid rolling off, we've got close to an extra $110 million a month coming in now from cash flows post June, where we're currently delivering into those prepays. But a lot of that extra cash flow, I think you'll see us look at that normal course issuer bid and see if we can buy some more shares back given where we think we are and where we think we're going with our assets as we look forward into some very strong cash flow years coming up.

So with that, I'll turn the call over to Bill for operational and project update.

Yes. Thanks, Mike. So I'd say, overall, we're pleased with the 2025 operating performance at our sites, producing approximately 980,000 ounces, which was near the midpoint of guidance. Looking forward to 2026, we're anticipating production between 820,000 and 970,000 ounces.

Production is expected to be lower than 2025 due to the planned step-down of Otjikoto following completion of the open pit mining in Q4 2025 and the expected lower production at Fekola is stripping of Phase 8 of the Fekola pit continues. These decreases will be partially offset by the continued ramp-up of the Goose mine. While we only have a small data set so far in 2026, all operations have performed above expectations.

In Mali, the company expects to receive the approval for the Fekola Regional exploitation permit during the first quarter of 2026, with production starting in the second half of the year.

Gold production at Fekola is expected to be relatively consistent throughout the year as production from Fekola Regional is expected to ramp up in the second half to offset a decrease in production from Fekola Phase 7 as the Fekola pit begins to transition to Phase 8. Fekola Regional is expected to contribute between 60,000 and 80,000 ounces in 2026.

At Goose, we expect the operation to ramp up throughout the year. The crushing circuit, unfortunately continues to be supplemented with the mobile crusher, production during the fourth quarter was impacted by unseasonably low temperatures impacting the performance of the mobile crushing unit, which is not enclosed and is susceptible to operational interruptions and extreme gold.

Initial modifications to improve performance of the crushing circuit in the near term, including the addition of run-of-mine bins and apron theaters were ordered in late 2025. They're scheduled to be implemented in the second half of '26, at which point use of the mobile crusher will cease.

The company estimates that the crushing circuit will be able to operate consistently at an average of approximately 3,200 tonnes per day once these initial modifications are implemented. Capital for the initial phase has been included in the 2026 operating budget. The company is studying a more comprehensive crushing circuit improvement to increase design capacity at existing crushing circuit, to enable it to run at an average of 4,000 tonnes per day. These studies will be finalized in the first half of '26, at which point the company will determine the optimal scope and timing of additional crushing circuit improvements.

Capital for the second phase has not been included in the 2026 budget. And while the studies are currently ongoing, I reiterate, the studies are currently ongoing, the company believes the overall cost to implement these improvements will be in the tens of millions of dollars and not material to the scope of the operation.

At Masbate, the operation continues to perform well with a world-class safety track record. Mine throughput significantly outperformed expectations in 2025 and achieved a record for the second year in a row. We anticipate another year of consistent operations in 2026.

At Otjikoto, the operation had a fantastic year with strong production from the final phase of the open pit, achieving the upper end of its guidance range for 2025. Given the planned completion of the open pit activities, we expect lower production in 2026 as the mine transitions to processing only Wolfshag underground ore, supplemented by low-grade stockpiles. The company has begun development of the Antelope deposit which we believe has the potential to increase Otjikoto mine gold production to an average of approximately 110,000 ounces from 2029 through 2032.

With that, I'll turn it back over to Clive for the intro into the Q&A.

Thanks, Bill. Let's open it up for Q&A.

[Operator Instructions] Our first question is from Fahad Tariq with Jefferies.

Just on Fekola Regional, can you just give us maybe the latest conversations you're having or not having with the government? And what gives you the confidence that the permit could be in the first quarter of this year?

Yes. It's Randall. I'll respond to this one. Over the '25, I think part of our confidence goes to the movement that we saw over the course of the year. This was a permit that took all of the ability of the Malian government to come up with a consolidation that had never been done before in Mali under the 2023 mining code. And so, for us to be able to move that through last year and get to a point right now where we do have the endorsement of the Minister of Mines, the endorsement of the Minister of Finance on this permit has been pushed through. The technical group, the review has been completed and is sitting with the President and the newly formed Mining Commissioner, Hilaire Diarra. And we are in very regular dialogue. In addition, moving forward with the underground exploitation. And as you've seen, Barrick's Loulo Permit get extended.

The government is moving these things forward. It is slower than we would like for sure. But there is constant dialogue on the process. And that's really what gives us the confidence that we're going to see it in the near future.

Got it. And then just maybe switching gears to Goose. I believe there was an internal study that was being done with FLSmidth to figure out the permanent crusher solution and what that would entail, and how would be -- like the specifications for it. Can you just share anything else from that study that came about, if that's been completed? And what that means for the second half of this year at Goose?

Yes. So the study, as you correctly said by FLSmidth was completed. It's been delivered to Lycopodium who's going to be the engineer of record. They're in the process of reviewing that study. And then, of course, it has to go out for -- once the final design is set, it's got to go out for cost bids and we have to come back with what the final study is. So I think we've been very open that we're not really going to have final answers until April.

What we know is that the first part is the apron feeder and the hopper. That's Phase 1. The second half after April, we'll come out with what the final guidance is. But we did -- I think we did talk about this kind of tens of millions of dollars. So the first -- the Phase 1 was -- is $7 million, and all that's in the budget. The second half is tens of millions of dollars, but once again, without having a study, we're probably somewhere in the middle of that. So it's probably something like CAD 50 million at which time we'll be purchasing equipment.

And there is the opportunity. There's two choices. One, depending on what the final decision is, we could hurt it in, so we could bring it in on plane this year or we'd have to bring it up the road next year. Those are the two options, which have yet to be finalized.

The next question is from Anita Soni with CIBC World Markets.

Just a follow-up on Fahad's question on the throughput. Could you just -- I understood the issue with the hopper and the crusher, but what is preventing it from getting to 4,000? I thought that was -- that initial fix is going to be the final solution. Can you talk about the second portion of it?

Yes, I can. It really is a design factor. So we can run at 4,000. We just can't keep it at 4,000 all day every day. And so we can't catch up ever. So if the crusher goes down for whatever for maintenance or there's a blockage or that type of stuff, then suddenly we're behind, and we can't catch up. So this next study is talking about expanding the capacity of the crusher with the safety [indiscernible]

Right. So getting to 6,000 would just allow you to potentially maybe a little bit more, but average the 4,000. Is that the case?

I didn't say 6,000 for sure. I don't think...

No, no. Your MD&A does say something about evaluating going to 6,000.

Well, no, the MD&A really was a different issue related to sending the overall circuit to 6,000. This is completely tied around the crushing circuit.

Okay. All right. And then just on Otjikoto. I wasn't quite clear about when Antelope would come onstream. I think this capital spending is '26 and '27, but is '28 a ramp-up year in the '29 to '32 was where you exceed 110? And then what would '27 and '28 look like in terms of production?

Yes. So the answer is, yes, to the first part, that '27 and '28 are kind of years, which we're continuing to build, with '29 being a ramp-up. I mean, once again, given the fact we haven't even ordered equipment, it's maybe a bit premature to talk about when ramp-up will happen. But we are talking about '29 and then through '32 being production. And what it looks like in '27 and '28 is kind of that -- it looks like -- just look at my numbers here. I see life of mine at Otjikoto kind of 78 in '27 and 64 in '28.

Okay. And then at Fekola, could you give us a bit of a breakout in terms of what's coming from the open pit and the underground? And then also -- so excluding the Regional where you've got -- I guess, with 70,000 to 80,000 -- 60,000 to 80,000 ounces the breakout between the underground and the open pit and sort of what grades and tonnage we were looking at in each?

Yes. I don't have the grades and tonnage in front of me, but I do have the gross number. So you could back calculate for sure. So from the underground, I'm showing 71,000 in '26. And then the combination of Fekola and Cardinal is I'm showing 300,000. So a total of 371,000 minus the Regional.

Okay. And then the underground. Sorry, could you -- do you know what the grades are at the underground or no -- sorry, the tonnage, the tonnage that you would be pulling?

Yes. Well, I think we're mining of 1,500 tonnes per day there. So I'll have a guy check on where we're on this call just to make sure, but I think it's 1,500 tonnes.

[Operator Instructions] The next question is from Carey MacRury with Canaccord Genuity.

I'm just wondering how we should think about ASIC at Goose once you're at 3,200 tonnes a day versus your guidance?

So well, what I'd say, Carey, you can see, obviously, there's an ASIC ramp up in '26 in the budget numbers, and that's based on obviously much lower range production than we see when we get to steady state. So I think you can see us definitely stepping down. ASIC, we're doing an updated Goose study to incorporate, I think, all of the elements of this new crushing study and what we plan to do. But the goal is that we get ramped up to 4,000 tonnes per day, maybe a little bit further into 2027. So once we've got Stage 2 of the crusher remediation done, then you'll see our Goose all-in sustaining cost step down significantly from what we've put out in the budget here.

Okay. And then maybe just on the cash taxes, you've given guidance at $5,000 an ounce. Is there -- would you happen to know what that be at like $4,500 or so is there any sensitivity around that number?

So sorry, what was the second part of your question, Carey, on the cash taxes?

Just like your cash tax guidance is done at $5,000 an ounce, I'm just wondering what that would look like at $4,500 or so?

Well, yes, you could probably -- if you take what's there and multiply very effective average rate of 30% for the step down, that will probably get you somewhere in the ballpark. Remember, the thing to remember with those cash taxes is we're showing you what we think it is, and we have to make assumptions about how much we repatriate from sites, right? So at these higher gold prices, we're pulling up a lot of cash.

And so it's not a linear step down from $5,000 to $4,200 because there are withholding taxes on those dividends. But if you want to quantify it, very high level, what it is, take the difference in the gold price, multiply it by the production ounces and take 30% of it, you'll get in the ballpark of what the impact of cash taxes would be.

We didn't give that cash tax guidance just to show you what it looks like around the whole group because you can see in 2025 cash tax numbers, with over $0.5 billion and withholding taxes and that was $130 million plus. So it's -- I want to remind everyone, all the analysts for your models, you got to put those withholdings in to see the impact of the higher gold prices.

And we pulled back over $1 billion from sites during '25. So we wanted to give you that guidance in '26 as well, just to show you what we see at $5,000 and withholdings somewhere in that $115 million range and $5,000 is the impact for the year.

This concludes the question-and-answer session. I'd like to turn the conference back over to Clive Johnson for closing remarks.

Okay. Thank you all for those good questions. Sorry, operator, is there somebody else?

I apologize for the interruption. Have you finished your concluding remarks?

Okay. Yes. Thank you, operator. Thanks, everyone, for attending and for your questions.

Thank you. This brings to end today's conference call. You may disconnect your lines. Thank you for participating, and have a pleasant day.

Thank you for standing by. This is the conference operator. Welcome to B2Gold Corporation's Third Quarter 2025 Financial Results Conference Call. [Operator Instructions] The conference is being recorded [Operator Instructions]. I would now like to turn the conference over to Clive Johnson, President and CEO of B2Gold. Please go ahead.

Thank you, operator. Good morning or afternoon or evening, everyone. Thanks for joining the call. We're here to talk about the financial results of the third quarter of 2025. We had a strong operational and financial quarter. Fekola, Masbate and Otjikoto mines all came in ahead of expectations in the third quarter on the production side, resulting in lower-than-expected cash operating cost per ounce. On October 2 of this year, we announced that we achieved commercial production at our newly constructed Goose mine. This milestone comes just 3 months after the inaugural gold pour, and we look forward to many years of successful operations; in Nunavut in close collaboration with our partner with our partners Kitikmeot Inuit Association.

At Goose, third quarter production was impacted by the previous disclosed crushing capacity shortfall and a temporary delay in accessing higher grade from Umwelt underground. We are now in the higher-grade. To ensure a consistent feed of crushed ore to the mill, the company has implemented the use of supplemental mobile crushing capacity. Permanent modification and modifications are in progress and are expected to be implemented in 2026. Continued use of the mobile crusher will assist in operating at higher throughput until these modifications are implemented. We expect to be at design capacity of 4,000 tonnes per day by the end of the year.

Underground mining of the Umwelt deposit commenced in late October 2025 and will be a strong contributor of high-grade ore at Goose over the next few years. In Namibia, B2Gold announced a construction decision on the Antelope underground deposit. Production from Antelope is substantial to increase Otjikoto mine gold production, leveraging the low-cost platform and extend the life of the mine into the 2030s. In this strong gold price environment, B2Gold is well positioned to take advantage with annual gold production of approximately 1 million ounces this year with both capital spending at Goose now complete, the company is set up well to add significant shareholder value over the coming years.

Before I turn it over to Mike to give us more financial detail, I just want to talk a little bit about the political situation in Mali. We've had some news come out, I think what I think are some responsible headlines from some of the media talking about that it's imminent that a terrorist group organization is going to take over Bamako in the country of Mali. We think that is completely erroneous, and it's a great exaggeration of the situation. Yes, there have been some fuel challenges, particularly in Bamako, but we continue to run the mine as we have for many years now and haven't missed any mining due to any kind of political situation or turmoil associated with that. So the mine continues to run well. We're 500 kilometers from Bamako.

And we look at the situation that the government still enjoys popular support from the population. And they see these organizations that are cutting off fuel to Bamako as foreigners. This is not the bad of the people of Mali from our understanding from the intelligence that we have received. So operations continue. It's nice to see some support from other governments in the United States and others. The U.S. came out and posted -- they supported Mali military and said they're looking forward to closer collaboration, working on intelligence together. There's no Western company that wants to see Mali fall into other hands, and there's a lot of international support gathering.

So we're very confident of our ability to continue to produce in Mali and work very closely with the Mali government. We're expecting the permit for our regional mining and trucking at the Fekola mill. That's imminent. And we received not that long ago the permit to go underground at Fekola. So we think we're on track there. And once again, we're not impacted by any of the things going on in Mali right now, and we're disappointed to see this irrational or not true headlines that are running around and lasted little while. And clearly, that's hurt the value of B2Gold. With the benefit of time, I think we'll see that this is a situation not impacting the mine. With that, I'll hand it over to Mike to give us a financial summary of the quarter.

Thanks, Clive. As Clive said, financially, it was a strong quarter. I mean GAAP earnings were $0.01 per share, but they were impacted by several noncash derivative mark-to-market adjustments. And after adjusting for those onetime items, the company's earnings per share were $0.14 per share of adjusted earnings. And clearly, you can see that benefiting from the strong average gold sales price that we saw in the Q and continues now. The company recorded revenue of approximately $783 million in Q3, and that included $144 million related to the delivery of just over 66,000 ounces under the company's gold prepay obligations.

And by the end of October, we had another delivery into those obligations. So we've now delivered into 1/3 of what we own there, and that leaves us just under 200,000 ounces that we'll need to deliver into by the end of June. So we're in good shape there. Operating cash flows totaled $171 million in the third quarter and or before working capital adjustments, $180 million, which is another strong result, and it highlights the continuing cash-generating potential of our assets and the strong gold price environment. Balance sheet-wise, we continue to remain in a strong financial position with cash and cash equivalents of $367 million at the end of the quarter. During the quarter, we drew down -- as we disclosed last time, we drew down $200 million on the revolver. That just helped us manage through some of the working capital timing differences that we have, especially as we deliver in the prepaid.

So we'll continue to do that. But with these gold prices, we expect to repay some or all of it by the year-end. So I'd say, overall, we maintain excellent financial flexibility to deliver to the prepaid, complete our other sustaining growth initiatives, continue to fund the healthy exploration programs that we have and I think continue to return capital under our share buyback plan. So I think that's the summary that I want to touch on in the financial sections. And with that, I'll turn it over to Bill for an operational project update.

All right. Thanks, Mike. So at Goose having key commercial production, the focus now moves to steady-state operations and consistent performance at nameplate capacity. We've identified the source of the crushing issues that impacted performance early in Q3 and have made a temporary fix to the use of the mobile crushing unit. Permanent optimization to the primary crusher and secondary grinding circuits and the installation of the surging capacity are being engineered and designed with a finalized study and remediation plan in December '25.

Use of the mobile crusher is expected to continue until the modifications are implemented. Due to the shortfall of the crushing capacity and temporary delays in accessing the higher grade ore at Umwelt underground, B2Gold has revised its 2025 gold production guidance for the Goose mine down to between 50,000 and 80,000 ounces. Underground mining of the Umwelt deposit commenced in late October '25, and the company expects underground operations to ramp up quickly through the final months of 2025, setting the operation up well for the first full operating year in 2026. The company reiterates the near-term and gold and long-term gold production estimates at the Goose Mine, which includes a production forecast of approximately 250,000 ounces of gold in 2026 and approximately 330,000 ounces of gold in 2027 and average annual gold production for the initial full 6 years of operation of approximately 300,000 ounces based only on existing mineral resources.

Significant construction activities for the first 9 months of 2025 included completion of the mining in the Echo pit and commissioning of the pit as a TSF to include construction of the winter deposition infrastructure. Mining of the Umwelt open pit commenced ahead of schedule with full ramp-up achieved during the second quarter of 2025. Development of the Umwelt underground continued, including development of Fresh Air Raise 1 and 2 to support stope ore production in the fourth quarter of 2025, continued dewatering of the future site of the Llama pit, commissioning of 3 large glycol heating systems, excavation and construction of foundation for the arctic corridor for the camp and construction of mechanically stabilized earth wall for the reclaim tunnel.

In Mali, the site continues its strong performance in 2025, exceeding gold production expectations again in the third quarter. Cash costs per ounce were also lower than expected. Of note, Fekola underground is also performing above expectations despite operations commencing earlier in Q3 on July 30, 2025. At Masbate, the operation continues to perform well with a world-class safety record. Mine throughput has significantly outperformed expectations in 2025, and we anticipate consistent production in the fourth quarter.

At Otjikoto, open pit and underground mining went very well in the third quarter with production also exceeding expectations. During the third quarter, the company approved a development decision for the Antelope deposit. The company has also completed further optimization and believes preproduction capital costs can reduce from $129 million in the PEA to $105 million. Production from the Antelope has the potential to increase Otjikoto mine gold production to approximately 110,000 ounces over the life of the Antelope underground mine. With that, I'll turn it back over to Clive for an intro to Q&A.

Thanks, Bill. Operator, we're ready for Q&A.

[Operator Instructions] The first question comes from Ovais Habib with Scotiabank.

Congrats on a good quarter. A couple of questions from me. Just starting off with Fekola. Fekola underground seems to be ramping up really well. What are the kind of grades you're expecting going into 2026? And is there a target that you have in mind in terms of ore tonnes mined and kind of grade on the Fekola underground?

Yes, I don't have what the exact grade is, but I think we were targeting about 4.5 grams is what I remember, 4.5 grams and a throughput of about 1,500 tonnes a day. So you can do the math on what it's going to be. It's something like that. And remember, those are replacement ounces of low grade.

And Bill, in terms of the development rates into Fekola underground, is that all progressing well and kind of confident in terms of what you guys are going to be producing in 2026 then?

Absolutely. So the contractor is Byrnecut, the same contractor we've had in Namibia, very good relationships and the development has actually been on or at schedule really the whole way.

Good stuff. And then just moving on quickly to Fekola regional permit. I know we are expecting the permit by the end of 2025. In terms of any sort of predevelopment or anything that you guys can do prior to that? Or basically, you guys are just ready as soon as the permit comes in, you start pre-stripping and then start bringing the ore?

We are, in fact, pre-stripping some. We've been given approval to go out and do some clearing and grubbing. So all of that is happening. Obviously, we're hiring people, getting the equipment. So really, we're putting a little bit of money at risk, knowing that everything we've been told that the permit is coming.

Got it. And then just moving quickly to Goose. Underground grades seems to be picking up as kind of we're going into Q4. Are development rates also picking up as well? And again, I think this is kind of a question that has come up in other mining operations as well. Do you have the right people and kind of equipment in place right now?

Yes. We have the right people for sure. Remember, this is remote mining, remote stope mining. So it is a specialized skill. And we do have the right people on site now, and we see that it will be coming up as planned.

The next question comes from Anita Soni with CIBC World Markets.

I just wanted to ask a few questions on Goose. And I just want to understand the key drivers of the cost increase into -- obviously -- sorry, into the fourth quarter. Obviously, there's lower tonnes are going to be pushed and that's going to impact the numbers. But how do you expect that to evolve into next year? I mean you maintained the production guide for next year. So I'm just trying to get an understanding on what we should be thinking about on costs? Are they going to be as indicated previously? Or will there will be some impact?

So it's Mike. Just on the cost, Anita, for the fourth quarter, we guided that the per ounce costs are a little higher. You're right, then we had before. We've left the production costs that were in the budget for Q4 there, but we reguided down the ounces to 45,000 ounces just on the basis that we're a little later getting into the higher-grade stopes and the total production for the Q. So I don't think those are reflective of the cost going forward. This is just a function of the continued ramp-up.

And then on the cost, as we look forward, the 250,000 that Bill was talking about and beyond into the later years of the mine life. We don't have any change to those right now. We're doing the budget for next year and then also an updated sort of upside like mine case as well that we're looking at. So I think we don't have anything new to put out on those at this point. But certainly, the key message is these Q4 ones are ramp-up ounces. So the cost related to those shouldn't be extrapolated into anything in the future. And we've tried to be relatively conservative in that guidance. We had to re-guide it down just for the fourth quarter. So we've tried to be conservative in that guidance and give a chance to meet or even beat it for the Q.

Okay. And sorry, could you just -- Bill, could you just give me an idea of what's actually going on with the delay accessing on well? Like what was the reason for the delay?

The reason for the delay was lack of equipment parts for Sandvik and then operators to run it. And so it's one of those things that you assume in Canada, these things come on a very set schedule, and it just didn't happen. And so we have rectified the situation. We do have the people on site now, and we do have the appropriate drilling media. So it's been solid.

The next question comes from Don DeMarco with National Bank.

Maybe first off, at Goose, you're looking at some different options regarding the crushing, the optimization of the crushing. Among the options that you're considering, we look forward to the results of your report and so on. But what's the potential magnitude of these range of solutions just to get away from that mobile crushing.

Yes. So we talked before. Remember, the initial one when we were in Denver was the concept of really kind of a very small change. Obviously, we've disappointed on it. And so we've got a third-party consultant coming in that will deliver a report in December. So I really don't want to once again tell you a number and then have to walk it back. But it's still a small magnitude compared to fixing it and getting the throughput.

Okay. And I guess, like whatever you decide, I mean, you got the sea lift coming up and decisions to be made to kind of sequence with that and you'd have things on the ground as needed, I would imagine.

That's correct.

Okay. So in Mali, the regional permits, we're looking forward to year-end to have them. The time frame for getting these permits has been somewhat fluid. What are the reasons behind that? I mean you guys have a good line of communication with the government. You've been out there a number of times. Is it a different priority for the government? I mean from your point of view, what's the reason for the pushing back the schedule multiple times?

Well, I think we're in the bureaucracy of Mali in terms of winding its way through various approval levels. Our understanding most recently is that it's -- we're in the final stages of approval, and we expect that definitely before the end of the year and maybe quite imminently.

Okay. Well, we'll look forward to that. And then -- but I see in the report, too, that you're going to start right away with the stripping once you get that and other prep work and look forward to seeing all that production reflected in guidance next year. So that's all for me.

As Bill said, we've already started some prep work, let's say.

The next question comes from Kerry MacRury with Canaccord Genuity.

Maybe a question for Mike. You drew down $200 million last quarter, and I see you paid off $50 million. Do you anticipate needing to use the credit facility as you go through these prepay payments?

I think you'll see us -- like you said, I think if gold prices stay where we see them right now for the fourth quarter, then we expect that we'll have paid down a substantial part of that line, if not all of it by year-end. I think you'll see us utilize it a little bit as we move through Q1 and Q2 just to manage the timing of the prepaid deliveries and the fact that we already got the cash for those. But after that, the line be repaid and it's off to the races. So I think we'll use it as a temporary inter-quarter thing and it's a relatively small draws. And then as we move forward, we're into these cash flow harvest years.

And then just maybe on CapEx at Goose. I mean Q3 CapEx seemed a bit higher than what we were expecting. Maybe that's just seasonality in Nunavut. But any guidance on what we should be expecting for growth capital at Goose for Q4?

Yes. So I'd say if you look at the budget that we put out for half 2, it was $176 million. And we didn't give a split, but it was heavily weighted to Q3. So the budget was roughly $130 million for Q3 and then $45 million, $46 million for Q4. So in Q3, the recorded CapEx in the financials was $157 million, but that includes -- we ended up capitalizing a bunch of site general costs and commissioning costs just because of the timing of the ramp-up, which are -- they were budgeted as operating costs. And so we ended up capitalizing them so they flow through the CapEx line.

Like-for-like, the hard assets in the budget, we were $120 million versus the budget of $131 million plus these site G&A costs. So on the capital front, the pure CapEx front that we budgeted we're pretty much on budget. Q4, we did add $15 million to Goose's capital budget. So it's gone from $45 million to $60 million. And that really is to factor in some -- there's still quite a few folks on site that are gradually being wound down, but there are a few more people on site than we thought for a little longer.

So we added that $15 million. So the way to think about Q3 is if you look at the capital and operating costs, we were pretty much right on budget. It's just to split how we ended up. We capitalized some of the site G&A and some of the commissioning costs that we didn't expect. But that was just a reallocation of cost from 2 areas of the budget. And then Q4, yes, adding $15 million for CapEx for Q4. So it goes from $45 million to $60 million.

This concludes the question-and-answer session. I would like to turn the conference back over to Clive Johnson for any closing remarks. Please go ahead.

Thanks, operator. As we said at the outset, a strong quarter operationally and financially, and we look forward to progressing ramp-up at Goose and continuing our strong performance at the other operations. So if you have any follow-up questions, feel free to reach out to Michael McDonald, and he can put you in touch with the right party to answer your questions. So thanks for joining us today.

This brings to an end today's conference call. You may disconnect your lines. Thank you for participating, and have a pleasant day.