Mali expects 14% drop in industrial gold production, mines ministry says

BAMAKO, April 8 (Reuters) - Mali's industrial gold output is expected to drop by about 14% this year to 53.7 metric tons, mines ministry data showed on Monday.

The West African country, one of the continent's top gold producers, is home to industrial mines operated by international companies including Barrick Gold, B2Gold Corp, Resolute Mining and Hummingbird Resources.

Its industrial gold production stood at 66.5 metric tons last year, almost unchanged from 66.2 tons in 2022.

The mines ministry did not provide reasons for this year's lower forecast.

The data showed Barrick Gold is the country's biggest gold producer, with an output representing 36.8% of this year's expected production. It is followed by B2Gold at 26.3% and Resolute Mining at 11.58%.

Last November, Mali signed an agreement with Russia to build a 200-ton-per-year gold refinery in the capital Bamako. It also adopted a new mining code that will allow the military-led government to increase its ownership of mining projects to 35% from 20%. (Reporting by Tiemoko Diallo Writing by Sofia Christensen Editing by Christina Fincher )