Ivory Coast Moves Up Gold Value Chain with Refinery Plan, 100-Ton Target
Mon Feb 16 2026
The government of Ivory Coast is advancing plans to establish a national gold refining company alongside a strengthened state gold-buying counter, officials said in Cape Town last week. The initiative seeks to capture downstream value from a sector where production has more than tripled – from 18 tons in 2013 to 58 tons in 2024 – with authorities targeting 100 tons of annual output by 2030.
Minister of Mines, Petroleum and Energy Seydou Coulibaly framed the strategy as a shift beyond raw-material exports toward greater control of the gold value chain. “These projects have strong economic potential. We hope to strengthen the national gold counter through investment in sophisticated refineries, because it’s the downstream that drives the upstream.”
The state buying counter allows artisanal and small-scale miners to sell directly to the government at global prices, reducing reliance on informal traders and limiting smuggling. A domestic refinery would process this supply for export, capturing significantly more value than raw ore sales. Sector leakage remains substantial: the World Bank estimates roughly $2 billion in annual losses, including about 40 tons smuggled in 2022.
Rapid Growth Drives Service and Infrastructure Demand
Reaching 100 tons by 2030 implies roughly 72% production growth, creating opportunities across logistics, mining equipment, power supply and technical services.
Coulibaly highlighted enabling infrastructure – from railway upgrades and refurbished mineral ports to plans for a domestic metallurgical industry – alongside strong energy fundamentals, including 97% national electrification, significant hydro capacity, biomass resources and expanding solar investment to sustain mining expansion. “Our abundant energy resources will continue to support our economy as well as the next phase of mining growth,” he said.
Mining investment has surged from $380 million to $3.8 billion over the past decade, according to the Minister, while exploitation permits more than doubled between 2014 and 2025. In February, authorities approved $1.25 billion in new projects, including developments led by Endeavour Mining and Resolute Mining, reinforcing investor confidence in the sector’s expansion trajectory.
Mining Code Revision Targets Critical-Mineral Opportunity
A comprehensive update to the 2014 Mining Code – scheduled for completion in 2026 – introduces dedicated provisions for lithium, coltan, rare earths, chrome, manganese, nickel and cobalt, aligning the sector with rising global demand tied to electric vehicles, energy storage and advanced electronics.
The revised framework aims to strengthen legal clarity, embed local-content requirements and improve negotiating leverage with international investors. The cabinet has already approved 11 new exploration permits in several regions of the country, including allocations tied to battery-metal targets.
Digital governance reforms are advancing in parallel. A fully automated e-mining cadastre, launched in September 2025, is expected to accelerate permitting, improve transparency and enhance investment security.
From Policy to Production Reality
These reforms sit within the country’s Vision 2040 strategy, which targets an increase in the contribution of mineral and energy resources to GDP from 7% to 14%, positioning mining as a second pillar of economic growth alongside agriculture.
Execution, however, will define outcomes. The refinery must progress from announcement to construction, the revised code must attract meaningful critical-minerals investment and digital reforms must deliver measurable efficiency gains.
Mining investment has already expanded tenfold in a decade, and newly approved billion-dollar projects confirm sustained investor appetite. Achieving 100 tons of annual gold output by 2030 will ultimately depend on translating policy ambition into durable production capacity and downstream value creation.
Source: https://energycapitalpower.com