Highlights

  • Orezone Gold shares were unchanged at $2.270 on 23 April 2026, with 1,997,800 shares traded and a bid-offer range of $2.280–$2.370, as investors processed the company’s Q1 2026 production results — the first quarter in which Orezone operated as a multi-asset, multi-jurisdictional gold producer following the acquisition of Casa Berardi.
  • Consolidated Q1 2026 gold production was 38,789 ounces at an average realised price of US$4,887 per ounce, up 35% from 28,688 ounces in Q1 2025, with Bomboré in Burkina Faso contributing 37,563 ounces and Casa Berardi in Quebec contributing 1,226 ounces covering the five days post-acquisition from 25 March 2026.
  • The 2.5Mtpa Stage 1 hard rock expansion at Bomboré achieved commercial production on 16 January 2026 — just over one month after first gold — with mill throughput exceeding nameplate design capacity by 10% during the quarter, while all major components for the Stage 2A expansion have been procured and earthworks initiated.

 

Orezone Gold Corporation (ASX:ORE) (TSX:ORE) traded at $2.270 on 23 April 2026, unchanged from the prior session, with 1,997,800 shares traded and a bid-offer range of $2.280 to $2.370. The wide bid-offer spread of $0.09 between the bid of $2.280 and offer of $2.370 is notable and may reflect the adjustment period following the Casa Berardi acquisition, as investors assess the combined production and cost profile of the two-mine platform for the first time. With a market capitalisation of $1.59 billion, Orezone has grown substantially in scale and strategic positioning with the addition of Casa Berardi, and the Q1 2026 result provides the first operational data point for the newly constituted business.

Bomboré: Hard Rock Expansion Exceeds Nameplate, Commercial Production Achieved

The Bomboré Gold Mine in Burkina Faso delivered 37,563 ounces of gold in Q1 2026, from 2,372,618 tonnes of ore milled at a head grade of 0.57 grams per tonne. Total gold sales were 37,962 ounces at the average realised price of US$4,887 per ounce — a figure that reflects the current elevated gold price environment and represents a 71% improvement over the Q1 2025 average of US$2,851 per ounce. The Stage 1 hard rock plant achieved commercial production on 16 January 2026, just over one month after first gold was announced on 15 December 2025, with throughput exceeding nameplate capacity by 10% during the quarter.

The quarter was not without operational challenges: intermittent deliveries of emulsion for planned hard rock blasting necessitated a sequencing adjustment in the mining operation, resulting in lower-than-planned tonnes of high-grade hard rock ore being processed. The company has since secured a second emulsion supplier to ensure more consistent deliveries. Despite this headwind, Orezone reaffirmed its full-year 2026 Bomboré production guidance of 160,000 to 180,000 ounces, with production expected to be weighted toward the second half of 2026 as originally guided. This back-weighting is consistent with the ramp-up trajectory of a newly commissioned hard rock processing circuit.

Stage 2A Hard Rock Expansion: Procurement Complete, Earthworks Underway

All major components for the Bomboré Stage 2A hard rock expansion have been procured and earthworks have been initiated. The Stage 2A expansion consists of a rock breaker, thickener, and oxygen plant, and is expected to be completed in late Q3 2026. These additions are designed to incrementally improve metallurgical recoveries and processing throughput, building on the performance of the Stage 1 circuit. The Stage 2A installation is a capital-efficient incremental enhancement that avoids the need for a second full processing circuit while improving the economics of the existing hard rock operation. Completion in Q3 2026 would position the contribution from Stage 2A to be reflected in production from Q4 2026 onwards.

Casa Berardi Acquisition: Quebec Operations Join the Portfolio

The most transformational development of Q1 2026 was the completion of the acquisition of Hecla Quebec on 25 March 2026, which included the operating Casa Berardi gold mine and a portfolio of exploration properties in Quebec, Canada. With five days of attributable production post-acquisition, Casa Berardi contributed 1,226 ounces from 18,882 tonnes of ore milled at a head grade of 2.29 grams per tonne — a notably higher grade profile than Bomboré’s oxide operations, reflecting the underground nature of the Quebec mine. No sales were attributable to the Casa Berardi segment in Q1 2026 given the timing of the acquisition.

Following a scheduled mill maintenance shutdown at the time of acquisition, Orezone entered into an agreement with an underground mining contractor at quarter end, which is now mobilising to site. The contractor will ramp up development rates to support increasing underground production and establish exploration drilling platforms for programmes planned in 2026 and 2027. Surface and underground exploration drilling are underway with three drills active, with two additional drills to be added within a month of the report. Orezone plans to provide full 2026 post-acquisition guidance for Casa Berardi in the second quarter, which will be a key informational event for the market.

Strategic Context: A Multi-Asset, Self-Funded Growth Profile

With the completion of the Casa Berardi acquisition, Orezone has transitioned from a single-asset West African gold developer to what management describes as an emerging intermediate gold producer with operations in Canada and West Africa. The Casa Berardi mine has produced over 3.2 million ounces of gold to date in its operating history, providing a high-quality established asset with exploration upside. The Bomboré mine was constructed and brought into production by Orezone in late 2022, and the hard rock expansion represents the company’s own development execution capability. The combination of two operating mines generating cash flow at a gold price of approximately US$4,887 per ounce provides the financial foundation for the self-funded growth profile that management referenced in the Q1 commentary.

Conclusion

Orezone Gold’s flat share price on 23 April 2026 reflected a market carefully digesting a quarter of significant operational and corporate complexity: the first operating quarter with the hard rock plant in commercial production, emulsion delivery challenges requiring sequencing adjustments, the Casa Berardi acquisition closing in the final week of the period, and the establishment of a multi-asset platform requiring investors to recalibrate their production, cost, and growth models for the combined business. With Bomboré’s full-year guidance reaffirmed, Stage 2A procurement complete, Casa Berardi guidance due in Q2, and a gold price environment above US$4,800 per ounce, the second quarter of 2026 will be the first full test of Orezone’s two-mine operational capacity.Orezone Gold (ASX: ORE) Q1 2026: First Quarter Multi-Asset Production as Casa Berardi Acquisition Completes; Bomboré Hard Rock at 110% Throughput