Barrick sells Tongon gold mine to Ivorian buyer, ending 15 years of foreign ownership
Appian-backed Atlantic Group paid up to $305m, making Tongon Cote d'Ivoire's first fully domestically owned major gold mine
Barrick Mining completed the sale of its interests in the Tongon gold mine and associated exploration properties in Côte d'Ivoire to Atlantic Group, an Ivorian company backed by private equity investor Appian Capital Advisory, on 2 December 2025. The transaction, first announced in October 2025, delivers Barrick up to $305m in total consideration, split between $192m in cash, which includes repayment of a $23m shareholder loan within six months of closing, and contingent payments of up to $113m tied to gold prices over two and a half years and to resource conversion over five years.
A mine that outgrew its role in Barrick's portfolio
Tongon has produced gold since 2010 and has contributed more than $2bn to Côte d'Ivoire's economy over its life through taxes, infrastructure spending, salaries and payments to local suppliers, according to Barrick. But as Barrick has concentrated its portfolio on its largest, longest-life assets, including its Loulo-Gounkoto complex in Mali, smaller, mature operations like Tongon became natural candidates for disposal, a pattern echoed elsewhere in the sector as major miners prune non-core mines even in the middle of a gold price rally.
Full Ivorian ownership
The sale to Atlantic Group makes Tongon fully Ivorian-owned for the first time since it entered production, a notable shift in a country where major gold mines have historically been controlled by foreign multinationals such as Endeavour Mining, Barrick itself, and, more recently, Zijin Mining and Montage Gold. Appian Capital Advisory's backing gives Atlantic Group the financial resources of an experienced international mining investor while keeping day-to-day ownership domestic.
What it means for Cote d'Ivoire
The transaction adds to a broader trend of African governments and domestic investors pushing for greater local ownership of established mining assets, achieved here through a straightforward commercial sale rather than the more contentious equity-grab negotiations seen in Mali and Burkina Faso. For Barrick, the disposal generates cash and simplifies its African portfolio around its core Malian operations, while for Côte d'Ivoire it marks a symbolic milestone in the country's ambition to capture more value from its mining sector.
Côte d'Ivoire's mines ministry welcomed the transaction publicly, framing full domestic ownership of an established, mid-sized gold mine as a meaningful step in the country's broader push to grow local participation across a sector that remains dominated by foreign multinationals at its largest operations.
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