B2Gold Corp. is a Canadian gold mining company focused on the exploration, development, and operation of gold projects across multiple international markets. Its portfolio includes producing mines in Mali, Namibia, the Philippines, and northern Canada, as well as exploration and development assets in Mali, Colombia and Canada.
You’ve been connected to B2Gold and its predecessor companies since the 1990s. As you step into the CEO role, what feels most different about the industry today?
My professional career started in the study of law, before becoming a chartered accountant, and working at PricewaterhouseCoopers until 2013. B2Gold and Bema were both clients, and before joining B2Gold, I ran PwC’s mining group, so I had known the company and its leadership since the late 1990s. I became CFO in 2014 and am now stepping into the President and CEO role.
Today, geopolitical risk is much more sharply defined. Countries are increasingly focused on their mineral endowment and what they want from mining companies, making it harder and slower to get deals done and bring new properties online. Mining is a long-term investment business, so changes to mining codes and regulations matter. Higher metal prices have also changed the landscape. Companies have gone from being debt-laden 10 or 15 years ago to having bucketfuls of cash, and now face decisions about how to deploy that capital, including returning capital to investors and investing in new projects.
B2Gold has been investing in new projects while also advancing exploration across multiple jurisdictions. Where do you see the biggest opportunities for growth and value creation in 2026?
We’ve been in investment mode for the last few years, particularly building the Goose mine in Nunavut. In the short term, the focus for growth and value creation is optimizing our existing assets. We need to bring the Goose mine fully online—we’re still ramping it up and completing remediation work on the crushing circuit—but the goal is for the Goose mine to produce gold at a rate of 300,000 ounces a year by mid-2027. We also see district potential beyond the Goose mine itself. We currently own 11 claim blocks along an 80 kilometre mineralized beltand believe there are additional economic deposits there, including George, where we have already identified an initial resource.
B2Gold is now getting to a point in its investment cycle where we are generating significant free cash flow, so we’re focused on returning cash to investors through dividends or share buybacks while optimizing our existing operations in a higher gold-price environment. We want to bring the Fekola Regional area online in Mali, evaluate how higher gold prices can extend existing operations, and pursue brownfield opportunities at existing projects, including Gramalote. Exploration remains the lifeblood of a mining company, so we continue to explore at Goose as well as evaluate greenfield opportunities in places like Suriname and Guyana. By the middle of next year, we should be in a stronger position to decide what the next major growth step for B2Gold will look like.
B2Gold operates across a notably wide range of jurisdictions across multiple continents. What determines whether a jurisdiction is somewhere B2Gold is prepared to invest and operate?
Mining is fundamentally a global business, and you have to go where the deposits are. There are certainly jurisdictions we would stay away from because of political tensions or because we don’t feel it’s safe to operate there. It comes down to balancing risk and return. The industry understands geopolitical risk, and investors understand it too. Over the course of B2Gold and Bema, we’ve built or operated 11 mines in nine countries, and investors trust the team to make good decisions. Part of the secret sauce of B2Gold was being willing to go into jurisdictions where others wouldn’t, while balancing that entrepreneurial spirit with diversification of risk. Building in Canada has certainly helped diversify our overall risk profile.
Some companies with a North America-only focus trade at higher premiums today, and geopolitical tensions have shifted perceptions of risk. But if you have a good project in a jurisdiction you believe you can operate in, investors will still support it. They invest not just in the asset, but in the team operating it. The risk profile has changed somewhat, but mining remains a global business. Ultimately, it still comes down to balancing the perceived risk in a jurisdiction with the returns you can generate.
Where does Canada stand today as a mining jurisdiction, and what will matter most to its long-term competitiveness?
Canada has some major strengths. The Toronto Stock Exchange is one of the premier sources of mining capital in the world, and the country has a highly skilled workforce supported by strong industries—engineers, geologists, lawyers, accountants and consultants. We also have excellent mining schools at places like McGill, Queen’s and UBC. Historically, Canadian projects often carry a premium compared with opportunities elsewhere, so return on investment, including acquisition costs, is always an important consideration when evaluating Canadian opportunities.
What’s changed more recently in Canada is the growing interest in the Arctic and northern development more broadly.
The Canadian Government is focusing more on infrastructure, defence and development in the North, and there’s increasing interest from mining companies because the Arctic remains relatively underexplored, partly due to the cost of exploration, limited infrastructure and power availability.
Some of the biggest challenges Canada faces in developing its Mining industry are permitting timelines and the complex regulatory framework. Companies need to understand the framework and timelines if they’re going to develop projects and bring them into production. Infrastructure is also critical—power, roads and logistics. Mining is energy-intensive, so governments need to continue investing in infrastructure while maintaining strong engagement with communities and Indigenous groups. Canada is richly endowed with minerals, and there is significant scope for future development if investors can see the right building blocks are in place.
What role can the government play in unlocking Canada’s northern regions and attracting mining capital?
Infrastructure is the key. If you build the infrastructure and power, the miners will come. Governments are now putting programs and funds in place—things like the Arctic Infrastructure Fund, Critical Minerals Infrastructure Fund and Canada Strong Fund—which demonstrates real interest in attracting long-term capital investment.
There are already examples of this working. In British Columbia, when Highway 37 was electrified, projects like Red Chris, Brucejack and KSM moved forward. You're seeing the same conversation now in the Arctic and Yukon, where projects like Snowline have world-class exploration potential but still need road and power infrastructure to unlock development.
Gold has been one of the standout commodities of the past few years. What do you think is driving that resurgence?
Gold has been a trusted store of value for centuries—probably the oldest store of value—and today you're seeing central banks buying more gold to diversify away from foreign bond holdings and U.S. dollar exposure. It's increasingly viewed as protection against the risks people see in the world right now. You can see that reflected in the gold price. We've been at all-time highs over the last year, and despite all the uncertainty in the world, gold is still holding around $4,500 per ounce, whereas a couple of years ago it was approximately $2,200. That tells you how markets—and sovereign states—are looking at gold today.
Canada is already the fourth-largest gold producer in the world and has scope to do more with the right infrastructure development. Mining played a major role in building northern Canada, and gold continues to support direct and indirect employment across the country. It remains a significant industry for Canada, and I expect gold to continue to play an important role going forward.
