Fire shuts Kinross’ Tasiast mill in Mauritania

Kinross Gold (TSX: K; NYSE: KGC) has temporarily suspended mill operations at its Tasiast project in western Mauritania after a fire in the mill on Monday which has been extinguished, the company said Tuesday. There were no injuries and mining continues as usual.

The Toronto-based company says it’s investigating the fire’s cause and assessing the damage and any impacts on the site.

Initial investigations show the blaze was limited to the semi-autogenous grinding mill’s discharge area. Essential spare parts are on hand at the site and Kinross doesn’t anticipate its guidance for Tasiast to change.

Kinross shares gained 1% to C$20.13 apiece on Tuesday morning for a market capitalization of C$24.7 billion. Its shares traded in a 52-week range of C$8.58 to C$20.34.

Tasiast, located about 300 km north of the capital Nouakchott, last year produced 622,394 gold-equivalent oz. and hosts proven and probable reserves of 4.7 million ounces.