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g ol de n s ta r 2008 annual report

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bogoso prestea pampe bogoso north wassa mine processing plant ghana chujah-dumasi buesichem prestea mine bogoso processing plants prestea south benso adoikrom benso mine hwini-butre father brown active pits deposits mining lease exploration gsr exploration jv 100 km north golden star resources ltd is a 25-year-old mid-tier gold mining company that produced 295,930 ounces of gold in 2008 and plans to produce 400,000 ounces in 2009 the company has two operating mines in ghana west africa growth opportunities for the future will be a result of successful exploration combined with appropriate acquisitions that will be accretive to shareholders during the last commodities down cycle golden star was able to acquire property at relatively low prices allowing the company to become the largest holder of mining properties on the prolific ashanti gold trend this land position combined with our two processing plants at bogoso/prestea is the basis for expansion at the bogoso/prestea mine and the source of future growth of the company we can now process any ore type found at the mine site as we expected from the time we acquired the wassa assets and subsequently the hbb properties the wassa mine has turned into a significantly profitable operation profitability was enhanced when benso commenced ore delivery to wassa in 2008 and will be further improved with even higher grade ore from hwini-butre expected in the second half of 2009 shares of golden star are widely held by both retail and institutional shareholders and are traded on the nyse alternext us stock exchange toronto stock exchange and ghana stock exchange under the symbols gss gsc and gsr respectively front cover the end result of all our exploration and mining activities and the source of our market valuations is the amount of gold bars doré produced from our beginnings as a producing company in 1999 with production around 20,000 ounces and mineral resources of some 200,000 ounces of gold we have grown to gold production of almost 300,000 ounces with significant mineral resources the goal of management continues to be to build shareholder value through increased gold production increased mineral reserve and resource bases and reduced costs across the board accomplished in a safe manner these goals will be attained due to the efforts of our employees who are the fundamental drivers of our success forward-looking statements are made in this report to give the reader an indication of our business prospects plans and objectives although we believe these statements are reasonable as of the date of this report readers are cautioned that forward-looking statements are inherently uncertain and involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results performance or achievements to differ materially from those stated there can be no assurance that future developments affecting golden star will be those anticipated by us readers should refer to the risks involved in making forward-looking statements which are given on pages 3 and 20 of our form 10-k contained herein non-gaap measures are used in this report in particular total cash cost and cash operating cost on a per-ounce of gold basis this information differs from measures of performance prepared in accordance with gaap readers should examine the cautionary and explanatory statement on pages 3 and 47 of our form 10-k contained herein.

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letter to shareholders the year 2008 will be remembered throughout history for its unprecedented financial and economic crisis as a company we were impacted by extraordinary volatility in gold prices oil prices power prices and in the financial markets despite this volatile situation golden star was able to complete another year of growth most significantly we · achieved record production with sales of 295,927 ounces of gold up 20 from 2007 · continued our improvements at the bogoso sulfide processing plant · commenced mining at the benso mine and processing this high grade ore at the wassa mill and · were awarded a nedbank capital green award for our gsopp golden star oil palm plantation project record gold sales were again achieved by the company due to higher metallurgical recoveries at the bogoso mine and the start of production from the benso mine with a total of 295,927 ounces for 2008 an increase of 20 over 2007 our goal is to increase gold sales in 2009 to 400,000 ounces a further 35 increase tom mair president ceo we continued to optimize the bogoso sulfide processing plant approximately 80 of the mineral reserves and resources at bogoso/prestea are refractory hence we commenced construction of the sulfide plant in 2005 commercial production commenced in mid-2007 at the sulfide plant at bogoso in 2008 we increased recovery and throughput rates at the mill recovery rates at the bogoso sulfide processing plant steadily improved through the year from 57.0 in the fourth quarter of 2007 to 71.1 in the fourth quarter of 2008 recovery was over 74 in december 2008 our focus going forward is to reliably mill 750,000 to 780,000 tonnes of ore in each quarter while continuing to improve recovery rates our other challenge at the bogoso operation is cost containment we made substantial progress by reducing costs 21 in the fourth quarter compared to the third quarter of 2008 we expect to make further progress on this front in 2009 the bogoso oxide processing plant was put on care and maintenance in the third quarter at prestea south we have submitted all necessary 2 0 0 8 annual repor t 1

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applications for the permitting process the next step in this process is to hold public hearings to allow our catchment communities an opportunity to learn about the project and voice their concerns and comments after receiving the environmental permit we will build a 10 kilometer haul road and begin hauling ore to the oxide mill late in 2009 which will allow us to restart the oxide mill wassa continues to be an unsung hero for golden star and 2008 was no exception the 50 kilometer haul road from wassa to benso was completed late in the third quarter and deliveries of the high grade benso ore commenced at that time the high grade ore makes wassa a 50,000 ounce per quarter gold producer wassa is projected to produce 200,000 ounces of gold in 2009 at a cash cost of $450 per ounce in the fourth quarter of 2008 we began the construction of the haul road linking the hwini-butre properties to the benso property when this road is completed we will have all the hbb property areas connected to the wassa processing plant as we continue our exploration efforts in this most prospective area we expect to expand our reserve and resource base at hbb all within trucking distance to wassa we continued to invest in the expansion of the golden star oil palm plantation a highlight for the year was the hand over of the first 4-hectare farms to 69 smallholders as well as providing alternative sustainable livelihoods in the catchment areas there are also benefits from the sustainable employment provided during the development of the plantation providing this employment reduces the number of people working as illegal miners we were awarded a nedbank capital green award for our efforts on the golden star oil palm plantation during the year we were the first non­ south african company to be granted an award by nedbank this is a wonderful honor and a testament to our efforts at sustainability at the end of june last summer golden star and all the other mining companies in ghana were subjected to an approximately 75 increase in 2 g olden star

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the price of electricity the mining industry in ghana has worked diligently with the government to reach a mutually acceptable solution to the issue of power pricing now that ghana has completed its presidential elections last december we are continuing our negotiations for lowered electrical power prices and we expect to gain some relief from these high electricity costs that are based on the much higher oil prices experienced last year in terms of exploration we continued to explore for gold both near our operating mines and with greenfields programs in cote d ivoire burkina faso niger sierra leone suriname brazil and french guiana while we are mindful of conserving our cash position we recognize the importance of exploration to reserve and resource replacement we have exploration activities throughout our project areas we had some good success in the hbb areas last year and we will continue exploration activities there in closing i would like to thank our board of directors and management team for their support in my first year as ceo i thank all the employees at golden star for their continuing efforts to deliver gold production at reasonable costs lastly we thank our loyal shareholders for the continuing support they have shown the company during the year we are looking forward to a successful and profitable future as our various projects develop and mature yours sincerely tom mair president ceo march 27 2009 2 0 0 8 annual repor t 3

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mineral reserves mineral resources mineral reserves the following table summarizes our estimated proven and probable mineral reserves as of december 31 2008 and december 31 2007 proven property bogoso/prestea non refractory refractory total wassa non refractory total totals non refractory refractory total 2008 total 2007 1.6 9.6 11.2 16.1 1.68 3.34 3.10 2.78 0.09 1.03 1.12 1.44 15.2 9.1 24.3 46.3 0.4 0.4 1.01 1.01 0.01 0.01 11.3 11.3 1.2 9.6 10.8 1.89 3.34 3.18 0.08 1.03 1.11 3.9 9.1 13.0 tonnes millions gold grade g/t ounces millions tonnes millions probable gold grade g/t 2.90 3.07 3.02 2.47 2.47 2.58 3.07 2.76 2.35 contained ounces millions 0.36 0.90 1.26 0.90 0.90 1.26 0.90 2.16 3.49 tonnes millions 5.1 18.7 23.8 11.7 11.7 16.8 18.7 35.5 62.3 total gold grade g/t 2.66 3.21 3.09 2.42 2.42 2.49 3.21 2.87 2.46 contained ounces millions 0.43 1.93 2.36 0.91 0.91 1.35 1.93 3.28 4.93 notes to the mineral reserves statement our mineral reserves for 2008 and 2007 were determined using a gold price of $700 and $560 per ounce respectively which is approximately equal to the three-year average price of gold and is based on a mine plan derived from an optimized pit shell the stated mineral reserves have been prepared in accordance with canada s national instrument 43-101 standards of disclosure for mineral projects mineral reserves are equivalent to proven and probable reserves as defined by the us securities and exchange commission industry guide 7 the 2008 and 2007 mineral reserves have been prepared under the supervision of mr peter bourke p.eng vice president technical services for the company mr bourke is a qualified person as defined by canada s national instrument 43-101 additional information on the estimation of our mineral reserves can be found in the 10-k report filed with www.sedar.com and www.sec.gov and contained within this document mineral reserves are expressed on a 100 basis our share of the mineral reserves is subject to the government of ghana s 10 carried interest which entitles it to a 10 dividend once our capital costs have been recovered the terms non refractory and refractory refer to the metallurgical characteristics of the ore we plan to process the refractory ore in our sulfide processing plant at bogoso and to process the non refractory ore using our more conventional gravity flotation and cyanidation techniques mineral resources property bogoso/prestea prestea underground wassa benso hwini-butre goulagou chichiwelli manso paul isnard total 2008 total 2007 5.4 0.0 0.0 ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ 5.4 3.1 measured gold grade g/t 2.24 ­ 0.98 ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ 2.24 1.75 indicated tonnes millions 11.9 1.4 5.2 0.8 1.0 2.7 ­ ­ 22.9 20.0 gold grade g/t 2.54 13.92 0.78 2.24 3.43 1.80 ­ ­ 2.75 2.72 measured indicated tonnes millions 17.3 1.4 5.2 0.8 1.0 2.7 ­ ­ 28.3 23.2 gold grade g/t 2.24 13.92 0.78 2.24 3.43 1.80 ­ ­ 2.65 2.59 inferred tonnes millions 2.5 5.0 0.0 0.4 0.4 0.5 1.0 9.2 19 20.2 gold grade g/t 3.43 7.44 0.00 4.06 4.74 1.00 2.12 2.51 3.94 3.68 tonnes millions notes to the mineral resources statement the mineral resources other than for goulagou were estimated using optimized pit shells at a gold price of $800 per ounce from which mineral reserves have been subtracted other than gold price the same optimized pit shell parameters and modifying factors used to determine the mineral reserves were used to determine the mineral resources the prestea underground mineral resource was estimated using an $800 per ounce gold price and are commensurate with estimated underground mining costs for goulagou mineral resources were estimated using optimized pit shells at a gold price of $560 per ounce pit optimization parameters were estimated based on feasibility studies on other similar gold deposits in burkina faso golden star s experience in west africa and from limited metallurgical test work on the goulagou ores in 2007 we used a gold price of $640 per ounce for the optimized shell the mineral resources were estimated in accordance with the definitions and requirements of canada s national instrument 43-101 the mineral resources are equivalent to mineralized material as defined by the us sec commission industry guide 7 mineral resources are shown on a 100 basis the mineral resources shown above are subject to the government of ghana s 10 carried interest which entitles it to 10 of dividend once capital costs have been recovered in the case of bogoso/prestea and wassa the mineral resources at prestea underground are subject to the government of ghana s 19 minority interest with golden star currently having an 81 beneficial interest goulagou is 10 owned by a third party us investors should read the cautionary statements relating to mineral rsources and inferred mineral resources in the company s 10-k report filed on www.sedar.com and www.sec.gov and contained within this document the qualified person for the estimation of the mineral resources is mr s mitchel wasel golden star s vice president of exploration 4 g olden star

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securities and exchange commission washington dc 20549 form 10-k annual report pursuant to section 13 or 15d of the securities exchange act of 1934 for the fiscal year ended december 31 2008 commission file number 1-12284 golden star resources ltd exact name of registrant as specified in its charter canada state or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization 98-0101955 i.r.s employer identification no 10901 west toller drive suite 300 littleton colorado address of principal executive office 80127-6312 zip code registrant s telephone number including area code 303 830-9000 securities registered or to be registered pursuant to section 12 b of the act title of each class name of each exchange on which registered common shares nyse alternext us securities registered or to be registered pursuant to section 12g of the act none indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer as defined in rule 405 of the securities act yes no indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to section 13 or section 15d of the act yes no indicate by check mark whether the registrant 1 has filed all reports required to be filed by section 13 or 15d of the securities exchange act of 1934 the act during the preceding 12 months or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports and 2 has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days yes no indicate by check mark if disclosure of delinquent filers pursuant to item 405 of regulation s-k § 229.405 of this chapter is not contained herein and will not be contained to the best of registrant s knowledge in definitive proxy or information statements incorporated by reference in part iii of this form 10-k or any amendment to this form 10-k indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer an accelerated filer a non-accelerated filer or a smaller reporting company see definition of large accelerated filer accelerated filer and smaller reporting company in rule 12b-2 of the exchange act check one large accelerated filer accelerated filer non-accelerated filer smaller reporting company yes no indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company as defined in rule 12b-2 of the act the aggregate market value of the voting and non-voting common equity held by non-affiliates of the registrant was approximately $594.7 million as of june 30 2008 based on the closing price of the shares on the nyse alternext us as of that date of $2.69 per share number of common shares outstanding as at february 24 2009 236,005,311 documents incorporated by reference portions of our definitive proxy statement to be filed with the securities and exchange commission pursuant to regulation 14a in connection with the 2009 annual meeting of shareholders are incorporated by reference to part iii of this annual report on form 10-k.

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table of contents item 1 item 1a risk factors 17 item 1b unresolved staff comments 26 item 2 item 3 item 4 item 5 item 6 item 7 description of properties 27 legal proceedings 42 submission of matters to a vote of security holders 42 market for the registrant s common equity and related stockholder matters 43 selected financial data 45 management s discussion and analysis of financial condition and results of operations 46 financial statements and supplementary data 61 changes in and disagreements with accountants on accounting and financial disclosure 94 business 8 item 7a quantitative and qualitative disclosures about market risk 59 item 8 item 9 item 9a controls and procedures 94 items 10 11 12 13 and 14 94 item 15 exhibits financial statement schedules 95 exhibit index 99 signatures 98 item 9b other information 94

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reporting currency financial and other information all amounts in this report are expressed in united states us dollars unless otherwise indicated canadian currency is denoted as cdn financial information is presented in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in canada cdn gaap or canadian gaap differences between accounting principles generally accepted in the us us gaap and canadian gaap as applicable to golden star resources ltd are explained in note 25 to the consolidated financial statements references to golden star the company we our and us mean golden star resources ltd its predecessors and consolidated subsidiaries or any one or more of them as the context requires non-gaap financial measures in this form 10-k we use the terms total operating cost per ounce total cash cost per ounce and cash operating cost per ounce which are considered non-gaap financial measures as defined in sec regulation s-k item 10 and applicable canadian securities law and should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for measures of performance prepared in accordance with cdn gaap or us gaap see item 7 management s discussion and analysis of financial condition and results of operations for a definition of these measures as used in this form 10-k statements regarding forward-looking information this form 10-k contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of section 27a of the securities act of 1933 as amended and section 21e of the securities exchange act of 1934 as amended and within the meaning of applicable canadian securities law with respect to our financial condition results of operations business prospects plans objectives goals strategies future events capital expenditures and exploration and development efforts words such as anticipates expects intends forecasts plans believes seeks estimates may will and similar expressions including negative and grammatical variations tend to identify forward-looking statements although we believe that our plans intentions and expectations reflected in these forward-looking statements are reasonable we cannot be certain that these plans intentions or expectations will be achieved actual results performance or achievements could differ materially from those contemplated expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements contained in this form 10-k these statements include comments regarding anticipated attainment of gold production rates production and cash operating cost estimates for 2009 anticipated commencement dates of mining and production including at prestea south and the hwini-butre property estimated development costs for the hwini-butre property in 2009 anticipated ore delivery from and life of prestea south pits production capacity production rates and production costs cash operating costs generally gold sales mining operations and recovery rates ore delivery ore processing potential mine life permitting establishment and estimates of mineral reserves and resources geological environmental community and engineering studies timing and results of feasibility studies exploration efforts and activities availability cost and efficiency of mining equipment ore grades reclamation work our anticipated investing and exploration spending in 2009 identification of acquisition and growth opportunities power costs the ability to meet total power requirements commencement and completion of construction of the bogoso power plant and access to the power plant once completed retention of earnings from our operations our objectives for 2009 and sources of and adequacy of liquidity to meet capital and other needs in 2009 the following in addition to the factors described under risk factors in item 1a below are among the factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements · · · · · · · · · · · significant increases or decreases in gold prices losses or gains in mineral reserves from changes in operating costs and/or gold prices failure of exploration efforts to expand mineral reserves around our existing mines unexpected changes in business and economic conditions inaccuracies in mineral reserves and non-reserves estimates changes in interest and currency exchange rates timing and amount of gold production unanticipated variations in ore grade tonnes mined and crushed or milled unanticipated recovery or production problems effects of illegal mining on our properties changes in mining and processing costs including changes to costs of raw materials supplies services and personnel 1

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· · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · changes in metallurgy and processing availability of skilled personnel contractors materials equipment supplies power and water changes in project parameters or mine plans costs and timing of development of new mineral reserves weather including drought or excessive rainfall in west africa changes in regulatory frameworks based upon perceived climate trends results of current and future exploration activities results of pending and future feasibility studies acquisitions and joint venture relationships political or economic instability either globally or in the countries in which we operate changes in regulations affecting our operations particularly in ghana where our principal producing properties are located local and community impacts and issues availability and cost of replacing mineral reserves timing of receipt and maintenance of government approvals and permits unanticipated transportation costs and shipping incidents and losses accidents labor disputes and other operational hazards environmental costs and risks unanticipated title issues competitive factors including competition for property acquisitions possible litigation and availability of capital at reasonable rates or at all these factors are not intended to represent a complete list of the general or specific factors that could affect us your attention is drawn to other risk factors disclosed and discussed in item 1a below we undertake no obligation to update forward-looking statements except as may be required by applicable laws conversion factors and abbreviations for ease of reference the following conversion factors are provided 1 acre 0.4047 hectare 1 foot 0.3048 meter 1 gram per metric tonne 0.0292 troy ounce/short ton 1 short ton 2000 pounds 0.9072 tonne 1 tonne 1,000 kg or 2,204.6 lbs 1 hectare 10,000 square meters the following abbreviations may be used herein au gold g gram g/t grams per tonne ha hectare km kilometer km2 square kilometers kg kilogram m meter m2 m3 mg mg/m3 t or t oz ppb ma square meter cubic meter milligram milligrams per cubic meter tonne troy ounce parts per billion million years 1 mile 1 troy ounce 1 square mile 1 square kilometer 1 kilogram 1 hectare 1.6093 kilometers 31.1035 grams 2.59 square kilometers 100 hectares 2.204 pounds or 32.151 troy oz 2.471 acres note all units in this report are stated in metric measurements unless otherwise noted 2

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glossary of terms we report our mineral reserves to two separate standards to meet the requirements for reporting in both canada and the united states us canadian reporting requirements for disclosure of mineral properties are governed by national instrument 43-101 ni 43101 the definitions in ni 43-101 are adopted from those given by the canadian institute of mining metallurgy and petroleum us reporting requirements for disclosure of mineral properties are governed by the securities and exchange commission the sec industry guide 7 these reporting standards have similar goals in terms of conveying an appropriate level of confidence in the disclosures being reported but embody differing approaches and definitions we estimate and report our mineral resources and mineral reserves according to the definitions set forth in ni 43-101 and modify them as appropriate to conform to sec industry guide 7 for reporting in the u.s the definitions for each reporting standard are presented below with supplementary explanation and descriptions of the similarities and differences ni 43-101 definitions mineral reserve the term mineral reserve refers to the economically mineable part of a measured or indicated mineral resource demonstrated by at least a preliminary feasibility study the study must include adequate information on mining processing metallurgical economic and other relevant factors that demonstrate at the time of reporting that economic extraction can be justified a mineral reserve includes diluting materials and allowances for losses that may occur when the material is mined the term proven mineral reserve refers to the economically mineable part of a measured mineral resource demonstrated by at least a preliminary feasibility study this study must include adequate information on mining processing metallurgical economic and other relevant factors that demonstrate at the time of reporting that economic extraction is justified the term probable mineral reserve refers to the economically mineable part of an indicated and in some circumstances a measured mineral resource demonstrated by at least a preliminary feasibility study this study must include adequate information on mining processing metallurgical economic and other relevant factors that demonstrate at the time of reporting that economic extraction is justified the term mineral resource refers to a concentration or occurrence of diamonds natural solid inorganic material or natural solid fossilized organic material including base and precious metals coal and industrial minerals in or on the earth s crust in such form and quantity and of such a grade or quality that it has reasonable prospects for economic extraction the location quantity grade geological characteristics and continuity of a mineral resource are known estimated or interpreted from specific geological evidence and knowledge the term measured mineral resource refers to that part of a mineral resource for which quantity grade or quality densities shape and physical characteristics are so well established that they can be estimated with confidence sufficient to allow the appropriate application of technical and economic parameters to support production planning and evaluation of the economic viability of the deposit the estimate is based on detailed and reliable exploration sampling and testing information gathered through appropriate techniques from locations such as outcrops trenches pits workings and drill holes that are spaced closely enough to confirm both geological and grade continuity the term indicated mineral resource refers to that part of a mineral resource for which quantity grade or quality densities shape and physical characteristics can be estimated with a level of confidence sufficient to allow the appropriate application of technical and economic parameters to support mine planning and evaluation of the economic viability of the deposit the estimate is based on detailed and reliable exploration and testing information gathered through appropriate techniques from locations such as outcrops trenches pits workings and drill holes that are spaced closely enough for geological and grade continuity to be reasonably assumed proven mineral reserve probable mineral reserve mineral resource measured mineral resource indicated mineral resource 3

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inferred mineral resource qualified person 1 the term inferred mineral resource refers to that part of a mineral resource for which quantity and grade or quality can be estimated on the basis of geological evidence and limited sampling and reasonably assumed but not verified geological and grade continuity the estimate is based on limited information and sampling gathered through appropriate techniques from locations such as outcrops trenches pits workings and drill holes the term qualified person refers to an individual who is an engineer or geoscientist with at least five years of experience in mineral exploration mine development or operation or mineral project assessment or any combination of these has experience relevant to the subject matter of the mineral project and the technical report and is a member in good standing of a professional association sec industry guide 7 definitions reserve the term reserve refers to that part of a mineral deposit which could be economically and legally extracted or produced at the time of the reserve determination reserves must be supported by a feasibility 2 study done to bankable standards that demonstrates the economic extraction bankable standards implies that the confidence attached to the costs and achievements developed in the study is sufficient for the project to be eligible for external debt financing a reserve includes adjustments to the in-situ tonnes and grade to include diluting materials and allowances for losses that might occur when the material is mined the term proven reserve refers to reserves for which a quantity is computed from dimensions revealed in outcrops trenches workings or drill holes grade and/or quality are computed from the results of detailed sampling and b the sites for inspection sampling and measurement are spaced so closely and the geologic character is so well defined that size shape depth and mineral content of reserves are well-established the term probable reserve refers to reserves for which quantity and grade and/or quality are computed from information similar to that used for proven measured reserves but the sites for inspection sampling and measurement are farther apart or are otherwise less adequately spaced the degree of assurance although lower than that for proven reserves is high enough to assume continuity between points of observation the term mineralized material refers to material that is not included in the reserve as it does not meet all of the criteria for adequate demonstration for economic or legal extraction the term non-reserves refers to mineralized material that is not included in the reserve as it does not meet all of the criteria for adequate demonstration for economic or legal extraction an exploration stage prospect is one which is not in either the development or production stage proven reserve probable reserve mineralized material 3 non-reserves exploration stage development stage a development stage project is one which is undergoing preparation of an established commercially mineable deposit for its extraction but which is not yet in production this stage occurs after completion of a feasibility study production stage 1 2 3 a production stage project is actively engaged in the process of extraction and beneficiation of mineral reserves to produce a marketable metal or mineral product industry guide 7 does not require designation of a qualified person for industry guide 7 purposes the feasibility study must include adequate information on mining processing metallurgical economic and other relevant factors that demonstrate at the time of reporting that economic extraction is justified this category is substantially equivalent to the combined categories of measured mineral resource and indicated mineral resource specified in ni 43-101 4

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additional definitions alteration any change in the mineral composition of a rock brought about by physical or chemical means arsenopyrite a gray-to-white metallic mineral consisting of sulfide of iron and arsenic archean the earliest eon of geologic time dating from about 3800-2500 million years ago assay a measure of the valuable mineral content au gold bio-oxidation a processing method that uses bacteria to oxidize refractory sulfide ore to make it amenable to normal oxide ore processing techniques such as carbon-in-leach birimian a thick and extensive sequence of proterozoic age metamorphosed sediments and volcanics first identified in the birim region of southern ghana cash operating cost total cash costs for the period less production royalties and production taxes cil or carbon-in-leach an ore processing method involving the use of cyanide where activated carbon which has been added to the leach tanks is used to absorb gold as it is leached by cyanide craton a stable relatively immobile area of the earth s crust cut-off grade when determining economically viable mineral reserves the lowest grade of mineralized material that qualifies as ore i.e that can be mined and processed at a profit cyanidation the process of introducing cyanide to ore to recover gold diamond drilling rotary drilling using diamond-set or diamond-impregnated bits to produce a solid continuous core of rock sample dip the angle that a structural surface a bedding or fault plane makes with the horizontal measured perpendicular to the strike of the structure diorite a group of intrusive rocks intermediate in composition between acidic and basic characteristically composed of dark-colored amphibole acid plagioclase pyroxene and sometimes a small amount of quartz disseminated where minerals occur as scattered particles in the rock doré unrefined gold bullion bars containing various impurities such as silver copper and mercury which will be further refined to near pure gold fault a surface or zone of rock fracture along which there has been displacement feasibility study a comprehensive study of a mineral deposit in which all geological engineering legal operating economic social environmental and other relevant factors are considered in sufficient detail that it could reasonably serve as the basis for a final decision by a financial institution to finance the development of the deposit for mineral production formation a distinct layer of sedimentary rock of similar composition gabbro a group of dark-colored basic intrusive igneous rocks the intrusive equivalent to basalt gabbroic rock masses made up of gabbro and other similar dark-colored basic igneous rock geochemistry the study of the distribution and amounts of the chemical elements in minerals ores rocks solids water and the atmosphere geochemical prospecting a prospecting technique which measures the content of certain metals in soils and rocks used to define anomalies for further testing geophysics the study of the mechanical electrical and magnetic properties of the earth s crust geophysical surveys a survey method used primarily in the mining industry as an exploration tool applying the methods of physics and engineering to the earth s surface 5

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geotechnical the study of ground stability graben an elongate relatively depressed crustal unit or block that is bounded by faults on its long sides grade quantity of metal per unit weight of host rock greenstone a sequence of usually metamorphosed volcanic-sedimentary rock assemblages granodiorite a group of coarse-grained plutonic rocks intermediate in composition between quartz diorite and quartz monzonite containing quartz plagioclase potassium feldspar with biotite and hornblende granophyric of or pertaining to granophyre which is an igneous rock containing mainly of crystals of feldspar and quartz that have crystallized together heap leach a mineral processing method involving the crushing and stacking of an ore on an impermeable liner upon which solutions are sprayed to dissolve metals i.e gold copper etc the solutions containing the metals are then collected and treated to recover the metals host rock the rock in which a mineral or an ore body may be contained hydrothermal the products of the actions of heated water such as a mineral deposit precipitated from a hot solution in-situ in its natural position laterite a reddish mixture of clayey iron and aluminum oxides and hydroxides formed by the weathering of basalt under humid tropical conditions life-of-mine a term commonly used to refer to the likely term of a mining operation and normally determined by dividing the tonnes of mineral reserve by the annual rate of mining and processing lithology the character of the rock described in terms of its structure color mineral composition grain size and arrangement of tits component parts all those visible features that in the aggregate impart individuality to the rock mafic an adjective describing a silicate mineral or rock that is rich in magnesium and iron common mafic rocks include basalt and gabbro mapped or geological mapping the recording of geologic information including rock units and the occurrence of structural features and mineral deposits on maps metavolcanic a volcanic rock which shows evidence of having been subjected to metamorphism mineral a naturally occurring inorganic crystalline material having a definite chemical composition mineralization a natural accumulation or concentration in rocks or soil of one or more potentially economic minerals also the process by which minerals are introduced or concentrated in a rock national instrument 43-101 or ni 43-101 standards of disclosure for mineral projects prescribed by the canadian securities administration non-refractory ore containing gold that can be satisfactorily recovered by basic gravity concentration or simple cyanidation outcrop that part of a geologic formation or structure that appears at the surface of the earth open pit or open cut surface mining in which the ore is extracted from a pit or quarry the geometry of the pit may vary with the characteristics of the ore body ore mineral bearing rock that can be mined and treated profitably under current or immediately foreseeable economic conditions ore body a mostly solid and fairly continuous mass of mineralization estimated to be economically mineable ore grade the average weight of the valuable metal or mineral contained in a specific weight of ore i.e grams per tonne of ore oxide gold bearing ore which results from the oxidation of near surface sulfide ore precambrian period of geologic time prior to 700 million years ago 6

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preliminary assessment a study that includes an economic analysis of the potential viability of mineral resources taken at an early stage of the project prior to the completion of a preliminary feasibility study preliminary feasibility study and pre-feasibility study each mean a comprehensive study of the viability of a mineral project that has advanced to a stage where the mining method in the case of underground mining or the pit configuration in the case of an open pit has been established and an effective method of mineral processing has been determined and includes a financial analysis based on reasonable assumptions of technical engineering legal operating economic social and environmental factors and the evaluation of other relevant factors which are sufficient for a qualified person acting reasonably to determine if all or part of the mineral resource may be classified as a mineral reserve proterozoic the more recent time division of the precambrian rocks aged between 2,500 million and 550 million years old put a financial instrument that provides the right but not the obligation to sell a specified number of ounces of gold at a specified price pyrite common sulfide of iron qa/qc quality assurance/quality control is the process of controlling and assuring data quality for assays and other exploration and mining data quartz a mineral composed of silicon dioxide sio2 silica rab rotary air blast drilling relatively inexpensive and quick exploration drilling method returning rock chips from the drill hole using high pressure air rc reverse circulation drilling a drilling method using a tri-cone bit during which rock cuttings are pushed from the bottom of the drill hole to the surface through an outer tube by liquid and/or air pressure moving through an inner tube reef general term that typically refers to a tabular ore body refractory ore containing gold that cannot be satisfactorily recovered by basic gravity concentration or simple cyanidation rock indurated naturally occurring mineral matter of various compositions sampling and analytical variance/precision an estimate of the total error induced by sampling sample preparation and analysis schist rocks derived from clays and muds which have passed through a series of metamorphic processes involving the production of shales slates and phyllites as intermediate steps sediment particles transported by water wind or ice sedimentary rock rock formed at the earth s surface from solid particles whether mineral or organic which have been moved from their position of origin and re-deposited sericitic a rock with abundant amounts of sericite a white fine grained potassium mica occurring as an alteration product of various aluminosilicate minerals shear a form of strain resulting from stresses that cause or tend to cause contiguous parts of a body of rock to slide relatively to each other in a direction parallel to their plane of contact shield a large area of exposed basement rocks often surrounded by younger rocks e.g guiana shield stratigraphic or stratigraphically geology that deals with the origin and succession of strata strike the direction or trend that a structural surface e.g a bedding or fault plane takes as it intersects the horizontal strip to remove overburden in order to expose ore sulfide a mineral including sulfur s and iron fe as well as other elements metallic sulfur-bearing mineral often associated with gold mineralization tailings fine ground wet waste material produced from ore after economically recoverable metals or minerals have been extracted tarkwaian a group of sedimentary rocks of proterozoic age named after the town of tarkwa in southern ghana where they were found to be gold bearing 7

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