GUYANA in 2024 recorded an increase in the production of gold as well as revenues from this lucrative resource, according to Natural Resources Minister Vickram Bharrat.
Even in the face of challenges, efforts continued last year to increase gold production and curb illicit activities, the minister said. Overall, the country was able to earn US$989.9 million from this resource, an increase of US$181 million when compared to last year.

Minister Bharrat said that in 2024, the sector produced 434,067 ounces of gold compared to 432,113 ounces in 2023.
“I believe this is an encouraging sign for the country, for the sector, and for the stakeholders, so much so that we are seeing now that the number of key stakeholders are expanding or restarting their mining operations, and also they’re new players or new stakeholders entering the sector,” he said.

Expounding on what he meant by “restarting”, Minister Bharrat stated that several medium-scale miners had left the sector to make investments in the oil and gas and construction sectors, but are returning now to the mining sector.

Additionally, a focus for the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) will be increasing monitoring capabilities, according to him.
In key mining districts, several new small-scale mining lots were allocated in 2024 in Regions One (Barima-Waini), Seven (Cuyuni-Mazaruni) and Eight (Potaro-Siparuni), the minister said.
“So, it simply means almost 500 small miners in 2023-2024 would have had access to their own land, and those miners will soon go into operation,” he said, adding: “So, the prospect for mining and gold mining looks good for 2025.”

Further, he said that works are ongoing to increase the recovery rate for miners, since in 2024, the small and medium-scale miners only achieved about 40 to 45 per cent recovery rate, while the large-scale miners achieved a 95 per cent recovery rate.

“We are also working with the miners to increase their recovery rate,” he said, “because that has been a challenge for miners.”
Notwithstanding the bright prospects, the minister did admit that the sector has faced many challenges, such as drought and flooding.