Mutapa Gold Resources (MGR) has secured a US$125 million financing package from a syndicate of local commercial banks to anchor a major expansion and life-of-mine extension program across its three local assets.
The local debt package covers half of MGR’s budgeted US$250 million total capital expenditure requirement.
The capital injection is aimed at driving a steep production ramp-up, anchored by the development of the Shamva Hill project which is scheduled to commence this August.
Through the capital programme, MGR targets lifting aggregate monthly gold output from the current 310kg to between 570kg and 600kg by financial year 2029 (F29). The banking syndicate backing the transaction comprises CBZ (lead arranger), Ecobank, FBC, CABS, NMB Bank, and AFC.
Speaking during a technical site visit of Freda Rebecca in Bindura by the Ministry of Mines, MGR Chief Executive Officer Patrick Maseva-Shayawabaya detailed the asset-level production targets under the expansion roadmap, all pegged for completion by late 2029.
Under the targeted expansion, monthly output at Shamva Mine will rise from 66kg to 200kg, while the group’s flagship Freda Rebecca is projected to grow from 204kg to 270kg per month. Jena Mine’s monthly production is also set to scale significantly from 40kg to 100kg.
“We have got the local funding from a syndicate of local banks. They have pledged US$125 million to our expansion projects at Shamva and at Jena,” Maseva-Shayawabaya said. “We are going to be signing an agreement with the banks by the end of next week. The facility will enable us to get started at Shamva and also to get started at Jena, while we are exploring funding options from beyond our borders. “By 2029, Freda will be on 270 kg a month, Shamva will be on 200 kg a month, and Jena will be on 100 kg a month. Obviously, all this is conditional on us implementing the expansion projects that we have planned,” he added.
Operationally, MGR performed ahead of budget in the first half of 2026 (H1 2026), pulling 1,826kg of gold out of the ground. Production was evenly split across the quarters, with 921kg achieved in Q1 (ended March) and 925kg in Q2 (ended June).
Management noted that the H1 run-rate keeps the gold miner firmly on track to meet its full-year 2026 production guidance of 3,600kg. Quizzed on cost containment strategy given the volatility of global bullion prices, Maseva-Shayawabaya maintained that the group’s focus remains anchored on operational efficiencies rather than price forecasting.
“Our focus has always been to manage our costs and we leave the market to determine what the gold price is,” he said.
Mines and Mining Development Minister Dr Polite Kambamura, who led the tour of MGR’s operations, welcomed the group’s restructuring efforts to unlock productivity gains.
“We have learned that the organisation is currently on an expansion drive to increase its gold production from the current 300 to 310 kg per month to something in the range of 570 to 600 kg,” Kambamura noted, pointing to Shamva’s open pit development, Freda’s optimisation, and Jena’s capacity enhancement as critical to the state’s wider mining targets.
On broader sector policy, Kambamura disclosed that the government is moving to de-risk the sector and improve geological visibility via a national airborne geophysical survey aimed at mapping the country’s mineral reserves.
“We have already engaged with the contractor. We should be able to define our own mineral resources and reserves so that we can plan strategically, form strategic partnerships and also be prepared considering the current critical mineral scramble,” the Minister said.
Crucially for resource investors, Kambamura provided a timeline on the long-delayed Mines and Minerals Amendment Bill, which has been stuck in legislative limbo. After receiving an adverse report from the Parliamentary Legal Committee (PLC) in 2025, the Minister stated that executive interventions have cleared the impasse.
“We have already engaged with them [the PLC]. We addressed all the issues that they raised. And very soon, we’ll be taking the Bill back to Parliament. I think before the year ends, we’ll finalise the Bill into an Act,” Kambamura said.
The Minister concluded by tying MGR’s capacity expansion directly to national monetary stability, emphasising the central bank’s ongoing strategy to back the local currency with hard assets. “I would like to urge other operations also to follow suit by increasing their production considering that our currency is backed by gold. So every gramme, every kg that is mined will speak volumes towards our goal of improving our gold reserves to the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe,” Kambamura said.
