WORLD number one gold producer AngloGold has closed a deal to acquire 50% of the Geita gold mine in Tanzania from Ashanti Goldfields. Ashanti agreed earlier this year to sell the stake to South Africa’s AngloGold for $205m in a move aimed at shoring up the Ghanaian company’s balance sheet. The parties have also secured third-party project financing worth $130m. AngloGold paid a premium price to beat out seven other suitors in the hotly-contested race for Geita, which officially opened on August 3. The mine is forecast to produce 500 000 ounces of gold annually by 2001 at a cost of around $180 an ounce. Ashanti was forced to auction off the half stake in Geita following heavy losses on its gold-hedging book. The mine gives AngloGold a foothold in Tanzania’s lucrative open-cast gold fields and the company has already transferred a nearby exploration property to Geita, adding about 2.1m ounces to its resource base. – Reuters