Mauritania has awarded five gold exploration permits to Canada's Montage Gold, as the West African country moves to reduce its reliance on a single ageing mine that dominates its gold sector.

The licences, covering about 2,103 square kilometres in the country's north, were granted after a competitive bidding process and target geological zones known for hosting orogenic gold deposits.

Four of the permits are located in the Sfariat shear zone and will be fully owned by Montage. The fifth, Zednes, is tied to a deal with local firm SOCIEX, under which the Canadian company will acquire an 80 per cent stake, subject to approvals.

Montage will fund all exploration work at Zednes until a mining licence is secured. At that point, SOCIEX can either contribute to development costs or convert its stake into a 1 per cent net smelter royalty.

The company has allocated an initial $2 million for exploration in 2026, covering geological mapping, geophysical surveys and soil sampling. About 15,000 metres of drilling are planned for the fourth quarter.

The entry of a Canadian investor comes at a critical time for Mauritania's gold industry, which remains heavily dependent on the Tasiast mine operated by Kinross Gold. Tasiast accounted for roughly 77 per cent of national gold output in 2023 and is one of the country's biggest sources of mining revenue. But the mine is entering a lower-grade phase, raising concerns about future production.

After producing more than 620,000 ounces in 2024, output dropped by about 23 per cent in 2025. Production is expected to stabilise at around 500,000 ounces in 2026, with no return to earlier peak levels before 2028.

The slowdown has exposed the risks of relying on a single large-scale mine in a country with limited industrial alternatives.

Guelb Moghrein, the only other industrial site, produces gold mainly as a by-product of copper.

Despite this, Mauritania holds significant untapped potential. Government estimates put total gold resources at more than 25 million ounces, suggesting room for new discoveries as global demand remains strong. However, developing new mines will take time. From exploration to production, mining projects often take a decade or more, meaning Tasiast is likely to remain dominant in the near term.

Artisanal and small-scale mining is helping to fill part of the gap. The segment produced 14.7 tonnes of gold between 2020 and August 2024, supported by efforts to formalise the sector. Still, weak oversight persists. A 2024 report by SWISSAID estimated that nearly 30 tonnes of gold may have been smuggled out of Mauritania between 2016 and 2022.

Montage's expansion signals growing foreign interest in Mauritania's underexplored gold sector, even as the country grapples with the limits of its current production base.