South TSF, Ghana

At 10 April 2024

Drone footage of South TSF
*Coordinates: Lat. 6.193716°, Long. -1.718696*

Guidance Note

Description and Lifecycle Design

The South TSF (STSF) is an active facility located at the Obuasi mine in Ghana and was commissioned in 1992. The STSF is an approximately square dam that stores the floatation tailings (cyanide-free tailings and low arsenic levels). The TSF was initially formed behind a compacted laterite starter wall and later raised by cycloning between 1993 and 2001. The most recent raises are formed by a compacted laterite outer skin with a ring dyke construction method.

A decant barge was the primary decant method with a penstock arrangement for emergency use. The decant barge has been replaced with a permanent gravity decant which feeds Holding Pond 1. A pumped decant adjacent to the gravity decant is maintained on standby. The emergency decant penstock is maintained.

Slurry deposition onto the STSF ceased in November 2015 and the operation entered a care-and-maintenance phase. The recommissioning of the TSF formed part of the Obuasi Redevelopment Project and commenced in 2021. An operational closure plan was developed for the STSF based on construction of small successive step-in embankments and continued deposition to progress the development of a domed water-shedding landform at closure. At final closure the TSF surface and side slopes will be rehabilitated in line with the designated post closure land use as outlined in the mine closure plan.

AngloGold Ashanti has an internal corporate tailings management team including an accountable executive. AngloGold Ashanti has appointed an internal Responsible Tailings Facility Engineer (RTFE) an external Engineer of Record (EoR) and an Independent Tailings Review Board (ITRB) at this facility to oversee and govern the design, construction, operations, maintenance, and surveillance of the facility.

South TSF General Information

Period of Operation	1992-2015, 2021-current
Construction Method	Upstream with saprolite borrow material for embankment raises. Localised rock-fill buttressing.
Current Deposition Method	Single cell, rotational sub-aerial spigot deposition
Target Annual Production Rate	2.2 Mtpa
Current Tailings Volume / Tonnage	45 Mm³ / 59 Mt
Crest Elevation	217 m RL
Spillway Elevation	215 m RL
Maximum Height	60 m
Outer Wall Profile	1V : 3H (maximum)

Consequence Classification

GISTM Consequence Classification

Very High

Risk Assessment

AngloGold Ashanti’s comprehensive risk management plan aims to implement designs and controls in a way that risks are eliminated risks and where any risks remain, these are mitigated so that the residual risk is a As Low As Reasonably Practicable (ALARP).

Risks are considered in the design stages with mitigation measures incorporated into the design features and operational procedures. Risks are also identified and mitigated through numerous layers of reviews and inspections with follow up actions and recommendations developed to mitigate identified risks. A formal stand-alone risk assessment separate to these processes has not yet been undertaken for the facility and is planned for 2025. The risk assessment will be conducted with a multi-disciplinary team and in collaboration with the Engineer of Record (EoR) in line with accepted best practices.

Impact Assessment

The impact of a potential flow failure has been assessed considering the impact to human health and life, the environment, social and cultural impacts, as well as the infrastructure and economic impacts. These potential impacts have been used to inform the TSF Classification and also the risk assessment consequence definition and the mitigation measures to be implemented.

Modelling of a potential failure indicates that the areas to the south and east of the South TSF could be affected and could impact human settlements, farming, and water resources. These impacts will be confirmed by the detailed assessments and EPRP development.

Performance Reviews

AngloGold Ashanti has a comprehensive Tailings Review System which incorporates reviews from multiple levels and internal and external parties. All AngloGold Ashanti TSFs are subject to the following reviews:

RTFE Performance Reviews – typically quarterly
EoR Inspections – typically quarterly and Annual Performance Reviews
ITRB Review – Annually
AGA Corporate Review – Annually
Independent 3^rd Party Regulatory Review – Quarterly
Dam Safety Review – Typically every five years

Reviews	Most Recent Review	Next Planned Review
EoR	Dec 2023	Q1 2024
ITRB	July 2023	Q3 2024
Regulatory	March 2024	Q2 2024
DSR	NA	2026

AngloGold Ashanti has adopted the following ranking system for independent reviews: Priority 1 actions are classified as a material finding.

Priority 1 – A dam safety issue considered immediately dangerous to life, health or the environment, or at significant risk of regulatory enforcement.

Priority 2 – If not corrected, a concern that could result in a dam safety issue leading to injury, health impact or discontinuity of operations.

Priority 3 – Single occurrence of deficiency or non-conformance that alone would not be expected to result in dam safety issues, discontinuity of operations or regulatory intervention.

Priority 4 – A recommendation based on good practice, improvement, or risk reduction.

No material findings (Priority 1) have been identified for the STSF in the most recent reviews.

Environmental and Social

Environment and Social monitoring programmes form part of AngloGold Ashanti’s Health, Safety, Environment (ISO14001) and Social Communities (HSEC) management systems, which act to fulfill the environmental social management system requirements under the GISTM. These environment and social monitoring programmes are comprehensively reviewed, and mitigation measures implemented as and where required. Further information on of our environment and social monitoring programmes, and performance results can be found in AngloGold Ashanti’s Sustainability Reports.

There is potential for ground water seepage from TSFs and ground water conditions around all our TSFs are regularly monitored. Where groundwater impact plumes exist, their migration is modelled and managed, as necessary to avoid interaction(s) with potential receptors.

Obuasi Mine’s Flotation tailings pipeline ruptured in early September 2023, resulting in slurry discharge beyond the pipeline corridor’s containment system. Plant operations were immediately halted on discovery and temporary earth berms were created to limit the discharge. Environmental samples taken downstream of the event confirmed that the spill did not have a significant impact. The ruptured pipe was replaced and the area was cleaned.

An easily accessible and effective grievance mechanism has been implemented so that any formal complaints can be submitted by stakeholders and resolved.

Emergency Response and Preparedness

The mine has developed an emergency management plan which identifies potential events and incidents, defines those personnel responsible for implementation of the response, and describes procedures for notification, communication, and escalation of the emergency response.

The emergency preparedness and response planning specific to modelled potential failure scenarios of the STSF is under way and we are targeting end 2025 to have these formally developed.

Financial Capacity

AngloGold Ashanti confirms it has adequate financial capacity to cover the estimated costs of planned closure, early closure, reclamation, and post-closure monitoring and maintenance of the STSF and its appurtenant structures.

Guidance Note

This document provides the information required under Requirement 15.1.B of the GISTM.

This document should be read in conjunction with the information relating to AngloGold Ashanti’s tailings management practices that is available on the AngloGold Ashanti website, as well as the risk factors and other disclosures in AngloGold Ashanti’s annual report on Form 20-F for the year ended 31 December 2023 to be filed with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) (the “Form 20-F”).

Certain statements contained in this document, other than statements of historical fact, including, without limitation, those concerning the economic outlook for the gold mining industry, expectations regarding gold prices, production, total cash costs, all-in sustaining costs, all-in costs, cost savings and other operating results, return on equity, productivity improvements, growth prospects and outlook of AngloGold Ashanti’s operations, individually or in the aggregate, including the achievement of project milestones, commencement and completion of commercial operations of certain of AngloGold Ashanti’s exploration and production projects and the completion of acquisitions, dispositions or joint venture transactions, AngloGold Ashanti’s liquidity and capital resources and capital expenditures, the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic and the outcome and consequences of any potential or pending litigation or regulatory proceedings or environmental, health and safety issues, are forward-looking statements regarding AngloGold Ashanti’s financial reports, operations, economic performance and financial condition.

These forward-looking statements or forecasts are not limited to historical facts, but rather reflect our current beliefs and expectations concerning future events and generally may be identified by the use of forward-looking words, phrases and expressions such as “believe”, “expect”, “aim”, “anticipate”, “intend”, “foresee”, “forecast”, “predict”, “project”, “estimate”, “likely”, “may”, “might”, “could”, “should”, “would”, “seek”, “plan”, “scheduled”, “possible”, “continue”, “potential”, “outlook”, “target” or other similar words, phrases, and expressions; provided that the absence thereof does not mean that a statement is not forward-looking. Similarly, statements that describe our objectives, plans or goals are or may be forward-looking statements.

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AngloGold Ashanti undertakes no obligation to update publicly or release any revisions to these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this document or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events, except to the extent required by applicable law. All subsequent written or oral forward-looking statements attributable to AngloGold Ashanti or any person acting on its behalf are qualified by the cautionary statements herein.