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Holohan, who joined Resolute in 2021 as chief operating officer, was promoted to chief executive and managing director in 2022.

The detention of the Resolute executives follows a number of recent arrests targeting employees of fellow gold miner Barrick Gold, by the military government, which staged a coup in 2020.

Four Barrick employees were arrested in September for alleged financial crimes. They were released in October as the Canadian miner agreed to resolve existing claims and disputes between it and the Malian government.

Resolute, like other international miners operating in Mali, has been under growing pressure since the military seized power. The company has increased production at its Syama project in the nation’s south-east and a second phase of the mine is expected to be in operation in 2025.

Gold is Mali’s major export, contributing to a quarter of the national budget and three-quarters of the country’s export earnings. The mining sector is dominated by foreign groups, including Barrick and B2Gold, and Britain’s Hummingbird Resources.

Last year, Mali’s military-led government signed into law a new mining code designed to increase local ownership of gold mining facilities and raise the revenue it derives from them. The code allows state and local investors to lift their stakes as high as 35 per cent in mining projects, compared to the previous limit of 20 per cent.

In October, Resolute said it had a ‘mining convention’ for its gold licences in Mali until 2029 and was working with the government in a “clear, constructive and responsible manner.”

Bloomberg, with staff reporter

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