Resolute Mining’s shares have taken a hit after the gold miner confirmed its chief executive, Terry Holohan, and two other employees are being held by Mali’s military junta in the landlocked African country.

The gold miner’s stock slumped 34 per cent, from 64 cents to 45 cents, wiping over $300 million of its books, as investors digested news of the miner’s executives being held in the country’s economic and financial centre Bamako.

The dual London-listed miner’s stock recovered slightly to sit around 48 cents in afternoon trading.

Resolute, valued at over $1 billion, confirmed in an ASX announcement on Monday that its boss and two other executives are being held by authorities, but the West Australian-focused firm said they were being treated well and were safe.

The company added it is in regular communication with the three executives. “Resolute’s priority remains the safety and wellbeing of its employees.”

“The employees are being treated well … [and] the company is continuing to work with the government on a resolution and will provide further updates on the situation as appropriate,” it said.

The Australian gold miner owns 80 per cent of the Syama Gold Mine, a large-scale underground operation that it controls through a Malian subsidiary, Société des Mines de Syama S.A. The rest is held by the government of Mali.

The company also mines in neighbouring eastern Senegal where it majority-owns the open pit Mako gold mine. It also owns the Ravenswood gold mine in Australia and the Bibiani gold mine in Ghana.

An Agency France Press (AFP) report, citing a judiciary source, had earlier said the Resolute executives were arrested on Friday in Bamako and subsequently detained by a specialised anti-corruption and financial crime unit.

AFP also reported, citing a Resolute executive speaking on the condition of anonymity, that the executives were being questioned over suspicions of providing false evidence and misappropriation of public goods. Efforts to convince the Malian authorities the claims against it are unsubstantiated have failed so far.

Resolute said on Monday that its executives were in Bamako holding discussions with mining and tax authorities about its Mali business and claims made against the company.

After the meetings finished, the three employees were unexpectedly detained.

“Resolute has followed all official processes with respect to its affairs and has provided the authorities with detailed responses to all the claims made,” it said.

Mali’s constitutional democracy was overthrown in 2012 after a military coup. Another coup d’état in 2021 installed vice president Assimi Goïta, who is the country’s current ruler.

The executives are receiving support on the ground from the UK and international embassies and consulates, the company said.

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

The detention of Resolute’s 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.

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.

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