Burkina Faso opened its first gold refinery in Ouagadougou on Sept. 28 as part of the government's ambition to capture more value domestically and reduce reliance on refining gold abroad, BBC reported on Sept. 29. The RAFFINOR-BF facility cost more than 11 billion CFA francs (approximately $19 million) to build and can initially process 164 tons annually, with plans to expand capacity to 515 tons.