Ruoni Flats Drilling Uncovers Continuations To Tenge Mineralisation
London, May 24, 2012 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Baobab Resources plc (
LON:BAO) the mineral exploration and development company with a portfolio of assets in Mozambique, is pleased to provide an update on drilling at the Tete pig iron, vanadium and titanium project.
IFC (International Finance Corporation) hold a 15% participatory interest in the Tete Project with Baobab owning the remaining 85%.
HIGHLIGHTS
- Drilling programmes in the Ruoni prospect area are nearing conclusion with more than 7,500m of diamond and reverse circulation (RC) drilling completed to date.
- Drilling at Ruoni Flats, where a 120Mt to 260Mt Exploration Target has been estimated by consultant Coffey Mining, has intersected a heavily mineralised package, up to 100m thick, that clearly represents the downdip continuations to the Ruoni North and Tenge resource blocks.
- Resource upgrade drilling is on-going at Chitongue Grande, Ruoni North and Ruoni South resource blocks.
- 2011 RC drilling of the down-dip portions of the 159Mt Tenge resource block terminated in mineralisation due to excessive water. Recently completed diamond twin holes have penetrated deeper through the sequence and demonstrate that the mineralised package is substantially thicker than that modelled in the resource estimate.
Commenting today, Ben James, Baobab's Managing Director, said: "Baobab is very pleased with progress made in the field, particularly at Ruoni Flats where drilling is outlining a potentially substantial addition to the resource inventory. An expanded resource in the tenge/Ruoni area will enable the Company to credibly consider larger scale production scenarios, the technical and commercial merits of which will be further clarified as the results of the marketing study and high level financial simulations are finalised. Baobab looks forward to presenting the drill hole analytical results as they become available.
"The pre-feasibility study is progressing on schedule. The beneficiation test work is nearing completion, on the back of which the process engineering can get underway. The environmental impact assessment, plant and infrastructure option studies and marketing report are all well underway. In parallel to the technical programmes, the Company is advancing corporate initiatives to ensure the project's successful development.
"I encourage investors to download a copy of this announcement from the Company's website as it includes a cross-section through the Ruoni Flats / Tenge prospects that illustrates the scale and continuity of the deposit."
DRILLING PROGRAMME
To date an aggregate total of c.3,000m diamond and c.4,700m RC has been completed since drilling commenced on 27 February 2012. The purpose of the drilling programme is twofold: to upgrade confidence in the Chitongue Grande, Ruoni North and Ruoni South resource blocks from inferred to indicated categories; and to define a new resource block in the Ruoni Flats prospect area where consultant, Coffey Mining, estimated an Exploration Target of 120Mt to 260Mt (please refer to RNS dated 29 March 2012 for details).
Drilling at Ruoni Flats has intersected a heavily mineralised package that clearly represents the down-dip continuations to the Ruoni North and Tenge resource blocks. The package varies in thickness from c.80m to c.100m and typically includes minor intercalations of non-mineralised gangue material. Depth to top of mineralisation commences from c.175m in the north and east, deepening to up to 294m in the southwest.
Two diamond twin holes have also been completed at the Tenge resource block. 2011 RC drilling of the down-dip portions of the 159Mt Tenge resource terminated in mineralisation due to excessive water. The diamond twin holes have penetrated deeper through the sequence and demonstrate that the mineralised package in the deeper portions of the block is substantially thicker than that modelled in the resource estimate.
Drill samples are composited to 0.5m or 1m intervals on site before being sent to ACT-UIS laboratories in Tete, Mozambique for crushing and splitting. Representative samples are then despatch to ALS Chemex laboratories in Perth, Western Australia for further compositing (maximum composite length of 6m), Davis Tube Recovery (DTR) and X-ray Fluorescence Spectrometry (XRF) analysis. The Company will announce results as they come to hand.
A copy of this RNS, including a drill hole location plan and cross-section through the Ruoni Flats/Tenge prospects, is available for download from the Company's website at: http://www.baobabresources.com/investor/aimannouncements.
About Baobab Resources plc
Baobab Resources plc (LON:BAO) is a Mozambican-focused explorer with a large landholding in the central north of the country. The company's flagship project is the Tete iron ore deposit.
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