Gold exploration regains momentum at Nyota’s Ethiopian project

Tigrai Online
June 11, 2012

Gold is found through out Ethiopia and gold exploration has exploded in the recent years in the country

ASX- and Aim-listed gold exploration and development company Nyota Minerals has started a 14 650 m infill drilling programme at its Tulu Kapi gold project, in Ethiopia, as part of a definitive feasibility study (DFS).

Initiated with Wardell Armstrong International, the drilling programme is aimed at converting a further 260 000 oz of inferred resources to indicated status by the end of the fourth quarter. This should result in significant upside to the DFS and confirm a mine life of at least 10 years.

"Exploration has rapidly regained momentum now that drill rigs and technical personnel have become available following completion of the engineering and hydrogeological programmes undertaken as part of the DFS,” commented CEO Richard Chase.

He noted that target prioritisation in and around Tulu Kapi is being driven, firstly by resource expansion and upgrade and, secondly, by the need to ensure mining infrastructure does not impede future access to resources.

“The current exploration programme is progressing well and we look forward to providing a first reserve calculation in the coming weeks, once all the elements of the DFS are complete. It remains the case that the submission to the Ministry of Mines to complement our application for a mining licence will take place at the end of June," he said.

Emphasis would also remain on the drilling out of new resources derived from the multiple targets already broadly defined in a 20 km radius of Tulu Kapi, with a short-term emphasis on those targets in a 5 km radius of Tulu Kapi likely to influence the project's economics and potentially the location of infrastructure associated with the Tulu Kapi mine.

The Joint Ore Reserves Committee-compliant mineral resource announced in March comprised 0.83-million ounces of indicated resource and 0.84-million ounces of inferred resource. This resource will form the basis of the DFS to be submitted to the government of Ethiopia at the end of June in support of the company's mining licence application.

Source: Mining Weekly

Sponsored Links