(Sharecast News) - Mineral explorer and developer Ariana Resources unveiled the latest developments at its Tavsan Project on Tuesday, which it operates in partnership with Zenit, Proccea Construction and Ozaltin Holding, with Ariana holding a 23.5% stake.
The AIM-traded company said the recently-finished drilling campaign at Tavsan marked a significant milestone, covering 10,285.7 metres and comprising 112 diamond drillholes since November 2022.
It said hole TAV-D054-23 revealed 12.6 metres at 4.61 grams of gold and 9.11 grams of silver per tonne from 214.9 metres, including 1.7 metres at 9.22 grams of gold and 9.83 grams of silver per tonne from 220.3 metres.
Hole TAV-D053-23, meanwhile, displayed 9.1 metres at 2.99 grams of gold and 7.25 grams of silver per tonne from 69.4 metres, including 0.9 metres at 12.70 grams of gold and 10.58 grams of silver per tonne from 70.4 metres.
Finally, hole TAV-D050-23 indicated 8.3 metres at 2.61 grams of gold and 1.63 grams of silver per tonne from 55.9 metres.
Ariana said 2,565 assay results had been received so far, with 569 samples pending analysis at the Kiziltepe Mine Laboratory (KML).
Updates on resource and reserve estimates were underway following the latest findings.
Additionally, construction efforts at the mine site were progressing, positioning the company for an imminent declaration of the first production from Tavsan in the coming months.
"The latest drilling results from Tavsan are some of the most exciting we have ever released," said managing director Dr Kerim Sener.
"High-grade mineralisation not only occurs on extensions of the North Zone near surface, but most intriguingly is now identified in the deep drilling on the project.
"This suggests that there may be other laterally extensive high-grade structures developed along other thrust-planes beneath the main zone of mineralisation at Tavsan."
Dr Sener said the purpose of the deeper drilling was to test that hypothesis, adding that the results confirmed the company's understanding of that potential.
"Meanwhile mining at Tavsan remains underway at the Main Pit, with high-grade material being stockpiled preferentially.
"The production of the first gold at Tavsan will be derived from this high-grade material.
"Other construction activities are both ongoing and on schedule, with further updates on progress to be provided in future announcements."
Kerim Sener said Ariana was continuing to update its geological model based on the new data, contributing towards a revised mineral resource estimate.
"This in turn will be used to update our production targets and development plans for 2024.
"We expect to release the results of the new estimation before the end of this month."
At 1219 GMT, shares in Ariana Resources were up 6.71% at 2.19p.
Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.
Ariana (AAU)