Ariana Regulatory News (AAU)

17 Dec 2009 07:00



17th December 2009

AIM / PLUS Markets: AAU

RED RABBIT JV UPDATE

Ariana Resources plc ("Ariana" or "the Company"), the gold exploration and development company focused on Turkey is pleased to announce further solid progress towards production on its proposed joint venture ("JV") with Proccea Construction Co. ("Proccea") on the Red Rabbit Project in western Turkey. Work is underway on a number of fronts in preparation for the planned 2010 feasibility study.

Highlights

Good-will payment of US$0.5 million received from Proccea 

Wardrop Engineering, a Tetra Tech Company ("Wardrop"), engaged to undertake a NI43-101 compliant mineral resource estimate

SGS Mineral Services engaged to undertake new metallurgical testwork

SRK Consulting engaged to commence environmental scoping

PriceWaterhouseCoopers engaged as financial consultant for the transaction

Dr. Kerim Sener, Managing Director, commented:

"The Company has taken several rapid steps forward for the development of the Red Rabbit Project. The Company has chosen to make these positive moves ahead of formal completion of our JV agreement in order to make optimal use of time. Proccea is being highly supportive of these work programmes and is reinforcing the efforts being made by our team. Accordingly, we are confident that the JV agreement will be concluded during the first quarter of next year."

Current Progress

Following the signature of the Memorandum of Understanding ("MoU") with Proccea, the Company and its JV partner have initiated work on several core aspects of project development. In the first phase of this work, efforts are being directed toward the Kiziltepe sector of the Red Rabbit Project.

Under the terms of the MoU, Ariana's operating subsidiary has received US$0.5 million in cash from Proccea in exchange for a letter of guarantee from Türkiye Iş Bankasi in Turkey. The Company intends to hold this sum in a high interest bearing account until completion of the JV agreement, following which the funds will be directed towards new exploration in Turkey.

Wardrop has been commissioned to undertake a revised National Instrument 43-101 compliant mineral resource estimate for the Kiziltepe sector. In parallel with this work, SGS Mineral Services UK Ltd. will be commencing further metallurgical testwork on mineralised material from Kiziltepe to determine optimal grind, leach and tailing characteristics. The revised resource and the new metallurgical testwork will be used as part of project feasibility studies to be undertaken in 2010. Relating to this, Proccea is intending to establish its own laboratory on site to fast-track future metallurgical testwork.

SRK Consulting in Turkey has been engaged to commence environmental scoping in December 2009 prior to commencing a formal Environmental Impact Assessment ("EIA") for the project in the New Year. At the present time, the formal EIA is scheduled to be completed by September 2010. Funding of the EIA will be undertaken by Proccea as part of its earn-in on the Red Rabbit Project.

PriceWaterhouseCoopers in Turkey has been engaged to provide financial advice to the Company during the structuring of the formal JV agreement and for the establishment of the JV Company. This measure has been taken to ensure that the JV is structured financially in the most appropriate manner ahead of JV completion. Proccea and Ariana are currently working on the Shareholders' Agreement and are estimating completion of the JV within the first quarter 2010.

About Proccea

Proccea Construction Co. (www.proccea.com) is an integrated construction firm specialising in turn-key solutions for a variety of business sectors ranging from the development of gold processing plants to designing and building major hotels. The mining service is provided by a business division of Proccea named CH Engineering & Consultancy ("CH").  CH provides a range of services to the mining industry, including the design of mining equipment and processing plants, manufacturing installation, commissioning, start-up and staff training for gold and silver extraction in the mining industry (www.chconsultants.com).

CH provides the installation and technical services for such gold mining processes as heap leach, CIL and CIP design and operations. CH has wide experience of designing and commissioning gold and silver processing plants. In Turkey this has included the Kişladag gold mine (Eldorado Gold), Copler gold mine (Anatolia Minerals), Mastra gold mine (Koza Gold) and the Gümüşköy silver mine (Eti Gümüş). Internationally, CH processing plant commissions have included the Zarcan gold mine in Iran, the Knelson gold mine in Kazakhstan, the Amesmessa gold mine in Algeria, the Kitila gold mine in Finland, the Minera Triton gold mine in Argentina and the Maaden gold mine in Saudi Arabia. CH has the technical support of the internationally renowned Summit Valley Equipment and Engineering firm based in Utah, U.S.A.

Contacts:

Editors' note:

About Ariana Resources

Ariana is an exploration and development company focused on epithermal gold-silver and porphyry copper-gold deposits in Turkey. The Company is exploring a portfolio of prospective licences selected on the basis of its in-house geological and remote-sensing database, on its own in western Turkey and in Joint Venture with European Goldfields Limited in north-eastern Turkey.

The Company's flagship assets are its Sindirgi and Tavsan gold projects. Both projects contain a series of prospects, within two prolific mineralised districts in the Western Anatolian Volcanic and Extensional (WAVE) Province in western Turkey. This Province hosts the largest operating gold mines in Turkey and remains highly prospective for new porphyry and epithermal deposits. These core projects, which are separated by a distance of 75km, are presently being assessed as to their economic merits. The total resource inventory of the Company stands at 401,000 ounces of gold equivalent.

Loeb Aron & Company Ltd. and Alexander David Securities Limited are joint brokers to the Company and Beaumont Cornish Limited is the Company's Nominated Adviser.

For further information on Ariana you are invited to visit the Company's website at www.arianaresources.com.

Ends