Last checked at 11 Oct 2021 07:00
11 October 2021
AfriTin Mining Limited
("AfriTin" or the "Company")
Uis Exploration Drilling Down Dip Extensions
AfriTin Mining Limited (AIM: ATM), an African tech-metals mining company with a portfolio of production, development, and exploration assets in Namibia in tin, lithium and tantalum, is pleased to provide a further update on its down dip extensional drilling programme designed to elucidate mineralisation of the V1/V2 pegmatite at depth.
Highlights
▪ Drill results for the final five drill holes that intersected the V1/V2 pegmatite demonstrate continuity of mineralisation at depth, with the highest combined metal content intersection from drill hole V1V2022, containing 0.17% Sn, 61ppm Ta and 1.33% Li2O, over a 51m intersection at a depth of 201m to 252m;
▪ Significant pegmatite intersections include:
• 101.05m @ 0.164% Sn, 78ppm Ta and 0.52% Li2O in drill hole V1V2021
• 164.09m @ 0.169% Sn, 57ppm Ta and 1.04% Li2O in drill hole V1V2022
• 169.02m @ 0.171% Sn, 62ppm Ta and 0.81% Li2O in drill hole V1V2025
▪ Drill hole intersections demonstrate the continuity of mineralization, a potential upgrade to resources at depth and support the lithium and tantalum by-product initiatives currently underway.
Anthony Viljoen (CEO) Commented:
"We are pleased to announce these drill results showing the extension of the V1/V2 pegmatite at depth, the consistent tin grades and the substantial lithium grades, which serve to further validate the planned expansions of the Phase 1 pilot processing plant. We look forward to the initiation of another drilling programme aimed at aligning the lithium and tantalum resource confidence intervals with the current confidence interval for tin within the current Mineral Resource Estimate, which we expect to commence in quarter 4, 2021.
These high-grade drill hole intersections substantiate our belief that AfriTin Mining is poised to become a leading supplier of technology metals targeting a more diversified portfolio of production in the future."
In addition to the drilling programme that validated the historical drilling information from the Uis Tin Mine and resulted in the declaration of the maiden JORC (2012) compliant Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE), the team drilled several holes to demonstrate continuity of mineralisation within the pegmatite at depth by drilling to the west of known outcrop. This is the final stage of the drilling programme announced on 16 September 2019, which had been postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The results are set out here. The drill holes were geologically logged and sampled at one-meter intervals wherever possible. Sample analysis was undertaken by UIS Analytical Services, a certified independent laboratory, with a portion being reanalysed at an independent umpire laboratory. All samples passed internal and external analysis QA/QC, providing further confidence in these drill results. The major and minor elements were analysed by ICP-OES methods and the trace elements by ICP-MS methods.
Table 1 provides the drill hole information for all the mineralised holes/intervals. One hole, V1V2024, was terminated prior to completion as it had severely deviated from the projected drill path.
Table 1: Exploration results for the 5 down dip drill holes (widths reported indicate apparent intersection widths, not true thickness) that intersected the V1/V2 pegmatite
Hole | Dip Angle | Pegmatite Unit | From (m) | To (m) | Width (m) | Sn (%) | Ta (ppm) | Li2O (%) |
V1V2021 | Vertical | V1/V2 | 230.95 | 332.00 | 101.05 | 0.164 | 77.79 | 0.52 |
V1V2022 | Vertical | V1/V2 | 194.95 | 359.04 | 164.09 | 0.169 | 57.19 | 1.04 |
V1V2023 | Vertical | V1/V2 | 291.27 | 384.00 | 92.73 | 0.156 | 55.44 | 0.74 |
V1V2025 | Vertical | V1/V2 | 231.18 | 400.20 | 169.02 | 0.171 | 62.87 | 0.81 |
V1V2026 | Vertical | V1/V2 | 164.06 | 232.96 | 68.90 | 0.164 | 118.73 | 0.59 |
Competent Person Statement:
The technical data in this announcement has been reviewed by Prof. Laurence Robb, who is a director of AfriTin Mining. Prof. Robb has more than 30 years of industry related exploration and mineral experience and is a Competent Person for the reporting of exploration results. He has reviewed both the technical disclosures in this release as well as the quality assurance protocols and results for the assay campaign.
Glossary of abbreviations
Li | Symbol for Lithium |
Li2O | Lithium oxide |
Li → Li2O | Metal to metal-oxide conversion factor of 2.153 |
ICP-MS | Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectrometry |
ICP-OES | Inductively Coupled Plasma-Optical Emission Spectrometry |
JORC | The Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves |
MRE | Mineral Resource Estimate |
PPM | Parts Per Million |
QA/QC | Quality Assurance, Quality Control |
Sn | Symbol for Tin |
Ta | Symbol for Tantalum |
V1/V2 | Name of the targeted pegmatite orebody, V1/V2 denotes where the V1 and V2 pegmatites have merged at depth |
AfriTin Mining Limited | +27 (11) 268 6555 |
Anthony Viljoen, CEO | |
Nominated Adviser | +44 (0) 20 7220 1666 |
WH Ireland Limited Katy Mitchell
| |
Corporate Advisor and Joint Broker | |
H&P Advisory Limited Andrew Chubb Jay Ashfield Nilesh Patel | +44 (0) 20 7907 8500 |
Turner Pope Andy Thacker James Pope
| +44 (0) 20 3657 0050
|
Tavistock Financial PR (United Kingdom) | +44 (0) 20 7920 3150 |
Jos Simson Nick Elwes Oliver Lamb |
About AfriTin Mining Limited
Notes to Editors
AfriTin Mining Limited is the first pure tin company listed in London and its vision is to create a portfolio of globally significant, conflict-free, tin-producing assets. The Company's flagship asset is the Uis Tin Mine in Namibia, formerly the world's largest hard-rock open cast tin mine.
AfriTin is managed by an experienced board of directors and management team with a current strategy to ramp-up production at the Uis Tin Mine in Namibia to 10,000 tonnes of concentrate in a Phase 2 expansion, having reached Phase 1 commercial production in 2020. The Company strives to capitalise on the solid supply/demand fundamentals of tin by developing a critical mass of tin resource inventory, achieving production in the near term and further scaling production by consolidating tin assets in Africa.