Last checked at 4 Apr 2019 07:00
4th April 2019
Botswana Diamonds PLC
("Botswana Diamonds" or the "Company")
Update on Thorny River project development
· Bulk sampling (mining) on track to commence in Q2 2019 subject to approvals;
· 33 drill holes completed in the current programme to define the bulk sampling plan;
· Thorny River drill plan concluded with data from a total of 77 holes drilled
· Commissioning of the diamond processing plant which will process the Thorny River kimberlite has been completed.
Botswana Diamonds ("BOD") the AIM and BSE listed explorer is pleased to announce that the intensification drilling programme has been concluded on the farms Frischgewaagt and Hartbeesfontein which form part of the Thorny River project. The purpose of this drilling programme was to enable detailed planning for a bulk sampling (mining) programme, which will commence after the necessary regulatory approvals have been received; these are expected during the course of Q2 2019.
This programme comprised 33 holes and 1,282 meters of drilling which, together with previous work, has resulted in a total drilled depth of 3,299 meters in five areas on the two farms whilst BOD has been active on the property. The intensification drilling programme has allowed further definition of the kimberlite blow/fissure complex and added to data already generated by gravity, magnetic, maxmin and other advanced exploration techniques.
A summary of all of the data is provided in the following table by area drilled:
| Holes Drilled | Kimberlite Intersections | Kimberlite Strike Length (m) | ||||||
Area | Number of holes (m) | Total meters | Average depth (m) | Deepest hole (m) | Shallowest Intersection (m) | Deepest Intersection (m) | Minimum Intersection (m) | Maximum Intersection (m) | |
1 | 14 | 527 | 38 | 73 | 9.3 | 48 | 0.2 | 4.2 | 720 |
2 | 15 | 539 | 38 | 60 | 9.5 | 36.5 | 0.7 | 4.0 | 1100 |
3 | 20 | 897 | 47 | 79 | 8 | 50 | 0.1 | 18.0 | 800 |
4 | 21 | 1033 | 54 | 123 | 4 | 102 | 1.0 | 8.0 | 780 |
5 | 7 | 303 | 43 | 67 | 24 | 61 | 1.3 | 9.0 | 500 |
Total | 77 | 3299 | 54 | 123 | 4 | 102 | 0.1 | 18.0 | 3900 |
The map below details the target areas on the two properties.
Link to Map http://www.rns-pdf.londonstockexchange.com/rns/0610V_1-2019-4-3.pdf
A bulk sampling target of 3.9 km of linear kimberlite fissure intersection has been identified from the results with intersections of up to 18 meters from 4 meters below surface. Areas hosting possible blows have also been identified, and these will form part of the bulk sampling (mining) area, which is adjacent to that from which a bulk sample was taken in early 2018 (which indicated diamond values of US$120 - US$220 / carat and grades of 46 - 74 carats per hundred tonnes (or in-situ value of US$55 - US$160 / tonne)).
Following refurbishment, wet commissioning has been concluded on a nearby kimberlite treatment facility where the bulk samples will be processed.
Early stage work is also progressing on potential secondary (alluvial) diamond deposits in the project area, with a number of targets being identified. The nearby and worked-out Marsfontein diamond mine was host to eluvial diamond deposits running at grades of 1,433 cpht.
This release has been approved by James Campbell, Managing Director of Botswana Diamonds plc, a qualified geologist (Pr.Sci.Nat), a Fellow of the Southern African Institute of Mining and Metallurgy, a Fellow of the Institute of Materials, Metals and Mining (UK) and with over 33-years' experience in the diamond sector.
This announcement contains inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of Regulation (EU) 596/2014. The person who arranged for the release of this announcement on behalf of the Company was James Campbell, Director
A copy of this announcement is available on the Company's website, at www.botswanadiamonds.co.uk
ENDS
Enquiries:
Botswana Diamonds PLC John Teeling, Chairman James Campbell, Managing Director Jim Finn, Director
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Glossary
Kimberlite: Also called blue ground, a dark-coloured, heavy, often altered and brecciated (fragmented), intrusive igneous rock that contains diamonds in its rock matrix.
Kimberlite Blow: Some kimberlite dykes are observed to expand along strike into lenticular features 10-20 times the dyke width and up to 100 m in length; these are termed "blows" and may represent the lowermost portions of root zone intrusions.
Wet Commissioning: Means water or a solvent has been introduced into the system and sub-systems.
CPHT: Carats per hundred tons.
www.botswanadiamonds.co.uk