5 Oct 2006 07:00
Gravity Diamonds Limited05 October 2006 RELEASED ON BEHALF OF: GRAVITY DIAMONDS LIMITED (ASX & AIM : GRN) 5 October 2006 GRAVITY SET TO BEGIN EVALUATION OF ABNER RANGE KIMBERLITE DISCOVERY - Large-diameter drill rig to extract 200 tonne bulk sample from ABN 021 kimberlite - Material to be processed through Merlin's Mark III Heavy Media Separation plant - Planned helicopter-borne EM survey will test for smaller pipes *********************************************** Gravity Diamonds Limited (AIM and ASX: GRN) is pleased to report that alarge-diameter Calweld drilling rig is expected to arrive on site within thenext two weeks to extract a minimum 200 tonne bulk sample from its ABN 021diamondiferous kimberlite discovery in the Abner Range of the NorthernTerritory. This is an important part of the busy 2006 field program being undertaken by thecompany, the start of which was delayed by an unusually late wet season acrossthe northern part of Australia. Gravity resumed full-scale field operationsduring July, with personnel currently active on the Abner Range and otherproject areas throughout the Northern Territory. At Abner Range, road access hasbeen significantly upgraded to enable heavy vehicles to reach both the plateauand the Northern Valley areas. This upgraded access will also facilitate thetransport of the bulk sample when excavated. The Calweld drill rig is currently working on the Merlin diamond mine, about 50kilometres to the east of Abner Range, and Gravity anticipates it will berelocated to ABN 021 within the next two weeks. Upon excavation, the ABN 021kimberlite bulk sample will be transported to Merlin where North AustralianDiamonds Limited has agreed to process it through its Mark III - HMS (HeavyMedia Separation) plant. The bulk sampling program represents the next phase of Gravity's evaluation ofthe diamond potential of the ABN 021 kimberlite. A helicopter-borne transient electromagnetic (HoistEM) survey, employing thelatest technology available in Australia, is also scheduled to commence at AbnerRange in the next fortnight. This survey is designed to both screen existingunresolved FALCON(R) gravity targets and identify targets within areas reportingstrong kimberlitic indicator minerals results that were previously omitted fromthe original FALCON(R) airborne gravity coverage. Similar surveys in the Merlinkimberlite field have highlighted the position of a number of pipes; such pipesmay have been undetectable by Gravity's original Abner Range airborne gravitysurvey. Elsewhere in the Northern Territory, follow-up sampling in the Cox-Arnold areato the northwest of Abner Range has been completed over areas that previouslyreturned encouraging sampling results. Follow-up sampling has also beencompleted at the Tee Dee area near the Western Australian border and the Argylediamond mine. These samples have been submitted to the Diatech laboratory in Perth for heavymineral analysis with the results expected during the December quarter. The information in this release has been compiled and reviewed by GravityDiamonds Limited's Managing Director, Phillip Harman BSc (Hons), who is a memberof The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy. Mr Harman has sufficientexperience which is relevant to the style of mineralisation and type of depositunder consideration and to the activity undertaken to be a qualified person forthe purposes of the AIM Guidance Note for the Mining and Oil and Gas Companiesissued on 16 March 2006. Further Information: Phil Harman, Managing Director, Gravity Diamonds Ltd. Tel: +61-3-9909-7655 Elisa Bartlett, Assistant to the Managing Director, Gravity Diamonds Ltd. Tel:+61-3-9909-7655 Ron Marshman/John Greenhalgh, City of London PR Ltd. Tel: 020-7628-5518 www.gravitydiamonds.com.au This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange