12 Dec 2016 15:33
12 December 2016
Golden Saint Resources Ltd
("Golden Saint" or the "Company")
Operational Update
Golden Saint Resources Ltd (AIM: GSR), the West African-focused diamond and gold exploration company quoted on AIM, is pleased to provide the market with the following operational updates, relating to two of the Company's exploration licence areas in Sierra Leone.
Baja licence area
The alluvial bulk sampling operations at Baja site 2 are currently ongoing and as at 7 December 2016, the Company had recovered 5.75 carats of rough diamonds of varying sizes, weights and colours recovered from the 180 tonnes of gravels washed as at that date. The recovered rough diamonds comprise 13 stones ranging from 0.20 carats to 1.57 carats. In addition, as at 7 December 2016, the Company had also recovered a total of 3.90 grams of gold from the Baja Site 2 bulk sample.
The diamond and gold recoveries stated above, which will be kept in the Company's safe until such time when sufficient quantities have been accumulated for export for sale or for cutting and polishing, include those that were announced on 16 November 2016.
Although the Baja washing plant experienced four days of machinery downtime during the initial phase of processing, stability has been restored and the sampling is now continuing with minimal downtime. Based on feedback and recommendations from Rock Forage Consulting Services ("Rock Forage") during the most recent site visit in December 2016, the Baja washing plant will be modified further to improve the screening and the gold recovery efficiencies. Excavation work on the two additional prospective sites has also commenced at Baja sites 3 and 4, which are located closer to the Sewa River. The Company plans to carry out bulk sampling operations on these two sites as part of the overall exploration strategy that was discussed and agreed with Rock Forage during their most recent visit. These two additional sites were identified as further alluvial priority targets by our geological team, based on the information obtained from the aeromagnetic survey data interpretations compiled by external independent geophysical consultants in February 2014.
Tongo licence area
Further excavation work at Tongo site 1 is currently in progress. The overburden thickness of about 5.2 meters was thicker than expected resulting in the stripping of some 12,500 tonnes. Notwithstanding this additional stripping, the basal gravels will be reached shortly and subsequently excavated for onward processing by the Dove Explorer. The extension of the Tongo site 1 bulk sampling programme is expected to generate similar exploration results to those achieved and reported on in the Company's announcement of 24 August 2016 as similar basal gravels have been intersected in the recent excavations. In close proximity to Tongo site 1, the geological team will also be carrying out mapping and sampling at a nearby Priority 1 geophysical anomaly identified as a possible kimberlite from the 2013 airborne magnetic survey interpretations.
Site visit by Rock Forage and the Golden Saint management team
During the recent site visit by Rock Forage and key individuals from the Golden Saint management team in December 2016, future plans for the exploration work were fine-tuned taking into account the current assessment of work done and the bulk sampling results obtained to date.
In consultation with Rock Forage, the Company has updated its exploration strategy going forward through the 2016/2017 dry season to focus primarily on developing inferred resources for selected alluvial terrace deposits along the Sewa River and the Woa River in the Baja and Tongo licences, respectively. This approach includes more detailed field mapping, additional pitting and focused bulk sampling of the basal alluvial gravels in the selected terrace deposits in these two valleys. Concomitantly, in the Tongo licence area, close to the site 1 alluvial bulk sample locality, several Priority 1 geophysical anomalies identified as possible kimberlites (mainly dykes) from the October/November 2013 airborne magnetic survey will be followed up by mapping and sampling along these structurally-oriented targets.
A detailed site visit report will be submitted by Rock Forage in due course and this will be made available on the Company's website shortly thereafter.
The Company will provide further updates to the market as work progresses through the 2016/2017 dry season.
The information in this announcement that relates to the site visit by Rock Forage is based upon information compiled by Dr John D Ward (Pr. Sci. Nat; PhD) who is an independent consultant employed by Rock Forage Mining Limited and is a Fellow of The Geological Society of South Africa. Dr Ward has sufficient experience relevant to the style of mineralisation and type of deposit under consideration and the activity in which he is undertaking to qualify as a Competent Person under the 2012 Edition of the Australasian Code for Reporting Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves (JORC Code). Dr Ward has reviewed the information contained in this announcement and consents to its release in the form and context in which the information appears.
This announcement contains inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of EU Regulation 596/2014.
GLOSSARY OF TECHNICAL TERMS
airborne magnetic survey | the earth's magnetic field within the exploration target area is measured remotely by geophysical instruments that are situated in an airplane, helicopter or drone that fly aerially over the area recording these data. |
airborne geophysics | magnetic and radiometric mapping using airborne spectrometers used to map the concentration and distribution of radioisotopes near the Earth's surface, which is useful for mapping lithology and alteration |
alluvial | a mineral deposit made up of mobile sediment and/or soil |
basal alluvial gravels or basal gravels | gravel deposits that are found at the base of an alluvial sequence |
carat | standard measure of diamond weight (0.2grams) |
diamondiferous | containing diamonds |
dykes | thin (mostly |
exploration targets | the three exploration licenses held by GSR in Sierra Leone viz. Baja (EL87/2011), Tongo (EL86/2011) and Moa (EL07/2012) targeted for diamond and gold exploration |
field mapping | process of recording the distribution of geological/geomorphological units by physically mapping out domains in the exploration target area |
inferred resources | that part of the diamond resource for which quantity, grade and average diamond value are estimated on the basis of limited geological evidence and sampling. Reasonable prospects for eventual economic extraction can be demonstrated. |
kimberlite | a rare, blue-tinged, coarse-grained potassic intrusive igneous rock sometimes containing diamonds |
kimberlite dyke | a vertical "sheet-shaped" intrusive volcanic structure comprised of kimberlite |
overburden | non-mineralised, barren alluvial material that overlies the basal gravels |
pitting | the exploration method of excavating small pits through the overburden to intersect the basal alluvial gravels |
stripping | the physical removal of overburden |
terrace | remnant of the former floodplain of a stream or river |
For further information please contact:
Golden Saint Resources Ltd
| Keng Hock Seah | +618 6145 4400 |
Beaumont Cornish Limited
| Roland Cornish / Emily Staples | +44 (0) 20 7628 3396 |
SVS Securities Plc
| Tom Curran / Ben Tadd
| +44 (0)203 700 0093 |
Cassiopeia Services LTD
| Stefania Barbaglio | +44 (0)7949690338 |