12 Jul 2010 15:54
| AIM: GMA | 12 July 2010 |
GMA Resources plc
("GMA" or the "Company")
Production Update for Q2 2010
GMA announces that from 1 April to 30 June 2010, the Amesmessa gold mine in Algeria increased production to 6095.97 oz of gold (Q1 2010: 5,731.5 oz) and 1,205.43 oz of silver (Q1 2010: 1,197.3 oz). Detailed production data is set out below.
The unused carbon in leach (CIL) plant at Tirek has been transferred to Amesmessa, where compliance testing commenced in May. However, a failure of the gearbox that drives the ball mill and subsequent back up unit has delayed the start up until August. The replacement gear box has arrived in Algiers and is currently awaiting customs clearance. This plant is expected to contribute approximately a further 1,000 oz of gold to monthly output from August.
Systematic selection of higher grade, low strip ratio ore locations across the concession has commenced. This process is being made more productive by collecting new geochemical soil sampling data. As announced on 15 June 2010, initial work carried out resulted in the identification of 76 alteration zones within the concession which were considered to be potential loci of gold mineralisation. To date 26 of the 76 anomalies identified have been soil sampled. Results to date of the first anomalies tested have indicated elevated gold in soil results that will require follow up through trenching and drilling as previously reported. More recent results also indicate elevated gold in soil results. The purpose built drill rig has arrived at the mine site and preliminary drilling has commenced with the first 17 holes drilled and samples forwarded to the assay laboratory. Early drilling results will be announced later this year.
More detailed production data for second quarter of 2010 is set out in the table below:
|
| Unit | Apr '10 | May '10 | June '10 | 2nd Quarter |
| Total Gold Production ENOR | oz | 2,077.97 | 2,079.83 | 1,938.18 | 6,095.97 |
| Total Silver Production ENOR | oz | 412.43 | 411.51 | 381.49 | 1,205.43 |
| High Grade Ore Tonnes ex-Mine | mt | 7,590 | 1,200 | 2,460 | 11,250 |
| High Grade Ore Grade ex-Mine | g/t Au | 12.47 | 11.55 | 14.98 | 12.92 |
| Heap Leach Ore Tonnes ex-Mine | mt | 48,495 | 40,305 | 33,200 | 122,000 |
| Heap Leach Ore Tonnes ex-Mine | g/t Au | 2.59 | 2.62 | 3.66 | 2.89 |
| Waste Tonnes Mined | mt | 347,220 | 356,610 | 314,385 | 1,018,215 |
| Strip Ratio |
| 6.19 | 8.59 | 8.82 | 7.64 |
| Ore Stacked to Heap Leach Pad | mt | 40,071 | 46,520 | 43,357 | 129,948 |
| Crushed Ore Grade | g/t Au | 3.45 | 3.09 | 3.69 | 3.40 |
| Recovery | % | 46.74 | 44.97 | 37.70 | 42.90 |
Ken Crichton, Chief Executive of GMA, commented:
"Whilst management has been focused on securing financing for GMA's near term working capital requirements, steps have also been taken to establish more reliable and cost effective production at Amesmessa with incremental improvements in Q2 and more expected next quarter. In particular, we expect to see an improvement in output with the assistance of the Tirek CIL and continued exploration progress following up the early success in June."
Enquiries:
| GMA Resources Plc
| Ken Crichton | +20 (0)10766 6118 |
| Merchant Securities Limited (Nomad) | Bidhi Bhoma | +44 (0) 20 7628 2200 |
Notes to Editors:
GMA owns a controlling 52% stake in ENOR spa ("ENOR"), the Algerian based operating company for the Tirek-Amesmessa project, with the remainder owned by Sonatrach, the Algerian state-owned oil and gas company.
ENOR holds the exploitation authorisation to the Tirek-Amesmessa property, an area of some 1,417 km2, located approximately 450km south west of the city, Tamanrasset, in southern Algeria. Amesmessa is an open pit heap leach gold mine located in the extreme south of the permit area. The now closed Tirek mine site is located centrally in the northern third of the exploration permit area, some 60 km north of Amesmessa. Research to date suggests that the Zita Zone, which lies between Tirek and Amesmessa, offers considerable potential for the development of additional prospects amenable to open-pit mining. GMA plans to quickly expand upon resources outside of the major 80km Tirek-Amesmessa fault north/south of the concession.
GMA's shares are traded on the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange (AIM: GMA).
For further information on the Company, please visit: www.gmaresources.co.uk