17 Nov 2008 11:19
| 17 November 2008 | AIM: GMA |
GMA Resources Plc
("GMA" or "the Company")
Operations and Trading Update
GMA is pleased to announce that on 14 November 2008, 165 tonnes of explosives were received at the Amesmessa mine site. This shipment is in addition to the recently announced shipment of 80 tonnes of explosives, which was received on 30 October 2008. ONEX (Office National d'Explosifs), the state owned explosives supplier in Algeria, has informed ENOR spa ("ENOR") that it will deliver similar quantities of explosives in December. In addition, ONEX has indicated that it intends to deliver quantities of explosives in line with the Company's operational requirements in 2009. Steady state explosives requirements are approximately 120-130 tonnes per month.
The Board continues to pursue a range of immediate fundraising options, including the possibility of selling its exploration drill rig and outsourcing ENOR's drilling services. Market conditions are changing so rapidly that the Board must keep open all possibilities for short term funding. The Board expects to make further announcements in the near future on this subject.
In the absence of additional funds being raised or the drill rig being sold, the Directors believe that the Company has sufficient cash resources to fund its operations until the end of the January 2009.
Douglas Perkins, Chief Executive Officer of GMA, commented:
"After a number of months working in Algeria to secure explosives, management can now focus on fine tuning of the operations and supply chain to ensure a build up to design capacity for the mine. We are currently reviewing a number of opportunities to improve the cash position of the Company and will advise the market as soon as definitive arrangements are secured."
Enquiries:
| GMA Resources Plc | John East & Partners Limited |
| Douglas Perkins | Bidhi Bhoma / David Worlidge |
| +1 514 806 6788 | +44 (0) 20 7628 2200 |
Notes to Editors:
GMA owns a controlling 52 per cent. stake in 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 authorization 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 Tirek gold mine 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 Resources plans to quickly expand upon resources outside of the major 80km north/south Tirek-Amesmessa fault and other exploration targets on the property.
For further information on the Company, please visit: www.gmaresources.co.uk