KEFI Minerals plc (LON:KEFI), the gold exploration and development company with projects in the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, has today provided an update on the ongoing exploration programme at the Company’s Hawiah exploration project in Saudi Arabia. KEFI’s operations in Saudi Arabia are conducted through its 37% owned joint venture company, Gold and Minerals Co. Limited, where KEFI is the operating partner.
The Stage 1 Hawiah diamond drilling programme completed 26 drillholes in December 2019 and the initial results were announced on 23 January 2020. The results confirm the large-scale Volcanic Massive Sulphide style of mineralisation that underlies the 4km+ long surface gossanous ridgeline and coincident extensive and exceptionally strong geophysical anomalies. Copper-zinc-gold-silver sulphide mineralisation has been intercepted in drilling consistently over more than 4km of strike length, with intercepts of up to 5% Cu equivalent.
The Stage 2 Hawiah drilling programme has to date added a further 19 drillholes, all of which have intercepted massive sulphide and confirms the positive progress towards delineating an initial Mineral Resource in accordance with the JORC Code by mid-2020. Forty-five diamond drillholes have now been completed in total (Stage 1 and Stage 2) and assays have been received for 20 drillholes.
Sufficient drilling has now been completed to identify three separate zones with the following preliminary parameters for potentially mineable lodes, with all zones remaining open at depth:
- The ‘Camp Lode’: 1.2km long, with an average width of 6m with the widest intersection of 19m found at a depth of 90m. The lode has been drilled to a depth of 300m where 9m of massive sulphide was intersected;
- The ‘Crossroads Lode’: 700m long, with an average width of 4m with the widest intersection being 8m. This lode has been explored to a maximum depth of 385m where 5m of massive sulphide was intersected; and
- The ‘Crossroads Extension Lode’: 1,000m long, with average width of 4m with the widest intersection being 12m at a depth of 112m. This part of the orebody is also open at depth and the deepest drillhole of 130m intersected 8m of massive sulphide.
At present the assay results from the massive sulphide intercepts are summarised as follows:
- Camp Lode which provides a preliminary indication that this part of the orebody carries the following grades: Copper 1.4%; Zinc 0.6%; Gold 0.74glt and Silver 12g/t over average true width of 6.2m.
- Assay results from the Crossroads lodes (including the extension) which so far provide a preliminary indication that this part of the ore body carries the following grades: Copper 1.5%; Zinc 1.12%; Gold 0.77g/t and Silver 14.4g/t over average true width of 4.9m.
The combination of these lodes on the sub-vertical structure drilled to date is considered likely to exceed 12 million tonnes in aggregate based on the results to date. For the purposes of indicating the potential relative importance for KEFI shareholders, at an assumed 2% copper-equivalent, the in-situ metal content of 12 million tonnes at current metal prices would approximate the analogous in-situ metal content of the 1 million ounce reserve at KEFI’s Tulu Kapi Gold Project in Ethiopia.
A comprehensive update, including all details of all drillholes will be provided as soon as the majority of assays are received. In addition, KEFI Minerals will also continue to assess the additional resource potential of Hawiah outside of the current drill programme, given drilling to date is yet to establish the extremities of the mineralisation at depth.
