Global projects and exploration
As part of the ongoing development of Zinnwald , a feasibility study is underway to develop a strategy to demonstrate the economic viability of producing higher value downstream lithium products for the European battery and automotive sectors and is expected to be completed in mid-2019 .
Brazil Horizonte submits mine plan
Horizonte has submitted its mine plan to Brazil ’ s national mining agency ( Agência Nacional de Mineração or ANM ) for the Araguaia nickel project . Formal ANM approval has already received for Horizonte ’ s final exploration reports , covering the mineral reserves for the planned 28-year mine life at Araguaia .
The next step in the mine licence process is the submission of a mine plan . Horizonte has filed the mine plan , and ANM will now have to validate the mine feed , plant processes , metal refining , production schedule , ferronickel market fundamentals and the project ’ s economic model . ANM ’ s approval of the mine plan and the approval of the mine construction license from the State Environmental Authority will grant Horizonte the principal mining and environmental permits to commence construction at Araguaia .
Nicaragua Drilling shows continuity of structures
Condor Gold has announced the final six drill hole results from a 43-drill hole programme on the Mestiza Vein Set ( current 43-101 resource of 330koz at 7.47g / t ) at the La India Project in Nicaragua . A drill programme of 5 922m was completed in August with the initial focus on the Tatiana Vein , one of the four constituent veins at Mestiza , along with the nearby Buenos Aires and Jícaro veins with drilling restricted to 200m below surface
The objective of the drilling programme was to convert the upper part of a historic Soviet mineral resource ( 239 million tonnes [ Mt ] at 10.2 grams per tonne [ g / t ] gold for 785 694oz of gold from surface to around 500m depth ) to Canadian NI 43-101 standard . However , this has now also developed into allowing Condor to better understand the extent of the mineralisation and further resource potential at Mestiza , which is open along strike beyond the Soviet resource .
It is now considered that drilling below 200m is required to determine the volume of the historic Soviet resource that can be converted to NI 43-101 standard . The 5 922m completed has demonstrated excellent continuity of the structures , high-grade ore from surface and the open pit potential of the vein set .
A high-grade ore shoot ( Big Bend ) on the Tatiana vein is defined over a strike length of 450m and depth of 200m . It has mineralised true widths up to 4.6m ( averaging 2.2m over the main mineralised section ), in addition to a hanging wall vein up to 6.1m true width ( averaging 1m ), and its discovery is viewed by the company as being material to the project . Condor Gold says that a small open pit on the Tatiana vein will add high grade gold to the mine plan , reduce the payback period and enhance the project economics .
Canada Junior Lake increases
Gold mining company Landore Resources ’ acquisition of the contiguous Lamaune property ( 90.2 % stake ) has increased the size of the Junior Lake property from 22 497 hectares to 26 593 hectares . The additional land will extend the coverage of the highly prospective Archean greenstone belt , traversing the property from east to west , and from 19km to about 31km in length .
Landore ' s prime asset is the Junior Lake property situated in the heart of the world class mining jurisdiction of Northern Ontario , Canada .
To support any application to the Toronto Stock Exchange , Landore will be required to submit an updated NI 43-101 Technical Report on the Junior Lake property to include all the previously reported mineral resource estimates as well as the BAM East Gold Deposit . Landore has engaged Roscoe Postle Associates of Toronto , Canada to complete the Landore Junior Lake Technical Report , which is scheduled to be finalised within the next few weeks .
Serbia Drill rigs mobilized to Zeleznik
Mundoro Capital ( MUN ) has mobilised its third drill programme on the East and West targets on the southern edge of the company ’ s Zeleznik property in Serbia . The West and East Zone on the Zeleznik licence represent two advanced coppergold targets located adjacent to the operating Majdanpek copper-gold mine on the northern section of the Timok Metallurgical Belt .
The 4 120m and 16-hole programme includes fence and step out drilling as MUN and its partners Japan Oil , Gas and Metals National Corporation ( JOGMEC ) look to produce initial grade and volume data which can be used for a maiden resource estimate on the targets in the future . It is also hoped that the drilling will better define the higher-grade sections of the porphyry and massive sulphide which could allow lower grade material to be included in any future reserve estimate or mine plan .
Seven holes are planned on the East Zone following developing fences based on previous holes which have returned assays such as 2.8m at 2.11 % copper and 1.5g / t gold and 4.9m at 0.8 % copper and 1g / t , and to further test the carbonatereplacement potential at the contact between the porphyry and the host marble / limestone .
Nine holes are scheduled on the West Zone to systematically follow up on assays including 25.8m at 0.39 % copper and 0.08g / t gold . Trenching is also planned on the soil anomalies that have been defined on the recently acquired southern extensions to the East and West Zones . Targets from this exercise will be drilled in early 2018 .
JANUARY 2018 MINING MIRROR [ 11 ]