Melbourne, Feb 3, 2009 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Regis Resources Ltd (ASX:RRL)(PINK:RGRNF) is pleased to announce an initial oxide reserve of 156,316 oz of gold from the 100%-owned Moolart Well gold deposit, part of the Duketon Gold Project, near Laverton in Western Australia.
The oxide reserve statement is an initial calculation in the southern resource area only where measured and indicated oxide resources of 374,326 oz have been previously determined at a 0.5g/t cut-off. The reserves represent a 42% conversion of these resources.
This announcement increases the total Duketon Gold Project reserves by 35% to 598,458 oz of gold when combined with the previouslyannounced laterite reserve statement. 83% of these reserves are in the Proven category.
A further 484,228 ozs of inferred oxide resources at a 0.5 g/t cut-off exist in the north and central parts of the Moolart Well deposit, down to a depth of 70m. These resources require further infill drilling to be able to be classified in the measured and indicated resource category and capable of conversion to reserves.
This reserve statement and the associated mining plans and schedules form the basis for the Duketon Feasibility Study, due to be completed shortly.
Reserve Calculation Detail
Whittle 4D optimisations were completed at a variety of gold prices and the A$1,000/oz run adopted as the base for the oxide pit design. The recently-trialled scraper-dozer mining method was used for waste mining down to base of complete oxidation at approximately 50m vertical depth. The truck and shovel mining method was used for all oxide ore mining, and for waste mining below the base of complete oxidation to top of fresh rock. Below the base of complete oxidation in the saprock zone both ore and waste will require drilling and blasting.
Fully engineered pit shells and mining schedules were created for a proposed 2.5 million tonne per annum mining and processing operation, and operating costs were estimated from current industry quotes.
The estimation generated four main pit areas - at Lancaster, Lancaster North, Stirling Central and Stirling North, and 2-3 smaller pit areas. At Lancaster and Lancaster north the oxide pits occur beneath the Laterite ore, but in the Stirling and Stirling North areas the oxide pits occur partly beneath barren laterite-clay cover which requires stripping to surface.
In general the oxide pits drive to the base of the oxide zone and were restricted from extending into the inferred sulphide zone resources below.
In some cases these resources are contiguous with the mineralisation in the oxide zone above. Further Reserve Additions Regis expects further substantial additions to the Moolart Well oxide reserves as 1/ inferred resources are progressively converted to measured and indicated status; 2/ flat-lying supergene mineralisation (not currently modelled) is included, and 3/ the 511 holes drilled at Moolart well since 14 January 2008 (containing 19,679 gold assays) are included in the resource model.
Table 1 below summarises the oxide resource position based on drilling to 14 January 2008, the portion of that oxide resource within optimised pit shells (including inferred resources) and the current oxide reserve statement.
Table 1. Moolart Well-oxide zone----------------------------------------Moolart Well million grade goldOxide Zone tonnes g/t koz----------------------------------------Total Oxide Resources 25.8 1.03 859Optimised Resources 4.8 1.67 259Reserves 2.6 1.84 156----------------------------------------
Note: All resources quoted at a 0.5g/t cut-off grade
: Resources include inferred category
: Optimised resources are within Whittle 4D shell
Table 2 Ore Reserve Statement-----------------------------------------------------------Duketon Gold Proven Probable Total ReservesProject --------------------------------------------- m/t grade gold m/t grade gold m/t grade gold g/t koz g/t koz g/t koz-----------------------------------------------------------Moolart Well-----------------------------------------------------------Laterite 9.4 1.41 425 0.6 0.97 18 9.9 1.39 442-----------------------------------------------------------Oxide 1.1 1.94 71 1.5 1.76 85 2.6 1.84 156SulphideMoolart Well sub-total 10.5 1.47 496 2.1 1.54 103 12.6 1.48 598-----------------------------------------------------------Total Project 10.5 1.47 496 2.1 1.54 103 12.6 1.48 598-----------------------------------------------------------
Notes
1. The ore reserve estimate used a gold price of A$1,000/oz.
2. All data is rounded and discrepancies in summation may occur.
3. Based on Moolart Well drilling to 14 January 2008.
4. The information in this report that relates to Moolart Well Ore Reserves is based on information compiled by Mr Anthony Stephen Lund who is a member of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy and has sufficient experience relevant to the style of mineralisation and type of deposit under consideration and to the mining method undertaken to qualify as a Competent Person as defined in the JORC Code (2004). Mr Anthony Lund is a full time employee of Global Mining Services Pty Ltd and consents to the inclusion in the report of the matters based on his information in the form and context in which it appears.
5. The information in the statement of Mineral Resources for Moolart Well is based on information compiled by Mr Andrew Hawker of Regis Resource Ltd and Mr Richard Gaze of Golder Associates Pty Ltd who are both members of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy and have sufficient experience relevant to the style of mineralisation and type of deposit under consideration and to the activity undertaken to qualify as a Competent Persons as defined in the JORC Code (2004). Mr Richard Gaze has provided Competent Person sign-off for the resource estimation procedures and results. Mr Andrew Hawker has provided Competent Person sign-off for the quality and representativity of the drill hole data and geological interpretations. Attributions for other resource statements are listed in the resource table.
Contact
Mr David Walker
Managing Director
Dr Michael Folie
Chairman
TEL: +61-3-8602-6500
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