Baobab Resources (LON:BAO) Drilling Results From The Tete Iron, Vanandium and Titanium Project
London, Jan 27, 2011 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Baobab Resources plc (
LON:BAO), the iron ore, base and precious metals explorer with a portfolio of mineral projects in Mozambique, is pleased to present an update on the exploration activities currently underway at the Tete iron/vanadium/titanium project.
Commenting today, Ben James, Baobab's Managing Director, said: "the current round of results further confirms the robust continuity of South Zone's northernmost Block 7. Recent mapping has identified a 200m long, fault offset continuation of the block to the northeast which will be drill tested during the expansion RC phase in the coming months.
"Interpretation of the southern Block 1 drilling traverses is also looking encouraging and the Company looks forward to announcing the analytical results as they come to hand."
Highlights:
- Analytical results have been returned from three drill holes of an RC cross section located in the northern Block 7 of the South Zone prospect. A broad package of heavily mineralised magnetite was delineated. Mineralised intercepts reported best concentrate grades of:
TRC0053 - four significant intercepts, totaling 58m, including:50m @ 57.7% Fe, 0.55% V2O5 and 34.3% mass recovery from 45m TRC0054 - four significant intercepts, totaling 107m, including:76m @ 59.9% Fe, 0.59% V2O5 and 29.6% mass recovery from 33m and26m @ 59.3% Fe, 0.59% V2O5 and 26.9% mass recovery from 141mTRC0058 - five significant intercepts, totaling 55m, including:26m @ 56.6% Fe, 0.52% V2O5 and 35.6% mass recovery from 103m and6m @ 63.7% Fe, 0.68% V2O5 and 35.0% mass recovery from 170m
- Drilling over two cross sections in the southern limit of the South Zone prospect (Block 1) has delineated broad zones of magnetite mineralisation. Results from this area are expected to become available within the next two to four weeks.
Step-out RC Drilling Programme - South Zone Prospect (Massamba Group)
Due to the significant widths and interpreted lateral continuity of mineralisation at the South Zone, the prospect has been prioritised for step-out reverse circulation (RC) drilling. The programme is systematically assessing a sequence of seven mineralised zones (Blocks 1 to 7 from south to north) over a strike length of some 2km, drilling on traverses spaced 100m apart.
A total of 50 RC drill holes have been planned for a combined meterage of 7,000m. Thirty three holes were completed for an aggregate total of approximately 4,500m prior to the early onset of the 2010 wet season in Mozambique, at which time the Company was obliged to suspend drilling operations. Technical teams and drill rigs are on standby in Tete, ready to mobilise to site as soon as the weather allows.
To date the drilling programme undertaken in all areas has delineated substantially wider zones of mineralisation than were anticipated. Additionally, recent mapping has identified a 200m long zone of mineralisation, interpreted as the fault offset continuation of Block 7, immediately to the northeast of the South Zone prospect. Consequently, Baobab's exploration management team is in the process of designing an expansion drilling programme to test the down dip and along strike continuations of the ore zones.
The first nine RC holes were drilled in Block 3 and tested the along strike continuations of mineralisation intersected in scout diamond drill hole TDH0019 over five cross sections. Analytical results from these drill holes were announced to the market on 20 October and 8 November 2010. Due to mechanical issues, drill holes TRC0006 to 9 did not reach their target depths (TRC0007 and 8 ended in mineralisation). The drill holes will be re-drilled, at the operator's expense, in due course and updated intercepts will be reported as soon as they become available.
Please note that drill holes have not been drilled in sequence, consequently there are gaps in the hole numbering.
Drilling in Block 7, the northern most target area, over three east-west cross sections and an oblique cross section has intersected a stacked, 200m wide sequence of moderately to steeply dipping, heavily mineralised packages over a strike length of more than 300m. Mineralisation remains open both down dip and along strike with potential parallel lodes to the east.
Results from the oblique cross section, centred on scout diamond drill hole TDH0019 and east-west cross section at 8,259,900mN, were announced on 30 November 2010 and 17 January 2011 respectively. Analytical results from the three hole cross section at 8,259,835mN have been returned and are tabulated in the full announcement.
Mineralisation intersected in TRC0053 and the deeper portions of TRC0054 has been offset along a northwest oriented, dextral shear which marks the boundary between the northern Block 7 and Block 6 immediately south. Geological correlation between sections in Block 7 is very good. Mineralisation on the section remains open down dip and additional drilling is required to confirm its geometry.
A cross section interpretation is available in the Company's website version of this announcement available for download from: http://www.baobabresources.com/invest_centre/Aim_Releases
Drilling over two cross sections in the southern limit of the South Zone prospect (Block 1) has delineated broad zones of magnetite mineralisation. Results from this area are expected to become available within the next two to four weeks.
It is the Company's intention to combine the results of the scout diamond drilling and RC programmes to estimate a global resource for the South Zone prospect. International consultants, Coffey Mining Pty Ltd, have been commissioned to carry out the resource estimation once the drilling programme is completed.
Tete Project - Overview
The Tete Project, covering an area of 632km2, is located immediately north of the provincial capital of Tete and shares licence boundaries with Vale and Riversdale's mega coal projects. The project is strategically located to access abundant, low tariff hydro-electric power from existing and developing schemes on the Zambezi River. The ports of Beira and Nacala are being refurbished, as are the rail corridors through to Tete.
The project contains two areas of magnetite-ilmenite mineralisation; the Singore area to the south and the Massamba Group trend in the north. The 8km long Massamba Group trend is composed of a series of five prospects (Chitongue Grande, Pequeno, Caangua, Chimbala and South Zone) that have experienced little or no historical exploration.
The Company commenced exploration initiatives in mid 2008 and has focused its efforts to date on the Massamba Group area. The Singore area remains largely untested, but highly prospective (refer to announcement dated 28 January 2010 for results to date).
Work completed by the Company during 2009 culminated in the estimation of a 47.7mt maiden Inferred Mineral Resource over a 500m portion of the Chitongue Grande prospect and a 400mt to 700mt Exploration Target over the broader Massamba Group area. Independent scoping metallurgical studies and financial modelling indicate positive project economics in the production of high quality magnetite (iron and vanadium) and ilmenite (titanium) concentrate commodities (refer to announcements dated 24 September 2009, 29 September 2009 and 8 October 2009).
A scout drilling programme, designed to assess the Chimbala and South zone prospects of the Massamba Group trend, has been completed for an aggregate total of approximately 7,500m. The purpose of the campaign has been two-fold: to improve confidence in the Company's Exploration Target and to clarify geological domains for continued metallurgical test-work. For detailed information on the scout drilling programme, please refer to announcements dated 1 February, 19 February, 17 May, 11 June, 15 July, 12 August, 2 September and 20 October 2010.
Baobab has entered into a strategic partnership with International Finance Corporation (IFC), the commercial arm of the World Bank, at both the corporate and project equity levels.
About Baobab Resources plc
Baobab Resources plc (LON:BAO) is a Mozambican-focused explorer with a large landholding in the central north of the country. The company's flagship project is the Tete iron ore deposit.
| ||
|
