Good results continue at Bibiani for Noble

/in /by

THE DRILL SERGEANT: Noble Mineral Resources has received further high-grade drilling results, including 2 metres at 52 grams per tonne gold from outside the current resource area at the company’s Bibiani gold project in Ghana.

Noble has focused the recent drilling on resource definition at the Big Mug and South Hill satellite deposits along with brownfields exploration at the West and East Wall of the Main Pit at Bibiani.

It is also continuing with grade control drilling in the satellite Walsh-Strauss Gap area, which has returned encouraging results from much shallower depths than the company had previously encountered.

Noble said it considers the latest results to be significant as they were achieved from areas outside the existing 2.26 million-ounce gold resource at Bibiani.

 

Areas of drilling. Source: Company announcement

The company intends using the satellite deposits to provide the first source of primary ore feed for the refurbished three million tonne a year plant at Bibiani.

Intercepts from recent drilling include:

Big Mug

–    17 metres at 8.21 grams per tonne gold from 80 metres, including 2 metres at 52.49 grams per tonne gold.

–    23m at 3.02 g/t from 195m, including 2m at 12.36 g/t; and

–    6m at 2.14 g/t from 136m, including 1m at 3.68 g/t.

East Wall of Main Pit

–    3m at 18.44 g/t from 205m, including 1m at 37.64 g/t; and

–    3m at 7.70 g/t from 225m, including 1m at 21.95 g/t.

South Hill

–    6m at 2.14 g/t from 136m, including 1m at 3.68 g/t.

Walsh-Strauss Gap

–    1m at 3.74 g/t from 24m; and

–    1m at 4.82 g/t from 45m.

“The commissioning of the processing plant is now in the advanced stage with plant running time improving rapidly in line with budgeted ramp-up projections,” Noble Mineral Resources said in its ASX announcement.

“Calculated head grade of the commissioning feed to date is 1.18 grams per tonne versus the budgeted grade of 0.9 grams per tonne – a 30 per cent increase.

“Recoveries are consistent with budgeted projections and are expected to improve further as the plant reaches steady-state production.”

Noble said it expects to complete the first gold pour at Bibiani this month.

Production is forecast to ramp up to an annual rate of 150,000 ounces in 2012.