Endeavour expands drill program at Nzema

/in /by

THE DRILL SERGEANT: Endeavour Mining has expanded the sulphide drilling program currently underway at the company’s 90 per cent-owned Nzema gold mine in south-western Ghana.

The expansion to the drilling program follows a review of drilling results the company has received to date, the delivery of the Conceptual Trade-off Study by AMEC Minproc and initial metallurgical testwork completed by SGS Australia Mineral Services.

Endeavour said recent drilling has confirmed the presence of several sulphide ore shoots below the principal oxide pits at the Salman Trend.

 

Plan map of the Salman Trend showing areas of Nzema sulphide drilling program. Source: Company announcement

 

Highlights include:

Teberu

–    9 metres at 4.91 grams per tonne gold from 109 metres;

–    14m at 4.13 g/t gold from 104m;

–    14m at 3.15 g/t gold from 124m;

–    10m at 3.84 g/t gold from 72m; and

–    14m at 2.48 g/t gold from 30m.

Salman North

–    3m at11.52 g/t gold from 79m; and

–    12m at 9.67 g/t gold from 38m.

Nugget Hill

–    10m at 3.75 g/t gold from 108m; and

–    16m at 2.04 g/t gold from 62m.

Salman South

–    14m at 1.94 g/t gold from 63m; and

–    8m at 1.67 g/t gold from 88m.

“On the basis of these encouraging results the Nzema exploration program was expanded to include a larger sulphide drilling program, metallurgical testwork, and completion of a preliminary economic assessment by the end of 2012,” Endeavour Mining said in its ASX announcement.

“At Teberu, Salman North and Salman South drilling results demonstrate the existence of wide zones of higher grade mineralization that represent ore shoots plunging shallowly to the south. Closer-spaced drilling has commenced at the locations of the ore shoots (50 metre by 50 metre grid) to assess continuity and to provide sufficient data for the generation of an inferred resource.”

Endeavour said it considers the sulphide gold zones at Salman represent a target with potential to increase production at Nzema.

The company will use the upcoming testwork to examine process alternatives currently being employed to treat refractory sulphide mineralisation within West Africa.

Endeavour increased the budget for the program from US$2.4 million to US$6.4 million for 2012 in order to accelerate the drilling and achieve its study objectives.

A total of 40 holes totalling 5,174 m have been completed thus far in the 2012 drilling campaign.