The drilling has delineated an extensive zone of flat-lying mineralisation in shallow, oxide material which extends approximately 950m along strike and up to 300m down-dip with mineralisation remaining open down-dip. These results deliver one of the Company’s near-term objectives of growing the oxide component of the Project’s already large Mineral Resource of 0.6Moz Au (Indicated) plus2.3Moz Au (Inferred)(1).
Exploration potential in the area has also been enhanced with the emergence of a new target area immediately along strike to the north-east, which is untested for approximately 1.8km. The Company anticipates drilling its highest priority targets and commencing regional greenfields exploration early in the next field season commencing Q4 2022.
Highlights
- Multiple high-grade intersections returned in oxide material at the Obi Prospect within the Sanutura Project
- Highlighted downhole intersections (approximating true width) in oxide material from recently returned assays include:
- 12m @ 2.86g/t Au from 39m in TAR022;
- 10m @ 2.78g/t Au from 38m in TAR003 (including 1m @ 14.80g/t Au);
- 10m @ 2.07g/t Au from 41m in TAR058;
- 14m @ 1.53g/t Au from 11m in TAA153;
- 11m @ 1.80g/t Au from 23m in TAR004 (including 1m @ 11.15g/t Au);
- 3m @ 4.57g/t Au (ending in mineralisation) from 39m in TAA152; and
- 4m @ 3.54g/t Au from 65m in TAR006.
- Flat-lying mineralisation extended in all directions with a footprint measuring 950m along strike and up to 300m down-dip
- New target areas for future near-surface exploration identified, including an untested trend extending 1.8km along strike to the north-east
- A number of drill holes contain multiple mineralised intersections, indicating potential for additional lodes to occur within the mineralised package
- Oxide profile extends to 80m vertical depth in local drilled area
- Results are expected to add to the current oxide and transition component of the Mineral Resource which stands at 0.2Moz (Indicated) plus 0.8Moz Au (Inferred)(2)
Sarama’s President, CEO & MD, Andrew Dinning commented:
“We are very excited by these first drill results at the Obi Prospect which have defined extensive and shallow, oxide-hosted gold mineralisation in single and multiple higher-grade zones.
This drilling has extended a previously minor zone to approximately 950m in length with a further 1.8km of strike potential yet to be tested. The tenor and flat-lying nature of this mineralisation suggests a different mineralising event to the sub-vertical, lower-tenor gold lodes seen in this local area and it has led us to a new target model reminiscent of Endeavour Mining’s flat-lying Kari Pump and Boungou Deposits in Burkina Faso.
With further drill results to come, we look forward to providing a series of updates over the coming months.
Sarama’s approximate market capitalization of A$20M(6) presents a deeply discounted valuation for the Project’s Mineral Resource base of 0.6Moz Au (Indicated) plus2.3Moz Au (Inferred)(1), even more so considering that the current drill program is anticipated to yield a significant increase.”
Webinar:
For more context, please join CEO Andrew Dinning in a live event on August 10th at 9am EST / 9 pm AWST. Q&A will follow the brief presentation. Click here to register:https://my.6ix.com/INN0fY27
Growth-Oriented Drill Program in Oxide Material
An Already Large Mineral Resource with Potential to Grow
The Company’s primary focus is its 100%-owned(4) Sanutura Project, which hosts a large Mineral Resource of 0.6Moz Au (Indicated) plus 2.3Moz Au (Inferred)(1), covers an area of 1,420km2 and occupies a commanding position along 70km of strike in the prolific Houndé Belt (refer Figure 1).
The Project lies 60km south of Endeavour Mining’s Houndé Mine (5Moz Au); 120km south of Fortuna Silver’s high-grade Yaramoko Mine (1Moz Au), and 140km south of Endeavour Mining’s Mana Mine (5Moz Au), highlighting the significant gold endowment of the Houndé Belt (refer Appendix B). Endeavour Mining’s Bantou Project (1.5Moz Au Inferred Mineral Resource(5)) is located only 6km from the bulk of the Sanutura Project’s main deposit, which illustrates the gold camp scale of endowment in the immediate area.
The Project has significant growth potential available and the primary objective of the current +50,000m drill program is to add to the existing 0.2Moz Au (Indicated) plus 0.8Moz Au (Inferred)(2) oxide and transition component of the Project’s Mineral Resource to enhance the economics of mine development.
The recently commenced drill program has initially focused on the Obi Prospect, located in the southern part of the Project where drilling is sparse and potential exists to expand the Mineral Resource at shallow depths in oxide material.
Figure 1 -Sanutura Project Location Plan
Drilling Delivers Extensions to Mineral Resource at Obi Prospect
Results are being reported (refer Appendix A) for approximately 700m of aircore (“AC“) drilling (15 holes) and 1,000m of reverse-circulation (“RC“) drilling (13 holes) which commenced in May 2022 in the south-western part of the Obi Prospect. This area hosts gold mineralisation in multiple flat-dipping lenses which now extend for a strike length of approximately 950m (refer Figure 2). The lenses occur near-surface and the area is considered a prime target for exploration to add to the existing 0.2Moz (Indicated) plus 0.8Moz Au (Inferred)(2)oxide and transition component of the Project’s Mineral Resource.
Figure 2 – Obi Prospect – Drilling & Mineralisation Plan
Mineralisation in the area presents as gold-quartz veins, which is significantly different to the more densely drilled areas of the deposit, illustrating diversity in both the geometry and composition of the gold-bearing lodes. The recent drilling follows-up on previously reported (refer Appendix B), high-tenor downhole intersections occurring in oxide material which include:
- 7m @ 11.52g/t Au (ending in mineralisation) from 31m in TAA070 (including 3m @ 25.36g/t Au);
- 8m @ 4.72g/t Au from 34m in TAA077;
- 5m @ 7.26g/t Au from 16m in TAA068;
- 8m @ 4.21g/t Au from 34m in AC3628;
- 5m @ 5.02g/t Au from 22m in TAA071 (including 2m @ 11.68g/t Au);
- 6m @ 4.01g/t Au from 36m in AC3665;
- 17m @ 1.59g/t Au from 34m in TAA080 (including 5m @ 3.45g/t Au); and
- 12m @ 1.80g/t Au from 10m in AC3627.
Recently returned assay results support the interpreted geometry of the flat, easterly-dipping mineralised lodes and have delivered down-dip and up-dip extensions to mineralisation of up to 100m and 40m respectively (refer Figures 2 and 3). Several new strong downhole intersections in the lower extremity, all occurring in oxide material, include:
- 12m @ 2.86g/t Au from 39m in TAR022;
- 10m @ 2.78g/t Au from 38m in TAR003 (including 1m @ 14.8g/t Au);
- 10m @ 2.07g/t Au from 41m in TAR058;
- 3m @ 4.57g/t Au (ending in mineralisation) from 39m in TAA152;
- 4m @ 3.54g/t Au from 65m in TAR006; and
- 6m @ 2.52g/t Au from 36m in TAR056.
Figure 3 -Southern Obi Prospect – Drilling Cross Section A-A’ (View to North-East)
Given the shallow position of the mineralisation, these intersections present a compelling target for further down-dip extensions to be tested in future drilling. This is of particular interest as the flat-dipping mineralisation can be projected to intersect a series of steeply dipping lodes to the east; the confluence of which potentially hosts a localised enrichment zone caused by multiple overprinting phases of gold emplacement.
Of note is the significant increase in the vertical depth of the highly weathered oxide zone intersected by drilling to approximately 80m, which is anomalous to that observed in the broader deposit (50m). This increased depth is expected to enhance economics for any contemplated mine development.
- The shallow up-dip extent of the mineralisation also remains open, offering a viable exploration target to follow-up of the recently returned downhole intersections of:
- 14m @ 1.53g/t Au from 11m in TAA153;
- 11m @ 1.80g/t Au from 23m in TAR004 (including 1m @ 11.15g/t Au);
- 5m @ 1.48g/t Au from 26m in TAA156; and
- 4m @ 1.94g/t Au from 5m in TAA145.
Adding to the attraction of the area for further exploration is the presence of multiple separate intersections within individual holes and significantly broader intersections than expected in certain areas (refer Figures 2 and 3). These intersections suggest potential for additional mineralised lodes to occur in close proximity to the main, flat-dipping mineralisation.
A New Exploration Horizon in the North-East
The recently returned results have validated and given substance to the Company’s interpretation of the mineralised system in the south-west of the Obi Prospect, which has been developed over an extended period. In addition to yielding meaningful extensions to the existing mineralisation in the dip direction, the drilling has extended the mineralised lodes a further 100m along strike in a north-easterly direction, giving a total strike length of 950m.
Of note is the abundance of high-tenor intersections in the north-eastern extremity of this strike length, which are commonly associated with a thickening of the lode(s) and the suggested presence of additional mineralised lodes from multiple intersections in single drillholes. Together, these features suggest a strengthening of the mineralised system in the north, which bodes well for future exploration given the absence of drilling for approximately 1.8km along strike (refer Figure 4).
This new target area broadly sits within the main mineralised corridor of the Project proximal to the well-defined, north-north-east striking lodes of the Mineral Resource. The area has been covered by a conventional soil geochemical survey grid and several zones of elevated gold-in-soil values have been returned within a generally mottled signature resulting from a variable and disrupted regolith. This environment can produce ambiguous surface geochemistry results, giving potential for blind and semi-blind mineralisation to be present.
The Company plans to conduct detailed surface prospecting and other target generation work in the area to better define targets which…
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