Drilling Results

 | Source: Ariana Resources plc Ariana Resources plc

25 June 2008
AIM / PLUS Markets: AAU
 
ADDITIONAL DRILLING RESULTS: KIZILTEPE
 
Ariana Resources plc ("Ariana" or "the Company"), the gold exploration and development company focused on Turkey, announces the results from 12 drill holes at Arzu North and 5 drill holes on Vein 4 at the Kiziltepe gold prospect.  The results confirm that there is additional potential for an increase in the current JORC resource estimate to be derived from other veins at the Kiziltepe prospect.
 
Highlights
 
  • Gold-equivalent intersections of 11.99 g/t over 6.1m, 5.04 g/t over 6.25m and 2.83g/t Au over 10.6m from Arzu North
 
  • Gold-equivalent intersections of 6.22 g/t over 6.0m, 3.85 g/t over 8.7m and 5.79g/t Au over 3.0m from Vein 4
 
  • Geophysical programme planned for early August ahead of further drilling
 
Dr. Kerim Sener, Managing Director, commented:
 
"These drilling results have helped to increase our understanding of the Kiziltepe prospect and its near-term potential.  Confidence in our resource target of 250,000 oz from Kiziltepe and surrounding areas has increased with each new set of results.  However, it is now clear that further drill-testing will be required in areas of cover and a new geophysical programme will be undertaken to define targets ahead of further drilling.
 
"These results will lead to us updating our existing resource model in July and will help in the development of our strategy to further increase the resource towards our stated target.  We expect that drilling in 2008 will bring us even closer to this objective."
 
Arzu North
 
The Arzu North vein system has a strike length of 400m.  The vein system is atypical of the veins developed elsewhere on the Kiziltepe prospect, comprising multiple parallel veins, intervals of stockwork veins and extensive wall-rock alteration.  Whilst there is clearly one important vein at this location, the hangingwall contains at least three additional subsidiary veins that can be traced on surface and in drill core.  There is a possibility at this location to define a lower grade bulk-tonnage resource.
 
The Arzu North area is interpreted to represent the terminal splay of an important NW-trending structure that carries the high-grade gold mineralisation at Arzu South.  The northern and southern parts of the Arzu vein system are obscured for over 650m of strike by rhyodacitic ignimbrite cover rocks, which are visibly silicified and clay altered.  The company has committed to undertaking a geophysical programme in August 2008, ahead of drilling with its own drilling-rig in the covered area.
 
Vein 4
 
Vein 4 has a strike length of 500m and has grades up to 6.3 g/t Au and 486 g/t Ag in drilling.  The intersections recorded here derive from an area to the east of three initial holes drilled in 2007.  There is a marked increase in gold and silver grade in the eastern extension of the vein towards the rhyodacitic ignimbrite cover rocks in the Arzu North area.  It is apparent that Vein 4 may itself be a splay from the Arzu vein system.  The latest drilling has confirmed the distribution of gold and silver grades along a greater strike length than that tested and reported on in 2007.
 
Details of Programme
 
A field team from the Company's Turkish operating subsidiary, Galata Madencilik San. ve Tic. Ltd. Sti., supervised the completion of 24 diamond HQ drill holes on the Arzu North and Vein 4 structures out of which 17 holes are reported in this announcement.  The holes reported in this release totalled a depth of 900m.  They were drilled to depths of between 37.8 and 70.2 metres and angled between 45 and 75 degrees.  Quartz veins, other mineralised structures and stockwork were located in all 24 holes drilled in the programme.  Selected intersections are given in Table 1 and 2 below.
 
Table 1: Diamond drill hole intersection data from the Arzu North Vein:
 
Hole
From (m)
To (m)
Apparent Width (m)
Gold (Au g/t)
Silver (Ag g/t)
Au + Au equiv.
(g/t)
KTP-D32-08
14.1
14.6
0.50
1.63
20.90
2.05
and
15.0
17.8
2.80
2.50
83.34
4.17
KTP-D33-08
4.0
4.8
0.80
1.43
8.10
1.59
and
28.4
30.5
2.10
1.32
9.32
1.51
and
37.0
47.6
10.60
2.27
27.57
2.83
KTP-D34-08
4.0
7.1
3.10
0.98
5.44
1.09
and
8.0
9.5
1.45
1.06
5.46
1.17
and
47.7
48.8
1.10
3.12
41.48
3.95
and
59.7
61.7
2.00
0.98
67.46
2.33
KTP-D35-08
34.4
35.0
0.65
1.76
4.40
1.84
and
43.0
49.1
6.10
2.27
485.63
11.99
KTP-D36-08
1.8
5.7
3.90
1.52
8.93
1.69
and
13.0
15.6
2.60
0.87
3.74
0.95
and
41.1
48.4
7.25
1.74
34.05
2.43
KTP-D37-08
1.9
5.7
3.75
1.14
9.30
1.32
and
16.3
17.2
0.90
0.95
9.20
1.14
and
25.2
26.6
1.45
0.97
12.21
1.21
and
32.8
35.6
2.80
2.40
40.44
3.20
and
46.6
47.2
0.60
2.01
50.80
3.02
KTP-D38-08
10.8
12.3
1.50
1.33
6.70
1.46
and
29.0
32.5
3.50
1.00
21.75
1.43
and
33.3
34.0
0.75
3.34
34.70
4.03
and
38.5
41.9
3.40
2.97
75.32
4.47
KTP-D39-08
33.3
35.0
1.70
2.08
27.89
2.64
and
40.7
45.4
4.65
3.16
19.60
3.55
KTP-D40-08
9.4
10.0
0.60
4.78
60.80
6.00
and
11.3
12.0
0.70
2.27
28.00
2.83
and
32.8
33.8
1.00
0.92
21.20
1.34
and
37.6
43.8
6.25
3.65
69.64
5.04
KTP-D51-08
26.2
30.4
4.20
2.62
43.27
3.49
and
31.7
34.3
2.60
1.40
17.65
1.75
KTP-D52-08
39.4
42.6
3.20
2.55
65.83
3.86
and
44.6
45.6
1.00
1.85
22.70
2.30
KTP-D59-08
55.4
56.9
1.50
6.31
79.68
7.91
and
59.9
61.0
1.10
1.91
38.60
2.68
Notes:
No top cut has been applied to assay results
Intersections based on a 0.5 g/t cut off grade
Weighted averages have been calculated for gold/silver grades
Au + Au equiv. g/t is the sum of the gold grade and the gold equivalent grade of silver based on a gold/silver price ratio of approximately 50:1
 
 
Table 2: Diamond drill hole intersection data from Vein 4:
 
Hole
From (m)
To (m)
Apparent Width (m)
Gold (Au g/t)
Silver (Ag g/t)
Au + Au equiv.
(g/t)
KTP-D44-08
22.1
23.4
1.3
2.96
44.58
3.85
and
33.8
35.9
2.1
6.20
74.75
7.69
and
37.0
39.8
2.8
1.64
98.57
3.61
KTP-D45-08
18.5
20.0
1.5
0.62
3.39
0.69
and
39.2
42.2
3.0
3.76
101.38
5.79
KTP-D46-08
33.4
34.4
1.0
1.92
46.40
2.85
and
39.5
41.7
2.2
1.27
14.85
1.57
and
42.7
44.5
1.8
6.16
157.48
9.31
KTP-D47a-08
50.4
59.1
8.7
2.47
69.21
3.85
and
61.8
62.3
0.5
21.10
50.40
22.11
KTP-D47b-08
45.0
51.0
6.0
4.81
70.39
6.22
Notes:
No top cut has been applied to assay results
Intersections based on a 0.5 g/t cut off grade
Weighted averages have been calculated for gold/silver grades
Au + Au equiv. g/t is the sum of the gold grade and the gold equivalent grade of silver based on a gold/silver price ratio of approximately 50:1
 
 
 
Sampling and Assaying Procedures
 
624 half core samples from the drilling programme on the Arzu North and Vein 4 were sent for assay.  Of these 428 samples have returned grades of less than 0.5 g/t Au (68.6% of the total), 69 samples between 0.5-1 g/t Au (11.1% of total), 112 between 1-5 g/t Au (18.0% of total), and between 5-10 g/t Au (2.3% of total), with the peak grade at 21.1 g/t Au (over 0.5m for KTP-D47a-08) and 1,505 g/t Ag (over 1m in the interval from 43m to 49.1m for KTP-D35-08).  Sample recovery averaged 92.37% in the mineralised zones.
 
All samples have been prepared by the ALS Chemex preparation facility in Izmir and assayed by 30g fire assay at the ALS Chemex laboratory in Romania.  Routine re-assaying of all samples assaying greater than 10 g/t Au and 100 g/t Ag has also been completed by ALS Chemex.  Standard, blank and duplicate samples are being used in the sample batches, which is in line with the Company's quality control procedures.  Quality control checks have determined that all blanks and standards have passed and duplicate samples have shown excellent correlations, with 98% correlation for crushed duplicates and 99% correlation for pulp duplicates.  Laboratory sample preparation, assaying procedures and chain of custody are appropriately controlled.  The Company maintains an archive of half core samples and all pulps and photographic record of all cores for future reference.
 
Contacts:
 
 
Editors' note:
 
Dr Kerim Sener, BSc (Hons), MSc, PhD, is the Managing Director of Ariana Resources plc. A graduate of the University of Southampton in Geology, he also holds a Master's degree from the Royal School of Mines (Imperial College, London) in Mineral Exploration and a doctorate from the University of Western Australia.  He is a Fellow of The Geological Society of London and has worked in geological research and mineral consultancy in Southern Africa and Australia. He has read and approved the technical disclosure in this regulatory announcement.
 
About the Kiziltepe prospect
 
The Kiziltepe prospect is located within a ten-year renewable operating licence that forms part of the Company's 100% owned Sindirgi gold project in Balikesir Province, western Turkey.
 
Kiziltepe lies approximately 100km east of the one million ounce vein-hosted Ovacik gold mine and 115km northwest of the five million ounce Kisladag gold mine. The prospect hosts over 20km in strike length of gold-silver bearing low-sulphidation epithermal quartz veins across an area of at least 3km by 1km. Individual veins are exposed for up to 750m and widths vary between 1m and 14m. The main veins trend northwest, dip to the northeast and are hosted within Miocene age dacitic volcanic rocks.
 
Ariana acquired the Sindirgi Gold Project from Newmont Mining Corporation (NYSE & ASX: NEM; TSX: NMC) in March 2005.  Franco-Nevada Corporation retains the right to a royalty of up to 2.5% on future gold production from the Sindirgi gold project.
 
Ahead of commencing the drilling programme, Ariana obtained all necessary environmental and forestry approvals from the provincial government in Balikesir and the State Government in Ankara.
 
About Ariana Resources
 
Ariana is an exploration and development company focused on epithermal gold-silver and porphyry copper-gold deposits in Turkey.  The Company is exploring a portfolio of prospective licences selected on the basis of its in-house remote-sensing database.
 
The Company's flagship asset is the Sindirgi Gold Project, which targets a series of prospects, within a prolific mineralised district in western Turkey.  The project hosts over 45km of gold-silver bearing epithermal quartz veins.  This project is presently being assessed as to its economic merits. 
 
Loeb Aron & Company Ltd., City Capital Corporation Limited and Alexander David Securities Limited are joint brokers to the Company and Beaumont Cornish Limited is the Company's Nominated Adviser.
 
For further information on Ariana you are invited to visit the Company's website at www.arianaresources.com.
 
Ends