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FORESTRY PERMITTING REGULATIONS & TRIAL MINING UPDATE
Ariana Resources, the Anglo-Turkish gold exploration and development company focused on Turkey, has announced that newly introduced forestry regulations for the mining industry will significantly reduce the cost of obtaining forestry permits.
Additionally, trial mining undertaken within a granted forestry permit area at the Company’s Red Rabbit Gold Project has been concluded for the year.
Highlights:
– New forestry permit fee schedule introduced and gazetted: substantial reduction in forestry annual fees, expected to total US$4.2 million over the life of mine (at current rates)
– Trial mining from granted forestry permits at the Kiziltepe Sector of Red Rabbit was completed for 3,250 tonnes
– Production work was funded by Proccea Construction Co. as part of their continued earn-in on the project
– Mine construction stage to commence at Kiziltepe on grant of final land access permit
Dr. Kerim Sener, Managing Director, commented:
“It is extremely encouraging to see that the Turkish Government has introduced revised regulations and charges for forestry permits as required for the mining sector. This was an expected measure and we understand that this new regulatory framework will provide the basis for the issue of new forestry permits for the industry, including those for our outstanding permit application at Kiziltepe.
“Meanwhile, recent trial mining has been concluded within an existing forestry permit at the Kiziltepe Sector. We would like to emphasise the valuable local relationships that have enabled this work to be completed, in particular the local Department of Forestry which worked hard and in a timeous manner to ensure the site was prepared for our mining to commence. I look forward to providing further updates on the status of our final land access permit which will enable us to enter the construction phase at Kiziltepe.”
Forestry Regulations
A revised schedule for forestry permit fees has been issued recently in Turkey as part of the regulations governing the Forestry Law, as applicable to the mining sector. The revised schedule provides for a range of forestry permit types, with lower fees charged for lesser impact work (e.g. drilling) and higher fees charged for more substantial impact work (e.g. processing and other mine infrastructure). In addition to a one-off payment for reforestation and a separate deposit (which is refunded once a permit is terminated), an annual fee is charged based on the type of permit and the area covered. The impact of these regulations on Ariana’s planned Kiziltepe operation is consequently positive, approximately translating in to a halving of annual fees as compared to the previous regulation. At current rates, this translates in to a reduction in annual fees of approximately US$4.2 million over the life of the operation.
Trial Production
Trial production at the Karakavak prospect of the Red Rabbit Gold Project has been completed for the year, in compliance with the requirements of Turkish mining law as applied to operating licences. This work was funded by Proccea Construction Co. as part of their earn-in on the project in accordance with the Joint Venture agreement. Approximately 3,250 tonnes of material was mined from the primary vein at Karakavak and stockpiled on site. The Karakavak Main vein contains grades of up to approximately 2.5 g/t gold with variable silver over a strike length of about 600m. The stockpile now contains approximately 9,000 tonnes of material ready for trucking to the Kiziltepe site.
The mining was undertaken on a part of the vein for which the Company has granted forestry permits. Ahead of trial mining, the local Department of Forestry was responsible for marking up and cutting down trees in the designated area and clearing the logs from site.
