TIDMCNR
RNS Number : 5561R
Condor Gold PLC
09 March 2021
Condor Gold plc
7/8 Innovation Place
Douglas Drive
Godalming
Surrey
GU7 1JX
Tel: +44 (0) 207 493 2784
9 March 2021
Condor Gold Plc
("Condor", "Condor Gold" or the "Company")
Infill Drilling Programme Update
Initial Drill Result: 9.6 m True Width at 3.98 g/t gold From
Surface and Discovery of an Additional Vein of 2.27 m True Width at
3.0 g/t gold from 24.15 m drill depth in the footwall
To view the press release with all images, please use the link:
http://www.rns-pdf.londonstockexchange.com/rns/5561R_1-2021-3-8.pdf
Condor Gold (AIM: CNR; TSX: COG) is pleased to announce that the
first 26 drill holes for a combined 1,296 m of diamond drill core
have been completed on the La India Starter Pit infill drilling
programme (see RNS announcements dated the 7 December 2020 and 19
January 2021).
The primary objective of the drilling programme is to provide 25
m spaced drill sampling within the two shallow (up to 35 m deep),
high-grade Starter Pits within the main La India Open Pit Mineral
Reserve. Drilling on the Northern Starter Pit has been completed
with 25 drill holes for 1,273 m, four of which have twinned
existing RC drill holes. Drilling has now commenced on the Southern
Starter Pit with two rigs drilling, the first three holes have
already been completed (Figure 1). Initial drill results have now
been received for the first two drill holes located at the northern
end of the Northern Starter Pit.
Highlights
-- LIDC404 drilled 9.6m true width at 3.98 g/t gold from surface
-- Discovery of an additional vein of 2.9 m true width at 2.27
g/t gold from 24.15 m drill depth in the footwall in the same drill
hole, LIDC404 is an exciting development and will be rapidly
evaluated as potentially mineralised material available for
inclusion in the mine schedule.
-- LIDC404 has an amalgamated drill intercept from 1.20 m to
27.15 m drill depth of 24.15m (23.6 m true width) at 2.05 g/t gold,
which includes a 1.8 m mine cavity
-- 25 drill holes for a combined 1,273 m of infill and RC
replacement drilling completed in the Northern Starter Pit
-- Assay results from first two drill holes confirm the geological model for the Main Vein.
-- Infill and RC replacement drilling in the Southern Starter
Pit underway and expected to be completed by early April.
Mark Child, Chairman and CEO commented:
"I am delighted with the initial drill assay result of 9.6 m
true width at 3.98 g/t gold from surface in drill hole LIDC404 as
it confirms the geological model of a wide zone of high grade ore
in the La India Starter pit, which is within the fully permitted
main La India open pit mineral reserve. The discovery of an
additional vein of 2.9 m true width at 2.27 g/t gold from 24.15 m
drill depth in the same drill hole is an added bonus and is likely
to add mineralised material to the mine plan. LIDC404 has an
amalgamated drill intercept from 1.20 m to 27.15 m drill depth of
24.15m (23.6 m true width) at 2.05 g/t gold, which includes a 1.8 m
mine cavity. Mining this area is likely to focus on putting the
high grade material through the future processing plant and stock
piling or blending the lower grade material with higher grade
material from elsewhere. Only 2 drill assay results have been
received from 25 drill holes on the Northern Starter Pit for a
combined 1,273 m of infill and RC replacement drilling completed so
far in the La India Starter Pits. Approximately 2,200 m drilling
remains to be completed of the current drill programme."
Figure 1. Image showing the La India Starter Pit infill drilling
completed (yellow) and pending (red), as well as proposed RC drill
holes to twin drill (green) (Image taken from Google earth).
Initial Assay Results
Results have been received for the first two drill holes which
were located at the northern end of the Northern Starter Pit. Both
drill holes were collared (started) within the surface expression
of the main mineralised zone where it is covered by a few metres of
alluvium, and drilled to test the footwall part of the main zone
and explore the underlying host rock. The assay results confirmed
the geological model and grade of the Main Zone, and discovered an
additional vein in the footwall rock approximately 12 m below the
Main Zone (Table 1; Figure 2). The footwall vein appears to be an
extension of a vein previously drilled some 50 m along strike to
the southwest and was classified as inferred mineral resource in
the 2019 Mineral Resource Estimate. Assay results pending from
other infill drill holes will enable a more confident and accurate
geological model of this vein and will be rapidly evaluated as
potentially additional mineral resource and mineral reserve
available for inclusion in the mine schedule.
Table 1: Assay results from La India infill drilling, Northern
Starter Pit
Drill hole Collar Drill From To (m) Drill True Gold (g/t) Silver Comment
ID UTM incl/azi (m) width (m) width (m) (g/t)
WGS84-16N
Amalgamated
574849E hanging
1409962N wall +
LIDC404 346 mamsl -52/360 1.20 12.80 9.80* 9.6* 3.98 13.8 footwall
------ ------- ---------- ---------- ----------- ----------- ------------
hanging
wall
1.20 5.75 4.55 4.5 1.57 9.0 colluvium
------ ------- ---------- ---------- ----------- ----------- ------------
Hanging
5.75 8.05 2.30 2.2 2.84 13.7 wall vein
------ ------- ---------- ---------- ----------- ----------- ------------
8.05 9.85 1.80 1.7 - - Mine cavity
------ ------- ---------- ---------- ----------- ----------- ------------
Footwall
9.85 12.80 2.95 2.9 8.60 21.3 vein
------ ------- ---------- ---------- ----------- ----------- ------------
Secondary
24.15 27.15 3.00 2.9 2.27 3.0 vein
------------------------ ---------- ------ ------- ---------- ---------- ----------- ----------- ------------
574808E
1409975N Secondary
LIDC405 345 mamsl -52/360 0.80 3.70 2.90 2.8 2.58 5.8 vein
----------- ---------- ------ ------- ---------- ---------- ----------- ----------- ------------
Figure 2. Cross-section showing the gold assay intercepts from
drill hole LIDC404 and pre-existing drill holes. Thick yellow line
= Northern Starter Pit Shell; Coloured blocks=current mineral
resource block model; Gold intercepts: black=uninterrupted diamond
core intercept, red=amalgamated weighted average diamond core
intercept from hanging wall and footwall of mine cavity, blue=RC
intercept (twinned).
Drilling Programme - Looking Ahead
The drilling programme is constantly being assessed and adapted
based on geological observations from core logging. Quartz veins
and breccias have been identified within the footwall host rock, in
some cases, 10 to 20 m below the Main Vein in both the Northern and
Southern Starter Pits. Consequently, selected neighbouring infill
drill holes are being extended beyond the originally planned depth
to target the footwall quartz vein and brecias. The goal is to
rapidly upgrade and potentially extend existing inferred mineral
resources to the indicated mineral resource category, and their
potential inclusion in the mine schedule.
To-date approximately 1,300 m of diamond core drilling has been
complted. It is anticipated that another 800 m of drilling will be
required to complete the 25 m-spaced infill and RC-drill
replacement drilling within the two Starter Pits (for a total of
approximately 2100 m drilling, including 6 RC-twin holes for
approximately 413 m). Note that some drill holes have been removed
from the programme which had originally been pencilled in to test
zones marginal grade mineralisation, saving approximately 500 m
from the programme.
Following completion of the drilling in the Southern Starter
Pit, the next stage in the infill drilling programme is to twin
drill an additional 17 RC drill holes (1392 m of drilling) that are
located near to the starter pits. A decision to proceed with this
stage will be made after analysing the variability in assay results
between the RC and twin diamond core drill holes, and a review of
the confidence in the geological model in these zones to decide if
the twin drilling is required.
About the Drilling Techniques
Drilling is being undertaken using heavy duty track-mounted
drilling rigs. All of the drilling is being undertaken using
diamond core drilling techniques employing large diameter PQ core
barrels and triple tube in the mineralised zones to ensure good
sample recovery. Drilling close to surface and in proximity to
historical and artisanal mine workings can present challenges to
the driller, however, the drilling programme is benefitting from
employment of local geologists, field support staff and experienced
drill contractors, all with a decade of experience of drilling at
la India. Consequently, all target depths have been met and good
sample recovery is being achieved.
About the Assaying
Drill core is cut, and half core samples collected and bagged by
Condor staff on-site. Samples are transported to Bureau Veritas
accredited sample preparation laboratory in Managua every week in
batches of two or three drill holes, generally being submitted to
the lab within 5-10 days of completing the drill hole. Sub-samples
of the pulverised rock samples are forwarded for assay to Bureau
Veritas accredited analytical laboratory in Vancouver, Canada. As
with many other operators delays in the return of assay results are
being experienced due to industry demand and COVID-19 pandemic
restrictions.
About the Starter Pits
On 25 January 2019, SRK Consulting (UK) Limited completed an
updated Mineral Resource Estimate (the "MRE"; see RNS dated 28
January 2019) on Condor's 100% owned La India Project in Nicaragua
comprising 9.85 million tonnes ("M tonnes" or "Mt") at 3.6 g/t gold
for 1,140,000 oz gold in the Indicated category and 8.48M tonnes at
4.3g/t gold for 1,179,000 oz gold in the Inferred category.
The La India Vein Set hosts an open pit Mineral Resource of
8,377kt at 3.1g/t gold for 837Koz gold in the Indicated category
and 887kt at 2.4 g/t gold for 69,000oz gold in the Inferred
category. Beneath the La India open pit is an underground Mineral
Resource estimate of 678kt at 4.9g/t gold for 107Koz gold in the
Indicated category and 1,718kt at 5.6 g/t gold for 309,000 oz gold
in the Inferred category.
The 25 January 2019 MRE update did not materially change the La
India open pit Mineral Resource estimate and consequently the 2014
Pre-Feasibility Study ("PFS") remained unchanged. La India open pit
has an existing Probable Mineral Reserve of 6.9 million tonnes
("Mt") at 3.01 g/t gold for 675,000 oz gold.
As announced on 4 March 2020 (see RNS), Condor completed
internal studies on readily accessible high-grade material within
the permitted La India open pit. The starter pits within La India
open pit contain a diluted tonnage of 387Kt at 4.29g/t gold for
53,000 oz gold. Condor has subsequently further advanced these
studies. Within a designed pit shell, the starter pits have two
scenarios. At 0.75g/t gold cut-off grade, 635Kt at 3.32g/t gold for
67,800 oz gold with a 4.5 to 1 strip ratio. Using a 2.0g/t cut-off
grade, 445Kt at 4.17g/t gold for 59,700 oz gold with a 6.8 to 1
strip ratio. See table 1 below:
Table 2: Starter Pits within the Main Permitted La India Open
Pit
Cutoff
2.00g/t
Cutoff 0.75g/t (4)
--------
Ore Tonnes dmt 634,540 444,600
Gold Grade g/t Au 3.32 4.17
Silver Grade g/t Ag 6.53 7.91
Gold Ounces tr.ozs 67,801 59,672
Silver Ounces tr.ozs 133,316 113,114
---------------- -------- ---------------------------
Waste Material dmt 2,845,209 3,035,149
Total Matl dmt 3,479,749 3,479,749
---------------- -------- --------------------------
Strip Ratio 4.5 6.8
-------------------------- --------------------------- --------------------------
Notes:
1) Resources include indicated and
inferred material within the 2019
resource model
2) Resource tabulation from internal Condor
estimates, which may differ slightly from SRK
totals
3) Resources are contained within
the sub-pits Tajo 3,4,and 7
4) Cutoff at 2.0 g/t requires that 190kt at
1.33 g/t (8,100oz) be stockpiled for future
processing
- Ends -
For further information please visit www.condorgold.com or
contact:
Condor Gold plc Mark Child, Chairman and CEO
+44 (0) 20 7493 2784
Beaumont Cornish Limited Roland Cornish and James Biddle
+44 (0) 20 7628 3396
SP Angel Corporate
Finance LLP Ewan Leggat
+44 (0) 20 3470 0470
Blytheweigh Tim Blythe and Megan Ray
+44 (0) 20 7138 3204
About Condor Gold plc:
Condor Gold plc was admitted to AIM in May 2006 and dual listed
on the TSX in January 2018. The Company is a gold exploration and
development company with a focus on Nicaragua.
In August 2018, the Company announced that the Ministry of the
Environment in Nicaragua had granted the Environmental Permit
("EP") for the development, construction and operation of a
processing plant with capacity to process up to 2,800 tonnes per
day at its wholly-owned La India gold project ("La India Project").
The EP is considered the master permit for mining operations in
Nicaragua. Condor Gold published a Pre-Feasibility Study ("PFS") on
the project in December 2014, summarised in the Technical Report,
as defined below. The PFS details an open pit gold Mineral Reserve
in the Probable category of 6.9 Mt at 3.0 g/t gold for 675,000 oz
gold, producing 80,000 oz gold per annum for 7 years. La India
Project contains a Mineral Resource of 9,850 Kt at 3.6 g/t gold for
1.14 Moz gold in the Indicated category and 8,479 Kt at 4.3 g/t
gold for 1.18 Moz gold in the Inferred category. The Indicated
Mineral Resource is inclusive of the Mineral Reserve. A gold price
of $1,500/oz and a cut-off grade of 0.5 g/t and 2.0 g/t gold were
assumed for open pit and underground resources, respectively. A
cut-off grade of 1.5 g/t gold was furthermore applied within a part
of the Inferred Resource. Mineral Resources are not Mineral
Reserves and do not have demonstrated economic viability. There is
no certainty that any part of the Mineral Resources will be
converted to Mineral Reserves.
Environmental Permits were granted in April and May 2020 for the
Mestiza and America open pits respectively, both located close to
La India. The Mestiza open pit hosts 92 Kt at a grade of 12.1 g/t
gold (36,000 oz contained gold) in the Indicated Mineral Resource
category and 341 Kt at a grade of 7.7 g/t gold (85,000 oz contained
gold) in the Inferred Mineral Resource category . The America open
pit hosts 114 Kt at a grade of 8.1 g/t gold (30,000 oz) in the
Indicated Mineral Resource category and 677 Kt at a grade of 3.1
g/t gold (67,000 oz) in the Inferred Mineral Resource category.
Following the permitting of the Mestiza and America open pits,
together with the La India open pit Condor has 1.12 Moz gold open
pit Mineral Resources permitted for extraction, inclusive of a
Mineral Reserve of 6.9 Mt at 3.0 g/t gold for 675,000 oz gold.
Disclaimer
Neither the contents of the Company's website nor the contents
of any website accessible from hyperlinks on the Company's website
(or any other website) is incorporated into, or forms part of, this
announcement.
Qualified Persons
The Mineral Resource Estimate has been completed by Ben Parsons,
a Principal Consultant (Resource Geology) with SRK Consulting
(U.S.), Inc, who is a Member of the Australian Institute of Mining
and Metallurgy, MAusIMM(CP). He has some nineteen years' experience
in the exploration, definition and mining of precious and base
metals. Ben Parsons is a full-time employee of SRK Consulting
(U.S.), Inc, an independent consultancy, and has sufficient
experience which is relevant to the style of mineralisation and
type of deposit under consideration, and to the type of activity
which he is undertaking to qualify as a "qualified person" as
defined under National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure
for Mineral Projects ("NI 43-101") of the Canadian Securities
Administrators and as required by the June 2009 Edition of the AIM
Note for Mining and Oil & Gas Companies. Ben Parsons consents
to the inclusion in the announcement of the matters based on their
information in the form and context in which it appears and
confirms that this information is accurate and not false or
misleading.
The technical and scientific information in this press release
has been reviewed, verified and approved by Gerald D. Crawford,
P.E., who is a "qualified person" as defined by NI 43-101 and is
the Chief Technical Officer of Condor Gold plc.
The technical and scientific information in this press release
has been reviewed, verified and approved by Andrew Cheatle, P.Geo.,
who is a "qualified person" as defined by NI 43-101 .
Technical Information
Certain disclosure contained in this news release of a
scientific or technical nature has been summarised or extracted
from the technical report entitled "Technical Report on the La
India Gold Project, Nicaragua, December 2014", dated November 13,
2017 with an effective date of December 21, 2014 (the "Technical
Report"), prepared in accordance with NI 43-101. The Technical
Report was prepared by or under the supervision of Tim Lucks,
Principal Consultant (Geology & Project Management), Gabor
Bacsfalusi, Principal Consultant (Mining), Benjamin Parsons,
Principal Consultant (Resource Geology), each of SRK Consulting
(UK) Limited, and Neil Lincoln of Lycopodium Minerals Canada Ltd.,
each of whom is an independent "qualified person" as defined by NI
43-101 .
Forward Looking Statements
All statements in this press release, other than statements of
historical fact, are 'forward-looking information' with respect to
the Company within the meaning of applicable securities laws,
including statements with respect to: the ongoing mining dilution
and pit optimisation studies, and the incorporation of same into
any mining production schedule, future development and production
plans at La India Project. Forward-looking information is often,
but not always, identified by the use of words such as: "seek",
"anticipate", "plan", "continue", "strategies", "estimate",
"expect", "project", "predict", "potential", "targeting",
"intends", "believe", "potential", "could", "might", "will" and
similar expressions. Forward-looking information is not a guarantee
of future performance and is based upon a number of estimates and
assumptions of management at the date the statements are made
including, among others, assumptions regarding: future commodity
prices and royalty regimes; availability of skilled labour; timing
and amount of capital expenditures; future currency exchange and
interest rates; the impact of increasing competition; general
conditions in economic and financial markets; availability of
drilling and related equipment; effects of regulation by
governmental agencies; the receipt of required permits; royalty
rates; future tax rates; future operating costs; availability of
future sources of funding; ability to obtain financing and
assumptions underlying estimates related to adjusted funds from
operations. Many assumptions are based on factors and events that
are not within the control of the Company and there is no assurance
they will prove to be correct.
Such forward-looking information involves known and unknown
risks, which may cause the actual results to be materially
different from any future results expressed or implied by such
forward-looking information, including, risks related to: mineral
exploration, development and operating risks; estimation of
mineralisation, resources and reserves; environmental, health and
safety regulations of the resource industry; competitive
conditions; operational risks; liquidity and financing risks;
funding risk; exploration costs; uninsurable risks; conflicts of
interest; risks of operating in Nicaragua; government policy
changes; ownership risks; permitting and licencing risks; artisanal
miners and community relations; difficulty in enforcement of
judgments; market conditions; stress in the global economy; current
global financial condition; exchange rate and currency risks;
commodity prices; reliance on key personnel; dilution risk; payment
of dividends; as well as those factors discussed under the heading
"Risk Factors" in the Company's annual information form for the
fiscal year ended December 31, 2019 dated March 31, 2020 and
available under the Company's SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com .
Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors
that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ
materially from those described in forward-looking information,
there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results
not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no
assurance that such information will prove to be accurate as actual
results and future events could differ materially from those
anticipated in such statements. The Company disclaims any intention
or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information,
whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise
unless required by law.
Technical Glossary
Assay The laboratory test conducted to determine the proportion
of a mineral within a rock or other material. Usually
reported as parts per million which is equivalent
to grams of the mineral (i.e. gold) per tonne of
rock
Ag Silver
-----------------------------------------------------------
Au Gold
-----------------------------------------------------------
Breccia A fragmental rock composed of rounded to angular
broken rock fragments held together by a mineral
cement or in a fine-grained matrix. They can be
formed by igneous, tectonic, sedimentary or hydrothermal
processes.
-----------------------------------------------------------
Down-dip Further down towards the deepest parts of an ore
body or zone of mineralisation.
-----------------------------------------------------------
Epithermal Hydrothermal deposits formed at shallow depths below
a boiling hot spring system are commonly referred
to as epithermal, a term retained from an old system
of classifying hydrothermal deposits based on the
presumed temperature and depth of deposition.
-----------------------------------------------------------
Fault The plane along which two rock masses have moved
or slide against each other in opposing directions.
-----------------------------------------------------------
Felsic Igneous rock relatively rich in the minerals feldspar
and silica. It is a broad term including the common
intrusive rocks granite and diorite, and the volcanic
rocks rhyolite and dacite,
-----------------------------------------------------------
Grade The proportion of a mineral within a rock or other
material. For gold mineralisation this is usually
reported as grams of gold per tonne of rock (g/t)
-----------------------------------------------------------
g/t grams per tonne
-----------------------------------------------------------
Hot springs A spring of naturally hot water, typically heated
by subterranean volcanic activity.
-----------------------------------------------------------
Hydrothermal Hot water caused by heating of groundwater by near
surface magmas and often occurring in association
with volcanic activity. Hydrothermal waters can
contain significant concentrations of dissolved
minerals.
-----------------------------------------------------------
Inferred Mineral That part of a Mineral Resource for which tonnage,
Resource grade and mineral content can be estimated with
a low level of confidence. It is inferred from geological
evidence and assumed but not verified geological
and/or grade continuity. It is based on information
gathered through appropriate techniques from locations
such as outcrops, trenches, pits, workings and drill
holes that may be limited, or of uncertain quality
and reliability,
-----------------------------------------------------------
Kt Thousand tonnes
-----------------------------------------------------------
Mineral Resource A concentration or occurrence of material of economic
interest in or on the Earth's crust in such a form,
quality, and quantity that there are reasonable
and realistic prospects for eventual economic extraction.
The location, quantity, grade, continuity and other
geological characteristics of a Mineral Resource
are known, estimated from specific geological knowledge,
or interpreted from a well constrained and portrayed
geological model.
-----------------------------------------------------------
NI 43-101 Canadian National Instrument 43-101 a common standard
for reporting of identified mineral resources and
ore reserves
-----------------------------------------------------------
Open pit mining A method of extracting minerals from the earth by
excavating downwards from the surface such that
the ore is extracted in the open air (as opposed
to underground mining).
-----------------------------------------------------------
Stockwork Multiple connected veins with more than one orientation,
typically consisting of millimetre to centimetre
thick fracture-fill veins and veinlets.
-----------------------------------------------------------
Strike length The longest horizontal dimension of an ore body
or zone of mineralisation.
-----------------------------------------------------------
Vein A sheet-like body of crystallised minerals within
a rock, generally forming in a discontinuity or
crack between two rock masses. Economic concentrations
of gold are often contained within vein minerals.
-----------------------------------------------------------
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END
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