TIDMKEFI
RNS Number : 1532M
Kefi Gold and Copper PLC
10 January 2023
10 January 2023
K EFI G o ld and C opper plc
("KEFI" or the " C o m pan y ")
Five further e xp l o r a t i on l i c e n c es gr anted in S
audi Ar abia
KEFI (AIM: KEFI), the gold and copper exploration and
development company with projects in the Federal Democratic
Republic of Ethiopia and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is pleased to
announce the award of five additional exploration licenses through
the Company's Gold and Minerals Limited ("GMCO") joint venture in
Saudi Arabia. GMCO is owned 30% by KEFI and 70% by its partner
Abdul Rahman Saad Al Rashid and Sons Ltd ("ARTAR").
Highlights
-- Five additional exploration licences Wadi Na'afa, Al Awja,
Abu Salal North, Umm Al Khabath and Jabal Selm (collectively the
"Exploration Licences") have been awarded on an initial five-year
term
-- The Exploration Licences host sites of ancient mineral
mining, within prospective mineral belts
-- Abu Salal North and Umm Al Khabath VMS prospects lie within
the Wadi Bidah Mineral Belt south of the Company's Hawiah
project
-- Wadi Na'afa and Al Awja lie within the underexplored and only recently accessible Lorelon gold-silver-copper mineral belt, located within the southwestern portion of the Arabian Shield
-- Jabal Selm is a quartz vein hosted gold prospect within the Al Miyah Mineral District
The GMCO regional exploration team have begun comprehensive
mapping and sampling campaigns over these new licences. The
outcomes of this fieldwork will be to ground-truth historical data,
assess the surface grade limits of mineralisation and describe the
structural framework controlling mineralisation. These programmes
will then build into progressively advanced exploration works,
including geophysics and trenching.
Wadi Na'afa and Al Awja Exploration Licences
The granting of the Exploration Licences presents a first foot
advantage in exploration of the prospective Lorelon Mineral Belt,
located 70km south of the town of Bisha. The Wadi Na'afa and Al
Awja exploration licences are situated approximately 20km apart,
within the Asir terrane in the western portion of the Arabian
Shield (see map in the appendix accessible via:
http://www.rns-pdf.londonstockexchange.com/rns/1532M_1-2023-1-9.pdf).
Both represent attractive gold exploration targets.
-- These exploration licences are situated within the
southwestern area of the Arabian Shield, located 20km apart,
covering a combined area of 112.82 km (2) of prospective ground
-- Mineral occurrences within these areas are hosted within the
same arc volcanics as the known 'Muhaddad' Volcanic Massive
Sulphide ("VMS") deposit, located some 50km to the north-east
-- Documented historic exploration was previously only possible
by foot or helicopter due to poor access. The sites are now easily
accessible by recently installed roadways
-- The exploration licences contain underexplored and strike
extensive (up to 3.5km) of prospective alteration zones with grades
of up to 11.65g/t gold from GMCO rock chip samples
Mineralisation within these exploration licences presents at
surface as north trending, gold-silver-copper bearing, structurally
controlled quartz veins and stockwork. The most recent work was
conducted during the 1980s by Riofinex and remains the only modern
exploration to have taken place over the sites.
Al Awja is the more advanced of the two licences, containing
ancient mine workings and the ruins of an adjacent ancient mining
village. Two, approximately 1.5km by 50m iron-oxide anomalies have
been identified.
Located 20km south of Al Awja, the Wadi Na'afa exploration
licence area also presents with gold-silver-copper bearing,
structurally controlled quartz veins. As with Al Awja, evidence of
ancient mining is spatially coincident with a 3.5km by 350m iron
oxide anomaly.
These mineralised horizons are within the same prospective mafic
arc volcanics as those of the 'Muhaddad' VMS deposit, with the
surface signals indicating a gold-silver-copper source at
depth.
Abu Salal North and Umm Al Khabath Exploration Licences
The granting of these exploration licences further establishes
GMCO's controlling stake within the Wadi Bidah Mineral Belt, which
contains the Hawiah and Al Godeyer deposits to the north. Abu Salal
North is located immediately north of the Abu Salal South prospect
and contains the continuation of the same mineralised VMS system.
Umm Al Khabath is a VMS target located 50km south of Abu Salal
North, both within the Al Baha Province in the western portion of
the Arabian Shield. Both represent attractive VMS exploration
targets.
-- These exploration licences cover a combined area of 80.13km (2) of prospective ground
-- Mineral occurrences within these areas are hosted within the
same arc volcanic package as the Hawiah VMS deposit, located some
40km to the North-West of Abu Salal North
-- Historic exploration works served to identify the surface
expression of these prospects, but as with Hawiah prior to GMCO
ownership, remain untested at depth
-- The exploration licences contain strike extensive mineralised
horizons (up to a total of 2km), with grades of up to 8.8g/t gold
from US Geological Survey ("USGS") sampling in 1982
Mineralisation at Abu Salal North presents at surface as the
oxidized surface expression of a gold-silver-copper-zinc bearing
VMS horizon, comparable to that observed at Hawiah. The gossan
forms the outcropping 850m strike extension of the Abu Salal South
VMS horizon, the horizon continues before disappearing under a more
recent flood-basalt 'Harat' related to the Red Sea rifting.
Mineralisation at Umm Al Khabath contains the 820m by 22m
subvertically dipping ferruginous chert horizon of Jabal Isan,
historically documented to host mineralisation within quartz and
hematitic gossan of up to 8.8g/t gold. Whilst only limited
exploration has been completed, the horizon shows the
characteristics of mineralisation associated with a distal mafic
VMS facies.
Jabal Selm
This licence is the first of GMCO's exploration licences
targeting the Al Miyah Mineral District, located 80km north of the
town of Bisha within the Makkah District. This prospect contains a
north-northwest-trending, prospective iron-oxide - quartz breccia
exposed intermittently over 2 km, with eight documented mineral
occurrences for gold. Exploration works completed by the USGS in
1982 documented grades up to 89.20g/t gold in samples collected
from quartz vein and wall rock. Some enrichment in silver (up to
8.7 ppm) and copper (up to greater than 2%) were also detected.
The addition of these licenses brings the GMCO land holding in
Saudi Arabia to over 1,035Km(2) , covering what GMCO believes to
be, some of the most prospective and underexplored ground for
polymetallic VMS and orogenic gold deposits in the Kingdom of Saudi
Arabia.
Harry Anagnostaras-Adams, Executive Chairman of KEFI,
commented:
"With our rapidly advancing gold projects in Ethiopia and Saudi
Arabia, where we are heading for steady-state production from 2025,
we are delighted to have been awarded these five further
exploration licences in Saudi Arabia to further broaden the KEFI
GMCO portfolio.
"As an early-mover in Saudi Arabia, with a world-class team, we
are keen to build on our position in the fast-emerging Saudi
minerals sector and take advantage of new opportunities as they
become available. The award of these five additional exploration
licences provides significant future potential in a country
expected to have relatively short approval, financing and
development schedules, given there is no need to resettle
communities, less restrictive security protocols and established
capital markets and domestic funding options.
"The award of these licenses brings the GMCO land holding in
Saudi Arabia to over 1,035Km(2) , covering some of what we believe
to be the most prospective and underexplored ground for
polymetallic VMS and orogenic gold deposits in the Kingdom of Saudi
Arabia. We will shortly report a stand-alone overview of this
world-class exploration portfolio. Its status and our plans, and we
look forward to reporting on our further progress in due
course."
Market Abuse Regulation (MAR) Disclosure
This announcement contains inside information for the purposes
of Article 7 of the Market Abuse Regulation (EU) 596/2014 as it
forms part of UK domestic law by virtue of the European Union
(Withdrawal) Act 2018 ("MAR"), and is disclosed in accordance with
the Company's obligations under Article 17 of MAR.
Enquiries
KEFI Gold and Copper plc
Harry Anagnostaras-Adams (Executive Chairman) +357 99457843
John Leach (Finance Director) +357 99208130
SP Angel Corporate Finance LLP (Nominated
Adviser) +44 (0) 20 3470 0470
Jeff Keating, Adam Cowl
Tavira Securities Limited (Lead Broker) +44 (0) 20 7100 5100
Oliver Stansfield, Jonathan Evans
WH Ireland Limited (Joint Broker) +44 (0) 20 7220 1666
Katy Mitchell, Andrew de Andrade
IFC Advisory Ltd (Financial PR and IR) +44 (0) 20 3934 6630
Tim Metcalfe, Florence Chandler
Competent Person Statement
The information in this announcement that relates to geology,
exploration results and mineral resources is based on information
compiled by Mr Tomos Bryan, Exploration Manager for Gold &
Minerals Limited. Mr Bryan is a member of the Australasian
Institute of Mining and Metallurgy ("AusIMM"). Mr Bryan is a
geologist with sufficient relevant experience for Company reporting
to qualify as a Competent Person as defined in the JORC Code 2012.
Mr Bryan consents to the inclusion in this announcement of the
non-financial matters based on this information in the form and
context in which it appears.
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