Senala Joint Venture Update

RNS Number : 1035T

Oriole Resources PLC

23 March 2021

 

Oriole Resources PLC 

('Oriole Resources' or 'the Company' or 'the Group')

Senala Joint Venture Update -

IAMGOLD Proposes a c.£1.8 million Programme for Year 4

Oriole Resources PLC (AIM: ORR), the AIM-quoted exploration company focussed on West Africa, is pleased to provide an update on its Senala project ('Senala' or the 'Project') in Senegal, where joint venture partner IAMGOLD Corporation ('IAMGOLD') has the option to spend up to US$8 million to earn a 70 per cent. interest (announcement dated 1 March 2018).

Further to its announcement on 11 March 2021, the Company is pleased to report that an agreement has been reached with IAMGOLD in respect of carrying forward an underspend of US$172,000 into Year 4. As a result, and as per the terms of the Option Agreement, IAMGOLD has proposed a programme of expenditure that will cover the shortfall and meet the Year 4 commitment of US$1.5 million before 28 February 2022. Completion of the funding will see them earn the option to acquire a 51% interest in the Project.

The funds will be used to undertake a two-phase work programme, the first phase ('Phase 1') of which will comprise a planned 5,000 metres ('m') of reverse circulation ('RC') drilling and 1,000 m of diamond drilling at the northern most Faré prospect. This work is now scheduled for completion before the end of Q2-2021. The second phase ('Phase 2'), comprising a planned 5,000 m of RC drilling and 600 m of diamond drilling, will be focused on re-testing the system at the southernmost Madina Bafé prospect, where previous drilling by the Company had returned 9.60 m grading 16.08 grammes per tonne ('g/t') gold ('Au') (announcement dated 16 July 2014). Subject to results from Phase 1, IAMGOLD reserves the right to redirect the Phase 2 funding to undertake follow-up work at Faré.

Summary

· IAMGOLD proposes a Year 4 exploration budget of US$1.789m to fund a two-phase work programme at Senala;

· Phase 1 programme to focus on the northernmost Faré prospect, which the Company believes has the potential to be a standalone deposit:

o  5,000 m of RC drilling in 42 holes planned to focus on strongest anomalies (up to 2.58 g/t Au) identified from recent aircore drilling - three fences at Faré North sub-prospect and two fences at Faré Far South sub-prospect;

o  1,000 m diamond drilling - 600 m in three holes to test mineralised intervals previously identified by the Company and 400 m to test the best results from the RC drilling;

o  Both programmes scheduled to commence shortly, subject to receipt of a forestry permit, with a planned completion date of end ofQ2-2021;

o  Results anticipated in Q3-2021.

· Phase 2 programme provisionally planned to continue exploration of the southernmost Madina Bafé prospect, located within 10 km distance of IAMGOLD's Boto 2.5 Moz mine development project:

o  5,000 m of RC drilling in 50 holes planned to test a northeast corridor that has recently been subject to artisanal mining;

o  600 m diamond drilling in two holes within the corridor to re-assess previous high-grade intersections reported by the Company;

o  Both programmes scheduled to commence immediately after Phase 1, with a planned seasonal break in the work programme from late July to early October.

· Subject to results from Phase 1, IAMGOLD reserves the right to redirect the Phase 2 funding to undertake follow-up work at Faré;

· Subject to completion of the Year 4 expenditure commitment, IAMGOLD will have the right to acquire a 51% interest in the Project.

Oriole Resources CEO, Tim Livesey, said:  "We are very pleased to have completed our review and approval of IAMGOLD's Year 4 programme at Senala and to have reached a simple resolution with regard to the Year 3 underspend.  A roll up of the underspend into Year 4, to be focused on the upcoming RC and diamond drilling programmes, offered the best value to us and so we were happy to accept the proposal from IAMGOLD to do this.

"The carry forward will mean greater funding for Year 4, allowing additional work to be completed on the Senala licence. The programmes will, as always, be led by results, but it's very encouraging to see the exploration team planning to continue development of the potential stand-alone mine target at Faré, as well as expand their drilling of the potential Boto satellite mineralisation at Madina Bafé.  

"With the Senala exploration programme continuing its fourth year in the safe hands of the IAMGOLD team, the substantial planned drilling programmes at both Faré and Madina Bafé will ensure steady progress through the year and we look forward to sharing the results as they become available. 

"Meanwhile, at Oriole, we look forward to maintaining our focus on Cameroon through our ongoing maiden drill programme at Bibemi and at the newly-granted Central Licence Package, where a programme of regional stream sediment sampling is scheduled to commence next quarter."

Further Details

Further to its announcement on 11 March 2021, the Company today reports that an agreement has been reached with IAMGOLD in respect of carrying forward a Year 3 underspend of US$172,000 into the Year 4 investment period. As a result, and as per the terms of the Option Agreement, IAMGOLD has proposed an exploration budget of US$1.789m, which will cover the contractual commitment of US$1.672 million at the Project before 28 February 2022.

The funds will be used to undertake a two-phase work programme. Phase 1 will comprise follow-up drilling at the northernmost Faré prospect, where the Company has previously defined anomalous mineralisation over a strike length in excess of 6 km ( announcements dated 4 December 2012 and 6 June 2016 ) and where previous drilling has delivered best intersections of 20 m grading 31.13 g/t Au including 10 m grading 60.98 g/t Au from RC drilling and 59.60 m grading 2.20 g/t Au and 49.50m grading 1.75 g/t Au from diamond drilling (announcement dated 9 November 2020). A planned 5,000 m of RC drilling in 42 holes will follow-up on the strongest anomalies (up to 2.58 g/t Au) identified by a recent air core ('AC') drilling programme (announcement dated 11 March 2021). A total of three RC fences (a reduction from the five previously reported to enable longer fence lines) have been planned at the Faré North sub-prospect; two to the northeast and one to the southwest of previous drilling by Stratex. The planned holes will test strongly anomalous coincident gold and pathfinder (W, As and Bi) anomalies. A further two fences are planned for the Faré Far South sub-prospect, where the AC drilling returned a strong and coherent gold anomaly coincident.

Subject to the results of the RC drilling, c.400 m of diamond drilling is planned for Phase 1 to test the best new target. Two further holes of 200 m and 400 m, respectively, are also planned to test the depth extension of the main mineralised zone at Faré South as defined by the historic drilling. It is anticipated that these programmes will commence within the next month, as soon as the required forestry permit it received. Completion of Phase 1 is scheduled by the end of Q2-2021, with results expected in the following quarter.

A Phase 2 programme, designed to immediately follow the first phase, is scheduled to commence in June and will continue through the rest of the year, subject to a break (due to heavy seasonal rains) from late July until early October. A planned 5,000 m RC and 600 m diamond drilling will be focused on re-testing the southernmost Madina Bafé prospect that is located within 10km distance of IAMGOLD's Boto 2.5 Moz mine development project.

In 2018, IAMGOLD completed an initial 2,428m AC drilling programme, to assess the geochemical signature of the bedrock, and follow-up programmes comprising a 2,260m RC drilling and 507 m diamond drilling. Two of the diamond holes had targeted a 1.5 km northeast-trending anomaly in the south-east of the prospect, initially identified by the Company's previous trenching and drilling campaigns and specifically, the Company's previously reported best intersection of 9.60 m grading 16.08 g/t Au from hole MBDD-002 (announcement dated 16 July 2014). The drilling by IAMGOLD was not able to replicate that intersection but did return best results of 8.00 m grading 2.56 g/t Au (MBDD-013) and 6.00 m grading 4.96 g/t Au (MBDD-014) and confirmed that the mineralisation continues at depth (announcement dated 6 February 2019). Recent artisanal activity in the immediate vicinity of those earlier drillholes has encouraged IAMGOLD to revisit the prospect. However, it reserves the right to redirect the Phase 2 funding to undertake follow-up work at Faré.

Subject to completion of the Year 4 expenditure commitment, IAMGOLD will have the right to acquire a 51% interest in the Project and will thereafter need to spend a further US$4 million over two years to earn a 70% interest.

For further information, including an updated JORC Table 1, please see the Senala page on the Company's website   https://orioleresources.com/projects/senala/ .

Competent Persons Statement  

The information in this release that relates to Exploration Results has been compiled by Claire Bay (VP Exploration and Business Development). Claire Bay (MGeol, CGeol) is a Competent Person as defined in the JORC code and takes responsibility for the release of this information. Claire has reviewed the information in this announcement and confirms that she is not aware of any new information or data that materially affects the information reproduced here.

** ENDS **

The information contained within this announcement is deemed to constitute inside information as stipulated under the Market Abuse Regulations (EU No. 596/2014) which is part of UK law by virtue of the European Union (withdrawal) Act 2018. Upon the publication of this announcement, this inside information is now considered to be in the public domain.

For further information please visit   www.orioleresources.com ,   @OrioleResources  on Twitter, or contact:

Oriole Resources PLC Tim Livesey / Bob Smeeton / Claire Bay	Tel: [phone]
Blytheweigh (IR/PR contact) Tim Blythe / Megan Ray / Rachael Brooks	Tel: [phone]
Grant Thornton UK LLP Samantha Harrison / Seamus Fricker / George Grainger	Tel: [phone]
Shard Capital Partners LLP Damon Heath / Erik Woolgar / Isabella Pierre	Tel: [phone]

Notes to Editors:

Oriole Resources PLC is an AIM-listed exploration company, operating West Africa. It is focused on early-stage exploration in Cameroon (Bibemi and Wapouzé projects) and the more advanced Senala gold project in Senegal, where IAMGOLD has the option to spend US$8 million to earn a 70% interest. Year two commitments have been met at all three projects. The Company has several interests and royalties in companies operating throughout Africa and Turkey that could deliver future cash flow, and it continues to assess new opportunities in both regions.

 

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