Serval's Work Programmes for Namibia, Botswana and Côte d'Ivoire
Summary by AI BETAClose X
Serval Resources Plc
("Serval" or the "Company")
19 June 2026
Serval's Work Programmes for Namibia, Botswana and Côte d'Ivoire
Highlights
- The Company hereby sets out the work programmes for its key exploration projects in Namibia and Botswana, two of Africa's most exciting regions for new copper discoveries
- Serval's approach is to carry out systematic exploration, utilising a combination of geological mapping, geophysics and soil sampling in order to build an understanding of the known mineralisation within its licences
- This multi-dataset approach will significantly de-risk future drilling by improving the definition of mineralised corridors, with the Company's first drilling programme in Namibia planned for H2 2026
- Following a budgeting review, a small but impactful programme has also been agreed for Côte d'Ivoire in order to progress the Duékoué molybdenum-copper project
- Serval will be giving an updated presentation to existing and prospective investors at the Proactive One2One Investor Forum on Wednesday 24 June in London - sign up at https://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/register/event_details/470 .
Serval Resources Plc (AIM: SRVL), a company focused on building an independent copper and future metals developer, is pleased to provide further information on its work programmes across its portfolio of exploration assets in Namibia, Botswana and Côte d'Ivoire.
These work programmes run to mid-2027 and are fully funded, as disclosed at the time of the Company's AIM listing. Each programme includes resources dedicated to environment, social and governance ("ESG"), with the focus on stakeholder engagement to ensure respectful access to land, environmental management in line with our commitments and local regulations, and maintaining appropriate health and safety procedures.
CEO, Robin Birchall, commented :
"Further to our recent AIM listing and concurrent fundraise, the focus has been on setting out the most high impact and targeted work programmes possible in line with our available budget. This has been achieved and we are currently mobilising our teams in order to complete extensive work in the field in the coming months. The goal, as always, is systematic exploration utilising a combination of geological techniques in order to build upon our knowledge of the known mineralisation. We are confident that this multi-dataset approach will significantly de-risk future drilling which we intend to start in at our projects during the second half of 2026."
Namibia - The Kaoko Basin
Serval has established a large land package in the Kaoko Basin, which is the interpreted extension of the prolific Central African Copper Belt in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Zambia, a world-class sediment-hosted copper-cobalt province and home to major copper producers. Historical drilling and geochemical work on several of the Namibian licences have demonstrated intersections of copper and silver mineralisation from surface, providing immediate targets for further definition, with the potential to delineate a maiden resource in due course.
Copper and silver mineralisation in the Kaoko Belt is well-established through sediment-hosted copper deposits occurring within the Nosib Group and overlying Otavi Group of rocks. Mineralisation particularly occurs on the contact between the Nosib and Otavi Group sediments and within the Ombombo Subgroup of the lower Otavi Group. Mineralisation within the Ombombo Subgroup specifically occurs on the contacts between the Omivero and overlying Lower Omao Formations and between the Lower and Upper Omao Formations.
Serval considers its entire holding of four licences covering 789 km 2 to be highly prospective, and the bulk of the initial work will focus on licences EPL 7081 ("7081") and EPL 7082 ("7082"). 7081 is Serval's highest priority licence and contains a number of key targets where historical drilling has established higher grade copper-silver mineralisation, including Omatapati, Horseshoe and Otjozongombe, where historical drilling has intercepted 19 metres at 2.6% Cu for example. With mineralisation present in outcrop, the Company has specific areas where the target horizon can be directly mapped. For areas that can be shown that the target horizon is extending into areas of alluvium cover, Serval can do detailed geophysics and soil sampling to identify mineralisation below cover. The Company also expects to undertake a targeted amount of trenching at these prospects as this technique can significantly aid in structural analysis of the geology.
Work in EPL 7079 and EPL 6998 will be mainly focused on establishing the full extent of the Nosib contact through regional mapping and geophysics.
The Company's plan up to December 2026 is designed in three phases prior to the commencement of Serval's first drilling campaign and will incorporate:
|
Activity |
Rationale |
|
Geological mapping |
Target areas will be selected based on historical prospects, previous drilling results, and the known mineralisation associated with the Nosib/Otavi Group contact. The primary aims are initial site reconnaissance, to identify and map surface mineralisation, document visible mineralisation, and record structural features (including strike and dip orientations) to enable extrapolation to areas of limited or no outcrop. |
|
High-resolution ground magnetics survey |
The survey will complement the mapping by delineating sub-surface geology, refining the spatial definition of the Nosib/Otavi contacts, and identifying potential structural traps where mineralised zones transition beneath overburden. |
|
Soil sampling campaign |
Soil sampling is a slightly lengthier exploration tool and involves geochemical analysis of samples . It will be used in areas where direct detection of mineralisation is required to ascertain drill targets. The soil sampling grids will be located within key areas identified in the first two phases to establish direct correlation between geophysical anomalies and possible copper anomalies. Samples will be analysed in the field using a handheld X-ray fluorescence ("XRF") analyser to rapidly identify anomalous concentrations of pathfinder elements, particularly copper. |
|
Maiden drilling campaign |
Drilling will focus on the most prospective targets. The aim is to intersect mineralisation at depth, in order to demonstrate the potential strike and depth extent of the mineralised system. This will allow us the Company to develop an exploration target with a lower and upper margin for tonnage and grade. |
Outcomes: Geochemical results will be integrated with geological mapping and magnetic data to refine and rank potential drilling targets, with the aim to commence drilling in Q4 2026.
Botswana - The Kalahari Copper Belt
Serval has also established a major landholding of 18 licences covering 1,283 km 2 in the Kalahari Copper Belt ("KCB"), which is an emerging copper belt of significance. The KCB recently became home to two major operations, namely Khoemacau (bought by MMG Limited for US$1.9 billion in 2024) and Motheo (built by Sandfire for US$325 million with project completion in just seven years, versus the industry average of over 16 years). Both of these operations exploit stratabound sediment-hosted copper-silver deposits that share many similarities to those in the world-class Central African Copper Belt.
Copper and silver mineralisation in the KCB is well-established through sediment-hosted copper deposits occurring within the Ghanzi-Chobe Fold and Thrust Belt and stratigraphically in the Ghanzi Group rocks. More specifically, mineralisation is found at the interface between the older Ngwako Pan Formation and the younger D'kar formation.
Serval has a number of licences in the KCB that are along strike to existing producing or development assets. The Company's top priorities are licences PL 235 ( the "235 Cluster ") and PL 232 (the "232 Cluster"), both of which are along strike from the producing Khomacau mine, which has a total resource of 450 Mt at 1.4% Cu and 18 g/t Ag.
Serval's Botswana work programme will focus on better understanding the theoretical extension of the mineralisation structures under these licences, noting that exploration in the KCB is complicated by the overburden of sand that lies above the bedrock at varying depths, and in some places other barren structures such as Karoo volcanic sequences. Successful discoveries in recent years have therefore established that using a combination of geophysical and geochemical methods to identify mineralisation in this region is key.
The Company's work programme will initially target the 232 Cluster and the 235 Cluster and will incorporate geophysics followed by soil sampling:
|
Activity |
Rationale |
|
PL 232 Geophysics
Soil sampling |
The 232 Cluster is situated within the hinge zone of a large regional-scale anticline, directly along the favourable Ngwako Pan - D'kar Formation contacts. The magnetic survey will be analysed to identify structural trends, lithological contrasts, and magnetic zones that may be associated with mineralisation, while the AMT will focus on the detection of conductive anomalies associated with sulphides and will assist in determining the dip angle of the fold hinges of the regional anticline, if such is confirmed to be present. The AMT survey can also map resistivity, estimating Kalahari sand depth, target horizons, and subsurface structures/trap sites. Soil sampling will be used in focused areas where geophysics have identified prospective horizons. |
|
PL 235 Geophysics Programmes
Soil sampling |
The 235 Cluster hosts the prospective Ngwako Pan and D'kar Formations, clearly evident on the regional-scale geological map. The magnetic survey will aim to achieve higher resolution magnetic imagery than the regional map and will be analysed to detect structural trends, lithological contrasts, and magnetic alteration zones that may be associated with mineralisation. Soil sampling will be used in focused areas where geophysics have identified prospective horizons. |
Outcomes: The work programme above aims to provide a robust and methodical framework for advancing subsurface understanding across the two exploration licence clusters.
Côte d'Ivoire - Duékoué Project
In Côte d'Ivoire, Serval is advancing the Duékoué project, a large licence covering 789 km 2 which is the subject of a Joint Venture Partnership and earn-in agreement with La Minière de L'Eléphant SARL ("Laminele"). The project is strategically located on the Archean-Proterozoic boundary, where discoveries are exhibiting significant iron oxide copper gold ("IOCG") and porphyry system characteristics, similar to leading deposits in Brazil and Australia.
Serval is investigating a molybdenum-copper anomaly at Duékoué, which was initially identified by state mining company SODEMI in the 1970s. Serval's initial work to date has successfully confirmed the historical Mo-Cu anomalies and multiple soil samples have also established moderately anomalous concentrations of gold which warrant further evaluation of the project as a potential copper-gold project in due course.
Following a budgeting review, Serval has designed a comparatively small but meaningful programme to continue the evaluation at Duékoué.
The work programme will incorporate:
|
Activity |
Rationale |
|
High resolution ground magnetics |
The ground magnetic survey will aim to identify structural trends, lithological contrasts, and magnetic alteration zones that may be associated with potential mineralisation. |
|
Soil sampling campaign |
Following receipt and review of the magnetic data, soil sampling and systematic geological mapping will be undertaken along the optimised traverse lines. The soil sampling grid has been designed to evaluate geochemical signatures across key target zones identified through prior mapping, satellite imagery, and preliminary exploration activities. |
|
Geological mapping |
Geological mapping will characterise lithology, structural fabrics, alteration styles, and regolith variability, while the magnetic survey will provide geophysical information to delineate structural trends, lithological contacts, and magnetic alteration zones not visible at surface. |
Outcomes: The combined insights from the work programme aim to identify where exactly the anomaly is the strongest, and where the underlying geology creates the structures and fluid pathways that could potentially generate a large IOCG type deposit.
Qualified Persons Statement
The information in this news release was compiled, reviewed, verified and approved by Mr. Luhann Theron, MSc (Geology), Member of the South African Council for Natural Scientific Professions (SACNASP), Senior Geologist for Lambda Tau. Mr Theron has 14 years' experience in exploration for metals and minerals of this mineralisation type, style and geological setting and a qualified person as defined under the JORC code and the AIM Rules for Companies. Mr Theron consents to the inclusion in this announcement of the technical matters based on his information in the form and context in which it appears.
Enquiries:
|
Serval Resources |
Company |
Robin Birchall |
+ 44 (0) 7711 313 019 |
|
|
IR |
Cathy Malins |
+44 (0) 7876 796 629 |
|
SP Angel Corporate Finance LLP |
Nominated Advisor and Broker |
David Hignell Charlie Bouverat Devik Mehta |
+44 (0) 20 3470 0470 |
|
AlbR Capital Limited |
Joint Corporate Broker |
Lucy Williams Duncan Vasey |
+44 (0) 20 7469 0930 |
|
Tavistock Communications |
PR |
Charles Vivian Eliza Logan |
+44 (0) 20 7920 3150
|
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, AS AMENDED.
About Serval Resources
Serval Resources (AIM: SRVL) is an AIM-listed explorer focused on copper and associated future metals critical to the global energy transition and digital economy. The company is building a portfolio of exploration and development assets in the emerging copper belts of Namibia, Botswana and Côte d'Ivoire, aiming to become a leading mid-cap player by applying modern, systematic exploration techniques in underexplored but highly prospective African regions.
For further information, visit:
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