Goldplat plc / Ticker: GDP / Index: AIM / Sector: Mining & Exploration

  14 May 2012

Goldplat plc ('Goldplat' or 'the Company')

Progress Update on Kilimapesa Gold Operating Mine

Goldplat plc, the AIM quoted gold producer, is pleased to provide a positive update on the Kilimapesa Gold operating mine in Kenya ('Kilimapesa').

Overview

?          Completed processing of loaded carbon stockpiles with 1,151 ounces produced and sold to Rand Refinery Limited in South Africa

?          Smelting and gold production from mined ore occurring on a monthly basis - grades and recoveries as forecast averaging between 5-6 g/t and +85% respectively

?          Plant capacity expansion to increase gold production towards 10,000 ounces per annum advanced to procurement stage

?          JORC-compliant resource increased to 3,133,613 tonnes at 2.46 g/t gold for 247,484 ounces of gold at a cut-off of 1 g/t for all categories

?          Ongoing drilling programme underway to achieve resource target of 500,000 ounces at Kilimapesa in 2012

o       1,138 metres drilled at Kilimapesa Hill target - confirmed extension of ore body in depth and up to 1.5km on strike to the east

o       Commenced Phase 2 drilling comprising 660 metres at Red Ray target designed to follow up the positive results from Phase 1 - strike length of mineralisation expected to increase to 2.5km

?          Underground mining development progressing as planned

o       Stopes established to allow for full stoping operations   

o       New adit D being developed at Kilimapesa Hill target to further expand the ore resource

Goldplat CEO Demetri Manolis said, "We continue to drive Kilimapesa forward and establish it as a profitable mining operation through defined development programmes aimed at expanding the resource base towards 500,000 ounces and increasing gold production towards 10,000 ounces per annum.  In line with this, we have raised its JORC-compliant ore resource to 3,133,613 tonnes at 2.46 g/t gold for 247,484 ounces of gold and aim to increase this further through underground development and additional drilling programmes.   We also continue to develop the underground operations as well as the plant capacity.  These advances bode well for the Company as we focus on further developing Kilimapesa, our first gold mining operation, in tandem with our two highly profitable gold recovery operations in South Africa and Ghana, and our two brownfield gold development projects in Burkina Faso and Ghana, to fulfil our strategy to become a significant producer and multi mine development company in Africa." 

Kilimapesa Gold Ltd - Kenya

Plant

The Company has completed the processing of the loaded carbon stockpiles at Kilimapesa with 1,151 ounces produced and sold to date to Rand Refinery Limited in South Africa.  The plant is now operating purely on stoping tonnage sourced from the underground operations at Kilimapesa Hill, with smelting and gold production from the mine occurring on a continuous basis.  Grades and recoveries have been as forecast averaging 5-6 g/t and +85% respectively.

The plant expansion to increase gold production towards 10,000 ounces per annum has moved into the procurement phase.   

Exploration

The JORC-compliant ore resource at Kilimapesa has been raised to 3,133,613 tonnes at 2.46 g/t gold for 247,484 ounces of gold at a cut-off of 1 g/t for all categories.  This follows the addition of 118,173 ounces at an average grade of 2.48 g/t at a 1 g/t cut-off at the Red Ray target area, 2km to the east of the current plant site.  These additional ounces are based on a total of 13 diamond drill holes for 651 metres of core, with proved strike length of approximately 1,000 metres open to the east and west.  All samples were submitted to ALS Chemex Laboratories in Johannesburg.  

Table 1 - Kilimapesa JORC-compliant resource

NB: at 1 g/t cut-off

In line with its strategy to increase the JORC resource towards 500,000 ounces, the Company is conducting extensive drilling programmes across the Kilimapesa project area.  A further phase of drilling at the Red Ray target area is underway comprising 9 holes for a total of 660 metres, designed to infill the Phase 1 drilling, test the ore body at depth, and extend the strike length both east and west.  This is expected to increase the strike length of mineralisation to 2.5km.  The evaluation of the Vim/Rutha target area, situated 2km south of the Kilimapesa Hill target zone, has yet to be completed.

The 5 hole diamond drilling programme at the Kilimapesa Hill target area has been completed for a total of 1,138 metres.  This has successfully extended both the known orebody to in excess of 140 metres below the current workings and the known strike to 1,200 metres.  Assay results to date have been highly encouraging with an updated ore resource from both the underground operations and the exploration drilling at Kilimapesa Hill expected by the end of Q2 2012.

Underground Work

Since the award of the Mining Lease in November 2012, the Company has been developing its underground operations and has established several stopes to allow for full stoping operations.  An additional 700 metres of flat development has been planned for the next 12 months.

At Kilimapesa Hill, work has commenced on a new adit, Adit D, which lies 60 metres vertically below Adit B, with the portal now under construction.  The ensuing development will contribute significantly to the expansion of the ore resource, as well as allow for much increased mining tonnages.

A development plan has been compiled for the Red Ray target area with the extension of the on-reef development from an existing adit.  300 metres of development has been planned for the coming 12 months.

Obituary

The Company is saddened by the passing of the Honourable John Michuki, Minister of Environment and Mineral Resources in January 2012. The Honourable Minister played a significant role in awarding Kenya's first Mining Lease since 1963 to Kilimapesa for which Goldplat is very grateful.  The Company looks forward to a fruitful relationship with the new Minister, the Honourable Ali Chirau Mwakwere.

Qualified Person

This announcement has been reviewed by Mr. Mark Austin, the group geologist for Goldplat who has more than 25 years of relevant experience in the field of activity concerned.  He is a fellow of the Geological Society of South Africa ('GSSA') and has consented to the inclusion of the material in the form and context in which it appears. 

The JORC-compliant resource for the Red Ray area was compiled by Dr Cedric Simonet, European Geologist No. 739 and who qualifies as a Competent Person in terms of the rules of the JORC code.

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Notes:

Goldplat plc, which has a market cap of circa ?20 million, is an AIM-listed profitable, debt free gold producer and mine development company focussed in Africa, which had a strong cash position of in excess of ?4.59 million as at 31 December 2011.  The Company has a solid portfolio of assets including two gold recovery operations in South Africa and Ghana, which recover precious metal from by-products of the mining process such as woodchips, fine carbon and waste grease.  For the FY 2011 these operations produced circa 28,000 ounces of gold.  Goldplat also has a producing gold mine in Kenya and two brownfield gold development projects in Ghana and Burkina Faso with near term resource upgrade potential from which it aims to delineate in excess of 1 million ounces of resources by H1 2012.  In line with this, the Company has implemented defined exploration and development programmes across each of its projects with a view to developing multiple profitable mining operations in the near to medium term.