OTTAWA, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - Nov. 13, 2012) - Orezone Gold Corporation (News - Market indicators) is pleased to announce additional positive results from an ongoing 125,000 m infill and expansion drill program at its wholly owned Bomboré Gold Project in Burkina Faso, West Africa. The program is designed to upgrade and expand the resources, especially the softer near surface oxide and semi-oxidized resources (total oxide resource of 1.76 Moz M&I and 0.26 Moz Inferred, plus the sulphide resource of 2.37 Moz M&I and 0.78 Moz Inferred). In parallel the company is completing a definitive feasibility study ("DFS") for a phase one, oxide-only CIL plant, and the drill results to date should improve the economics and life of the project. Deeper drill results also indicate further upgrading and expansion of the underlying sulphide (fresh-rock) resource. The Company envisions expanding the CIL plant from the project cash flows to accommodate the fresh rock that would result in a larger operation and a longer mine life. The Company expects to complete an internal resource update on Bomboré in Q1 2013, which will be included in the DFS to be released by Q3 2013.
Highlights
- Results include 179 reverse circulation (RC) holes (12,479 m) and 42 core (DD) holes (9,424 m). For all results see the following Table;
- These results are from the northern area of the project where inferred resources and some new oxide targets have been drilled;
- The new core holes were drilled over a strike of 2,500 m in the Maga area and intersected gold mineralization at an average vertical depth of 126 m;
- The Company has now released a total of 55,000 m of drilling (683 holes) subsequent to the August 2012 Bomboré resource statement. These results, along with results received through the end of November 2012, will be included in the next resource update on which the DFS reserves will be based;
- Work continues on the DFS with various trade-off studies to finalize the plant site location, the grinding circuit, water storage system, tailings design, geotechnical drilling and environmental studies. All of these items are expected to be completed by Q1 2013 along with the release of the detailed variability metallurgical results.
"These results further confirm that there is excellent potential for additional expansion of the oxide and sulphide resources at Bomboré." said Pascal Marquis, SVP Exploration for Orezone. "More importantly, the additional 55,000 m drilled to date support further improvement in project economics and validation of our two-phased approach to mining Bomboré which will be reflected in the upcoming DFS"
Table 1. Cumulative Results Excluded from the August 2012 Resource Reported to Date
Total Drilling to Date |
Grade g/t |
Zone |
# of Holes |
Total m |
Uncut |
Cut(1) |
KT - RC |
14 |
1,036 |
1.06 |
1.06 |
CFU - RC |
4 |
293 |
NSA |
NSA |
Maga - RC |
181 |
11,743 |
1.03 |
0.95 |
Maga - DD |
45 |
9,811 |
1.26 |
1.16 |
P8P9 - RC |
30 |
1,665 |
0.92 |
0.91 |
P8P9 - DD |
25 |
4,631 |
1.04 |
0.99 |
P11 - RC |
24 |
1,308 |
1.30 |
1.12 |
P11- DD |
3 |
496 |
1.70 |
1.14 |
Siga E - RC |
45 |
2,294 |
0.93 |
0.88 |
Siga E - DD |
15 |
1,920 |
1.59 |
1.03 |
Siga W - RC |
45 |
2,284 |
1.34 |
0.99 |
Siga W - DD |
17 |
2,129 |
0.94 |
0.88 |
Siga S - RC |
177 |
8,879 |
0.94 |
0.87 |
Siga S - DD |
36 |
5,424 |
0.95 |
0.90 |
P17 N - RC |
5 |
250 |
1.51 |
1.26 |
P17 S - DD |
3 |
414 |
3.09 |
2.59 |
North - RC |
229 |
14,737 |
1.01 |
0.94 |
North - DD |
70 |
14,442 |
1.15 |
1.07 |
South - RC |
291 |
14,765 |
1.00 |
0.89 |
South- DD |
71 |
9,968 |
1.04 |
0.92 |
SE - RC |
6 |
250 |
1.51 |
1.26 |
SE - DD |
3 |
414 |
3.09 |
2.59 |
All - RC |
525 |
29,752 |
1.01 |
0.92 |
All - DD |
144 |
24,824 |
1.11 |
1.01 |
Table 2. Breakdown of Drilling Meterage for this Release
Zone |
Core Drilling |
RC Drilling |
# of holes |
Total m |
# of holes |
Total m |
KT |
0 |
0 |
14 |
1,036 |
Maga |
42 |
9,424 |
161 |
11,150 |
CFU |
0 |
0 |
4 |
293 |
TOTAL |
42 |
9,424 |
179 |
12,479 |
Table 3. Highlights of Diamond Drill Hole Results for this Release
|
|
|
|
From |
To |
Length |
|
Uncut Grade(2) |
Cut Grade(3) |
Total |
Zone |
Section |
|
Hole # |
(m) |
(m) |
(m) |
|
(g/t) |
(g/t) |
Assay(4) |
Maga |
4500 |
|
BBD0841 |
192.00 |
202.00 |
10.00 |
|
1.40 |
1.40 |
|
Maga |
4450 |
|
BBD0866 |
202.00 |
230.00 |
28.00 |
|
1.14 |
1.14 |
|
Maga |
4400 |
|
BBD0842 |
207.00 |
228.00 |
21.00 |
|
0.90 |
0.90 |
|
Maga |
4400 |
|
BBD0842 |
235.00 |
277.00 |
42.00 |
|
1.10 |
1.10 |
|
Maga |
4350 |
|
BBD0843 |
170.00 |
181.00 |
11.00 |
|
1.26 |
1.26 |
|
Maga |
4350 |
|
BBD0843 |
188.00 |
198.00 |
10.00 |
|
1.62 |
1.62 |
|
Maga |
4350 |
|
BBD0843 |
212.00 |
226.00 |
14.00 |
|
1.14 |
1.14 |
|
Maga |
4300 |
|
BBD0867 |
204.00 |
217.00 |
13.00 |
|
0.85 |
0.85 |
Pending |
Maga |
4100 |
|
BBD0868 |
87.00 |
95.00 |
8.00 |
|
1.63 |
1.63 |
|
Maga |
4000 |
|
BBD0869 |
239.00 |
256.00 |
17.00 |
|
1.84 |
1.49 |
|
Maga |
3950 |
|
BBD0846 |
282.00 |
294.00 |
12.00 |
|
1.44 |
1.44 |
|
Maga |
3900 |
|
BBD0872 |
224.00 |
242.00 |
18.00 |
|
1.60 |
1.60 |
|
Maga |
3850 |
|
BBD0873 |
237.00 |
248.00 |
11.00 |
|
1.00 |
1.00 |
|
Maga |
3800 |
|
BBD0847 |
147.00 |
152.00 |
5.00 |
|
2.68 |
1.48 |
Pending |
Maga |
3700 |
|
BBD0904 |
174.00 |
187.00 |
13.00 |
|
1.56 |
1.56 |
Pending |
Maga |
3650 |
|
BBD0849 |
84.00 |
95.00 |
11.00 |
|
1.24 |
1.24 |
|
Maga |
3650 |
|
BBD0849 |
158.00 |
167.00 |
9.00 |
|
1.80 |
1.80 |
|
Maga |
3600 |
|
BBD0911 |
75.00 |
81.00 |
6.00 |
|
2.46 |
2.32 |
|
Maga |
3600 |
|
BBD0911 |
108.00 |
112.00 |
4.00 |
|
3.38 |
3.15 |
|
Maga |
3600 |
|
BBD0911 |
153.00 |
160.00 |
7.00 |
|
6.04 |
3.21 |
|
Maga |
3600 |
|
BBD0912 |
150.00 |
160.00 |
10.00 |
|
3.24 |
1.74 |
|
Maga |
3550 |
|
BBD0879 |
215.00 |
223.00 |
8.00 |
|
2.41 |
2.19 |
Pending |
Maga |
3550 |
|
BBD0903 |
83.00 |
94.00 |
11.00 |
|
1.12 |
1.04 |
|
Maga |
3550 |
|
BBD0903 |
112.00 |
120.00 |
8.00 |
|
5.06 |
2.70 |
|
Maga |
3450 |
|
BBD0878 |
65.00 |
75.00 |
10.00 |
|
2.09 |
1.92 |
Pending |
Maga |
3400 |
|
BBD0885 |
269.00 |
275.00 |
6.00 |
|
1.72 |
1.72 |
Pending |
Table 4. Highlights of Reverse Circulation Results for this Release
|
|
|
|
From |
To |
Length |
|
Uncut Grade(5) |
|
Cut Grade(6) |
|
Total |
Zone |
Section |
|
Hole |
(m) |
(m) |
(m) |
|
(g/t) |
|
(g/t) |
|
Assay(7) |
KT |
6550 |
|
BBC3618 |
36.00 |
42.00 |
6.00 |
|
1.97 |
|
1.97 |
|
|
Maga |
4900 |
|
BBC3645 |
45.00 |
58.00 |
13.00 |
|
1.19 |
|
1.19 |
|
|
Maga |
4800 |
|
BBC3690 |
53.00 |
64.00 |
11.00 |
|
2.19 |
|
2.07 |
|
|
Maga |
4700 |
|
BBC3650 |
10.00 |
16.00 |
6.00 |
|
1.91 |
|
1.25 |
|
|
Maga |
4700 |
|
BBC3653 |
21.00 |
34.00 |
13.00 |
|
1.05 |
|
1.05 |
|
|
Maga |
4675 |
|
BBC3694 |
13.00 |
21.00 |
8.00 |
|
1.27 |
|
1.27 |
|
|
Maga |
4650 |
|
BBC3655 |
26.00 |
38.00 |
12.00 |
|
2.20 |
|
1.40 |
|
|
Maga |
4450 |
|
BBC3699 |
41.00 |
65.00 |
24.00 |
|
1.08 |
|
1.08 |
|
|
Maga |
4350 |
|
BBC3657 |
39.00 |
47.00 |
8.00 |
|
1.34 |
|
1.34 |
|
|
Maga |
4300 |
|
BBC3713 |
29.00 |
36.00 |
7.00 |
|
2.56 |
|
1.49 |
|
|
Maga |
4200 |
|
BBC3710 |
22.00 |
30.00 |
8.00 |
|
1.94 |
|
1.59 |
|
|
Maga |
4150 |
|
BBC3717 |
5.00 |
20.00 |
15.00 |
|
0.71 |
|
0.71 |
|
Pending |
Maga |
4050 |
|
BBC3723 |
8.00 |
13.00 |
5.00 |
|
2.04 |
|
2.04 |
|
Pending |
Maga |
3950 |
|
BBC3674 |
54.00 |
64.00 |
10.00 |
|
1.63 |
|
1.63 |
|
Pending |
Maga |
3750 |
|
BBC3685 |
5.00 |
8.00 |
3.00 |
|
9.56 |
|
3.65 |
|
|
Maga |
3650 |
|
BBC3743 |
45.00 |
51.00 |
6.00 |
|
3.74 |
|
2.41 |
|
Pending |
Maga |
3050 |
|
BBC3771 |
33.00 |
42.00 |
9.00 |
|
1.20 |
|
1.20 |
|
Pending |
The mineralized intervals are based on a lower cut-off grade of 0.5 g/t, a minimal width of 3 m and up to a maximum of two consecutive meters of dilution being included. The true width of the mineralization is approximately 85% of the drill length intervals in KT, Maga, P16, P17 and P8P9 areas, and 95% of the drill length intervals in the Siga area.
The half-core samples were collected by Orezone employees using a diamond saw. The core samples were prepared by SGS Burkina Faso s.a.r.l. at the Bomboré site facility and then split by Orezone to 1 kg using Rotary Sample Dividers (RSDs). A 1 kg aliquot was analyzed for leachable gold at BIGS Global Burkina s.a.r.l in Ouagadougou, by bottle-roll cyanidation using a LeachWell™ catalyst.
The RC drilling samples were divided by Orezone employees using Rotary Sample Dividers (RSDs). A 2 kg split was prepared by SGS Burkina Faso s.a.r.l. at the Bomboré site facility and then split by Orezone to 1 kg using Rotary Sample Dividers (RSDs). A 1 kg aliquot was analyzed for leachable gold at BIGS Global Burkina s.a.r.l in Ouagadougou, by bottle-roll cyanidation using a LeachWell™ catalyst.
The leach residues from all samples with a leach grade in excess of 0.2 g/t were prepared by BIGS Global Burkina s.a.r.l. and then split by Orezone to 50 g using Rotary Sample Dividers (RSDs). A 50 g aliquot was analyzed by fire assay at SGS Burkina Faso s.a.r.l.
Orezone employs a rigorous Quality Control Program (QCP) including a minimum of 10% standards, blanks and duplicates. This program was executed under the supervision of Pascal Marquis, SVP Exploration for Orezone, who is a Qualified Person under National Instrument 43-101 and approved the technical information in this release. A complete table of results and the NI 43-101 Bomboré Resource Report that describes the Bomboré resource model can be found at www.orezone.com.
About Orezone Gold Corporation
Orezone is a Canadian company with a gold discovery track record of +12 M oz and recent mine development experience in Burkina Faso, West Africa. The company owns a 100% interest in Bomboré, the largest undeveloped gold deposit in the country that is situated 85 km east of the capital city, adjacent to an international highway. Mineral resources are constrained within optimized open pit shells that span 11 km, and include 4.13 Moz of measured and indicated (125 Mt @ 1.03 g/t) and 1.03 Moz of inferred resources (35 Mt @ 1.00 g/t) with an average depth of drilling to only 120 meters. The Company is working to further expand the resources at Bomboré while it completes a DFS for an oxide-only CIL plant by Q3 2013 and becomes a mid-tier gold producer by 2015.
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS AND FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION: This news release contains certain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws. Forward-looking statements and forward-looking information are frequently characterized by words such as "plan," "expect," "project," "intend," "believe," "anticipate", "estimate" and other similar words, or statements that certain events or conditions "may" or "will" occur. Forward-looking statements in this release include statements regarding, among others; capital and operating cost estimates; gold production for the project; completion of a DFS in Q3 2013; completion of an internal resource update in Q1 2013; commencement of production at the Bomboré Project in 2015.
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS are based on certain assumptions, the opinions and estimates of management at the date the statements are made, and are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. These factors include the inherent risks involved in the exploration and development of mineral properties, the uncertainties involved in interpreting drilling results and other geological data, fluctuating metal prices, the possibility of project cost overruns or unanticipated costs and expenses, the ability of contracted parties (including laboratories and drill companies to provide services as contracted); uncertainties relating to the availability and costs of financing needed in the future and other factors. The Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements if circumstances or management's estimates or opinions should change. The reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Comparisons between any resource model or estimates with the subsequent drill results are preliminary in nature and should not be relied upon as potential qualified changes to any future resource updates or estimates.
Readers are advised that National Instrument 43-101 of the Canadian Securities Administrators requires that each category of mineral reserves and mineral resources be reported separately. Readers should refer to the annual information form of Orezone for the year ended December 31, 2011 and other continuous disclosure documents filed by Orezone since January 1, 2012 available at www.sedar.com, for this detailed information, which is subject to the qualifications and notes set forth therein.
(1) Weighted average grade of individual assays, cut to 5 g/t. NSA: No Significant Assay.
(2) Weighted average grade of uncut individual assays
(3) Weighted average grade of individual assays cut to 5 g/t
(4) Composite width and grade are preliminary where leach residue fire assay results are pending.
(5) Weighted average grade of uncut individual assays
(6) Weighted average grade of individual assays cut to 5 g/t
(7) Composite width and grade are preliminary where leach residue fire assay results are pending