Bezant Resources (BZT ) has received “very encouraging” initial assay results that it says indicate the potential for development of a shallow gold resource at the Troulli Project.
The copper-gold exploration and development company, which is currently developing the Cyprus-based project with its joint venture partners, said there is also an opportunity to deepen and extend the current open pit to access sulphides which contain copper and gold.
At the Troulli Project, the joint venture partners are building both gold oxide and copper sulphide hard rock resources from new discoveries and extensions to a former open pit.
Today, the company said assays from the Gold Oxide Zone at Troulli have returned highly encouraging results. To date, results for 20 percussion drillholes have been received and the company is awaiting analyses for all diamond drillholes from the independent laboratory.
The indications from the initial assay results returned are that drilling could potentially delineate a gold oxide zone suitable for near-term development, Bezant explained.
The Company noted that ongoing diamond drilling will provide the information required to complete the generation of a JORC (2012) Mineral Resource expected in 1Q22. It added that since all mineralisation commences from surface, it is therefore conducive to low-cost mining.
Bezant is now confident that the new copper zone discovery located close to the surface and immediately beneath the Gold Oxide Zone can be developed in tandem with the gold deposit.
It said copper mineralisation has been demonstrated in all holes drilled to date which, combined with the width of the intercept in drillhole TR21DD002, ‘suggests potential for considerable further tonnages at Troulli, subject to assay results for the remaining drillholes.’
Commenting, Colin Bird, Executive Chairman of Bezant Resources, outlined: “These initial assay results are very encouraging and indicate the potential for development of a shallow gold resource as well as the opportunity to deepen and extend the current open pit to access the sulphides which contain both copper and gold. I am particularly encouraged by the intersected widths since, if consistent, they can lead to a significant open pit operation.”
He commented that: “We have the benefit of infrastructure and the potential to restart a mining ready open pit, which is quite unique. I look forward to receiving more results and moving towards open pit planning and designing the process plant. These initial results do not confine the model and the joint venture is optimistic for further resource additions as we extend our current knowledge. The New Year should bring increased activity in all matters relative to technical and financial planning as we advance our Caerus Joint Venture.”
In recent weeks, Bezant mobilised a drill rig to test several new airborne EM targets in the vicinity of the Hope and Gorob copper-gold deposits on the Matchless belt in Namibia.
The copper-gold exploration and development company said the drill rig has been mobilised to undertake at least 2,000m of diamond drilling to test several new airborne EM conductors.
The drilling has the potential to add to the existing JORC compliant mineral resource base.
Bezant has also engaged consultants to undertake work on an updated scoping study and an environmental screening and baseline study covering the Hope-Gorob deposits, it reported.
A contract has now been signed with Practara, a solutions consultancy firm of South Africa, for an update of the project scoping study for inclusion in the mining licence application.
A further contract has been signed with Namisun Environmental Projects and Development of Namibia to undertake an environmental screening and initial baseline study on the area.
The company has organised these studies with the aim of preparing for a mining licence application before the expiry of the current exclusive prospecting licence in October 2022.
The studies will cover areas such as geotechnical engineering, underground mine planning and scheduling and financial assessment; groundwater; biodiversity and dust monitoring.
Back in September 2021, the modelling of data from Bezant’s helicopter-borne EM survey at the copper-gold deposits, covering about 3,000 line kms along a 130km strike extent of the Matchless Copper Belt, highlighted several highly prospective drill targets on EPL 5796.
The EM survey was designed to look for buried extensions of the Hope and Gorob-Vendome deposit cluster on EPL 5796, as well as to test the ‘extensive underexplored potential,’ it said.
The drilling plan will aim to complete 8-10 holes on the identified targets on EPL 5796, starting in late November. It said this is likely to continue into January 2022 after the Christmas break.
Bezant aims to discover new copper-gold zones adjacent to the established deposits which have the potential to increase the mineral resources available to a future mining operation.
The Company’s Hope Copper-Gold project comprises three exclusive prospecting licences, EPL 5796, EPL 7170 and EPL 6605, totalling approximately 1,053km2, located in central Namibia approximately 100km to the southwest of Windhoek, the capital of Namibia.The project covers a significant portion of the highly prospective Matchless Copper Belt.
Executive Chairman, Colin Bird, said: “We consider Namibia a very supportive jurisdiction and we are doing all necessary to progress plans for a mining application at Hope-Gorob.”
He added, “We are excited about the planned drilling programme - we have an already established resource and the geophysics suggests the potential to mirror that resource. A drill rig is on site and we look forward to reporting on progress as the programme advances.”
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