UNITED Kingdom-based miner, Ariana Resources Plc, has revealed a 9% increase in its in-pit mineral resource estimate for its Dokwe Gold Project in Zimbabwe.
Last month, the miner revealed more gold reserves from drilling activities at its flagship Dokwe Gold Project.
The project is in the Tsholotsho District, 110 kilometres west and northwest of Bulawayo.
The Dokwe deposits comprise Dokwe North and Central, which were discovered by Rockover Holdings in 2002, utilising innovative soil geochemical exploration methods capable of detecting mineralisation beneath cover, and subsequently drill tested for the first time in 2004.
“Ariana Resources plc, the AIM-listed mineral exploration and development company with gold project interests in Africa and Europe, is pleased to announce an updated in-pit mineral resource estimate for the Dokwe Gold Project in Zimbabwe, utilising updated geological and economic inputs,” Ariana said, in a statement.
In-pit measured and indicated mineral resource estimate of 19,7 metric tonnes (MT) was identified at 1,54g/t Au (grammes of gold per tonne) for 977 000 ounces of gold at US$2 750 per ounce at a reporting cut-off of 0,6g/t Au.
“Total in-pit resource of 44,9Mt at 0,98g/t Au (measured, indicated and inferred) for 1,42Moz (million troy ounces) of gold at a reporting cut-off of 0,3g/t Au, representing a circa 9% increase over the July 2024 pit optimisation, suggests considerable optionality for operational scheduling and staging,” Ariana said.
“Measured and indicated resources support a feasibility study investigating a 2Mtpa (million tonnes per annum) processing plant and a production rate of up to 100 000 ounces per annum over a 10-year mine life.”
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The firm revealed that resources were based on a better constrained and higher confidence geological model, involving more effective estimation of the higher-grade zones within the deposit.
“This is a superb result for the company and our shareholders,” Ariana managing director Kerim Sener said.
“Dokwe is an advanced and high-value asset at the feasibility stage, which continues to demonstrate potential for development as a 2Mtpa operation over a ten-year mine life for a production rate of up to 100kozs per year.”
As part of the feasibility study, Ariana will cobble a development pathway to minimise up-front capital expenditure, maximise early revenue and maintain significant long-term optionality across the production schedule.
Ariana requires capital of US$80 million to fully develop the Dokwe Gold Project, which the firm is currently seeking.
“The revised optimised in-pit resource is supported by improved confidence in the underlying geological model,” Sener said.
“This outcome resulted from the work undertaken by our technical team, which dedicated several months to an extensive reappraisal of the geology and other technical details of the Dokwe deposit.”
He said that the miner was looking forward to fine-tuning other elements of its feasibility study through 2025, including a new drilling programme planned for June.
“This programme will involve additional drilling for metallurgical and geotechnical purposes, as well as resource confirmatory and step-out drilling,” Sener said.
He said with these new drilling results, the firm fully expects Dokwe to be developed into a major mining hub.
