Akora Resources reports steady drilling progress at Bekisopa Southern Zone

Akora Resources (ASX: AKO) is progressing an infill drilling program at the Bekisopa Southern Zone within its flagship Bekisopa iron ore project in Madagascar.

Drilling aims to generate a better understanding of the tonnage and grade of a start-up direct shipping ore (DSO) resource at the target.

Holes are being drilled on a 50-square-metre grid with depths varying from 5m to 24m.

Since drilling commenced in the first week of September, 22 holes have been completed for 283m at a 94% core recovery.

The program will comprise a total 82 shallow holes for 850m.

Iron mineralisation

Akora managing director Paul Bibby said iron mineralisation is present in Southern Zone’s drill core from surface.

“Drilling is progressing extremely well with good intercepts of weathered massive iron mineralisation observed from surface and potential for mineralisation in these iron rich areas,” he said.

“ achieved very encouraging intercepts of iron mineralisation and we are now preparing for geological evaluation and assays.”

Drill core pulps will be prepared at the OMNIS Laboratory in Antananarivo and dispatched to ALS Perth’s Iron Ore Technical Centre for assaying.

The results are expected to better-define a DSO resource to feed into a scoping study, which is on track for completion by year end.

Maiden resource

In April, Akora released a maiden inferred resource for the southern zones of the Bekisopa project totalling 110.2 million tonnes.

The global inferred resource for Bekisopa (which includes the central and northern zones) now sits at 194.7Mt containing up to 7.8Mt of weathered zone DSO grading 64% iron.

The DSO is at surface over less than 30% of the 6km strike length and will be added to high-grade outcrop material, increasing the DSO lump and fine.

The Southern Zone has 37.8% DTR producing the same iron grade and micron size suitable for direct reduced iron (DRI) pellet feed as the global estimate.