Tietto Minerals hits bonanza gold at Abujar project
Tietto Minerals has achieved its best drilling result to date, recording 1.1m at 2,853g/t gold from the AG Core deposit.
West African explorer Tietto Minerals (ASX: TIE) has recorded its best drilling result to date, hitting a bonanza gold intercept at the AG Core deposit within its 3.35-million-ounce Abujar gold project in Cote d’Ivoire.
The company today reported infill drilling on the main Abujar shear unearthed a 25.4-metre intercept grading at 131.1 grams per tonne gold from 36.6m, including: 8m at 393.6g/t including 3.4m at 917.6g/t which contained within it 1.1m at 2,853g/t gold.
The 25m intercept also comprised 12m at 14.6g/t from 50m including 2m at 84.5g/t gold.
Tietto managing director Dr Caigen Wang said described the 2,853g/t result as “fantastic” and the company’s “best achievement to date”.
“The bonanza gold intercept is located close to surface in fresh mineralisation and combined with the multiple high-grade intercepts we have reported from our infill drilling, it is expected these will have a material impact on the first years of open pit mining at Abujar,” he said.
The exploration team will use these latest results to refine drill targets of the high-grade shoots within the Abujar main shear, Dr Wang added.
“Results from our drilling continue to demonstrate high grades present in this large system and with more than 70km of strike at Abujar and achieving 100,000m of drilling a year, we think there is great potential to deliver more intersections like these,” he said.
Resource update due by quarter end
The diamond hole in which the bonanza gold grades were encountered is part of Tietto’s recently completed AG Core drilling campaign designed to convert AG indicated resources of 35 million tonnes at 1.5g/t gold for 1.65Moz to measured status.
Tietto expects assays for 61 remaining holes for 9,329m to be received in February.
The company’s six diamond drill rigs continue to actively drill with the next resource update due at the end of this first quarter.
Targeting first gold from Abujar in fourth quarter
Tietto said construction at the Abujar project is progressing on schedule. The project is fully funded to production with first gold targeted for the fourth quarter of 2022.
Abujar’s definitive feasibility study demonstrated robust financial results and estimated first year gold production of 260,000oz and 1.2Moz over the first six years of the project’s 11-year mine life.
The project’s net present value has been estimated at $1.3 billion pre-tax and $97 million post-tax based on a US$1,700/oz gold price.