Tietto Minerals reports more high-grade intercepts from drilling at Abujar gold project

Tietto Minerals (ASX: TIE) has reported more high‐grade gold intercepts from infill drilling at the AG South target along the main Abujar Shear of its 3.45 million ounce Abujar project in West Africa.

The intercepts belonged to a second batch of results from a 54 hole program for 9,265m and included a hit of 55.13 grams per tonne gold.

Drilling targeted a conversion of indicated resources to the measured category in areas, which are likely to be mined within the first two years of gold production at Abujar.

Significant assays were 4m at 14.49g/t gold from 43m, including 1m at 55.13g/t; 2m at 27.65g/t gold from 86m, including 1m at 46.09g/t; 3m at 10.93g/t gold from 61m, including 1m at 32.03g/t; and 2m at 11.06g/t gold from 155m, including 1m at 21.57g/t.

Tietto has now achieved 14 intervals greater than 50 gold gram metres at AG South.

The gold mineralisation remains open at depth and further drilling has been planned to assess the potential below the planned definitive feasibility study open pit.

The company currently has six diamond rigs engaged in aggressive exploration, with more than 100,000m of drilling forecast to be completed in 2022.

Rapid resource growth

Managing director Dr Caigen Wang said Tietto was focused on driving rapid resource growth at Abujar.

“Our teams are achieving very high drilling rates due to shallower hole depths required for infill drilling this has allowed us to expand the program as we target a contiguous zone of measured resources between AG South and AG Core within the first two years of production,” he said.

“Our rigs have also been active on prospects located north and south of AG with the goal of defining new resources for an updated mineral resource estimate later this year.”

He said the teams would be “busy for many years” testing the prospectivity of the underexplored main Abujar Shear.

Fully-funded company

Tietto remains fully-funded to production at Abujar.

The project has the potential to become one of the largest gold mines in Côte d’Ivoire, with an expected output of more than 260,000 ounces in the first year and 1.2 million ounces of gold across the first six years.

Mr Wang said the company has an experienced team on board to deliver Abujar in time for first gold pour later this year.