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Sindirgi Gold Project
Management Quote: "The Sindirgi Project represents a prolific mineralised district in which we have recognised the potential for a large epithermal system. Our objective is to realise the potential of this unique opportunity."
Summary
The Sindirgi Gold Project is owned 100% by Ariana and encompasses three principle prospects which are summarised below:
- Kiziltepe - 20km of gold/silver-bearing quartz veins, eight of which have been drilled to 2008 to enable an upgraded JORC-compliant mineral resource to be calculated.
- Kepez - 3km of gold/silver-bearing quartz veins, one of which shows considerable grade and width potential on surface. Drilling of this vein in 2006 demonstrated continuity of the mineralised zone but the grades encountered at depth were poorer. The prospect is being re-evaluated ahead of any further drilling.
- Karakavak - 15km of gold/silver-bearing quartz veins which have not yet been drilled by the Company. This prospect bears many similarities to Kiziltepe and there is scope for resource additions from this area. Some of these veins are being scheduled for drilling later in 2008.
Management has established a field office and staff housing facilities at Sindirgi to help focus efforts and to enable fast-track development of the project. Local support for the project is significant and the Company has already employed staff from the Sindirgi area.
Newmont Mining Corporation (NYSE & ASX: NEM; TSX: NMC) retains the right to a royalty of up to 2.5% on future gold production from the Sindirgi Project.
Location and Infrastructure
The Sindirgi Gold Project is located in the Sindirgi District of Balikesir Province in western Turkey. The project comprises several operating and exploration licences, which contain all of the known prospects. The Project area lies approximately 100km east of the one million ounce Ovacik gold mine and 115km northwest of the five million ounce Kisladag gold mine.
The project area is serviced by a high-quality network of sealed district roads and un-sealed village roads. The company has also benefited from considerable local expertise in the mining industry, which has until recently focused on industrial minerals production.
Exploration Highlights
- Drilling of the Arzu South vein determined best intersects of 7.23 g/t over 10m and 10.55 g/t over 7.5m, which verified the economic potential of this vein system.
- Rock-saw channel sampling in the Arzu South area determined best true width intersects of 6.29 g/t Au over 13.5m and 4.24 g/t Au over 4.5m.
- Rock-saw channel sampling in the Arzu North area defined a 50m wide gold mineralised envelope along at least 240m of strike length, with best intersections of 1.25g/t Au over 17.5m, and 1.54 g/t over 16.5m and 2.12 g/t over 12.0m
- Systematic rock chip sampling adjacent to the Arzu North zone defined stockwork style mineralisation across an area of at least 650m by 250m, containing a peak rock chip sample of 16.2 g/t Au in the immediate vicinity of outcropping vein material.
- Surface composite rock-chip channel sampling at the Kepez prospect returned best intersects of 8.68 g/t Au over 16m and 6.28 g/t Au over 11m along a zone over 100m in strike length.
- New gold-bearing silicified zones up to 50m wide have been discovered to the northwest of the Kepez prospect, with peak rock-chip grades of 9.77 g/t Au and 9.73 g/t Au.
Geological Outline
Kiziltepe
The prospect contains 20km of gold-silver bearing low-sulphidation epithermal quartz veins across an area of at least 3km by 2km. Individual veins are exposed for up to 750m and widths vary between 1m and 15m. The main veins trend NW and NNW, dip typically to the northeast and are hosted within Lower Miocene dacitic volcanic rocks.
Thirteen main vein systems have been defined by geological mapping, trenching, rock-saw channel and rock-chip sampling, the most important of which are the Arzu South and Arzu North veins. Existing drilling on the Arzu South vein shows that it dips steeply between 70º and 85º to the northeast.
click to view enlargedFigure of the Kiziltepe prospect showing the distribution of important veins and related geochemistry.
Kepez
The prospect contains 3km of gold-silver bearing low-sulphidation epithermal quartz veins across an area of at least 2km by 0.5km. Individual veins are exposed for up to 600m and widths vary between 2m and 25m. The main veins trend N and NE, and are hosted either within Lower Miocene dacitic volcanic rocks or on the boundary between these rocks and underlying Upper Cretaceous ophiolitic sedimentary rocks.
Three main vein systems have been defined by geological mapping, rock-saw channel and rock-chip sampling, the most important of which are the Karakaya and Kasayan veins. Existing drilling on the Karakaya vein shows that it dips between 40º and 50º to the west.
Karakavak
The prospect contains 15km of gold-silver bearing low-sulphidation epithermal quartz veins across an area of at least 3km by 2km. Individual veins are exposed for up to 900m and widths vary between 0.5m and 20m. The main veins trend E and NW, and are hosted dominantly within Lower Miocene dacitic volcanic rocks.
Four main vein systems have been defined by geological mapping and rock-chip sampling, the most important of which are the Kavakliduz and Karaduz veins. Surface mapping data on the Kavakliduz vein shows that it dips steeply to the north.
More detail on the geology of the gold prospects in the Sindirgi District is given in the paper presented by the Ariana exploration team at the IGCP-486 conference in Izmir in September 2006:
Economic Potential
SRK Consulting has provided a JORC-compliant Measured, Indicated and Inferred resource for the Arzu South, Arzu North, Banu and Derya veins at the Kiziltepe prospect of ~1 Mt @ 6.1 g/t Au equivalent, for a total metal content of 186,000 oz Au equivalent. Metallurgical testwork undertaken on the Kiziltepe ore by SGS Lakefield laboratories in Canada has confirmed that the ore shows excellent metallurgical characterisitics and that either conventional leaching or heap leaching are possible processing options.
The 2007 and 2008 drilling of the Arzu South area (and other veins) was designed to achieve the data density required to calculate a Measured and Indicated Resource in accordance with the JORC code for the purposes of undertaking a preliminary pit-design. A concept study undertaken by Wardrop Engineering focused on the optimal mining and processing methods for the project and a pit-design and mining schedule for the Arzu South pit.
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