Alba Mineral Resources (ALBA ) has unveiled that its exploration licence for its Limerick Base Metals Project (under Prospecting Licence (“PL”) 3824) has now been renewed until 26 May 2022.

The firm is in the process of determining the next phase of exploration activities at the Limerick Base Metals Project, which may include the drilling of key zinc targets.

The project (Fig 1.) is located in the Irish Zinc Ore Field which hosts some ‘very significant, high-grade zinc mines’, notably Boliden’s Tara/Navan Mine, with an orebody of >100m tonnes at a grade of ~10% zinc+lead, making it the largest zinc-lead deposit in Europe. 

Fig. 1: Location of Alba’s Limerick Base Metals Project (licence area PL 3824) and its proximity to other significant mines in the Irish Zinc Ore Field  

[Source: ALBA]

“ The region has been the site of renewed drilling activity in recent years, and we look forward to renewing our exploration for high-grade zinc on our licence area in the coming months,” said George Frangeskides, Executive Chairman of the project which is situated in the Irish Zinc Ore Field, the location of a number of high-grade zinc-lead deposits (Fig 2.)

Figure. 2 below highlights the significant drill results (with locations marked by stars and drill results shown in text boxes) at zinc-lead projects within the immediate vicinity of Alba’s Limerick Base Metals Project, PL 3824 

Fig. 2: Significant drill results (Alba licence area outlined in red)

[Source: ALBA]

Cost Savings in Greenland

The Company also noted the decision by the Government of Greenland to reduce the expenditure obligations in 2021 for all mineral exploration licences to zero.

The initiatives, which were first applied in 2020 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, means all mineral exploration licences in Greenland the exploration expenditure obligations in 2021 will be reduced to zero and the existing licence period will be extended by one year.

“These initiatives do not lessen our determination to progress our high-grade projects in Greenland, once the pandemic restrictions in Greenland ease sufficiently to allow us to do so

As such, it remains a key objective of the Company for 2021 to drill our TBS Ilmenite Project to materially increase the existing Resource and to drill our Amitsoq Graphite Project to define a maiden Resource there,” added Frangeskides in response to the new initiatives.

Shares in Alba Mineral Resources have increased by 38% in the past two weeks and both the extension of the current PL3824 license and the cost savings expected in Greenland are further positive news items from the Company.

Reasons to Follow ALBA

Alba Mineral Resources is a well-diversified mineral exploration and development company which owns and operates mining projects in Greenland, Wales and Ireland. Its strategy is to identify and secure undervalued assets with a diversified commodity mix where there is potential for discovering further unexploited resources alongside the existing mine site. 

Positive Assay Results and JORC Resource Newsflow expected in 2021

Limerick Base Metals Project

Historically, only eight drillholes have been completed within Alba’s Project area of the Limerick Base Metals Project, the most recent being the three holes drilled in Q2 of 2019.  

Alba said these low levels of drilling are unusual in the Irish context and, for this reason, the area is considered under-explored. Alba has previously identified a number of attractive targets that have never been drilled before.

Alba’s current technical team, led by Mark Austin, Alba’s COO and Senior Geologist, will undertake a comprehensive review of the licence area before determining the next phase of planned exploration activities.

The expenditure conditions attaching to the renewal of PL 3824 require Alba to incur expenditure of €15,732 by 26 May 2021 with a further €50,000 to be spent by 26 May 2022. 

JORC Resource expected at St David’s Clogau Gold Mine

Despite losing field time to the COVID-19 pandemic, Alba said it is in a position to execute one of the most significant underground work programmes seen for several decades at its Clogau gold mine in Wales, just as the commodity is reaching all-time highs in value.  
Alba said its mining projects remain on ‘a sound footing’, with JORC resources at both Thule Black Sands and Melville Bay, and plans to drill a maiden JORC resource at Amitsoq in 2021. 

Transition from Exploration to Production in Greenland and Wales 

Other ‘significant’ progress has also been made in recent years towards Alba’s ultimate goal of achieving commercial production at one or more of its sites, including at the Thule Black Sands in Greenland, the Amitsoq project in Greenland and the Horse Hill well in Surrey. 

In 2020, Alba has announced that surface trenching activities will kick-start this week over the first of the group’s 10 regional gold targets over the Dolgellau Gold Field. 

The trenching will target the first of 10 separate new gold targets over the Dolgellau Gold Field which have previously been identified by Alba. 

Alba said up to eight trenches have been planned in this first phase, each varying in length from 40-90m for a total of 575m, with each trench being 1m wide and up to 2m deep.
Once exposed, the quartz veining and other structures from the trenches, those of which are pictured below, will be sampled, and those samples sent to a laboratory for assaying.

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