Bezant Resources (BZT ), together with Caerus Mineral Resources, has now completed its Phase 2 drilling programme at the Troulli Mine Project both on schedule and within budget.
The second phase drilling programme, the Troulli Mine Development Project, has been ongoing for around a year and forms part of a joint venture between the two companies.
The drill programme, which was approved in April 2021, focused on the epithermal gold target and potential extension to the former Troulli Volcanogenic Massive Sulphide (VMS) deposit.
Last month, Bezant Resources said it had received ‘encouraging’ assay results from dump sampling and drilling undertaken at the Troulli, Kokkinapetra and Anglisides JV Projects.
At the time, the companies said the Troulli project stockpile assays had met expectations, confirming the view that they represent “an ideal target for early treatment to generate cash flow to meet a significant proportion of the anticipated capital cost of the processing plant.”
Today, the companies told investors that the results of the Phase 2 drilling campaign have provided sufficient assay analyses for Addison Mining, the independent Resource consultant, to complete work to generate a maiden Mineral Resource estimate for the Troulli Project.
Drill hole TR22DD025 has returned encouraging results typical of the deposit with gold values at or near-surface overlying a number of higher-grade copper zones within a broad copper - gold halo often returning copper equivalent grades over significant mineralised widths.
As a result of some delays experienced in assay results by the mining industry due to unprecedented demand, the balance of drill samples have been dispatched to three accredited laboratories for analysis; ALS Ireland, ALS Romania and SGS Spain.
Despite the delays, Addison Mining, the external resource consultant, remains on-schedule to release a maiden Mineral Resource estimate for the Troulli Project by the end of March 2022.
Metallurgical test work by Jubilee Metals Group is also underway and ‘progressing well,’ the company told investors. The emphasis for this ongoing test work is a focus on copper - gold sulphide, gold oxide and copper - gold oxide mineralisation styles encountered at Troulli.
Jubilee is also preparing a high-level summary of expected processing methodologies to be incorporated by the external Resource consultant in the project’s maiden resource estimate.
Additional drill targets have also been approved for both the Kokkinapetra -Troulli Extension Project and the Anglisides high-grade satellite JV Project with drilling to start in April 2022.
Commenting, Colin Bird, Chief Executive Officer of Bezant Resources told investors: “Every facet of the work has been confirmatory, and has often extended well beyond our initial expectations. We will soon receive a 3D resource model and be able to move on to definitive mine planning, with a view to optimising feed input to the proposed processing plant.
The results of the metallurgical programme in Australia will be fed into financial assessment and we are confident of producing an overall development plan by the third quarter of 2022.”
Also commenting Martyn Churchouse, CEO of Caerus said: “The exploration team continues to make excellent progress and has provided Addison Mining the external Resource consultant with the bulk of data required for the maiden Mineral Resource estimate.
He explained that the assay results generated from the recent drilling of the Kokkinapetra -Troulli Extension Project and the Anglisides Project , reported 24 February 2022, “have resulted in the approval of an exciting follow-up drill programme to commence in April.”
He adde: “Targets for both projects offer scope for a material increase in the future treatable tonnes that could be processed through the Troulli plant. Caerus will continue to manage its treasury to ensure that the bulk of available funds is spent “in the ground” as we move towards the first material value-add, transforming the Troulli exploration licence with the addition of a maiden Mineral Resource estimate and the move towards a Mining Licence”.
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