AGM Statement
SERABI MINING plc ("Serabi" or "the Company")
AGM Statement
Serabi Mining plc advises that at 9:30 today, it will be holding its Annual
General Meeting.
The following reproduces the text of the statement that will be made by Graham
Roberts, Chairman of the Company:
"The period since the last AGM has seen Serabi Mining successfully repositioned
as an exploration focussed company operating in a region which is now attracting
increased attention from the mining community. It has always been our belief
that the Tapajos region has the potential to become a modern, world class gold
production area and we believe this view is now being vindicated.
With reported historic artisanal production of some 30 million ounces from
alluvial and shallow oxide deposits, the hard rock source remains almost
entirely undiscovered and unexploited. During 2007 and 2008 the Company started
to expand its exploration programme around the existing Palito mine in order to
increase the resource base and identify possible satellite deposits for mining.
Through necessity, this was put on hold at the end of 2008 as the Company needed
to conserve its cash resources but, following the successful refinancing of the
Company at the end of 2009, this initiative has now been restarted.
The current exploration programme is now focussed on a number of promising
geophysical anomalies highlighted by the 2008 airborne VTEM survey. Over the
last 6 months, the Company has been carrying out additional exploration work
over a number of these anomalies in order to identify and prioritize potential
drill targets. All of these anomalies lie within three kilometres of the
existing Palito mine and plant.
The results of this work were announced at the end of May and exceeded our
expectations by yielding nine drill targets located within five zones and,
subject to finalising a drill contract and mobilising, we will be undertaking an
estimated 7,500 metres of diamond drilling on these targets over the remainder
of the year. With section lines spaced 100-200 metres apart this initial drill
programme is targeted only at discovery and, if successful, further drilling
will be required before any discovery can be classified as a resource.
The five zones that we have identified are located to the north-east, south-west
and south-east of the established Palito resources. The geophysical results for
the areas to the south-west and south-east along strike are particularly
exciting and indicative of bodies that are potentially larger than Palito
itself. I would stress, however, that the geophysics identifies the potential
for mineralisation and is not in itself a guarantee that gold at commercially
viable grades will be present. However, the presence of other coincident
indicators such as garimpeiro activity and/or surface geochemical anomalies for
example, gives us reason for confidence.
Serabi has been operating in the Tapajos since 1999 and can justifiably be seen
as one of the pioneers of modern exploration across the region. To date, Palito
remains the only modern gold operation established in the area. Whilst there
has been a growing interest in the region from junior mining companies, it is
only recently that the presence of larger players has become evident. Most
significant
of these has been Canadian listed Eldorado Gold Corporation, with a market
capitalisation in excess of $9 billion. Eldorado recently announced the
proposed acquisition of Brazauro Resouces, a junior Canadian listed company,
whose principal asset is the Tocantinzinho project located some 50 kilometres to
the north-west, along strike of Palito. The transaction has valued Brazauro at
over C$120 million.
We believe that in the future the region is most likely to be developed from the
east, where the infrastructure and population lies. As a result we therefore
view Palito as also having a potentially important strategic position, located,
as it is, close to the main north-south highway of the region and with access to
an established power grid. Both deposits are located within the regional
Tocantinzinho geological trend, and as further exploration is undertaken we
envisage a mining belt could be established taking in Palito in the south-east
and running north-west following and taking in the Tocantinzinho project itself,
and ultimately other projects.
Against this background, we were therefore pleased to conclude a £3.6 million
share subscription with Eldorado at 3 pence per share earlier this month, who as
a result now have a 26.8% interest in Serabi. Whilst this will enable us to
pursue our exploration plans, we see this as an endorsement of the company's
potential. Eldorado have shown a strong commitment to the region and have the
resources and expertise required to develop projects of significant size. Their
work, in other parts of the world, is a testament to their willingness and
ability to develop successful opportunities in some of the more challenging
locations.
The news of the share placement with Eldorado was somewhat overshadowed by the
previous announcement of alleged breaches of the terms of the Operating Licence
at Palito. Whilst clearly of concern to shareholders we believe, on the basis
of the legal advice we have received, that the actions taken by the authorities
were unjustified and we remain confident that both the suspension and fine
placed upon Serabi Mineracao Limitada will be lifted in the near future. With
this in mind we look forward with excitement to the next six months as the
Company begins to drill- test the mine-site targets it has identified."
Enquiries
Serabi Mining plc
Michael Hodgson Tel: 020 7246 6830
Chief Executive Mobile: 07799 473621
Clive Line Tel: 020 7246 6830
Finance Director Mobile: 07710 151692
Email: contact@serabimining.com
Website:Â www.serabimining.com
Beaumont Cornish Limited
Nominated Adviser and Broker
Roland Cornish Tel: 020 7628 3396
Michael Cornish Tel: 020 7628 3396
Farm Street Communications
Public Relations
Simon Robinson 07593 340107
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Source: Serabi Mining plc via Thomson Reuters ONE