Solomon Island Exploration Up

RNS Number : 4898Y

Solomon Gold PLC

23 December 2010

 



                23 December 2010

Solomon Gold Plc

("Solomon Gold" or the "Company")

Exploration Update:

Further encouraging trench results and commencement of diamond drilling at Fauro Island, Solomon Islands.

Solomon Gold plc (AIM Code: SOLG), exploring for gold and copper in Solomon Islands and Australia, is pleased to announce further encouraging trench assay results from the recent surface trench sampling on the Fauro Island Project and that drilling has commenced on the Meriguna Prospect, Fauro Island.  The Fauro Island Project is 100% owned by Solomon Gold.

KEY POINTS

•     Trench results at Meriguna: BLHBTR1 26m at 5.30g/t Au (incl. 14m at 8.94g/t Au, and 10m at 1,047ppm Cu) and AMT1 6m at 2.00g/t Au and 6m at 1.05g/t Au.

•     Trench results at Kiovakase: BLKTR1 16m at 1.40g/t Au (incl. 4m at 1.14g/t Au, and 6m at 2.51g/t Au).

•     The 9,900m Fauro Island diamond drilling program has commenced on the Meriguna Prospect.

•     Fieldwork (geological mapping, trenching BLEG and rock sampling) continues over the Fauro Prospects.

Commenting on the recent activity from the Fauro Island Projects, Nicholas Mather, Chief Executive of Solomon Gold plc said: "Solomon Gold is pleased to report that further results from trench sampling show very encouraging gold assay results and confirm significant drill targets.

Fauro Island is close to the historic 50Moz gold equivalent Panguna porphyry copper gold mine on Bougainville Island, Papua New Guinea ("PNG").  These exciting assay results continue to show the potential for a large gold deposit similar in style and geological setting to Lihir Island in PNG.

Coincident magnetic anomalies and gold, copper and molybdenum values in porphyry style rocks with disseminated sulphide mineralisation strongly supports the presence of high tonnage porphyry gold, copper and molybdenum targets on Fauro.

The company's exploration geologists continue to believe the high level rich gold zones in rhyolite and dacite domes overlie large copper, gold and molybdenum bearing, porphyry systems.

The first hole of the 9,900m diamond drilling program commenced on Saturday 18 December 2010.  The drilling program which is planned at this stage to continue to the end of 2011 will comprise of approximately four deep holes and 30 shallow holes.  This first hole on the Meriguna Prospect is planned to intersect a zone of argillic altered brecciated dacite porphyry at a depth of 250m, which at surface hosts quartz sulphide veining,.  The quartz sulphide veining has been mapped and sampled in trenches with encouraging results." he added.

Fauro Island Project Area

Figure 1 in the Appendix to this announcement in the 'Latest News' section on the website, www.solomongold.com shows the location of the prospects within the Fauro Island Project area.

Trenching

The latest set of results from the trench sampling that has been done on the Fauro Island Project (see Figure 2 in the Appendix to this announcement in the 'Latest News' section on the website, www.solomongold.com) are summarised as:

Meriguna:

BLHBTR1       26m at 5.30g/t Au (incl. 14m at 8.94g/t Au, and 10m at 1,047ppm Cu).

AMT1              6m at 2.00g/t Au and 6m at 1.05g/t Au.

Kiovakase:

BLKTR1          16m at 1.40g/t Au (incl. 4m at 1.14g/t Au, and 6m at 2.51g/t Au).

The results from the previous trench sampling at Meriguna are:

            BK1a               8m at 27.95g/t Au (incl. 2m at 97.60 g/t Au).

BK1b               4m at 3.25g/t Au.

BK2                 2m at 1.55g/t Au.

GHT1              6m at 7.38g/t Au (incl. 1m at 20.4g/t Au).

BK9                 20m at 4.2g/t Au (incl. 6m at 11.6g/t Au and 2m at 5.04g/t Au).

The trenching at Meriguna now covers an area of 400m by 250m.

The Meriguna and Kiovokase Prospects show epithermal signatures, probably initial high sulphidation mineralisation (gold, arsenic, copper and silver), overprinted by intermediate sulphidation mineralisation with potential ore grade gold, silver, lead and zinc values.

The Ballyorlo Prospect shows porphyry (copper, molybdenum, gold and selenium) style geochemistry.  Gold was slightly anomalous in rock chips but very high in BLEG samples (bulk leach extractable gold sampling) were collected in the area.  Further work is underway to identify the source of the strong gold anomalies at Ballyorlo.

The Ballteara Prospect shows higher level epithermal style geochemical anomalism with evidence of a proximal skarn.  Northern Fauro Prospect shows high level epithermal geochemistry and further work is underway to identify the source of the anomalies.

Drilling

The first diamond drill hole, FDDH001 commenced on the Meriguna Prospect on 23 December 2010.  FDDH001, located at 173142mE and 9243130mN (see Figure 1 in the Appendix to this announcement in the 'Latest News' section on the website, www.solomongold.com), is being drilled in a direction of 205˚ (magnetic) and a dip of -60˚(see Figure 3 and 4 in the Appendix to this announcement in the 'Latest News' section on the website, www.solomongold.com).  The planned length of the hole is approximately 450m.

This is the first hole of the proposed continuous 9,900m diamond drilling program over the Fauro Island Project area, which will continue throughout 2011.

The hole is planned to intersected a zone of argillic altered brecciated dacite porphyry which hosts gold bearing quartz sulphide veining at surface.  The quartz sulphide veining has been mapped on surface in the trenching which has been on-going, reported here and previously (23 September 2010 and 15 November 2010).  It is projected to intersect this zone, approximately 300m down the hole, 250m below surface.

The core will be collected and transported to the Gizo staging camp where it will be logged and photographed, before the mineralised core is dispatched via Honiara to Brisbane, Australia for assaying.

At this stage it is proposed that the second hole, also at Meriguna, FDDH002 will be drilled to a deeper level, possibly from the same drill pad as FDDH001, but at a dip of -70˚.  The final parameters for FDDH002, will be decided following the results of the geology seen in FDDH001.

Qualified Person

Information in this report relating to the exploration results is based on data reviewed by Mr Nicholas Mather (B.Sc. Hons. Geol.), the Chief Executive Officer of the Company.  Mr Mather is a Fellow of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy who has in excess of 25 years' experience in mineral exploration and is a Qualified Person under the AIM Rules.  Mr Mather consents to the inclusion of the information in the form and context in which it appears.

By order of the Board

Karl Schlobohm

Company Secretary

Contacts:

Mr Karl Schlobohm                                                                           Tel: [phone]

Solomon Gold Plc (Company Secretary)

[e-mail]

Mr Ewan Leggat                                                                                Tel: [phone]

Fairfax I.S. PLC (Broker)

[e-mail]

Mr Stephen Weir                                                                               Tel: [phone]

RFC Corporate Finance (Nominated Advisor)

[e-mail]

Mr Dominic Barretto                                                                         Tel: [phone]

Yellow Jersey PR (PR & IR)

[e-mail]

NOTES TO EDITORS

Solomon Gold Plc's original and core gold exploration projects are located on the Solomon Islands and are the major focus of the Company.  The discovery in September 2010 of extensive and rich gold mineralisation on Fauro Island, just south east of Bougainville Island in neighbouring Papua New Guinea, presents Solomon Gold with potential for a world class gold and copper-gold-molybdenum discovery on the south west Pacific Rim of Fire.  The region is one of the world's most strongly endowed gold and copper provinces, hosting Grasberg, Lihir, Panguna and Ok Tedi, each with in excess of 40Moz gold equivalent metal endowment.  The Company also holds a comprehensive and extensive tenement position on the main island of Guadalcanal where its JV partner, NVL Solomon Islands Limited (a subsidiary of NYSE-listed Newmont Mining Corporation) can earn a 51% interest in the project by expending US$6million by 1 April 2012, and may elect to expend a further US$6million (total US$12million) to earn a further 19% to a total 70% by 1 April 2014.  The GJV has outlined high priority gold-copper porphyry targets at Chikora, Mbetilonga, and Kuma.

Solomon Gold has also extended its strategy to include becoming an integrated gold explorer, developer and miner with projects in lower risk theatres as well as the Solomon Islands.

Solomon Gold's projects in Queensland include Rannes, Mt Perry and Normanby.  At Rannes, the Company has outlined a 22km long prospective zone in a 200km long trend on the eastern edge of Queensland's Bowen Basin in the same geological setting as Newcrest's 100,000 ounce per year Cracow Gold Mine.  This extensive exploration licence position hosts three mineralised projects at Cooper, Rannes Central and Police Camp.  The exploration area is believed to host mineral systems which are geologically similar to the Carlin trend in Nevada USA.  At Rannes Central, the Company has encountered potentially economic mineralisation in five different prospects targeted to yield at least 1 Moz.  A maiden 200,000 ounces has been defined to date at the Crunchie Prospect.

At Mt Perry, the Company is investigating an area of approximately 1,500km² hosting over 50 historic mines and workings near Newcrest's Mt Rawdon Gold Mine.  Mt Perry has yielded potentially economic drill intersections on nine of the ten prospects tested to date.

Solomon Gold's Board includes accomplished professionals with strong track records in the areas of exploration, mine development in Australia and Melanesia, investment, finance and law.  Board and Management have significantly vested interests in the Company holding approximately 15.91% of its issued share capital following the proposed placing announced on 22 October 2010.

Solomon Gold is based in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.  The Company listed on London's Alternative Investment Market in 2006.  Further details concerning the Company's key projects and personnel can be found at www.solomongold.com.

 

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