Completion of purchase of Banka Mining Lease - ...
Goldplat plc / Ticker: GDP / Index: AIM / Sector: Mining & Exploration
26 May 2011
Goldplat plc ('Goldplat' or 'the Company')
Completion of purchase of Banka Mining Lease - Ghana
Goldplat plc, the AIM quoted gold producer focused in Africa, announces that its
wholly owned subsidiary company Banka Gold (Ghana) Limited completed the
purchase of the Banka Mining Lease from Gulf Coast Resources Ghana Limited. Â The
Banka Mining Lease ('Banka') is a ten year renewable mining lease for gold and
associated minerals, granted by the Government of Ghana, over an area of c.29 sq
km located in the Amansie East and Asante Akim South Districts of the
prospective Ashanti Region of the Republic of Ghana.
Banka is held subject to a 10% carried interest owned by the Government of
Ghana, and Gulf Coast Resources Inc, the parent company of the vendor, is
entitled to receive a net smelter royalty of 1.5% of gold sold. Â The
consideration for the purchase, which has been settled out of existing cash
resources of Goldplat, was USD 1.6 million.
On 23 November 2010 Goldplat announced that it had signed a Memorandum of
Agreement to acquire Gulf Coast Resources Ghana Limited, the holder of the Banka
Mining Lease, subject, inter alia, to the completion of satisfactory due
diligence. Â Following completion of such due diligence it was agreed that
Goldplat would  acquire the Banka Mining Lease itself. Goldplat is now
finalising its proposals for further exploration and development of the Banka
Mining Lease. Â An announcement of these proposals, together with a summary of
the results of the technical due diligence, will be made in due course.
Goldplat CEO Demetri Manolis said, "We are delighted to have finalised this
acquisition as we believe Banka represents a substantial gold prospect in the
Ashanti Region of Ghana, a prime district for gold project development. Work
completed to date indicates the prospectivity of the licence area and we plan to
establish a JORC compliant resource, and ultimately commence a significant
mining operation. Â Banka, along with the Company's solid portfolio of gold
projects in Burkina Faso, Kenya, South Africa and Ghana underlines Goldplat's
continued commitment to building its position as a highly profitable mid-tier
gold company in Africa."
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For further information visit www.goldplat.com or contact:
Demetri Manolis, CEO Goldplat plc Tel: +27 (0) 11 423 1203
James Joyce WH Ireland Limited Tel: +44 (0) 20 7220 1666
Felicity Edwards St Brides Media & Finance Ltd Tel: +44 (0)20 7236 1177
Notes
Goldplat plc is an AIM-listed gold producer with operations in Africa. Its
strategy is to consolidate its position as a gold producer in Africa and build
itself into a mid-tier gold company.
The Company has two recovery businesses based in South Africa and Ghana, which,
by safely disposing mining by-products, fulfil an important aspect of the mines'
environmental management programmes. The South African plant is located near
the centre of the East Rand Goldfield and raw material feedstocks are sourced
from many of the major South African mining companies, including AngloGold
Ashanti, Goldfields, Harmony, DRD Gold and other smaller producers. The Ghana
plant, located in the free port of Tema, provides access to raw materials from
mines in Mali, Guinea, Burkina Faso, Benin, Cote D'Ivore, Senegal, the DRC and
Mauritania, as well as Ghana.
Goldplat's strategy is to build itself into a mid-tier gold producer, through
the acquisition of known deposits with targets of between 200,000 and one
million contained ounces. Kilimapesa Gold is a wholly owned subsidiary of
Goldplat and is developing the potential of the 213 sq km Lolgorien licence area
located in the historically producing Migori Archaean Greenstone Belt in western
Kenya. Kilimapesa Gold commenced initial production in January 2009 and an
aggressive exploration and development programme resulted in a maiden JORC
compliant resource being reported in October 2009.
Goldplat also has an option over the 246 sq km Nyieme Gold Project located in
Burkina Faso, which includes known high-grade quartz vein structures, with drill
core results showing up to 17.83 g/t gold over one metre and 11.67 g/t over
five metres. A maiden resource was announced in December 2010 of 685,000 tonnes
at 2.61 g/t Au for 57,501oz Au at a cut-off grade of 1.0 g/t Au for all
categories but the Company hopes to increase this through further exploration.
Additionally, the Company has acquired the Banka Mining Lease, a ten year
renewable mining lease for gold and associated minerals covering an area of 29
sq km located in the Amansie East and Asante Akim South Districts of the Ashanti
Region of the Republic of Ghana. The Company is now implementing a defined
development plan with a view to proving a JORC compliant resource.
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Source: Goldplat plc via Thomson Reuters ONE
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