Soil Sampling Extends Bakassi Zone 1 Prospect

RNS Number : 4349X

Oriole Resources PLC

05 January 2022

 

Oriole Resources PLC 

('Oriole Resources' or 'the Company' or 'the Group')

Soil Sampling Extends Bakassi Zone 1 Prospect by c.3km at Bibemi, Cameroon

Oriole Resources PLC (AIM: ORR), the AIM-quoted exploration company focussed on West Africa, is pleased to announce results from a recently completed soil sampling programme at its 90%-owned Bibemi gold project ('Bibemi' or 'the Project') in Cameroon.

The results have returned up to 271 parts per billion ('ppb') gold ('Au') and have confirmed continuity of the Bakassi Zone 1 prospect by c.3 kilometres ('km') to the southwest, connecting it with the Lawa West prospect.  

Highlights

· Soil sampling has been completed for 1,455 samples over the southern half of Bibemi, extending and infilling historical regional sampling grids;

· Results have returned up to 271 ppb Au and have confirmed a continuation of the structurally-controlled gold system at Bakassi Zone 1, connecting it with the Lawa West prospect that lies c.3km to the southwest;

· Maps showing the soil sampling results can be viewed at the following link: 
http://www.rns-pdf.londonstockexchange.com/rns/4349X_1-2022-1-4.pdf .

· Phase 3 diamond drilling at Bakassi Zone 1 is now complete. Results are anticipated in Q1-2022.

Oriole Resources  Executive Director for Exploration and Business Development, Claire Bay , said:  "We're pleased to see that these results have demonstrated a clear continuity of gold anomalism between the Bakassi Zone 1 and Lawa West prospects, despite there being only limited veins outcropping at surface. The gold system at Bibemi is now confirmed over a strike length of almost 12km at surface. A trenching programme will now be designed over the strongest anomalies at Lawa West and Lawa East, to help identify potential drilling targets to follow the pilot campaign completed last year. We also look forward to receiving results from the recently completed Phase 3 drilling at Bakassi Zone 1, later this quarter."

Further Details

In Q2-2021, the Company completed its maiden drilling programme at Bibemi for a total of 3,118 metres ('m') in 29 holes to test four key prospects (Bakassi Zone 1, Bakassi Zone 2, Lawa West and Lawa East) within the system. Results from the maiden programme confirmed shear-hosted gold mineralisation at all four prospects with up to 12m-wide zones of mineralisation returned from the southern end of Bakassi Zone 1.

Two further phases of diamond drilling ('Phase 2' and 'Phase 3') have focussed on infill and extension drilling at the Bakassi Zone 1 prospect, with best results to date of 6.50 m grading 3.92 grammes per tonne ('g/t') Au   including 1.00m grading 16.79 g/t Au , 5.20m grading 1.97 g/t Au and 2.25m grading 8.82 g/t Au including 1.00m grading 19.33 g/t Au (announcement dated 20 December 2021). Results from the Phase 3 diamond drilling programme, recently completed for 1,385.40m in nine holes, are expected in Q1-2022.

Meanwhile, the Company has completed soil sampling over the southwest extension of the Bakassi area (comprising 'Bakassi Zone 1' and 'Bakassi Zone 2') to better define the geochemical footprint of the system towards the Lawa area (comprising 'Lawa West' and 'Lawa East'), where maiden drilling returned a number of grading intervals (announcement dated 29 June 2021). A total of 1,455 samples were taken at a spacing of 100m by 100m, designed to infill and extend historical grids completed by previous operator Reservoir Minerals Corporation.

Results have delivered grades of up to 271 ppb Au and have outlined a well-constrained linear gold-in-soil anomaly (>10 ppb Au) extending over c.3km along-strike from Bakassi Zone 1, towards the Lawa West prospect. This is encouraging as there are limited outcropping quartz veins in this area, offering the potential for the discovery of 'blind' mineralisation as has also been observed during the drilling programmes. The highest-grade anomalism was returned from a c.750m-long zone at Lawa West, where three pilot holes drilled in H1-2021 delivered best intersections of 1.00m grading 2.64 g/t Au and 1.00m grading 2.68 g/t Au (announcement dated 29 June 2021).  

During the latest Phase 3 drilling at Bakassi Zone 1, a northwest-trending fault has been intersected by the southernmost fence line (holes BBDD041 and BBDD043), that appears to have shifted the mineralised structure c.200m to the west. The soil geochemistry reported today suggests a further westward offset of c. 600m just to the north of Lawa West and the team is now planning trenching to assess the change in structural controls. Trenching will also be planned for Lawa East, to investigate a c.600m-long anomaly close to the Company's previously reported maiden drilling intersections of 0.80m grading 27.90 g/t Au and 1.00m grading 1.35 g/t Au, the former of which was associated with visible gold mineralisation. All QAQC data was found to be within acceptable limits.

For further information on the Bibemi project, including maps and a JORC Table 1, please see the following page of the Company's website https://orioleresources.com/projects/bibemi/. 

Under the terms of its option agreement with Bureau d'Etudes et d'Investigations Géologico-minières, Géotechniques et Géophysiques SARL ('BEIG3'), the Company has satisfied the conditions to earn a 90% interest in Bibemi, the Wapouzé project (20km to the north) and three licences in Central Cameroon. Beneficial ownership in the licences has been confirmed and the administrative process to formalise this ownership is currently underway.

Competent Persons Statement  

The information in this release that relates to Exploration Results has been compiled by Claire Bay (Executive Director, Exploration and Business Development). Claire Bay (MGeol, CGeol) is a Competent Person as defined in the JORC code and takes responsibility for the release of this information. Claire has reviewed the information in this announcement and confirms that she is not aware of any new information or data that materially affects the information reproduced here.

** ENDS **

The information contained within this announcement is deemed to constitute inside information as stipulated under the retained EU law version of the Market Abuse Regulation (EU) No. 596/2014 (the "UK MAR") which is part of UK law by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018. The information is disclosed in accordance with the Company's obligations under Article 17 of the UK MAR. Upon the publication of this announcement, this inside information is now considered to be in the public domain.  

For further information please visit   www.orioleresources.com ,   @OrioleResources  on Twitter, or contact:

Oriole Resources PLC Bob Smeeton / Tim Livesey / Claire Bay	Tel: [phone]
Blytheweigh (IR/PR contact) Tim Blythe / Megan Ray / Rachael Brooks	Tel: [phone]
Grant Thornton UK LLP Samantha Harrison / George Grainger	Tel: [phone]
Shard Capital Partners LLP Damon Heath / Erik Woolgar / Isabella Pierre	Tel: [phone]

Notes to Editors:

Oriole Resources PLC is an AIM-listed exploration company, operating West Africa. It is focused on early-stage exploration in Cameroon (at its 90%-owned Bibemi, Wapouzé and Central Licences projects) and the more advanced Senala gold project in Senegal, where IAMGOLD has the option to spend US$8 million to earn a 70% interest. The Company has several interests and royalties in companies operating throughout Africa and Turkey that could deliver future cash flow, and it continues to assess new opportunities in both regions.

 

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