Drilling Update

RNS Number : 3373X

Aurum Mining PLC

14 February 2012

 

14 February 2012

AURUM MINING PLC

(AIM: AUR)

Drilling update for Aurum's Spanish gold joint venture

Aurum Mining plc ("Aurum" or "the Company") is pleased to update the market on the ongoing drilling campaign on the "El Facho" structure of its Zamora gold project through its Spanish joint venture with Ormonde Mining plc ("Ormonde") (AIM: ORM). Previous drilling on the structure has already intersected gold of mineable grades and widths.

The currently proposed nine hole drilling programme is focused on testing and expanding the structure at El Facho over a strike length of 600 metres. It is hoped the results of the programme will provide further strong evidence of a significant gold structure at the El Facho prospect.

By way of background, of the nine holes drilled by Ormonde at El Facho prior to the current drilling programme, eight encountered gold mineralisation grading in excess of 1 g/t across multiple intersections and one of the most recent holes drilled by the joint venture had an interval of 12 metres grading 3.4 grammes per tonne ("g/t") gold within an overall interval of 30 metres grading 1.6g/t gold.

At the present time, two drill rigs are on site and drilling is now taking place on the fifth and sixth holes of the nine hole programme. The current drilling campaign has completed over one thousand metres of core drilling across the four completed holes and the two holes currently in progress. Core samples from the first two holes have been forwarded for assay and results are expected soon.

In addition to the work at El Facho, following receipt of the necessary permits, the joint venture will also shortly commence drilling at the highly prospective Peralonso permit area in Salamanca Province where previous trenching returned some interesting results including an interval of 5 metres grading 5.4g/t gold. It is currently proposed that a three hole drill programme will commence at Peralonso once the drilling at El Facho is completed.

Aurum is now progressing quickly towards spending €500,000 over the initial eighteen months of the joint venture to earn its majority interest in the permits that are the subject of the agreement with Ormonde. It is anticipated that Aurum's expenditure on the joint venture will be approximately €450,000 by the end of March 2012 and it is expected that Aurum will have earned its majority stake shortly thereafter.

Sean Finlay, Aurum's Chairman, said:

"The ongoing drilling at El Facho is progressing well and I look forward to providing updates on progress from this programme, and from the initial drilling on the highly prospective Peralonso permit area, in due course."

Background

On 11 March 2011, Aurum entered into a joint venture with Ormonde whereby Aurum can earn a 60% interest in two permits in the Zamora Province and a 54% interest in a further two permits in the Salamanca Province (one of which is still under application), by spending €500,000 on exploration activities over an 18 month period.

Initial work of the joint venture focused on following up on previous drilling carried out by Ormonde at El Facho.

Known gold mineralisation at El Facho is hosted in multiple steeply dipping structures characterised by quartz veining, silicification and alteration within granites.  The joint‑venture drilling was designed to test for extensions to the known mineralisation and in particular to ascertain whether broader mineralised intervals could be discovered. 

The joint-venture's first two holes, ORMP-10 and 11, were drilled on two sections to test the down-dip extension of previously discovered mineralisation.  Both of these holes intersected significant gold mineralisation in veined and altered granites.  The interval in hole ORMP-10 in particular is wider than previous intersections identified at El Facho and is seen as a very positive development.  The joint venture is now planning to build on this success with its more extensive drilling campaign aimed at identifying the extent of the thicker gold mineralisation seen in these two recent holes.

Including the two recent holes (ORMP 10 and ORMP 11), a total of nine holes have been drilled by Ormonde at El Facho to date and eight have intersected gold mineralisation grading in excess of 1 g/t and several of these holes have shown more than one intersection in excess of 1 g/t. This key intersections from the holes drilled by Ormonde at El Facho are highlighted in the table below.

El Facho Drilling Results
Hole Reference	From (m)	Thickness (m)	Gold (g/t)
ORMP 1	51	23	1.1
ORMP 3	131	3	3.6
ORMP 4	40	6	3.7
ORMP 5	56	9	1.5
ORMP 6	104	7	1.1
ORMP 7	38	7	1.2
ORMP 10	89	12	3.4
ORMP 11	102	10	2.1
ORMP 11	275	5	1.9

As well as undertaking further work at El Facho, a short-hole drilling programme will also now commence on the Peralonso permit in Salamanca to test the shallow depth extent of gold mineralisation located in previous trenching.  Gold mineralisation is hosted within Fe-oxide-bearing breccias within altered granites, with previous trenching of an extensive soil geochemical anomaly (400 x 400m) returning a best interval of 5 metres grading 5.4g/t gold.

For further information:

Aurum Mining plc	Tel: [phone]
Chris Eadie, Chief Executive Officer
Fairfax I.S. plc	Tel: [phone]
Ewan Leggat / Laura Littley

Kerr Anderson PhD EurGeolPGeo, Managing Director of Ormonde Mining plc, and a qualified person as defined in the Guidance Note for Mining, Oil and Gas Companies, June 2009, of the London Stock Exchange, has reviewed and approved the technical information contained in this statement.

 

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