Partners extend new zone at Libiri gold deposit

Drilling near the Libiri gold deposit in Niger has returned more high grades for partners Etruscan Resources (eet-t) and Semafo (SMF-T).

Recent efforts are focused on a new lens discovered earlier this year in the hangingwall of the Samira horizon, the gold-bearing sedimentary unit that hosts Libiri and the nearby Samira Hill deposit.

Highlights include:

– hole 70, which cut 30 metres grading 11.46 grams gold per tonne, including 12 metres of 26.37 grams gold;

– hole 155, which cut 36 metres grading 8.93 grams, including 18 metres of 15 grams;

– hole 78, which cut 22.5 metres grading 4.6 grams gold, including 6 metres of 11.8 grams; and

– hole 109, which cut 22.5 metres grading 3 grams gold, including 9 metres of 5.7 grams.

Assays for 39 holes are pending. The results will be incorporated into a new reserve estimate, to be calculated by Australia consulting firm Resource Service Group.

Drilling has now traced the zone for 425 metres along strike and to a vertical depth of 100 metres. The zone averages 15-20 metres in true thickness but widens to as much as 51 metres (which averages 0.95 gram) to the north.

The latest results also suggest that mineralization crosscuts, rather than parallels, the Samira horizon, which would indicate a new style of structurally controlled mineralization for the property.

Mineralization remains open along strike and at depth.

At last report, resources in the Libiri deposit stood at 11.7 million tonnes averaging 2.07 grams gold. The resource includes material in all categories.

Etruscan and Semafo each own a 45% interest in the Libiri and Samira Hill deposits, with the remaining 10% held by the government of Niger. Samira Hill is scheduled to enter production in the fourth quarter, thereafter yielding 67,000 oz. annually over more than six years.