Hana boasts hits at Banana zone

Highlights from recent drill results from Hana Mining’s (HMG-V, 4LHT-F) Banana zone at its Ghanzi copper-silver project in northwestern Botswana, include an intersect of 3.4% copper and 48 grams silver per tonne over 6 metres in hole 400, the company reports.

Seventy-one new drill holes have extended the strike length of the Banana zone by 10.2 km for a total of 58.7 km and mineralization remains open along strike and at depth, the company says. The Ghanzi project is in the centre of Botswana’s Kalahari copper belt.

So far, the company has drilled a total of 44,800 metres. The most recent results include intercepts of 2.51% copper and 36 grams silver over 4 metres in hole 401, 3.35% copper and 1 gram silver over 2 metres in hole 406, 2.79% copper and 37 grams silver over 3 metres in hole 412, and 2.30% copper and 24 grams silver over 2 metres in hole 415.

The property contains sediment-hosted copper-silver deposits with a demonstrated cumulative tested strike of 58.7 km and according to the company, “favourable geology extends over an estimated strike length of 600 km.”

Hana Mining released results of its most recent National Instrument 43-101 compliant resource estimate for the Ghanzi project on April 21, announcing an inferred resource of 3.9 billion lbs. copper and 62.1 million oz. silver from 177 million tonnes.

This resource estimate consists of 73.5 million tonnes grading 1.5% copper and 19 grams silver in the Banana zone, 13.4 million tonnes of 1.7% copper and 12 grams silver in zone 5, 6.3 million tonnes of 1.5% copper and 7 grams silver in zone 6; all at a cutoff grade of 0.75% copper.

Also included is 83.6 million tonnes grading 0.46% copper and 3.6 grams silver at a cutoff grade of 0.30% in the Chalcocite zone.

Hana Mining says it plans to complete a revised resource estimate in support of an ongoing preliminary economic assessment.

“The Banana zone exhibits certain areas of higher-grade copper and silver mineralization. . . on both the North and South limbs, which represent an opportunity to locate starter pits and mine initial tonnages at higher than average grades,” the company states in its press release. “These higher-grade pockets tend to be well within open-pit depth parameters and represent opportunities to improve early cash flow and overall returns in development.”

The World Bank and the governments of Botswana and Namibia are funding a feasibility study to support completion of a rail link that would connect Botswana with the port of Walvis Bay on the Atlantic coast of Namibia. (The closest railhead to port is at Gobabis, in Namibia, about 550 km from the Ghanzi project.)

Construction has begun on the 600-megawatt expansion of the government-owned Moropule power plant, having secured a US$825-million project funding in May 2009.

Ghanzi is accessed by the paved Trans-Kalahari highway, which passes within 15 km of the property.

At presstime in Toronto, Hana Mining shares were $1.74 apiece, trading within a 52-week range of 30¢-$2.57. The company has 74.8 million shares outstanding.