Etruscan adds to land holdings in Mali

Through a wholly owned subsidiary, Etruscan Resources (EET-T) has taken on two more exploration permits in Mali, thereby increasing its exposure to the geologically prospective Mali West shear zone.

The company acquired the Mogoyafara and Sanoukou permits two weeks after receiving government approval for the Djelimangara permit, which is immediately south of the producing Sadiola Hill gold mine (operated by AngloGold under a joint venture with Iamgold).

The 220-sq-km Djelimangara permit hosts several gold anomalies over the entire 18-km strike length of the main shear zone crossing the permit. Etruscan says the soil anomalies have a strike length of up to 2.5 km and values of up to 2 grams gold per tonne.

Mogoyafara hosts a 5-km-long soil anomaly, outlined during a 1988 regional survey that led to the discovery of Sadiola Hill. It is described as the last untested major gold anomaly in the Mali West shear zone.

Sanoukou hosts one of the largest gold-digging sites in western Mali. Artisanal mining occurred along a well-defined splay of the Mali West shear zone, which extends for more than 50 km from the nearby Tabakoto gold deposit to the Senegalese border.

In the past year, Etruscan has spread its wings beyond its 40%-held Samira Hill gold project in Niger. Last fall, the junior merged with Mountain Lake Resources, whose main asset is an alluvial diamond project in the Ventersdorp district of South Africa. Small-scale production is ongoing, and Etruscan aims to expand the operation, which, at last report, hosted a resource of 14.5 million tonnes of gravel with a historic average grade of 1.5 carats per 100 tonnes.

More recently, Etruscan secured an agreement to acquire 88.4% of various properties in Ivory Coast, including the Agbaou gold property, 200 km northwest of Abidjan. This project hosts an inferred resource of 12.3 million tonnes grading 2.2 grams per tonne. Other assets include exploration permits covering Proterozoic Birimian series volcanic and sedimentary rocks.

Meanwhile, at the Samira project in Niger, drilling last fall resulted in the discovery of a new zone that is expected to add to existing resources. At last report, the Samira Hill deposit contained 6.6 million tonnes grading 2.4 grams, while the Libiri deposit had 11.7 million tonnes grading 2.07 grams gold. Low gold prices have forced Etruscan to shift its development focus to the diamond project in South Africa.