Rapu Rapu advances to feasibility stage

Australian-based Lafayette Mining is proceeding with a preliminary feasibility study at the Rapu Rapu polymetallic project in the Philippines.

The company heads up a group that can earn a 75% interest in the property from TVI Pacific (TVI-T) by spending US$3 million on exploration over four years and paying US$150,000 in cash, which has now been covered. Since last fall, the group has drilled 3,000 metres to provide metallurgical samples, confirm previous drill results and test for mineralized extensions.

The study will include 5,200 metres of reverse-circulation and core drilling for metallurgy, as well as resource-definition, geotechnical and hydrological studies. Efforts are focused on the Ungay Malobago open-pit deposit, which an independent scoping study has shown to be amenable to conventional milling and flotation processing.

Updated in situ resources stand at 4.1 million tonnes grading 1.46% copper and 2.33% zinc, as well as 3 grams gold and 37.37 grams silver per tonne. Between 77% and 93% of this resource could be mined at stripping ratios varying from 10.4-to-1 to 14.9-to-1. Operating costs are pegged at US$10.41 per tonne.

Results from the latest two holes drilled include 5 metres (from 160 to 165 metres) grading 1.94% copper, 1.75% zinc, 6.8 grams gold and 36.9 grams silver in hole 30, and 3 metres (from 157 to 160 metres) grading 1.26% copper, 1.15% zinc, 2.19 grams gold and 31.3 grams silver in hole 31.