REG - Alba Mineral Resrcs. - Clogau Gold Mine Operation & Lithium Option Update

Alba Mineral ResourcesAnnouncement

31/05/2024 07:00

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RNS Number : 5539Q  Alba Mineral Resources PLC  31 May 2024

Alba Mineral Resources Plc / EPIC: ALBA / Market: AIM / Sector: Mining

31 May 2024

Alba Mineral Resources Plc

("Alba" or the "Company") 

 

Update on Clogau Gold Mine Operations & Lithium Option

Alba Mineral Resources Plc (AIM: ALBA) is pleased to report on the progress of
ongoing works at the Company's 100% owned Clogau-St David's Gold Mine in north
Wales ("Clogau" or the "Mine"). The Company also confirms an extension to the
option period in respect of its option over the Andover West Lithium Project
in Western Australia.

Key Points - Clogau

·      Processing of Waste Tip

o  Further improvements made to onsite pilot processing plant.

o  All of the Trench 3 fines (sampled grade 17g/t Au) have now been
processed.

 

·       Underground Operations

o  Dewatering ongoing, with water level remaining steady below No. 4 Level
despite recent heavy rains.

o  Preparations ongoing for underground bulk sampling at primary Llechfraith
Target, with final development plan now in place and roll-out of underground
work plan in progress, including:

o  High-powered pump acquired for dewatering down to No.5 Level.

o  Access to onsite historic explosives magazine reinstated.

o  Site visit undertaken by Police as the issuer of explosives certificate.

o  Selection process for key contractors nearing completion.

 

·       Appointment of highly experienced Mine & Operations
Manager.

Key Points - Andover West Lithium

·       Option Period extended to 18 June 2024 to enable completion of
due diligence.

 

George Frangeskides, Executive Chairman, commented:

"I am pleased to be able to provide this update on ongoing operations at
Clogau. The team have been doing sterling work recently to further improve
plant efficiencies onsite, which should translate into lower weights of
concentrates having to be sent offsite, greatly enhancing the overall
economics for the processing and production of gold at Clogau. The underground
plan is also progressing well, and in that regard I am delighted to welcome
our new Mine & Operations Manager, Kobus Byleveldt, to the team. Kobus is
highly experienced in all aspects of underground gold mine planning,
construction and development.  He is a really strong addition to our existing
team and will be supporting our COO Mark Austin as we roll out the next phases
of work at Clogau."

Details

Onsite Pilot Processing Plant and Waste Tip Processing

Further improvements have been made to the Company's onsite pilot processing
plant at Clogau.  In particular, a milling stage has been added to the
process circuit and material is now being subjected to several passes over the
shaking and wave tables.  These adaptations have succeeded in greatly
reducing the weight of concentrate which will have to be sent offsite for
final refining. This in turn is expected to materially improve the overall
economics of the production of gold from Clogau.

As reported on 15 May 2024, in the first phase of trenching over the Waste Tip
a total of 33 tonnes of fines were collected from four trenches.  The
processing and refining of samples from each of those trenches resulted in
Trench 3 returning the highest-grade results, with a back-calculated head
grade of 17.22 g/t or 0.55 oz/t.  All of Trench 3 has now been processed at
the Company's onsite processing plant. The gold content of the Trench 3
concentrates will only be known once those concentrates have been refined at
the Company's offsite refiner.

Underground Bulk Sampling of the Llechfraith Target

Preparations are ongoing for the underground bulk sampling of the Company's
primary gold target within the Mine, the Llechfraith Target. A final
development plan is now in place for taking bulk samples from two zones (see
Figure 1). The forward work plan includes the following aspects, among others:

-     Completion of dewatering down to No. 5 Level.  At present, the
water level within the Lower Llechfraith workings remains steady below No. 4
level, despite recent heavy rains. A high-powered pump has recently been
acquired in order to facilitate the completion of dewatering down to No.5
Level and, thereafter, in order to maintain the water level below No. 5 Level.

 

-     Implementation of appropriate measures in relation to the handling
and use of explosives.  Access to the historic explosives magazine close to
the Mine has been reinstated and a site visit undertaken by the Police as the
issuer of the necessary explosives certificate.

 

-     The selection of specialist contractors is nearing completion,
notably contractors who will undertake: the No. 5 Level safety works; the
installation of ventilation, compressed air and water pipes to the lower
levels; the installation of a 5-tonne winch system from No.5 Level to the top
of the Llechfraith Shaft; the supply and use of explosives; and the bulk
sampling operation itself (i.e., drilling, blasting and mucking out).

 

Appointment of Highly Experienced Mine & Operations Manager

To assist in this next stage of development at Clogau, the Company is
delighted to confirm the appointment of Kobus Byleveldt as Mine &
Operations Manager at Clogau. Mr Byleveldt has more than 26 years of mining
and management experience within the gold mining sector in South Africa and
Scotland, including in mine planning, construction and development.  His most
recent role was as Mine Manager (for approximately 2.5 years) at the Cononish
Mine in Scotland, where he also acted as Senior Production Supervisor and
Process Plant Manager.

 

Figure 1: Proposed bulk sampling works from No.5 Level of the Lower
Llechfraith workings, involving the installation of two inclined raises (in
red) between Nos. 4 and 5 Levels.

Andover West Lithium Project

Further to the announcement of 24 April 2024 that the Company had secured an
option to acquire an initial 50% interest in the lithium rights over the
highly prospective Andover West Lithium Project in the West Pilbara, Western
Australia, the parties have agreed to extend the option period to 18 June 2024
to enable the Company to complete its due diligence.

 

This announcement contains inside information for the purposes of the UK
Market Abuse Regulation and the Directors of the Company are responsible for
the release of this announcement.

Forward Looking Statements

This announcement contains forward-looking statements relating to expected or
anticipated future events and anticipated results that are forward-looking in
nature and, as a result, are subject to certain risks and uncertainties, such
as general economic, market and business conditions, competition for qualified
staff, the regulatory process and actions, technical issues, new legislation,
uncertainties resulting from potential delays or changes in plans,
uncertainties resulting from working in a new political jurisdiction,
uncertainties regarding the results of exploration, uncertainties regarding
the timing and granting of prospecting rights, uncertainties regarding the
timing and granting of regulatory and other third party consents and
approvals, uncertainties regarding the Company's or any third party's ability
to execute and implement future plans, and the occurrence of unexpected
events. Actual results achieved may vary from the information provided herein
as a result of numerous known and unknown risks and uncertainties and other
factors.

**ENDS**

For further information, please visit www.albamineralresources.com
(http://www.albamineralresources.com/)  or contact:

 Alba Mineral Resources plc                 +44 20 3950 0725

 George Frangeskides, Executive Chairman
 SPARK Advisory Partners Limited (Nomad)    +44 20 3368 3555

 Andrew Emmott
 CMC Markets plc (Broker)                   +44 20 3003 8632

 Thomas Smith / Douglas Crippen

 

 

 Alba's Projects & Investments
 Projects Operated by Alba          Location   Ownership
 Clogau (gold)                      Wales      100%
 Dolgellau Gold Exploration (gold)  Wales      100%
 Gwynfynydd (gold)                  Wales      100%
 Investments Held by Alba           Location   Ownership
 GreenRoc Mining Plc (mining)       Greenland  37.49%
 Horse Hill (oil)                   England    11.765%

 

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