CANADIAN listed miner, Pambili Natural Resources Corporation, will conduct an initial resource drilling programme that is expected to confirm the scale of gold at its Golden Valley Mine during the fourth quarter of the year.
The news comes after the miner announced early this month that it had produced its first gold from the mine located in Mashonaland West province.
This was after the miner completed an underground drilling programme in the second quarter of the year.
In June, Pambili announced that it had been granted approval by the government to convert the 50-hectare milling site surrounding Golden Valley Mine to a series of five 10-hectare mining claims.
“Based on the report from the drilling programme, Pambili will conduct an initial resource drilling programme. This is expected to confirm a gold resource that justifies further expansion and development of Golden Valley,” Pambili said in a statement.
“Pambili has identified several potential targets that are being evaluated. Announcements on an acquisition are expected in Q4 [fourth quarter].”
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To fund the recommended resource drilling programme, the company will raise US$1 million through a non-brokered private placement.
Proceeds of the raise would also contribute to the expansion and modernisation of the gold processing plant at Golden Valley.
Although formal mining is yet to re-start at Golden Valley, Pambili has completed some underground development in preparation for the drilling programme.
About 630 tonnes of material from this underground development, together with historic sands on the surface, were processed through the Golden Valley plant to recover 235 grammes (7,5 ounces) of gold at a recovery rate of 0,52g/t (grammes per tonne).
“The first gold production from the Golden Valley project really is exciting news for Pambili. The decision to process material from the off-reef underground development was based on the visible mineralisation observed within that material and the experience of the local team,” Pambili chief executive officer (CEO) Jon Harris said.
“The fact that we were able to produce gold from this off-reef material and the reworking of old sands supports our belief in the upside potential of Golden Valley. As recommended in the recent technical report, the company will endeavour to establish the true extent of this potential through our planned underground and surface drilling programmes, both of which will commence this month.”
He said as the firm continued to learn more about its large-scale potential, Golden Valley stands to become an increasingly valuable asset for the company.
Pambili also announced that with effect from August 1, 2024, Russel Swarts had been appointed as interim chief financial officer (CFO) for the firm.
“Swarts is a seasoned financial executive and brings more than 30 years of financial experience to Pambili,” the miner said.
Since August 29, 2022, Harris has been acting as both CEO and interim CFO.