ENCOURAGING INITIAL DRILLING RESULTS AT MKUSHI PROJECT, ZAMBIA
News Report
14 June 2005
African Eagle Resources ("the Company", ticker AFE) is pleased to announce results from the first 6 drill holes completed at its Mkushi copper project in central Zambia. Mineralised intercepts include 12m at 3.2% copper, 33m at 1.9% and 16.7m at 1.5%. African Eagle's Operations Director Chris Davies comments, "These early results are very encouraging, showing substantial widths and good grades. They are just the first results from a substantial programme at Mkushi. Drilling is progressing well and we expect further results quite soon and throughout the coming weeks".
African Eagle's Mkushi Project is located 180 km northeast of the capital Lusaka and 160 km southeast of Kitwe, a major mining centre of the Zambian Copperbelt. The project area contains a chain of at least seven known copper deposits along the 15 km long Mtuga shear zone. Two of these deposits were mined in the past: Mtuga, which was mined to a depth of 80m from underground during the 1920's and Munshiwemba, which was mined by open pit in the 1960's, but only to a depth of 30m. A resource estimate dating from 1990 reported that a global resource of 30 million tonnes at 1.2% copper could still exist on the property, containing more than 350,000 tonnes of copper. African Eagle's current drilling programme is designed to check and extend this previous work.
The first six holes were drilled at the northernmost deposit, named Coloquo. For a location map, see the Company's web site www.africaneagle.co.uk/projects-mkushi.html. They are the first of a phase I programme of 23 relatively shallow diamond drill holes planned at four of the known deposits. Seven more drill holes have been completed at Zone H and drilling is now underway at Mtuga. The drill samples from these holes are being prepared and submitted for assay.
The holes were inclined at 50º and their depths varied between 74m and 119m. All six holes intersected mineralisation. The widths and grades of the intersections were as follows:
|
Drill Hole |
From (m) |
Interval (m) |
Copper % |
Gold g/t |
Silver g/t |
|
MC1 |
35.5 |
16.7 |
1.5 |
0.16 |
4.7 |
|
including |
40.7 |
7.0 |
3.2 |
0.36 |
10.8 |
|
and |
46.6 |
1.1 |
9.7 |
1.68 |
40.2 |
|
MC2 |
75.6 |
12.5 |
0.7 |
||
|
MC3 |
54.0 |
5.3 |
0.5 |
||
|
and |
66.3 |
9.5 |
0.8 |
||
|
and |
87.4 |
8.7 |
0.8 |
||
|
MC4 |
42.5 |
24.3 |
0.7 |
||
|
including |
56.9 |
4.8 |
2.5 |
1.9 |
|
|
MC5 |
60.1 |
33.1 |
1.9 |
1.8 |
|
|
including |
71.2 |
1.3 |
6.8 |
0.12 |
5.3 |
|
MC6 |
51.4 |
16.8 |
2.4 |
0.18 |
6.2 |
|
including |
49.9 |
12.2 |
3.2 |
0.23 |
8.6 |
|
and |
57.1 |
4.8 |
6.7 |
0.52 |
15.7 |
These copper grades and widths are very promising, and the precious metal assays show that both gold and silver are associated with the copper minerals in the system. Given the likelihood of high tonnages, the potential value of the gold and silver in the copper concentrate could be quite significant. For example, 0.2g/t of gold adds almost 10% to the value of each tonne of 1% copper ore.
The drill cores showed that the copper mineralisation at Mkushi occurs in rocks much older than the Copperbelt deposits, comprising sheared aplite, pegmatite and porphyry intrusions within host rocks of the Mkushi Gneiss. This geological setting suggests that the mineralisation may be of porphyry copper style.
The Company is also carrying out rotary air core drilling to evaluate the tonnage, grade and mineralogy of copper bearing tailings from the former mining operations at Munshiwemba and Mtuga. Geophysical surveys including IP and magnetics covering the entire Mtuga shear zone will also begin shortly with a view to generating additional drill targets. Reports of previous exploration identified numerous other copper targets, many of which have received little or no assessment to date.
African Eagle considers that the exploration potential along the mineralised Mtuga shear is substantial. If the results from the planned programme confirm the potential, African Eagle will embark on a feasibility study to confirm and expand on the historical resources.
The project area is favourably situated, with a major power line and a good water supply within the area and bitumen roads and a rail link nearby. Copper concentrates could be shipped easily to the nearby smelters in the Copperbelt.
In summary, these early results from African Eagle's ambitious 2005 exploration programme at Mkushi are promising, showing good grades and thicknesses of copper mineralisation with indications of precious metal credits. Drilling is continuing well and the Company expects to receive further assay results over the coming weeks.
John Park
Chairman
African Eagle Resources plc
+44 20 72 48 60 59 Fax +44 20 76 91 77 45 email info@africaneagle.co.uk