· Significant uranium zones continue to be intersected from recent drilling at Husab Uranium Project in Namibia
· Positive indications of near surface primary uranium mineralisation on recently granted EPL3439
· Results extend mineralization further north and west of initial drill results
· Potentially economic grades of primary uranium mineralisation returned from total strike length of over 800 metres – primarily at surface
· Exploration and resource definition drilling to be accelerated in 2007
· Drilling to commence on the Rossing South target - 5 km south of the Rossing Mine
Kalahari Minerals plc, the AIM listed mining exploration and evaluation group with a portfolio of copper and uranium prospects in Namibia, has received further positive assay results from an additional four Ida Central diamond-drill holes on the Husab Project in western Namibia. These results, which reinforce the Company’s view that the area has strong potential to house an economic deposit, have returned significant zones of uranium mineralisation and include:
· HDD009 58.0 metres @ 0.131 kg/t U3O8
· HDD010 17.5 metres @ 0.439 kg/t U3O8
· HDD017 31.0 metres @ 0.170 kg/t U3O8
· HDD018 11.0 metres @ 0.259 kg/t U3O8 and
14.0 metres @ 0.276 kg/t U3O8
Note: 1.0 kg/t = 1,000 ppm = 0.1%
Kalahari Minerals Chairman Mark Hohnen said, “These are again good results and are significant as, along with the Ida Central results previously reported, they demonstrate apparent continuity of uranium mineralisation within the licence area. Drilling to date has now taken place on 6 by 160 metre spaced lines with approximately 800 metres of strike extent drilled. Significantly, the results from both the northern and southern most lines of drilling indicate that the alaskite hosted uranium mineralisation is open along strike, beyond the limits of current drilling.”
DETAILS
These results are part of the ongoing drilling programme being carried out at the Husab uranium project which has already yielded positive results. Assays from four additional diamond drill holes (HDD009, HDD010, HDD017, and HDD018) have been returned from drilling on the Ida Central section of the Ida Dome alaskite target within the Husab Joint Venture (joint venture partner: Extract Resources Ltd - ASX:EXT - 51% holding). All holes have produced wide intersections of primary uranium mineralisation, adding support to the results reported in previous updates.
Drill holes HDD009, and HDD010 are from the two northern most drill lines, collared 160 metres and 320 metres respectively, to the north of any previously reported intersection. Drill core from both drill holes displayed good field indications of uranium mineralisation such as smokey quartz within the mineralised intervals of alaskite.
Drill holes HDD017, and HDD018 are two of five holes completed from a single drill site by the skid mounted rig. Both holes were targeting uranium mineralisation closer to surface, up dip, and west of results previously reported (including HDD008, 9m @ 0.517 kg/t U3O8 and 36m @ 0.186 kg/t U3O8). Biotite clusters, often associated with zones of anomalous uranium mineralisation (>100 ppm U3O8) were observed in the mineralised drill core from hole HDD017.
Potentially economic grades of primary uranium mineralisation have now been returned from a total strike length of over 800 metres of an alaskite body, which is over 6 kilometres in strike extent (including the extensions into EPL3439) on the Ida Dome West anomaly, and shows uranium mineralisation at surface over most of this distance.
The topography around the Ida Central area has been a challenge with a truck mounted rig used from the Ida Gorge to the east of the mineralised zone, and a smaller skid mounted rig for more inaccessible locations closer to the outcrop. The skid mounted rig drilled fan arrays of holes with a nominal section spacing of 80 metres from platforms engineered on slopes some distance above the level of the gorge.
The Ida Central drilling results received thus far indicate that there is reasonable apparent continuity of uranium mineralisation from section to section, but because of the generally wide section spacing (160 metres in the Ida Gorge), further drilling will be necessary to confirm this.
Diamond drilling on the Ida Central Zone is ongoing.
Uranium intersections greater than 0.1 kg/t U3O8 over drill hole intersection widths of not less than two metres from the latest assays are tabled below:
· HDD009 intersection, from 284 to 342 metres, includes one metre of core loss.
· Analyses on half cut NQ (50mm dia) core by Genalysis Laboratory Services, Perth.
· Uranium assays were carried out by Four Acid Digest/MS (Method AT/MS).
· Metal values (U) have been converted to oxide values (U3O8) using a factor of 1.179, and expressed as kg/t U3O8. Note that 100 ppm U3O8 is equivalent to 0.1 kg/t U3O8.
· True widths are estimated to range from 70% to 100% of intersection thickness depending on the drill hole dip. In the case of HDD009, HDD010 and HDD017 intersections are estimated to be approximately true width. The HDD018 intersection is estimated to be 70% of true width.
Further runs of cut half core are currently being prepared for shipping to Johannesburg for sample preparation and assaying in Australia, and additional results will be released when they become available.
The Ida Dome alaskitic granite remains one of a number of known targets within the Husab joint venture. Previous drilling by Anglo American, on recently granted EPL3439, represents the southern extension of the same alaskite bearing stratigraphy being drilled at Ida Central, and Ida East. The two zones are interpreted to be the limbs of a syncline with Anomaly A and Ida Central being on the west limb, and Anomaly D and Ida East being on the east limb. Collectively these zones comprise over 10 kilometres of prospective strike.
PRIORITY WORK PLANNED FOR 2007
Anomaly A and D
The granting of EPL3439 will allow acceleration of the exploration and resource definition program as the topography in the area is generally more accessible. However, work on EPL3439 cannot commence until an environmental clearance has been approved by the Ministry of Environment and Tourism. Upon approvals, RC drilling will commence, which will enable increased drilling rates, as compared to the current diamond-drilling.
Interpretation of the legacy Anglo American drilling data indicates that all of its reported results are located within 50 metres of surface and the primary, alaskite hosted, uranium mineralisation is open along strike, and at depth. Significant results previously reported are included in figure 1 and include: 43m @ 0.370 kg/t U3O8; 32m @ 0.403 kg/t U3O8; 21m @ 0.510 kg/t U3O8; and 9m @ 1.864 kg/t U3O8.
This information indicates there is excellent potential to define additional near surface, uranium mineralisation from which a resource can be defined. Once the Company can commence drilling in this area the reliability of the previous work completed can be confirmed, and extensions to the interpreted mineralisation tested.
Rossing South
This target area is located approximately 5 kilometres south of the Rossing Mine in an area which is interpreted to contain the folded extensions of the stratigraphy hosting the Rossing Mine alaskites. The target stratigraphy and anomalous uranium values have been confirmed in the field; however, most of the prospective stratigraphy is concealed by soil cover. Surface coatings of carnotite are common in calcretes developed over the interpreted position of the alaskite stratigraphy. The stratigraphic package identified as potentially hosting uranium mineralization is interpreted to extend for at least 15 kilometres within the Husab JV ground, virtually all of it unexposed, and previously unexplored.
A drill rig has been sourced to undertake first pass regional drilling in this area to test for the prospective Rossing stratigraphy and associated uranium bearing alaskite units. Drilling is expected to commence in late January 2007.
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