Centamin PLC Updated Resource and Reserve Statement -Correction (6493Y)

TIDMCEY

RNS Number : 6493Y

Centamin PLC

10 September 2015

 
 For immediate release   10 September 2015 
 

Centamin plc ("Centamin" or "the Company")

(LSE:CEY, TSX:CEE)

Updated Resource and Reserve Statement - Correction

[There was an error in today's earlier release in the Tonnes and Grade columns within the Total Combined (Open Pit and Underground) Mineral Reserve table. This has now been corrected.]

Centamin is pleased to provide an update to its Mineral Resource and Mineral Reserve estimates for the Sukari Gold Mine, as at 30 June 2015, as outlined below.

Highlights

-- Total Measured and Indicated Mineral Resource estimate of 13 million ounces (Moz) gold, is reported as an open pit resource at a 0.3g/t cut-off grade. This total is inclusive of the 1.0 Moz underground resource.

-- Total combined open pit and underground Mineral Reserve estimate of 8.8 Moz, which is an increase of 7% from the previous 8.2 Moz at 30 September 2013. The increase is due to lower operating mining and processing costs associated with lower international fuel prices, and continued drilling from underground to move ounces up through the resource categories and increase the underground reserve.

   --     Open pit and surface stockpile reserve estimate of 8.3 Moz. 
   --     Underground reserve estimate of 2.7 million tonnes (Mt) containing 0.5 Moz. 

-- Resource and reserve definition continues in parallel with expanding underground infrastructure, targeting higher grade areas.

Total Mineral Resource for the Sukari Gold Mine

 
              Measured          Indicated           Total Measured                Inferred 
                                                      & Indicated 
--------  ----------------  ----------------  -------------------------  ------------------------- 
 Cut-off   Tonnes   Grade    Tonnes   Grade    Tonnes   Grade     Gold    Tonnes   Grade     Gold 
  (g/t)     (Mt)     (g/t)    (Mt)     (g/t)    (Mt)     (g/t)    (Moz)    (Mt)     (g/t)    (Moz) 
--------  -------  -------  -------  -------  -------  -------  -------  -------  -------  ------- 
   0.3      198      1.05     188      1.02     386      1.03     12.9      33      1.0      1.1 
--------  -------  -------  -------  -------  -------  -------  -------  -------  -------  ------- 
   0.4      160      1.22     152      1.18     312      1.20     12.0      26      1.2      1.0 
--------  -------  -------  -------  -------  -------  -------  -------  -------  -------  ------- 
   0.5      133      1.38     124      1.34     257      1.36     11.2      21      1.3      0.9 
--------  -------  -------  -------  -------  -------  -------  -------  -------  -------  ------- 
   0.7       95      1.69      87      1.66     182      1.68     9.8       15      1.7      0.8 
--------  -------  -------  -------  -------  -------  -------  -------  -------  -------  ------- 
   1.0       62      2.14      56      2.12     118      2.13     8.1       9       2.1      0.6 
--------  -------  -------  -------  -------  -------  -------  -------  -------  -------  ------- 
 

Notes to Table:

   --      Totals may not equal the sum of the components due to rounding adjustments. 

-- The Mineral Resource estimate is based on the open pit mined surface as at 30 June 2015 and adjusted for underground mine workings as at 30 June 2015.

   --      All available assays as at February 2015. 

-- Resource data set comprises 252,449 two metre down hole composites and surface rock chip samples.

-- Mineral Resources are reported inclusive of those resources converted to Proven and Probable Mineral Reserves.

-- The resources are estimates of recoverable tonnes and grades using Multiple Indicator Kriging with block support correction.

-- Measured Resources lie in areas where drilling is available at a nominal 25 x 25 metre spacing, Indicated resources occur in areas drilled at approximately 25 x 50 metre spacing and Inferred resources exist in areas of broader spaced drilling.

-- The resource model extends from 9700mN to 12200mN and to a maximum depth of 0mRL (a maximum depth of approximately 1,000 metres below wadi level).

Underground Mineral Resource for the Sukari Gold Mine (included within the total resource above)

 
              Tonnes   Grade     Gold 
               ('000    (g/t)    ('000 
                t)                oz) 
-----------  -------  -------  ------- 
 Measured     1,850     6.5      390 
-----------  -------  -------  ------- 
 Indicated    2,820     7.0      630 
-----------  -------  -------  ------- 
 Total 
  M&I         4,670     6.8     1,020 
-----------  -------  -------  ------- 
 Inferred     6,970     5.6     1,240 
-----------  -------  -------  ------- 
 

Notes to Table:

   --      Totals may not equal the sum of the components due to rounding adjustments. 
   --      The Mineral Resource is reported above 2g/t within interpreted mineralised domains. 
   --      The Mineral Resource estimate is depleted by underground mine workings as at 30 June 2015. 

-- All available information has been used including mapping from underground mining and assays as at June 2015.

-- Available resource data resulted in 21,369 one metre down hole composites used for grade estimation.

-- The Mineral Resources were estimated utilising a single Indicator weighted Kriging method (IK) to estimate gold for each of the mineralisation domains.

-- Measured Mineral Resources are defined by a drill spacing of at least 20m x 20m and confined to the interpreted mineralisation defined by underground mine development. Indicated Mineral Resources are defined as areas outside the Measured Mineral Resource and defined by approximately 20m x 20m drill spacing. Inferred Mineral Resources include all remaining estimated mineralisation defined by a drill spacing of approximately 50m x 50m.

-- Mineral Resources are reported inclusive of those resources converted to Proven and Probable Mineral Reserves.

-- The underground resource is located within the boundaries of the open pit resource, and is included within that total.

Total Combined (Open Pit and Underground) Mineral Reserve for the Sukari Gold Mine.

 
                    Proven           Probable           Mineral Reserve 
-------------  ----------------  ----------------  ------------------------- 
                Tonnes   Grade    Tonnes   Grade    Tonnes   Grade     Gold 
                 (Mt)     (g/t)    (Mt)     (g/t)    (Mt)     (g/t)    (Moz) 
-------------  -------  -------  -------  -------  -------  -------  ------- 
 New Reserve 
  (1-4)          152      1.05     101      1.15     253      1.09     8.8 
-------------  -------  -------  -------  -------  -------  -------  ------- 
 Previous 
  Reserve(5)     119      1.06     111      1.17     230      1.11     8.2 
-------------  -------  -------  -------  -------  -------  -------  ------- 
 

Notes to Table:

   --      Totals may not equal the sum of the components due to rounding adjustments 

(1) Total includes:

Open pit Mineral Reserve = 229Mt @ 1.09g/t for 8.0Mozs

Underground Mineral Reserve = 2.7Mt @ 6.0g/t for 0.5Mozs

Stockpiles = 21Mt @ 0.42g/t for 0.3Mozs

(2) Based on open pit mined surface as at 30 June 2015, underground mine workings as at 30 June 2015, and a gold price of US$1,300 per ounce

(3) Ultimate open pit design has a waste to ore ratio of 5.9:1.

(4) See additional notes in tables below for the underground and open pit Mineral Reserves

(5) As at 30(th) September 2013 at US$1,300 per ounce

Open Pit Mineral Reserve by Classification

The component of the combined reserve, as outlined above, that relates to the open pit operation is summarised below.

 
 Reserve            Tonnes   Grade    Gold 
  Classification     (Mt)     (g/t    (Moz) 
                              Au) 
-----------------  -------  ------  ------- 
 Proven              130     1.11     4.6 
-----------------  -------  ------  ------- 
 Probable             99     1.07     3.4 
-----------------  -------  ------  ------- 
 Stockpile            21     0.42     0.3 
-----------------  -------  ------  ------- 
 Total               250     1.03     8.3 
-----------------  -------  ------  ------- 
 

Notes to Table:

   --      Totals may not equal the sum of the components due to rounding adjustments. 
   --      Based on mined surface as at 30 June 2015 and a gold price of US$1,300 per ounce. 

-- International diesel price reductions allowed a lower diesel price assumption, resulting in a lowering of the mining cost and the CIL processing costs.

-- Diesel price used was US$0.70/litre and the previous diesel price was US$0.84/litre, current fuel price for Sukari is US$0.52/litre

-- Cut-off grades (gold): CIL oxide 0.40g/t, CIL transitional 0.42g/t, CIL sulphide 0.42g/t, Dump Leach oxide 0.08g/t.

   --      Designed underground reserves detailed below do not form part of the open pit reserve. 

Underground Mineral Reserve by Classification

The component of the combined reserve, as outlined above, that relates to the underground operation is summarised below.

 
 Reserve     Tonnes   Grade    Gold 
              ('000    (g/t    ('000 
               t)      Au)      oz) 
----------  -------  ------  ------- 
 Proven      1,020     6.1     200 
----------  -------  ------  ------- 
 Probable    1,700     5.9     320 
----------  -------  ------  ------- 
 Total       2,720     6.0     520 
----------  -------  ------  ------- 
 

Notes to Table:

   --      Totals may not equal the sum of the components due to rounding adjustments. 
   --      Based on underground mine workings as at 30 June 2015. 

-- Stopes for reserves estimation are designed using a 3g/t cut-off and mining dilution applied at 15% @ 0.8g/t as all stopes are located in mineralised porphyry and 10% mining loss is then assumed to allow for stope bridges and material left in stopes after mining.

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