TIDMPREM
RNS Number : 7557J
Premier African Minerals Limited
14 September 2016
Premier African Minerals Limited / Ticker: PREM / Index: AIM /
Sector: Mining
Premier African Minerals Limited
("Premier" or the "Company")
Drilling programme on Zulu has commenced
Further review of strategic options for Zulu
Appointment of Consultant
Summary
Premier African Minerals Limited, the AIM-traded,
multi-commodity mining and natural resource development company
focused on Southern and Western Africa, is pleased to announce that
it has started an extensive diamond drilling programme on the
Company's substantial Zulu Lithium Project ("Zulu"). The drilling
programme has two objectives. Firstly, to test for strike and depth
extensions of the current known 3.5 kilometre surface strike
length. And, secondly to establish a maiden resource. In addition,
Premier will be reviewing the strategic options for the development
of Zulu and potential monetisation of value, including possible
strategic partnerships and / or the possibility of a separate
listing for Zulu. Zulu Lithium Mauritius Limited ("Zulu Lithium")
has agreed terms with Mr. David Lenigas to conduct a consultant's
review of Zulu based on his expertise in the lithium development
sector.
Highlights
-- Premier initiates a diamond drilling programme on the largest
undeveloped lithium enriched spodumene pegmatite in Zimbabwe.
-- 1.55% Li 0 contained in bulk sample (see RNS 1 July 2016).
-- Zimbabwe is the only African country with a history of
successful exploitation of lithium bearing mineralisation.
-- Drilling focused on establishing a code-compliant resource.
-- Review of strategic options for development and monetisation of Zulu.
-- Appointment of Mr. David Lenigas as a consultant to review Zulu.
George Roach, Premier's CEO, commented:
"Based on the known 3.5 kilometre strike length and depth
extensions of 200 meters with true widths varying from typically 10
to 25 meters, we are excited to finally commence the long-awaited
drilling programme on Zulu. Zimbabwe is the World's 5(th) largest
lithium producer and the only lithium producer on the African
continent.
"We believe that the potential scale and size of Zulu is
analogue to other world-class spodumene/pegmatite deposits hence we
believe that Zulu has the potential to be a company making asset.
Premier will also progress its review of strategic options for the
development of Zulu and the options for unlocking value for the
Company and its shareholders, including possible strategic
partnerships and / or the possibility of a separate listing for
Zulu Lithium. I am also pleased that Zulu has agreed a consultancy
agreement with Mr. David Lenigas to access his accumulated
knowledge and experience in the junior resources lithium sector, in
which he was an early investor, and in particular to assist in
identifying potential partners for Zulu Lithium. I look forward to
providing a further update on our strategic review as it
progresses."
Zulu drilling
A 20-hole, 2,500m diamond drilling programme is underway. The
initial 600m will focus on the currently known strike boundaries in
the north and south areas of the Zulu. The remaining 1,900m will
target the spodumene zone in the south-centre in order to better
define the main ore body, both along strike and at depth.
Premier uses Geodrill Private Limited a local drilling
contractor based in Bulawayo to conduct the drilling programme.
Logging and sample preparation will be conducted at the RHA
Tungsten project ("RHA") and the prepared pulps will be sent to SGS
South Africa (Pty) Ltd for multi-element assays (sodium peroxide
fusion followed by acid digestion and ICP-OES/ICP-MS).
We expect a rapid turnaround in results with in-house sample
preparation and core management given the proximity to our existing
operations at RHA.
David Lenigas Consultancy Appointment
Zulu Lithium has agreed terms with Mr. David Lenigas to conduct
an independent review of Zulu based on his expertise in the lithium
development sector. The review will focus on the potential
introduction to Zulu Lithium of third-party strategic investors and
joint-venture partners at a corporate or project level as well as
corporate or project-level debt and / or equity investments
("Services"). Mr. David Lenigas will not have any involvement in
the Group's flagship tungsten operations at RHA nor its other
projects. His appointment is advisory only and non-exclusive. Zulu
Lithium has agreed to pay Mr. David Lenigas in relation to the
Services a fee of GBP500 per month together with a warrant to
subscribe for twenty-three million new ordinary shares in Premier
African Minerals Limited. The warrant shall be exercisable at the
1st February 2017 and shall be valid for 3 years at a strike price
0.8 pence.
About the Zulu Lithium Project
To date, lithium bearing pegmatites (mainly spodumene and
lepidolite) have been identified not only at vertical depths of
over 200 meters but also along a strike length of some 3,500 meters
on the Zulu concessions and Premier believes that the potential
exploration target based on historic and more recent additional
work undertaken by Premier is massive. Zulu is located 80km east of
Bulawayo and easily accessible by road. The project comprises 14
claims covering a surface area of 3.5km(2). Zulu is generally
regarded as potentially the largest undeveloped lithium bearing
pegmatite in Zimbabwe. The project was first pegged in 1955 and
intensely explored until the early 1960s. Minor petalite production
was reported for 1961 and 1962. The pegmatite bodies intruded along
serpentine and sedimentary rocks over a strike length of several
kilometers. The width varies between 10 and 25 meters. The bigger
pegmatites to the north of the Machakwe River are rich in spodumene
and lepidolite, the smaller pegmatites south of the Machakwe River
are rich in petalite. The pegmatite bodies strike N20deg and dip
between 70deg - 90deg to the west. Parts of the pegmatite are quite
rich in tantalite-manganese.
The competent person's report ("CPR") prepared by Venmyn Rand
(Pty) Limited ("Venmyn") and included in Premier's Admission
Document issued in December 2012 details historic exploration,
which include:
-- Hole DD1 intersected 46.7m at 1.2% Li 0
-- Hole DH6 intersected 1.2m at 1.42% Li 0
-- Hole DH2 intersected 34.7m at 0.82% Li 0
-- Hole DH4 intersected 18.9m at 1.5% Li 0
-- Hole DH3 intersected 15.2m at 1.5% Li 0
More recent trenching and outcrop sampling by Premier have
extended the length of the lithium pegmatite bodies to 3,500 meters
underlining the potential for industrial scale mining.
In addition to the potential production of lithium minerals
(petalite, spodumene and lepidolite), the Zulu pegmatites offers
the potential to produce tantalite from hard rock and eluvial
resources, scheelite from eluvial resources and feldspar for the
ceramic industry from the pegmatite.
The Zulu project is discussed in more detail in the recent
Premier presentation and is available at
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=premier+african+minerals.
Qualified Person
Gerard Evans, Senior Resource Geologist and Wolfgang Hampel,
Exploration Manager of Premier African Minerals Limited have
reviewed and approved this release. Mr Evans has 25 years'
experience in the mining industry specialising in resource geology.
Mr Evans has a B.Sc Hons degree in geology from the University of
the Witwatersrand and is a registered member of SACNASP
(400015/08), GSSA and GASA. Mr Hampel has 25 years' experience in
the African, American, European and Asian exploration and mining
industry and holds a Diploma in Economic Geology (Dipl.-Geol.) from
the Technical University of Munich. He is a registered European
Geologist (EurGeol), ndeg 1261, with the European Federation of
Geologists.
Forward Looking Statements
Certain statements in this announcement, are, or may be deemed
to be, forward looking statements. Forward looking statements are
identi ed by their use of terms and phrases such as "believe",
"could", "should" "envisage", "estimate", "intend", "may", "plan",
"will" or the negative of those, variations or comparable
expressions, including references to assumptions. These forward
looking statements are not based on historical facts but rather on
the Directors' current expectations and assumptions regarding the
Company's future growth, results of operations, performance, future
capital and other expenditures (including the amount, nature and
sources of funding thereof), competitive advantages, business
prospects and opportunities. Such forward looking statements re ect
the Directors' current beliefs and assumptions and are based on
information currently available to the Directors. A number of
factors could cause actual results to differ materially from the
results discussed in the forward looking statements including risks
associated with vulnerability to general economic and business
conditions, competition, environmental and other regulatory
changes, actions by governmental authorities, the availability of
capital markets, reliance on key personnel, uninsured and
underinsured losses and other factors, many of which are beyond the
control of the Company. Although any forward looking statements
contained in this announcement are based upon what the Directors
believe to be reasonable assumptions, the Company cannot assure
investors that actual results will be consistent with such forward
looking statements.
Enquiries
Premier African Minerals Tel: +44 (0)7734
Fuad Sillem Limited 922074
---------------------- --------------------------- ------------------
Michael Cornish Beaumont Cornish Tel: +44 (0) 207
/ Roland Cornish Limited 628 3396
(Nominated Adviser)
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Jerry Keen/Edward Shore Capital Stockbrokers Tel: +44 (0) 207
Mansfield Limited 408 4090
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Charles Goodwin/Aidan
Stanley /Dominic Yellow Jersey PR Tel: +44 (0) 7584
Barretto Limited 085 670
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This announcement contains inside information for the purposes
of Article 7 of Regulation 596/2014.
About Premier African Minerals Limited:
Premier African Minerals Limited (AIM: PREM) is a
multi-commodity mining and natural resource development company
focused in Southern and Western Africa with production started at
its flagship RHA project in Zimbabwe.
The Company has a diverse portfolio of projects, which includes
tungsten, rare earth elements, gold, lithium and tantalum in
Zimbabwe and Benin, encompassing brownfield projects with near-term
production potential to grass-roots exploration. The Company also
holds 2 million shares in Circum Minerals Limited ("Circum"), the
owners of the Danakil Potash Project in Ethiopia, which has the
potential to be a world class asset. At present those shares are
valued at US$4 million based on the latest price at which Circum
has accepted subscriptions.
Technical Glossary
"eluvial" is said of an incoherent mineral deposit resulting
from the decomposition or disintegration of rock in place. The
material may have slumped or washed downslope for a short distance
but has not been transported by a stream.
"lepidolite" is the mineral name for lithium bearing mica KLi(2)
Al(Si(4) O(10) )(F,OH)(2) an important ore of lithium
"Li(2) O" means Lithium oxide
"Manganese" is a chemical element with symbol Mn and atomic
number 25. It is not found as a free element in nature; it is often
found in minerals in combination with iron.
"pegmatite" is an exceptionally coarse-grained igneous rock,
with interlocking crystals, usually found as irregular dikes,
lenses, or veins, esp. at the margins of granitic intrusions.
"petalite" is the mineral name for lithium aluminium silicate
LiAl(Si(4) O(10) ) an important ore of lithium.
"scheelite" is the mineral name for calcium tungstenate CaWO(4) an important tungsten ore.
"spodumene" is the mineral name for lithium aluminium silicate
LiAlSi(2) O(6) an important ore of lithium.
"tantalite" a mostly dark grey to black mineral, iron bearing
varieties are called ferrotantalite or tantalite-Fe, a major
tantalum ore [manganese bearing varieties are called
tantalite-manganese].
ENDS
This information is provided by RNS
The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
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