Altus Strategies PLC Gold Exploration Licence Granted in Cote d'Ivoire (6131G)

TIDMALS

RNS Number : 6131G

Altus Strategies PLC

05 March 2018

Altus Strategies Plc / Index: AIM / EPIC: ALS / Sector: Mining

NOT FOR DISTRIBTUION TO US NEWSWIRE SERVICES NOR FOR DISSEMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

05 March 2018

Altus Strategies Plc

("Altus" or the "Company")

Gold Exploration Licence Granted in Cote d'Ivoire

Altus Strategies Plc (AIM: ALS), the Africa focused exploration project generator, announces that its 100% owned subsidiary Aeos Gold Ltd has been granted the Prikro gold exploration licence ("Prikro" or the "Licence") in the Prikro and Koun-Fao Departments in eastern Côte d'Ivoire, West Africa. The Licence targets Birimian meta-sedimentary greenstone gold deposits.

Highlights:

-- Altus enters sixth African country with new 369.5km(2) exploration licence in Côte d'Ivoire

   --     Historical gold occurrences reported on the Licence 
   --     Licence targets 10km long fold hinge with axial planar faults in meta-sedimentary host 

-- Small-scale artisanal mining licences located directly along strike of and adjacent to Licence

   --     Initial reconnaissance mapping and sampling to commence shortly 

Steven Poulton, Chief Executive of Altus, commented:

"We are delighted to have been awarded the Prikro gold exploration licence in eastern Côte d'Ivoire, which reportedly contains a number of gold occurrences. Strategically, as a project generator business, this marks our sixth country of operation in Africa and the Prikro licence is our tenth gold project within our current portfolio of 16 distinct exploration projects.

"Côte d'Ivoire is proven to be prospective for the discovery and development of world class gold mines and has excellent infrastructure. Several major gold projects are in production or coming on stream in the near future, including Tongon (Randgold Resources), Yaoure (Perseus Mining) and Bonikro (Newcrest Mining). However, while Côte d'Ivoire reportedly contains over 35% of the Birimian greenstone belts of West Africa, the country remains relatively underexplored.

"Our field teams are now making preparations to commence the first phase reconnaissance programme of mapping and sampling, and we look forward to updating shareholders in due course."

Prikro Exploration licence

The Prikro licence has been granted to Aucrest Sarl, a 100% owned subsidiary of Aeos Gold Ltd which is a 100% subsidiary of Altus Strategies Plc. The Licence is for gold and covers an area of 369.50 km(2) in the Prikro and Koun-Fao Departments of eastern Côte d'Ivoire. The Licence is awarded for an initial four-year term, after which it can be renewed for two further terms of three years each and a further two years under an exceptional renewal. Each renewal requires a 50% reduction in the licence area.

Prikro was selected by Altus following a geological assessment of the Birimian meta-sedimentary units of eastern Côte d'Ivoire. The Licence contains granites and diorites that are 15km in length and up to 6km wide, that have intruded through the nose of an anticlinal fold into meta-sedimentary units. Historical gold occurrences are reported on the Licence and active artisanal small-scale mining for gold reportedly occurs along strike of structures which transect the Licence.

An initial first phase of reconnaissance exploration will now be undertaken by the Company's technical team. This programme will include initial mapping and sampling of high priority targets as defined from the Company's satellite imagery analysis and remote sensing work.

The following figures have been prepared and relate to the disclosures in this announcement and are visible in the version of this announcement on the Company's website (www.altus-strategies.com) or in PDF format by using the following link: http://altus-strategies.com/site/assets/files/4351/prikro.pdf

   1.    The location of the Prikro licence is shown in Figure 1 
   2.    The regional geology and small-scale mining licences is shown in Figure 2 

http://www.rns-pdf.londonstockexchange.com/rns/6131G_-2018-3-4.pdf

Figure 1. The location of the Prikro licence in Côte d'Ivoire

http://www.rns-pdf.londonstockexchange.com/rns/6131G_1-2018-3-4.pdf

Figure 2. Regional geology and small scale mining licences

Prikro Project: Location

The Prikro project comprises a single exploration licence in the Prikro and Koun-Fao Departments in eastern Côte d'Ivoire, located approximately 240 km from the capital of Abidjan. The Licence is located north-west of the town of Agnibilekrou and 25km west of the town of Koun-Fao, both of which can be accessed by asphalt roads from Abidjan. From Agnibilekrou and Koun-Fao, the licence area is accessible all year round via a series of secondary tracks. Travel time from Abidjan to the project area is approximately five hours.

Prikro Project: Geological setting

The Birimian greenstones are a collection of Paleoproterozoic meta-sedimentary and meta-volcanic units with associated intrusive complexes that are the dominant hosts for gold deposits in West Africa. The larger gold deposits in the Birimian are located within structural corridors that may extend for up to 100km along strike. Birimian gold mineralisation is often concentrated along the margins of volcanic belts, with mesothermal and hypothermal gold deposits localised along faults and shear zones that cut through the greenstone sequences, and are often defined by zones of alteration and quartz +/- carbonate veining. The Licence is located within a large meta-sedimentary package comprising psammites and metamorphosed siltstones which have been intruded by granite and diorite bodies along the axis and in the nose of a regional-scale fold structure.

Within the Licence area, a northeast to southwest trending shear zone has been historically mapped between granite and diorite intrusions. Small-scale artisanal mining licences which are contiguous with the Licence are thought to target this structure. The Company considers that the difference in lithological competencies between the granitoids and the meta-sedimentary units may be favourable for the formation of mesothermal gold deposits, as prolonged phases of deformation can lead to the inception of brittle ductile structures through which mineralising fluids can percolate and precipitate gold.

Qualified Person

The technical disclosure in this regulatory announcement has been read and approved by Steven Poulton, Chief Executive of Altus. A graduate of the University of Southampton in Geology (Hons), he also holds a Master's degree from the Camborne School of Mines (Exeter University) in Mining Geology. He is a Fellow of the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining and a Fellow of the Geological Society of London. He has over 18 years of experience in mineral exploration and is a Qualified Person under the AIM rules and National Instrument 43-101 under the rules of the TSX.

Market Abuse Regulation (MAR) Disclosure

Certain information contained in this announcement would have been deemed inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of Regulation (EU) No 596/2014 until the release of this announcement.

For further information you are invited to visit the Company's website www.altus-strategies.com or contact:

 
 Altus Strategies Plc             Tel: [phone] 
  Steven Poulton, Chief            511 767 
  Executive                        E: [e-mail] 
  Matthew Grainger, Executive 
  Director 
  Greg Owen, VP Corporate 
  Development 
 SP Angel (Nominated Adviser)     Tel: +44 (0) 20 
  Richard Morrison / Soltan        3470 0470 
  Tagiev 
 SP Angel (Broker)                Tel: +44 (0) 20 
  Elizabeth Johnson                3470 0471 
 Blytheweigh (Financial           Tel: +44 (0) 20 
  PR)                              7138 3204 
  Tim Blythe / Camilla Horsfall 
  / Nick Elwes 
 

About Altus Strategies Plc

Altus is a diversified and Africa focused mineral exploration project generator. Through our subsidiaries we discover new projects and attract third party capital to fund their growth, development and ultimately exit optionality. This strategy enables Altus to remain focused on the acquisition of new opportunities to be fed into the project generation cycle and aims to minimise shareholder dilution. Our business model is designed to create a growing portfolio of well managed and high growth potential projects, diversified by commodity and by country. Altus currently has sixteen projects in eight commodities across six countries. We aim to position our shareholders at the vanguard of value creation, but with significantly reduced risks traditionally associated with investments in the mineral exploration sector.

Forward-Looking Statements

This news release includes certain statements that may be deemed "forward looking statements" with the meaning of applicable securities laws. All statements in this news release, other than statements of historical facts, that address events or developments that Altus Strategies Plc expects to occur, are forward looking statements and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors. Forward looking statements are statements that are not historical facts and are generally, but not always, identified by the words "expects", "plans", "anticipates", "believes", "intends", "estimates", "projects", "potential", "targets" and similar expressions, or that events or conditions "will", "would", "may", "could" or "should" occur. The Company believes the expectations, estimates, forecasts and projections expressed in such forward looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions. However, investors are cautioned that such statements are not guarantees of future performance and the Company cannot provide assurance that actual results or performance will not differ materially from those projected in the forward looking statements. Factors that could cause the actual results to differ materially from those in forward looking statements include changes in market prices, exploration results and the

interpretation of other geological data, the ability of the Company to obtain, maintain, renew and/or extend required licences, permits, authorizations and/or approvals from the appropriate regulatory authorities and other risks relating to the legal and regulatory frameworks in jurisdictions where the Company operates, competitive conditions in the mineral exploration sector, the activities of artisanal miners, whose activities could delay or hinder exploration or mining operations, the risk that third parties to contracts may not perform as contracted or may breach their agreements, the ability to attract and retain key management and personnel, terrorism, civil strife, or war in the jurisdictions in which the Company operates, or in neighbouring jurisdictions which could impact on the Company's exploration, development and operating activities, unanticipated costs and expenses, the continued availability of capital and financing on acceptable terms or at all, and general economic, market or business conditions.

Any references made in this news release to historical information, including historical geologic and technical information cannot be verified. A Qualified Person has not verified the sampling, analytical, and test data underlying any such historical information. The Company has obtained historical information from sources that it believes to be reliable and assumes it is accurate and complete in all material aspects. While the Company has carefully reviewed the available historical information, it cannot guarantee its accuracy and completeness. The forward looking information and statements included in this announcement are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement and are based on the beliefs, estimates and opinions of the Company on the date of this announcement. Except as required by securities laws the Company does not undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward looking statements in the event that management's beliefs, estimates or opinions, or other factors, should change.

Glossary of Terms

The following is a glossary of technical terms:

"Artisanal" means local people conducting mining, often with rudimentary equipment

"Au" means gold

"Birimian" means an early part of geological time dating from 2,200 to 2,100 million years ago

"Cu" means copper

"km" means kilometre

"m" means metres

"Ma" means million years ago

"Moz" means millions of ounces

"Outcrop" means a visible exposure of rock that is in-situ and has no covering of soil or vegetation

"Shear zone" means a zone in which rocks have been deformed by lateral movement along parallel planes

"Quartz Vein" means a fracture which has been filled by quartz and other minerals which have crystallised from mineralised fluids

**ENDS**

This information is provided by RNS

The company news service from the London Stock Exchange

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March 05, 2018 02:00 ET (07:00 GMT)