Bezant Resources PLC Prelim Evaluation of Airborne EM Survey at Hope (6183A)

TIDMBZT

RNS Number : 6183A

Bezant Resources PLC

02 June 2021

02 June 2021

Bezant Resources Plc

("Bezant" or the "Company")

Preliminary Evaluation of Airborne EM Survey Data at Hope Cu-Au Project

Bezant (AIM: BZT), the copper-gold exploration and development company, is pleased to announce that preliminary evaluation of data from its' recently completed airborne electromagnetic (EM) and magnetic survey over a large part of its Hope Copper-Gold licence block in Namibia has provisionally highlighted several potential strong drill targets.

Highlights:

-- The helicopter-borne survey, covering about 3,000 line kms along a 130km strike extent of the Matchless Copper Belt has highlighted up to eight potential drill targets, based on first-pass overview

-- The survey was designed to look for buried extensions of the Hope and Gorob-Vendome deposit cluster on EPL 5796, as well as testing the extensive underexplored potential through EPLs 7170 and 6605

-- Three previously undrilled anomalies with similar signatures to established deposits are located along strike to the southwest of the Gorob-Vendome deposit cluster on EPL 5796

-- To the northeast of Gorob-Vendome a >5km linear anomaly located adjacent to a relatively high magnitude magnetic trend requires further evaluation to establish the anomaly source

-- On EPL 6605, a strong, late-time >3km long EM anomaly is associated with the historically known Aros 4km long bedrock and soil copper occurrence, which was never drill-tested

-- To the southeast of Aros, a discreet, circular, strong, late-time EM anomaly also requires further evaluation

-- Detailed data processing by the survey contractor is currently under way, with the final data and report expected in approximately six weeks

Colin Bird, Executive Chairman of Bezant, commented :

"This is a very pleasing result that shows the benefit of investing in airborne geophysics in this terrain. The survey covered areas suspected to be prospective and has also identified further prospective EM and magnetic targets with significant strike lengths. We are currently interrogating the raw data to refine target selection. Our focus will be on near-surface anomalies and/or targets with significant strike lengths.

Overall, the survey has been successful and has added impetus to our work on the Hope-Matchless copper belt. We will publish the final report, when received, and will now plan field work at the newly generated prospects"

The planned SkyTEM helicopter-borne programme, covering approximately 3,000 line km, with a flight line spacing of 200m, was successfully completed along much of the 130km strike length of the prospective Matchless Copper Belt stratigraphy within the property. The survey objective was to map copper-gold massive sulphide mineralisation from surface to approximately 200m depth or beyond. Mineralisation typically occurs in clusters of often steeply-dipping lenses, which may be partially covered by surficial sands or represented at surface by small mineral occurrences/workings or soil geochemical anomalies. Much of the area is very underexplored, with drill testing being confined to a number of well documented occurrences, such as Hope and Gorob, which are exposed at surface.

Initial evaluation by the Company's geological team of partially processed late-time EM data identified most of the previously drilled deposits on the belt, along with several potential new targets. Around Gorob-Vendome on EPL 5796, three new targets were highlighted to the southwest with signals similar to those of the established Gorob and Vendome deposits, none of which has previously been drill tested - these will most likely be priorities for future drill testing by Bezant.

To the north-east of Gorob a further localised anomaly occurs, as well as a series of more linear anomalies adajcent to a magnetic trend, covering a strike length of more than 5km. These will require further evaluation to establish if they might have a sulphide source or could be related to non-sulphide conductors.

In the area of the Hope deposit, the EM data appears complex and will require further processing to support interpretation of possible further targets in the vicinity.

On EPL 6605, along the north-eastern segment of the target belt, a substantial strike length of narrow, linear anomalies occurs. One of these is a strong, late-time >3km long EM anomaly which is spatially associated with the historically known Aros Prospect. The Aros Prospect comprised of an approximately four kilometres long bedrock/soil copper occurrence that peaks at over 0.4% Cu for approximately two kilometres and was never drill-tested. This clearly represents a priority target of interest. A short distance to the south east of the Aros Prospect, is a further discrete, circular strong late-time EM anomaly, which also requires further evaluation.

Hope Copper-Gold Project Background Information

Project Area: The Hope Copper-Gold project comprises three exclusive prospecting licences, EPL 5796, EPL 7170 and EPL 6605, totalling approximately 1,053km(2) , located in central Namibia approximately 100km to the south west of Windhoek, the capital of Namibia.

Regional Geology and Mines: The area covered by the Hope Copper-Gold Project is characterised by superficial quaternary sand and gravel overlying the Swakop Group of the Damara Supergroup. The area is dominated by massive mica schists of the Kuiseb Formation of the Pan-African Damara Orogen. These lithologies host multiple high-grade copper-gold Besshi Type massive sulphide deposits, such as the historically mined Otjihase Copper deposit (>16Mt @ 2.2% Cu & 1.2g/t Au) to the northeast of the Hope property.

JORC Resource: The Hope Copper-Gold Project covers a significant portion of the highly prospective Matchless Copper Belt. The Bezant project area contains a series of copper deposits, of which three (Hope, Gorob-Vendome and Anomaly) make up a combined Indicated and Inferred Mineral Resource of 10.2Mt @ 1.9% Cu and 0.3g/t Au at a 0.7% Cu cut-off, reported in accordance with the JORC Code (2012),, containing 192kt of Cu metal and 3,190kg of Au. Approximately 30% of the Mineral Resource tonnage is classified in the "Indicated" Mineral Resource category with the balance in the "Inferred" Mineral Resource category and the estimate was based on 339 drill holes for a total of 63,855 metres.

Previous Exploration: Previous exploration on the Bezant licence block focussed on the known prospects in the immediate vicinity of the Hope and Gorob deposits on EPL 5796, mainly due to the fact that they outcrop and are still open at depth. This work has led to a sound understanding of these copper-gold prospects but has left the vast majority of the area unexplored, especially by modern exploration techniques. EPL 6605 and EPL 7170 contain the Niedersachsen Cluster which includes three previously discovered copper prospects (Niedersachsen, Aros and Kobos) within EPL 6605 and one copper prospect situated in EPL 7170 (Schlesien, situated close to the north-eastern licence border with EPL 6605).

For further information, please contact:

 
Bezant Resources Plc 
 Colin Bird 
 Executive Chairman                      [phone] 
Beaumont Cornish (Nominated Adviser) 
 Roland Cornish                         [phone] 
Novum Securities Limited (Broker) 
 Jon Belliss                             [phone] 
 

or visit http://www.bezantresources.com

The information contained within this announcement is deemed by the Company to constitute inside information as stipulated under the Market Abuse Regulations (EU) No. 596/2014 as it forms part of UK Domestic Law by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 ("UK MAR").

Qualified Person:

Technical information in this announcement has been reviewed by Edward (Ed) Slowey, BSc, PGeo, technical director of Bezant Resources Plc . Mr Slowey is a graduate geologist with more than 40 years' relevant experience in mineral exploration and mining, a founder member of the Institute of Geologists of Ireland and is a Qualified Person under the AIM rules. Mr Slowey has reviewed and approved this announcement.

Glossary

A 'Mineral Resource' is a concentration or occurrence of solid material of economic interest in or on the Earth's crust in such form, grade (or quality), and quantity that there are reasonable prospects for eventual economic extraction. The location, quantity, grade (or quality), continuity and other geological characteristics of a Mineral Resource are known, estimated or interpreted from specific geological evidence and knowledge, including sampling. Mineral Resources are sub-divided, in order of increasing geological confidence, into Inferred, Indicated and Measured categories.

An 'Indicated Mineral Resource' is that part of a Mineral Resource for which quantity, grade (or quality), densities, shape and physical characteristics are estimated with sufficient confidence to allow the application of Modifying Factors in sufficient detail to support mine planning and evaluation of the economic viability of the deposit.

An 'Inferred Mineral Resource' is that part of a Mineral Resource for which quantity and grade (or quality) are estimated on the basis of limited geological evidence and sampling. Geological evidence is sufficient to imply but not verify geological and grade (or quality) continuity. It is based on exploration, sampling and testing information gathered through appropriate techniques from locations such as outcrops, trenches, pits, workings and drill holes.

   "Au"     Gold 
   "Cu"     Copper 
   "EPL"   Exclusive Prospecting Licence 
   "g/t"      grammes a tonne 
   "kt"       thousand tonnes 
   "Mt"     million tonnes 

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June 02, 2021 08:50 ET (12:50 GMT)