3rd Quarter Activities Report
30/04/2007 10:34am
UK Regulatory
RNS Number:7393V
Gippsland Limited
30 April 2007
THIRD QUARTER ACTIVITIES REPORT
Period: January - March 2007
Release date: 30 April 2007
HIGHLIGHTS
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
ABU DABBAB - UPDATED FEASIBILITY STUDY DELIVERED
SEIGA - GOLD
* Wide zones of anomalous gold in Seiga rock-chip sampling (up to 80m at 1.76g/t
Au)
* Discontinuous zones of mineralisation extended to over 1,200m of strike length
* Open along strike and at depth
* Drill intersection of 15m at 1.64g/t Au extends zone 300m to south
* Completion of preliminary JORC compliant resource estimate
* Topographic Survey to facilitate resource upgrades
ABU SWAYEL - COMMENCEMENT OF COPPER NICKEL EXPLORATION
SUCCESSFUL LONDON CAPITAL RAISING
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
ABU DABBAB FEASIBILITY STUDY UP-DATE
The Company has taken delivery of the final draft of the updated Abu Dabbab
feasibility study from Lycopodium Engineering Limited. The document is presently
undergoing final review which will be completed within 10 days following which
details will be released to the market.
The Company is presently holding discussions with a number of German banks
offering attractive project finance packages. It is anticipated that the finance
of Abu Dabbab will comprise of 80% debt and 20% equity.
WADI ALLAQI
During the quarter the Company completed exploration on the Seiga and Um Garayat
prospects and made preparations for work programmes on the Haimur, Abu Swayel,
Seiga and Shashoba prospects located in wadi Allaqi to the south-east of Aswan
in Egypt.
RC DRILLING
The results of a further sixteen RC holes from the second-phase drilling and
geochemical sampling at the Seiga gold prospect completed during the December
quarter were received. The drilling is part of reconnaissance drilling to the
north and south of the main zone of mineralisation adjacent to historical
workings along the Seiga shear zone.
Two lines of RC drill holes previously drilled along flat ground in the wadi to
the south of rockchip sampling profile CP21 intersected low grade mineralisation
in four adjacent holes (CRC045, 71, 74, 75, 77 & 78). A single hole (CRC070)
drilled adjacent to profile CP19 intersected 23m of low-grade mineralisation
over two intervals.
Table 1 - Previously reported drill hole intersections referred to in the text
Hole From (m) To (m) Length (m) Gold (g/t)
------------ ------------ ------------ ------------ ------------
CRC040 0 to 28 28 1.14
CRC041 8 to 30 22 1.74
CRC045 1 to 8 7 0.19
CRC070 1 to 12 11 0.32
And 32 to 44 12 0.22
CRC071 16 to 30 14 0.49
CRC074 1 to 16 15 0.61
CRC075 1 to 16 15 1.64
CRC077 4 to 8 4 0.51
CRC078 4 to 30 26 0.50
------------ ------------ ------------ ------------ ------------
It is planned to complete systematic RC drill testing of the rock-chip anomalies
during May when a bulldozer will be on site to complete the access and drill pad
construction.
The drilling extends the known strike length of mineralisation within the shear
system for at least a further 300m to the south giving a total strike length of
at least 1,200m.
ROCK-CHIP SAMPLING
A programme of continuous rock-chip sampling along sixteen profiles (CP6-21) was
completed at Seiga as an aid to identifying parallel zones of mineralisation
located to the east of the ancient workings. The results of the sampling clearly
identified the main zone of mineralisation with profile CP12 containing 80m at
1.76g/t Au which included 15m at 3.23g/t Au.
The sampling identified two separate zones of mineralisation located to the east
of the main zone over an interpreted strike length of approximately 1100m. The
best result included 25m at 1.14g/t Au in the eastern part of profile CP15. This
anomaly is coincident with mineralisation previously intersected in holes CRC052
and CRC053 which returned values of 18m at 0.36g/t Au and 11m at 0.62g/t Au
respectively. Four separate zones of mineralisation have now been located at
Seiga.
The best results for each profile are summarised in the table below and include
a 10m wide zone averaging 3.2g/t Au. In terms of exploration potential the wider
zones of lower grade mineralisation are considered to be very significant as
they represent a much larger target. The widest zone of anomalous gold values (>
0.1g/t Au) is 120m with an average grade of 0.59g/t Au and is of considerable
interest as the lower cut-off for the previously announced Seiga Inferred
Resource was 0.5g/t.
Table 2: Seiga - Summary of best rock-chip results (>0.1g/t Au)
Profile From (m) To (m) Interval (m) Gold grade (g/t)
---------- ------------ ----------- ------------ --------------
CP10 10 25 15 1.59
CP11 60 70 10 1.64
CP12 5 75 70 0.51
including 15 30 15 0.50
40 75 35 1.99
CP15 115 120 5 4.34
CP16 30 45 5 0.80
CP17 30 60 30 0.46
CP18 0 15 15 0.33
CP19 35 70 35 1.31
CP19 90 105 15 0.96
CP19 90 145 55 0.36
CP20 40 160 120 0.59
CP21 30 120 90 0.71
CP21 85 95 10 3.20
---------- ------------ ----------- ------------ --------------
The western end of profile CP19 (35m at 1.31g/t) represents the southern
extension of the good intersections recorded in drill holes CRC040 & 041 located
50m to the north. These two holes intersected 28m at 1.14g/t Au and 22m at 1.74g
/t Au respectively.
REGOLITH SAMPLING
A small regolith sampling programme was completed over an area of thin wadi
sands adjacent to the southwest of the ancient workings. Samples were collected
at 20m intervals along nine lines 100m apart. The programme was designed to test
for mineralised shears below the wadi sands in an area that had not been
systematically covered by trenching or RC drilling. Most of the samples
contained anomalous gold, the highest being 3.06g/t. Three targets (A, B & C)
were identified in areas where there has been no previous exploration which will
be drill tested during the May drilling.
JORC RESOURCE ESTIMATION
On 12 January 2007 Gippsland announced a preliminary Seiga resource estimation
which was completed by the Company's geologists for a 525m strike length of the
Seiga main zone incorporating the results of 25 RC drill holes.
The inferred resources total 1.1Mt at 2.3g/t (uncut) and 2.0g/t (10g/t cut) to a
maximum depth of 150m and a global SG of 2.5 at a 0.7g/t cut-off. The estimation
method was by ore block modelling constrained within a wireframe model
interpreted from drilling along ten sections.
Table 3: Seiga Main Zone - Inferred Resources
Cut-off (g/t) Tonnes (Mt) Au-uncut (g/t) Au-10g/t cut (g/t) Au (oz)
---------- ------------ ------------ -------------- ------------
1.0 0.8 3.0 2.5 76,000
0.7 1.1 2.3 2.0 85,000
0.5 1.5 1.7 1.6 93,000
0.4 1.9 1.6 1.4 98,000
---------- ------------ ------------ -------------- ------------
Figures in table may not tally due to rounding
The area included in the resource estimation comprises only a small part of the
mineralised shear system.
RESOURCE DRILLING
Additional RC drilling is planned at Seiga where a JORC Inferred Resource of
1.5Mt at 1.6g/t Au for a total of 93,000oz has been outlined to date. The work
will include resource infill drilling around the previously defined Seiga Main
Zone. This work will be followed-up by diamond drilling. The diamond drilling
equipment is currently being sent from Australia to Egypt to enable the deposit
to be drill tested below 150m. The Mantis 330D rig presently on site will
continue to test numerous high-priority targets within the Company's Wadi Allaqi
tenements.
The currently defined Inferred Resource at Seiga is located within a 525m strike
length of one of three mineralised zones identified by RC drilling over an 800m
strike length of mineralised shear. Geological mapping and limited drilling has
shown that the total length of the shear within the Seiga tenement is at least
3.4km.
TOPOGRAPHIC SURVEYS
Topographic surveys have commenced at the Seiga prospect to accurately locate
all of the drill collars, ancient workings and topography in preparation of
upgrading the currently defined resource at Seiga to a higher resource category
once the current drilling programme has been completed. A topographic survey has
also commenced at the Shashoba prospect.
ABU SWAYEL COPPER-NICKEL EXPLORATION
A programme of electromagnetic ("EM") and induced polarisation ("IP") has been
planned at the Abu Swayel copper-nickel prospect was one of two known major
sources of copper in ancient Egypt. This ancient mine is situated 160km
southeast of Aswan 35km to the northeast of the Company's western group of Wadi
Allaqi gold deposits.
In the early part of the 1900s the Nile Valley Company Limited sank a shallow
shaft with a cross-cut at the 22m level to test the vertical continuity of the
mineralisation. This shaft was deepened to 69m in the 1960s by the West German
company Demag AG in conjunction with a diamond drilling program of ten holes by
the Egyptian Geological Survey, to test the down dip continuity of the
mineralisation over a strike length of 200m. Of the 1,205m of drilling
completed, only 21 samples ranging from 1-2m in length were assayed by Demag.
Three of the holes (DH01, DH02 & DH14) returned significant Cu and Ni values.
Sampling of the cross-cut in the 1960s gave an average 4.11% Cu, 1.77% Ni,
17.81% Fe and 9.94% S over 8m.
Table 1: Abu Swayel - Best Cu & Ni intersections
Location From (m) To (m) Interval (m) Cu (%) Ni (%)
--------- ---------- ----------- ----------- ---------- ---------
DH01 21.00 23.60 2.60 1.16 0.24
DH02 25.70 29.95 4.25 1.58 0.23
DH14 48.55 49.85 1.30 2.23 0.20
Shaft 30.00 40.00 10.00 1.87 1.53
Cross-cut 7.50 15.50 8.00 4.11 1.77
The mineralised host unit is an elongated, lenticular amphibolite body which can
be traced for some 500m along a northwest-southeast strike and enclosed by a
garnet-mica schist. Copper-nickel mineralisation occurs both in the amphibolite
body and in enclosing host. The mineralisation contains chalcopyrite, pyrite,
nickel-bearing violarite, and ilmenite. The relict textures of the pyrite and
the violarite show the primary ores to be pyrrhotite, pentlandite and
chalcopyrite. The drilling intersected a persistent, apparently stratiform,
sulphide-bearing zone of variable thickness, that hosts the mineralised
amphibolite body.
Except for geological mapping there has been no exploration outside of the
immediate vicinity of the ancient workings since the early 1960s. The results of
the previous exploration clearly show that mineralisation is present at grades
and over widths that would be readily detected by geophysical methods such EM
and IP techniques equipment for which is presently being mobilised.
The Abu Swayel licence covers 16km2 of favourable stratigraphy along strike from
the old workings which have not been tested for Cu-Ni mineralisation. Much of
the area is covered by thin wadi sediments which can be readily explored by
means of ground geophysical methods.
CAPITAL RAISING - LONDON
On 26 April 2007 the Company announced the placement of 26,666,666 fully paid
ordinary shares to UK institutional investors at a price of 4.5 pence
(approximately 10.82 Australian cents) per share raising the sum of UK#1,200,000
(approximately A$2.89 million) before costs. The placing was undertaken by UK
broker HB-Corporate.
Application was made for the admission of the new shares for trading on the
London Stock Exchange AIM and the Australian Stock Exchange with trading
expected to commence on 2 May 2007.
The funds raised under this placing will be employed to accelerate exploration
of the Company's Wadi Allaqi tenements where several highly prospective gold,
copper and nickel projects are being pursued.
In addition to on-going working capital, the funds raised will also be used for
the commencement of detailed engineering design for the Abu Dabbab project and
the expansion of Gippsland's management team in Australian and Egypt as this
project progresses into a world scale tantalum producer.
RJ (Jack) Telford
Executive Chairman
For further information please contact:
Jack Telford Les Polden / Luke Cairns
Gippsland Limited Hoodless Brennan Plc
www.gippslandltd.com Tel: +44 (0)20 7538 1166
Tel: +61 (0)8 9340 6000 L.Polden@HBcorporate.com
jtelford@gippslandltd.com L.Cairns@HBcorporate.com
Laurence Read / Ed Portman Fiona Owen
Conduit PR Grant Thornton Corporate Finance
Tel: +44 (0)20 7429 6605 / 6607 Tel: +44 (0)20 7383 5100
Laurence@conduitpr.com Fiona.Owen@gtuk.com
Ed@conduitpr.com
Note:
The information in this document that relates to Exploration Results, Mineral
Resources or Ore Reserves is based on information compiled by Dr John Chisholm
who is a Fellow of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy. Dr
Chisholm, an Executive Director and a full-time employee of Gippsland Limited,
has sufficient experience which is relevant to the style of mineralisation and
type of deposits under consideration and to the activity which he is undertaking
to qualify as a Competent Person as defined in the 2005 Edition of the
"Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and
Ore Reserves". Dr John Chisholm consents to the inclusion in this document the
matters based on his information in the form and context in which it appears.
This information is provided by RNS
The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
END
MSCGCGDSIDXGGRG