21st Nov 2006 07:00
Churchill Mining plc21 November 2006 21 November 2006 CHURCHILL MINING PLC ("Churchill" or "the Company") Sendawar Coal Project, Indonesia - Update Highlights: • Churchill to drill 64 holes by February 2007 • Three more drill rigs to be commissioned The Directors of Churchill Mining Plc (AIM: CHL) announce that the Company hasnow begun drilling on the primary coal resource targets in the northern portionof the Sendawar project and plans to drill 64 new holes by February 2007. The programme, which will concentrate on the top end of the tenements, isdesigned to test possible seam extensions from the abutting Gunung Bayan mineonto the Sendawar ground. The Gunung Bayan project has a resource of 300million tones of high-grade steaming coal and is producing at a rate ofapproximately 3.4 million tonnes per annum. The new programme follows an initial14-hole stratigraphic drilling campaignconducted at Sendawar which has helped Churchill's geologists better understandthe area's structural controls and lithological character. The 64-hole drilling program will be conducted with two rigs using 500 x 500spacing and each hole will average between 50-75 metres in depth usingtouch-coring (when coal is touched, coring commences for sampling), rather thanfull core. All holes will continue to be logged using geophysics. The programme is part of a 23,000 metre drilling plan Churchill is conducting onthe 1000 square kilometre Sendawar project which is located in Kalimantan. TheCompany is currently sourcing another three rigs to further accelerate drillingin 2007. Whilst Churchill's ultimate project target is an eventual JORC-compliantresource of 200 million tones, the first resource milestone is a target of fivemillion tones. At this threshold, the Company believes it may be in position tobegin trial mining. Any profits from this operation will be re-circulated backto the project by way of an expanded exploration programme. ENDS Enquiries: Churchill Mining Plc Corporate Synergy Parkgreen CommunicationsPaul Mazak/ James Hamilton Olly Cairns Brendan McNamara+61 (0)8 9388 0377 +44 (0) 20 7448 4400 +44 (0) 20 7493 [email protected]@churchillmining.com Notes to editors Churchill Mining Plc listed on AIM in April 2005. It has two projects and inearly 2006 raised GBP5.25 million to acquire and explore the Sendawar coalproject. South Woodie Woodie The South Woodie Woodie project covers approximately 490 square kilometres inthe East Pilbara region of Western Australia. Owned via Churchill Mining'swholly-owned subsidiary, Planet Mining Pty Ltd, the project sits approximately400km southeast of Port Hedland in the highly prospective Pilbara manganeseprovince. Churchill owns the project 100%. To date much of the project area hasnever been explored due to the presence of surface cover. Sendawar Churchill Mining's Sendawar project in Kalimantan covers more than 1,000 squarekilometres of prospective ground and lies in close proximity to two operatingopen-cut mines: Thai miner Banpu's newly commissioned Trubaindo operation, whichwill be shortly producing at a rate of approximately 6 million tonnes per annum(tpa); and the privately-owned Gunung Bayan mine which has been operating since1998 and produces approximately 3.4 million tpa. Coal from these mines istransported via barge via the Mahakam River to the port of Samarinda. TheSendawar project is located approximately 50km from the Mahakam River. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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