15th Feb 2008 07:00
Albidon Limited15 February 2008 Level 1ALBIDON LIMITED 62 Colin St West Perth 6005 Western Australia ARBN 107 288 755 Tel: +61 8 9211 4600 Fax: +61 8 9211 4699 Email:[email protected] ASX Code: ALB AIM Code: ALD LONMIN WITHDRAWS FROM LUWUMBU JV IN TANZANIA Lonmin Plc, has advised that it is withdrawing from the Luwumbu FarminAgreements effective 31 March 2008. Lonmin has been exploring for Platinum Group Elements (PGE) at Luwumbu, inTanzania, since 2003. Following a two-year extension granted in March 2006,Lonmin had until 31 March 2009 to complete an Indicated Resource to earn a 51%interest in the Luwumbu tenements. Lonmin's withdrawal at this stage means ithas not earned an interest and the rights to the Luwumbu tenements remain withIMX Resources 90% and Albidon Limited 10%. IMX Resource and Albidon believe the Luwumbu tenements have potential for othermetals including nickel, and with the Lonmin funded exploration beingessentially PGE focussed, little targeting of other metals has occurred. Theplanned program for this year, subject to approval by the IMX Resources /Albidon joint venture company, Tausi Mining Pty Ltd, will be to: • Evaluate in more detail the enormous volume of data generated from the diamond drilling and augering over the past five years in the Nkenja area; • Review the potential of the northern, central and southern portions of the tenement area for metals other than PGE's; and • Depending on the results of the initial review, further geological fieldwork, sampling and airborne geophysics may be contemplated. The work undertaken by Lonmin during the period it was funding the projectfocussed almost entirely on PGE's in the Nkenja area, which comprises arelatively small portion of the tenements. Despite the outstanding intersectionfrom the 2005 drillhole NDH014 of 16.14m @ 5.36g/t 2PGE+Au (Pt+Pd+Au) including1.67m @ 26.82g/t 2PGE+Au, the substantial drilling program at Nkenja in the lasttwo field seasons has failed to locate further economic mineralisation. IMX Resources and Albidon believe that a comprehensive review of existing datais now required in its entirety. With the previous focus on Nkenja, there isalso a need for regional work to evaluate the potential of the larger tenementarea for a broad range of minerals. The Joint Venture may seek other potential partners on the Luwumbu tenements tofinance a less metal-specific exploration program. If you have any queries please contact the Chief Financial Officer, Nicholas Dayor Managing Director, Dale Rogers on +61 8 9211 4600 or email [email protected]. Albidon's nominated adviser is RFC Corporate Finance Ltd, contact Stephen Allen +61 8 9480 2500. Additional information may also be viewed on Albidon's website at www.albidon.com This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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