16th Nov 2006 07:01
Aurum Mining PLC16 November 2006 For immediate release 16 November 2006 AURUM MINING PLC ("Aurum" or "the Company") Extensive new Gold and Copper opportunity discovered within the Andash exploration area Aurum Mining plc, the company formed to acquire gold and other mineralextraction projects in the Former Soviet Union, is pleased to announce an updateon the exploration programme at its Andash gold and copper project in the KyrgyzRepublic. During the summer a comprehensive programme of geophysical exploration,including dipole-dipole IP and a magnetic survey, was undertaken at theCompany's Tokhtonysay exploration target, which lies within the Andashexploration licence area. This programme was initiated as a result ofexploration work completed last year where trenching across an outcropintersected 33m of mineralisation at 1.4g/t gold and 1.6% copper. Tokhtonysay, originally discovered during the Soviet era, contains sevenoutcropping mineralised zones. Four of them (T1 - T4), on the western limb, aresituated within the Andash exploration licence area while the other three, onthe eastern limb, are within the adjacent Korgontash licence area, which is heldby Lero Gold Corporation (TSX: LER.V), a subsidiary of Oriel Resources plc (AIM:ORI) and the subject of an encouraging announcement by Lero Gold on October 12this year. Results from the geophysical survey have determined the presence of a previouslyunknown IP anomaly with dimensions of 600m x 300m. Its characteristics aretypical for porphyry systems and are similar, though extending over a largerarea, to Andash Zone 1, which has a JORC Measured and Indicated resource of morethan 17m tonnes, containing 624,000 ozs of gold and 72,000 tonnes of copper. Furthermore, the central part of this body is characterised by a very strongmagnetic anomaly exceeding 1500 nTl. Taking into account that Zone 1 containssignificant amounts of magnetite in the orebody, this is a further indicatorthat Tokhtonysay may have similar mineralisation to current resources in AndashZone 1. 1200m of trenching was completed to investigate the extent and grade of surfacemineralisation, along with 524m of bulldozer cuts and ten 5m deep pits. The workwas confined to area T2, the largest of the four mineralised areas. This arearuns in a brecciated zone of NW strike and so far has been delineated for 520m. Gold grades reach as high as 12.8g/t and copper grades 7%, with the moreimportant intervals shown in the table below. Length m Cu % Au g/tTrench #8 21.4 1.40 3.30Trench #32 20.6 0.97 0.76Trench #33 30.0 1.70 2.00Cut #1 6.0 1.29 0.90Cut #2 19.2 1.28 1.32Cut #3 2.5 0.75 0.59 Commenting on the latest exploration results, Mark Jones, Aurum's ChiefExecutive, said: "These new results are incredibly exciting and show that Aurumhas another great opportunity to expand its resource base. The close proximityto the proposed mine at Zone 1 will allow future resource increases atTokhtonysay to extend mine life and production rates when mining begins,expected in 2008. "We will commence a drilling programme next year at Tokhtonysay to get a betterpicture of this new opportunity and work with our consultants to establish aresource base as quickly as possible." For further information: Aurum Mining plc Tel: 020 7478 9050Mark Jones, Chief Executive Arbuthnot Securities Tel: 020 7012 2000Graham Swindells Buchanan Communications Tel: 020 7466 5000Mark Court Notes to editors Aurum Mining joined the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange in May 2004 withthe strategy of seeking, evaluating and acquiring gold and other mineralextraction projects in the Former Soviet Union (FSU). In January 2005 theCompany completed its first acquisition, giving the Company an explorationlicence over the Andash gold and copper project in the Kyrgyz Republic. Miningconsultant Wardell Armstrong International has confirmed a JORC resourceestimate of 1.49 million ozs of gold and gold equivalent in Andash Zone 1 inMeasured and Indicated categories. The feasibility study for Zone 1 is scheduledfor completion by the end of this year, as is the receipt of a mining licence,allowing production to begin in 2008. The Andash project also includes the Zone2 and Zone 3 along with Tokhtonysay and three other additional explorationareas. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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