28th Feb 2005 14:51
Highland Gold Mining Limited28 February 2005 28 February 2005 Highland Gold Acquires Mineral Exploration and Production Rights for the Sredne-Golgotayskoye Deposit (Chita) Highland Gold Mining Limited, the AIM quoted Russian gold producer, announcestoday that it has won, in an open auction, the license for exploration andproduction rights for the Sredne-Golgotayskoye deposit with a bid of US$377,300. The license area is 4.5 square kilometers and is located in the Chita region ofRussia, 13 kilometres southwest of Highland Gold's Taseevskoye deposit, near thetown of Baley. Subject to further exploration and feasibility studies, thecompany believes this deposit could provide ore for trucking to a new processingplant at Taseevskoye. The license is for a 10-year period, which can be extended on the completion ofa feasibility study. The license payment will be made within 30 days, once theregistration procedure is completed. Under Highland Gold's partnership agreement with Barrick Gold, Barrick Gold hasan option to participate in up to 50% of this acquisition. The site is well served by road and rail links and is also in close geographicalproximity to Highland Gold's existing assets at Darasun, Novoshirokinskoye andthe supporting warehousing infrastructure. This proximity offers logistical andmanagerial synergies with the Group's existing operations in the region. The deposit consists of quartz and sulfide-quartz veins which have been exploredto a depth of 250 metres from the surface. They have a near vertical dip andrange between 200 and 1000 metres long, and vary in thickness, up to fourmetres. The veins are open to depth and Highland Gold believes thatconsiderable potential remains for enlarging the resource. Prior exploration on the deposit has been extensive, including both diamonddrilling and underground exploration by shaft drives and cross cuts. There arealso adits at 3 levels accessing the vein system. There are two styles ofmineralization found in the deposit: gold-quartz and gold-quartz-tourmaline-sulfide. The majority of the gold occurs in the former, which are essentiallyquartz veins with sulfide being predominantly arsenopyrite. The resources ascalculated using Russian standards, based on extensive surface and undergroundexploration, are as follows: Sredne-Golgotayskoye Resources Resource Category Ore Gold Grade Contained Gold (Ounces) (Tonnes) (g/t) B+C1 (Indicated) 471,000 16.7 250,500 C2 (Inferred) 175,000 12.0 67,500 Total 646,000 15.5 318,000 Source: State Committee for Resources, 01 January 2004 Commenting on today's announcement Dmitry Korobov, Managing Director, said: " We are very pleased to have won the auction for the Sredne-GolgotayskoyeDeposit. It represents a further step in our disciplined acquisition strategy,in that it provides the company with a quality, high-grade project that hasexcellent potential to expand on the currently defined resource base.Furthermore, should development prove feasible, the opportunity to share aprocessing plant and infrastructure with our neighboring Taseevskoye projectwould provide enhanced economics for both projects. "We are looking forward to providing updates on results from future explorationdrilling that will be designed to better assess the global resource potential ofSredne-Golgotayskoye." Enquiries: Dmitry Korobov, Managing Director Dmitry Yakushkin, Director of Communications Email: [email protected] Moscow Tel: +7 095 777-3155 London Tel: +44 207 851-6400 Website: www.highlandgold.com This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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