JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – Aim-listed explorer Shanta Gold achieved positive intersections with its geotechnical drilling programme, commissioned in late 2010 at Singida, one of the company's advanced gold projects in Tanzania.
The company on Tuesday reported that the National Environmental Management Council of Tanzania had approved the environmental- and social-impact assessment (ESIA) and scoping study.
It also completed the airborne light detechpc series cone crushertion and ranging digital terrain model survey at Singida.
This followed on the preliminary feasibility study results in December 2010, and the application for three mining licences over thcrusher plant from europeane project area.
Chairperson Walton Imrie said that the progress represented significant steps towards the completion of a definitive feasibility study and grantingportable rock crushers for rent of the mining licences.
“The whole core emanating from our geotechnical diamond drilling programme will assist in our studies to determine the rock grinding parameters and aid the crushing and milling design for Singida,” he noted.
A total of 500 m of drilling was completed with holes designed to intersect the orebody at 50-m and 100-m vertical depths. The four holes targeted the mineralised shoots and they all intersected robust mineralisation with widths exceeding 10 m, in some cases.
Imrie said that the successful intersection of strong mineralisation, exactly where targeted, provided enhanced confidence in the ore resource block model.
Shanta Gold contracted consultants SRK to provide on-site management of the core orientation process. The company would also conduct the geotechnical analysis to assist the pit design.
During the core orientation process, SRK found that coarse visible gold was common and corresponded well with the high grades and visible gold intersected in the earlier resource definition drilling.
Contractors MTL Consulting had already started the detailed studies and the ESIA was scheduled for submission in the next three months, while the environmental certificate was expected by the end of June.
Shanta Gold aimed to start mine construction in early 2012.