Premier African Minerals Limited / Ticker: PREM / Index: AIM / Sector: Mining
8 January 2013
Premier African Minerals Limited (`Premier' or `the
Company')
Issue of two gold exploration permits in Togo
Premier African Minerals Limited, the AIM quoted multi-commodity
natural resource company with mineral projects located in Western
and Southern Africa, is pleased to
announce that two gold Exploration Permits in the Dapaong area of
Togo (`Dapaong' or `the "Project')
which were stated as having been approved in the Company's AIM
Admission Document dated 4 December
2012, have now been formally issued to the Group. The total
area under permit is 400 sq km.
Highlights:
* Dapaong is considered to be highly prospective for gold due to location and
geological setting;
* Project underlain by volcanic and sedimentary Birimian-aged intrusive
rocks, the geology that hosts major mines in Ghana, Mali & Burkina Faso;
* Significant artisanal activity across the licence, which has not yet been
subject to a systematic exploration programme for gold;
* Using its existing resources in Togo, the Company intends to immediately
commence exploration in order to quantify the full potential of this highly
prospective area;
* The Project adds to the Company's already extensive portfolio of mineral
assets in Southern and West Africa, which are in various stages of
development.
Information on the Dapaong Permits
Dapong consists of two permits, covering 400 sq km, for the
exploration of gold and associated metals, which are valid for an
initial period of three years.
The Project is underlain by volcanic and sedimentary
Birimian-aged intrusive rocks with minor volcano-sedimentary
sequences, quartz veins and pegmatites, which form part of the
larger West African Craton geologic region. Gold mineralisation
generally occurs along north to north east trending shear zones and
faults that cut Birimian belts or form the margins of these
Birimian belts where sedimentary rocks often include paleo-placer
gravels. Substantial gold mineralisation has previously been
discovered within Birimian-aged formation belts located in
Ghana, Côte d'Ivoire, Mali, Guinea
and Burkina Faso. Major gold mines
in the region include Tarkwa in Ghana operated by GoldFields which has a
15.Moz resource and produces circa 700,000 oz per annum; Oubasi
mine in Ghana operated by
AngloGold which produces circa 300,000 oz of gold per annum; and
the Youga gold mine operated by Etruscan Resources in southern
Burkina Faso which produces circa
80,000 oz of gold per annum.
Multiple rivers draining Birimian rocks in the West African
Craton hold alluvial gold deposits and an initial reconnaissance
visit by Premier geological teams have already identified four
areas in the drainage systems where there has been recent artisanal
activity.
The Project is considered to be highly prospective for gold,
having extensive artisanal activity but has not yet been the
subject of systematic exploration. The Board believes that the area
offers excellent development potential due to its location and
geological signature. Accordingly, using its existing resources in
Togo, the Company intends to
immediately commence exploration in order to quantify the full
potential of the highly prospective area.
George Roach, Chief Executive
Officer of Premier African Minerals Limited, said: "The Dapaong
Project in northern Togo is an
exciting addition to Premier's diversified multi-commodity
portfolio. Given the substantial size of the Project, the presence
of Birimian-aged mineralisation, which has been proven to host
commercial gold deposits across Western
Africa, and the significant levels of artisanal activity, we
consider Dapaong to have excellent development potential.
"This is the first announcement since our AIM listing in
December 2012 and it underlines our
aggressive development strategy aimed at both advancing our
existing portfolio, which consists of a number of pre-production
assets, and increasing our asset base to build shareholder value.
We expect to be active in 2013, as we look to continue with the
development of our RHA and Katete projects, which are highly
prospective for tungsten and Rare Earth Elements respectively. In
regard to these properties, we look forward to updating
shareholders in due course."
A PDF version of this announcement including a map showing the
geology of the Dapaong Gold Project in northern Togo and location map can be viewed on the
Company's website www.premierafricanminerals.com.
**ENDS**
For further information please visit
www.premierafricanminerals.com or contact the following:
Pamela Hueston Premier African Minerals Tel: +44 (0) 755 778
3855
Limited
Tony Rawlinson Cairn Financial Advisers LLP Tel: +44 (0) 207 148
7901
(Nominated Adviser)
Cairn Financial
Advisers LLP
Tel: +44 (0) 207
148 7900
Jerry Keen Shore Capital Stockbrokers Tel: +44 (0) 207 408 4050
Limited
Ed Mansfield Shore Capital Stockbrokers Tel: +44 (0) 207 408 4050
Limited
Felicity Edwards St Brides Media & Finance Ltd Tel: +44 (0)
20 7236 1177
Qualified Person:
The technical information contained in this announcement has
been reviewed by Bruce Cumming,
Technical Director, Premier African Minerals Limited. Mr Cumming
holds a Bachelor of Science (Honours) in Geology from the
University of Cape Town and is
accredited to the South African Counsel for Natural Scientific
Professionals (SACNASP). Mr Cumming has sufficient geological
experience (over 35 years) to qualify as a Qualified Person for the
purposes of this announcement and has reviewed the text of this
announcement and is satisfied with the accuracy and precision of
this release by Premier African Minerals Limited.