Pan African Resources for 2006

Nice find Jock all bodes well for paf.


Exploration companies are now moving into areas where gold has been found previously, but which have been left untouched for decades for a variety of reasons, predominantly political and civil strife.


One is the Kilo-Moto region of the DRC, where AngloGold Ashanti is actively exploring, as are other companies, like Australian junior Moto Goldmines, which appointed Sam Jonah as non-executive chairman in August.


Others, like London Alternative Investment Market-listed Pan African Resources, are moving into less well-known regions like the Central African Republic (CAR). Driving Pan African's exploration efforts are SA geologist Anton Esterhuizen and business partner Rob Still.


The two were among the first into Tanzania, where they subsequently sold out their rights to Barrick. Now Pan African CEO Jan Nelson says CAR is at the same stage as the early days in Tanzania. He says Pan African holds title to two of the four known important greenstone belts in the CAR.


He points out these greenstone belts are part of the craton (a large geological formation), which hosts the Kilo-Moto gold belt in the DRC, from which about 10m oz of gold were previously mined.


Ghana, is one of the continent's biggest gold mining success stories, where AngloGold Ashanti has a strong presence - the country is Ashanti's home - and Gold Fields has developed the highly successful Tarkwa mine. US heavyweight Newmont is also building two new mines there.


Newmont has traditionally shunned Africa and preferred safer, First-World countries like Australia, but has now declared Ghana to be a new core gold province for its operations. It is looking to expand its exploration efforts into other parts of West Africa.


Ghana's success has had a knock-on effect with neighbouring Burkina Faso, where Australian junior AIM Resources is developing the Perkoa Zinc project - a project it bought from SA junior miner Metorex, which sold it to concentrate its efforts on the Ruashi-Etoile copper/cobalt project in the DRC.


According to AIM Resources MD Marc Flory: "The Burkina government is being extremely positive and helpful. The government is keen to emulate the success of its neighbour, Ghana, in rapidly developing an active and successful mining sector."


Anyone in Johannesburg remember ex-Randgold executive Mike Sperinck? He emigrated to Perth five years ago, where until recently he worked for large mining consultancy RSG Global.


Sperinck is now MD of Luiri Gold Mines, which is looking at a gold project in Zambia.


Also operating in Zambia are a string of exploration companies looking at copper projects, including Australian junior Equinox Minerals and Teal Resources, which is the Canadian-listed exploration arm of Patrice Motsepe's ARM group.













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