African Eagle Ngasamo Resource Upgrade
RNS
Ngasamo Resource Increase and Upgrade
5 September 2012: African Eagle Resources plc ("African Eagle" or the "Company")
(AIM: AFE; AltX: AEA) is pleased to announce a revised and upgraded JORC
resource for the Ngasamo deposit at its flagship Dutwa Nickel Project in
Tanzania following a drilling campaign completed in Q4 2011. Â This upgraded
resource report doubles the total Dutwa Indicated Resource to 92.3 million
tonnes ("Mt") and increases the total Dutwa resource by 10% to 109.1Mt.
The total JORC resource for Ngasamo has been increased by 10.7Mt to 48.9Mt,
including 46.1Mt which is now classified in the Indicated category, with an
overall nickel grade of 0.91%. Â The amount of Nickel contained in the Ngasamo
hill has been increased by 13%.
Total 2012 Ngasamo Mineral Resource - Indicated Resource estimate reported above
a 0.55% nickel cut-off.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
JORC (2004) Tonnes Ni Co SiO(2) Al(2)O(3) Fe(2)O(3) MgO
Resource Lithology
Category (Mt) (%) (%) (%) (%) (%) (%)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ferruginous-
siliceous 30.5 0.87 0.03 71.96 1.85 12.95 6.23
Indicated
Transitional 10.9 0.97 0.03 52.35 1.19 14.29 17.74
Saprock 4.7 1.01 0.03 37.71 0.33 7.81 33.31
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total
Indicated* Â 46.1 0.91 0.03 63.84 1.54 12.74 11.70
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ferruginous-
siliceous 0.7 0.99 0.03 74.32 1.67 13.29 4.84
Inferred
Transitional 0.4 0.91 0.02 50.25 1.85 12.24 18.60
Saprock 1.6 0.74 0.02 39.58 0.32 8.62 31.87
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total Inferred  2.7 0.83 0.02 50.04 0.89 10.35 22.99
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total
Indicated and
Inferred** Â 48.9 0.90 0.03 63.07 1.50 12.61 12.33
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Small discrepancies may occur due to * Contained metal in the Indicated
rounding Resource is estimated at 419,500
tonnes.
 **Contained metal in the Inferred
Resource is estimated at 2,200 tonnes.
Furthermore, the Company and its joint venture partner on the Ngasamo deposit,
PMRC of Tanzania ("PMRC"), have identified that the resource defined by this
most recent report does not represent the full extent of the mineralisation at
the Ngasamo deposit and together the companies have already undertaken a further
drill extension programme. Â This additional resource extension drilling
programme is not expected to impact the development plan or overall timetable
for the Dutwa BFS.
The two nickel laterite deposits, Ngasamo and Wamangola, comprise the Dutwa
Nickel Project located at the top of hills rising above the plain. The Ngasamo
deposit has three main mineralised horizons overlying the bedrock; a
ferruginous-siliceous horizon, a transitional horizon, and a saprock horizon.
 The Ngasamo host rocks and mineralisation strike east-west and dip gently to
the north and to the south following the topography of the hill.
The 2011 Ngasamo resource upgrade drill programme comprised 122 vertical holes
for 8,040 metres of reverse circulation drilling, bringing the total number of
Ngasamo drill holes to 188. Â African Eagle commenced the drilling in late August
2011 and completed the work in early November 2011. The programme was
specifically designed to upgrade the majority of the resource classification
from Inferred to Indicated and was defined with the assistance and approval of
Snowden of Perth, Australia, African Eagle's deposit modelling and resource
geology contractor. With this most recent drilling, African Eagle has completed
a total of 12,865m of resource drilling at Ngasamo.
The total July 2012 Mineral Resource estimate for the Ngasamo deposit was
developed by Snowden and is summarised in the Table above. The Mineral Resource
has been classified and reported in accordance with the 2004 Australasian Code
for Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves (JORC
Code and ASX Companies Updates). The resource classification was based on a
review of the data quality and an assessment of the confidence in the geological
and nickel grade continuity. The Mineral Resource has been reported above a
0.55% nickel grade provided by African Eagle.
As part of the updated resource estimate, Snowden updated the September 2010
geology and nickel mineralisation interpretation with data collected from the
recent drilling and built a new resource block model. Snowden elected to use the
Datamine Unfold process to address the impact of the dipping mineralisation on
the variogram modelling and the grade estimation. In situ density values were
assigned to the model blocks based on assigning fixed (mean) values based on
rock type derived core measurements. Estimates of all grades including Ni, Co,
SiO2, Al2O3, MgO, and Fe2O3 were made using ordinary block kriging.
The Ngasamo Mineral Resource estimate is reported above a 0.55% nickel cut-off
grade. The cut-off grade was provided by African Eagle and was based on the
following assumptions:
* Based on atmospheric tank leach testing African Eagle expect the overall
process recoveries of nickel and cobalt will be approximately 80% and 70%
respectively.
* Average three-year LME metal prices of US$10 per pound of nickel and US$17
per pound of cobalt, based on historical prices over the period May 2010 to
May 2012.
* Acid consumption per tonne of dry ore between approximately 357 kg to 566
kg.
The Company and PMRC have worked closely together to define areas of further
potential mineralisation that is believed to extend beyond the envelope defined
by both the 2011 and 2010 drilling programmes. Â A drill programme to test and
define the extent of the Ngasamo resource is a key objective of the joint
venture. Â The details of the full extent of the drill programme are currently
being finalised but drilling of the early holes has already commenced as the
drill campaign for the BOS 3 samples for the metallurgical pilot plant test work
is now complete.
Qualified Person
Richard Sulway is a member of the Australasian Institute of Mining and
Metallurgy (MAusIMM(CP)) and has sufficient experience which is relevant to the
style of mineralisation and type of deposit under consideration and to the
activity to which he is undertaking to qualify as a competent person as defined
in the 2004 edition of the "Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration
Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves". Â Richard Sulway is a full-time
employee of Snowden Mining Industry Consultants Pty Ltd and is a Qualified
Person under AIM rules. Â Richard Sulway consents to the inclusion in the report
of the matters based on his information in the form and context in which it
appears.
For further information, please visit www.africaneagle.co.uk or contact:
African Eagle Resources plc
Trevor Moss, CEO
Alex Buck
+44 20 7248 6059
Canaccord Genuity Limited (NOMAD)
Rob Collins or Andrew Chubb
+ 44 20 7523 8000
Ocean Equities Limited (Joint Broker)
Guy Wilkes
+44 20 7786 4370
Russell & Associates, Johannesburg
Charmane Russell or Marion Brower
+27 11 880 3924
About African Eagle
African Eagle Resources plc is a nickel development and exploration company
listed on the London AIM (AFE) and Johannesburg AltX (AEA) stock exchanges. The
Company's flagship project is the Dutwa Nickel project in Tanzania located about
25km south of Lake Victoria and 110km east of Mwanza within greenstone gold
belts which host many of Tanzania's operating and developing gold mines. The
Company is currently conducting a Bankable Feasibility Study, which is due for
publication during Q1 2013.
This announcement is distributed by Thomson Reuters on behalf of
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originality of the information contained therein.
Source: African Eagle Resources PLC via Thomson Reuters ONE
[HUG#1638646]
