It comes after his wife, Sonia Moritz, bought 250,000 company shares at 11.25 pence per share for £28,125, the company said.

Following the transaction, Brian Moritz's beneficial interest in the company has increased to 1.8 million shares, representing 1.07 per cent of the share capital.

On Monday this week, the firm said its resources at the Kilimapesa mine in Kenya had risen to over 247,000 ounces following drilling east of the current plant site.

The new JORC-compliant resource is 3,133,613 tonnes at 2.46 g/t gold for 247,484 ounces at a cut-off of 1 g/t.

The additional 118,173 ounces are the result of 13 holes drilled at the Red Ray target area, 2km to the east of the main plant, and with a proved strike length of approximately 1,000 metres open to the east and west.

The drilling is part of a programme by Goldplat to boost resources at Kilimapesa to 500,000 ounces and further work is continuing across the area of the mine.

Goldplat's (LON:GDP) resources at the Kilimapesa mine in Kenya have risen to over 247,000 ounces following drilling east of the current plant site.

The new JORC-compliant resource is 3,133,613 tonnes at 2.46 g/t gold for 247,484 ounces at a cut-off of 1 g/t.

The additional 118,173 ounces are the result of 13 holes drilled at the Red Ray target area, 2km to the east of the main plant, and with a proved strike length of approximately 1,000 metres open to the east and west.

The drilling is part of a programme by Goldplat to boost resources at Kilimapesa to 500,000 ounces and further work is continuing across the area of the mine. 

This includes further drilling at Red Ray, the evaluation of the Vim/Rutha target area, situated 2km south of the Kilimapesa Hill target zone, and a 5 hole diamond drilling programme at the Kilimapesa Hill target area where results are due by the end of the second quarter.

Goldplat added that it had also completed processing of loaded carbon stockpiles at the mine with 1,151 ounces produced and sold to Rand Refinery Limited in South Africa.

Grades and recoveries from mined ore, meanwhile,are averaging between 5-6 g/t and 85 per cent respectively, in line with forecasts, the company added. 

Demetri Manolis, Goldplat’s chief executive, said: "We continue to drive Kilimapesa forward and establish it as a profitable mining operation through defined development programmes aimed at expanding the resource base towards 500,000 ounces and increasing gold production towards 10,000 ounces per annum."

The underground mining plan at Kilimapesa is also on track, he said, with stopes established to allow for full stoping operations.

As well as Kilimapesa, Goldplat has gold recovery operations in South Africa and Ghana, which recover precious metal from by-products of the mining process, and two brownfield gold development projects in Ghana and Burkina Faso with a target to delineate in excess of 1 million ounces of resources. 

Pre-tax profits rose to £2.37 million from £1.36 million with a forty per cent increase in operating profits to £2 million.

Revenues in the six months to December rose by 16 per cent to £11.2 million as output from the gold recovery business in South Africa and Ghana improved by 11 per cent to 15,404 ounces of gold.

For the first time, output from Ghana exceeded South Africa and following first production from the Kilimapesa mine in Kenya, Goldplat reaffirmed it expects to beat “significantly” last year’s total of 28,285 ounces.

Kilimapesa currently has a JORC-compliant resource of 1.65Mt at 2.44 g/t for 129,000 ounces of gold, but Goldplat said it aims to increase this towards the 500,000 ounce mark through further exploration of other targets within the licence area. 

Work is also continuing to develop the Anumso gold mine in Ghana which has a non-JORC compliant resource of 262,107 ounces of gold to a depth of 100 metres.

Goldplat added there is significant potential to upgrade this and increase the resource with infill drilling and increase the depth of drilling to 250 metres and it expects Anumso to be its next mine.

Cash at the half-year rose by £1.5 million to £4.6 million, which Goldpat expects to rise further by the year end with a contribution from Kilimapesa.

Demetri Manolis, chief executive, said: "With three successful gold producing operations, resource upgrade programmes underway to delineate in excess of 1 million ounces of resources this year across our portfolio, and a strong treasury to support future opportunistic project acquisitions, we look forward to a highly exciting second half of the year and beyond."

Africa-focused Goldplat (LON:GDP) said today it expected to report a 'significant' increase in operating profit for its first half after its gold recovery operations performed well.

Goldplat said its high grade mill project is performing solidly while it has agreed with a mid-tier South African gold producer to mine one of its shafts on a net smelter return basis. 

A Letter of Intent has also been accepted by DRD in South Africa to secure further feedstock from its East Rand Proprietary Mines operation.

Longer term, Goldplat is also accessing a project to reprocess tailings from the Goldplat Recovery operation and nvestigating the feasibility of setting up a tailings processing unit in Burkina Faso.

Shares in Goldplat have been rising strongly since it said last week that it expected 2012 gold production to exceed last year's figure.

On January 3 the firm's shares stood at 10.5 pence but have been steadily climbing and today are trading at 14.75 pence.

Production of the yellow metal for the year to June 30, 2011 was 28,185 ounces and for the year to June 30, 2012 it is expected to be much more.

Goldplat operates two gold recovery operations based in South Africa and Ghana.

Chief executive Demetri Manolis described the company today as "highly cash generative" and "profitable".

"I am delighted to report that our two gold recovery operations in South Africa and Ghana have performed strongly for the first half of the trading year and expect to see this trend continue for the second half of the year."

Goldplat is also developing the Nyieme gold project in Burkina Faso, the 100 per cent Kilimapesa gold mine in western Kenya, and the Banka gold project in Ghana.

Earlier this month, it announced a significant milestone - its first gold pour from the Kilimapesa mine - and the beginning of production there.

"In turn we also have two brownfield high grade gold development projects in Burkina Faso and Ghana with resource upgrade and production potential. With these developments in mind, I believe that Goldplat looks set for significant growth during the remainder of 2012 and beyond," added Manolis.

At the South African recovery operation, highlights included that the plant's operational efficiency was continuing to improve and that a project to increase milling capacity had begun.

In Ghana, gold recovery is performing ahead of management's expectations and there had been a marked increase in by-products received for processing, added the firm.

Africa-focused gold miner Goldplat (LON:GDP) has poured its second gold from the Kilimapesa mine in Kenya after successful commissioning of the elution plant.

The second smelt produced an 11.4 kg (366 ounces) gold doré bar of approximately 75-77% purity with the balance comprising about 20% silver. The bar was sold to Rand Refinery Limited in South Africa. 

Goldplat added it will continue to smelt and produce gold from existing stockpiles at Kilimapesa on a weekly basis.

Once the stockpile has been used up smelting and gold production from the mine will occur on a monthly basis.

Goldplat chief executive Demetri Manolis said: "We are delighted to report on our second gold pour from our Kilimapesa mining project in Kenya.” 

“Smelting and production of gold from our existing stockpiles of loaded carbon is continuing in line with management's expectations with gold sales positively impacting our bottom line in FY2012."

Shares in Goldplat rose by 0.25p today to 13.5p and have risen by almost 40% over the past two weeks on the strong newsflow from the company.

On Monday, Goldplat predicted it would easily exceed the 28,185 ounces gold produced in its previous financial year over the current twelve months.

The miner is also planning more exploration drilling at Kilimapesa and its other prospects at Anumso in Ghana and Nyieme in Burkina Faso.

The company is aiming to expand its total resource base towards 1 million ounces in the first half of 2012.

This is the first gold project to be granted a mining lease in Kenya since it became independent in 1963, Goldplat said.

"Goldplat would like to thank the Honourable John Michuki, Minister for Environment and Mineral Resources, and all his colleagues at the Ministry for their assistance in finalising the Mining Lease,” said chief executive Demetri Manolis.

“We look forward to intensifying the mine's development and the erection of the elution plant which will enable us to produce gold bullion in the near future on site.  

“This production will complement our existing producing operations in South Africa and Ghana."

The modest Kilimapesa mine currently has a JORC gold resource of around 129,000 ounces.  The deposit remains open at depth and along strike, and there is huge potential for expansion. 

At the moment, exploratory underground development at the mine is progressing well, Goldplat said.  The current work is extending two gold bearing quartz veins on strike to the east, it explained.  

According to Goldplat results from the diamond drill programme remain encouraging.

Gold production reaching record levels at Africa-focused Goldplat (LON:GDP) was responsible for a 76 per cent increase in pre-tax profits at the firm during the 12 months to June 30, said the company today. Shares in the company were up 4.6 per cent at 12.55 pence each by 9:42am today.

Goldplat, which this morning reported its full year results for its 2011 financial year, said that its gold recovery plants in South Africa and Ghana increased production by 31 per cent during the period to 28,185 ounces. Also, during the period, the firm won additional contracts with mining majors in South Africa and West Africa to acquired gold-bearing by-products for processing, helping to ensure that the firm’s capacity at its gold recovery operations is used efficiently.

Indeed, Goldplat increased production capacity at the flotation section of its South African recovery plant by 15 per cent during the year.

The firm’s Ghanaian operation secured two toll processing agreements with Gold Star and Adamus Resources during the period that will allow some of its stockpiled by-products to be processed off site. The agreements were “a significant factor” in increasing both gold production and profits for the full year at the operation, Goldplat said.

Consequently, Goldplat’s revenue for 2011 increased significantly to £19.6 million (2010: £10.7 million), while its operating profit improved by 48 per cent to £3.1 million. Profit before tax came in at £3.4 million (2010: £1.9 million), which included an exceptional gain of £425,000 since the early settlement of the balance of the purchase price of Kilimapesa Gold (Goldplat’s Kenyan gold project) meant only US$0.8 million was paid instead of US$1.5 million.

As far as Goldplat’s Brownfield gold projects are concerned, the firm said it was “on track to delineate in excess of one million ounces of resources by H1 2012”, while “imminent gold production” is set to take place at Kilimapesa with 1,800 metres of drilling underway. The firm has also completed a 3,100-metre drilling programme at its Nyieme gold project in Burkina Faso, “with results expected to be announced shortly”, while it has begun an exploration programme at its recently-acquired Banka Gold Project in Ghana.

“Whilst building profits and revenues remains a key objective for the company, the exploration and development of brownfield projects, typically high  grade vein systems, is  where we see the growth and value uplift potential, as we continue to build the company into a mid tier gold producer in Africa,” said Brian Moritz, Goldplat’s chairman.

Goldplat (LON:GDP) put out a very encouraging update saying its two gold recovery operations have been performing strongly and that it expects to post a “significant increase’ in full year operating profits.

Trading across its two gold recovery businesses in South Africa and Ghana and its Kilimapesa gold project in Kenya was stronger in the second half than in the first.

Initiatives introduced to improve operational efficiency and profitability of the South African recovery operation, the 100 per cent owned Goldplat Recovery business, are already having a positive impact on performance.

Further progress has been made by Goldplat Recovery to secure new raw materials with Simmer and Jack Mines Limited and AngloGold Ashanti in South Africa to ensure the long-term supply of gold bearing feedstock for processing.

Interest in supplying raw material to Goldplat Recovery has also been shown by a number of Tanzanian gold producers.

At its other 100 per cent owned recovery operation, Gold Recovery Ghana (GRG), in Ghana, processing operations have “continued to perform solidly”, generating significant cash flow for the group.

The by-product contracts that GRG has with Goldfields, AngloGold and Golden Star are operating smoothly, assures Goldplat.

On a further positive note, the company says GRG's toll processing agreements with Golden Star at its Wassa gold operation in Ghana, and with Adamus Resources to process further GRG's surface materials, are both operating well and will positively impact profitability.

More broadly, the company reveals that an expression of interest regarding a gold mining asset in South Africa has now been submitted.

Meanwhile the setting up of its elution processing plant at the Kilimapesa Gold mining project in Kenya continues to progress well, with commissioning targeted for mid-September 2011, after which gold sales can commence.

Underground  development at the Kilimapesa Hill mine at Kilimapesa Gold has commenced with an emphasis on extending 250m underground strike exposure of the auriferous quartz veins to increase existing ore resources.

Surface diamond drilling has progressed with five holes completed at the Vim/Rutha target at Kilimapesa Gold.

Goldplat says its aim is to increase JORC compliant resource base at Kilimapesa Gold in the medium-term to 500,000 ounces of gold.

Goldplat chief executive Demetri Manolis says: "Gold production from our two gold recovery operations continues to be solid, generating important revenues from which to drive growth to realise our ambition of becoming a mid-tier gold mining company.”

Manolis says that with the completion of the elution plant at Kilimapesa Gold, Goldplat will be in a position to sell its first gold bullion from its first gold mining project, which will be “a milestone achievement” for the company.

Manolis also notes that the company has recently completed a 3,000m drilling programme at its Nyieme gold project in Burkina Faso and assay results will be announced in due course.

Goldplat will, furthermore, shortly be announcing a defined exploration plan from its Banka Gold Project in Ghana with the aim of delineating an initial maiden JORC compliant resource of 250,000 oz to 300,000 oz, which the company anticipates increasing going forward with further infill drilling.

"With  gold  recovery  operations  performing  strongly  and  generating profit, continued   positive   drilling   results  and  resource  progression  from  our development  projects,  Goldplat  looks  set  to  hit  its  key  milestones  for 2011/2012 and build value for its investors," says Manolis.

Africa-focused gold miner Goldplat (LON:GDP) is on target to sell its first gold bullion from its first gold mining project once the firm completes the elution plant at Kilimapesa in Kenya this September, it said this morning.

The firm also said its gold recovery operations in South Africa and Ghana continued to perform strongly, with trading in the second half of the year stronger than during the first half.

Goldplat said the elution plant project for its Kilimapesa Gold operation is “progressing well” with the first batch of components due to be shipped from Durban in South Africa in a week’s time and expected to reach Mombasa before the end of the month. Commissioning of the plant is targeted to be finalised by mid-September and will enable the mine to smelt and produce gold bullion for export.

Initial production is targeted at 5,000 ounces of gold per annum. With an expansion of the plant, Goldplat is looking to increase this to 10,000 ounces per annum.

Underground development at Kilimapesa has begun, with three ends on the auriferous quartz vein being developed to the east of the project. Goldplat intends to extend the exposed strike length of the veins to provide additional ore resources to the existing JORC-compliant resource of 1.65 million tons of ore grading at 2.44 grams per ton gold.

Meanwhile, five diamond drill holes have been completed at the Vim/Rutha target area two kilometres south of the Kilimapesa Hill mine. This exploration programme is expected to significantly increase the current ore resource, which is presently restricted to the Kilimapesa Hill mine area, and is the next step towards establishing a potential resource target of 500,000 ounces of gold.

At Goldplat’s South African gold recovery operation – Goldplat Recovery – the firm has made further progress securing new raw materials from Simmer and Jack Mines Limited and AngloGold Ashanti in South Africa to ensure the long-term supply of gold-bearing feedstock. Interest has also been shown by a number of Tanzanian gold producers in supplying raw material to Goldplat Recovery.

Goldplat has also undertaken a number of initiatives to improve the operational efficiency and profitability of its South African recovery operation, and these are having a positive impact.

Goldplat said its Ghanaian gold processing operation is continuing to perform solidly and is generating “significant cash flow” for the firm. By-product contracts with Goldfields, AngloGold and Golden Star Resources are operating smoothly, it added.

The 62-year-old, who joined the company in 2003, is currently managing director of the gold recovery division.

His elevation comes as the company looks to strengthen the board. 

The appointment will allow chief executive Demetri Manolis to focus his efforts on the newly opened Kenya mine and brownfield gold  development  projects  in  Ghana  and  Burkina  Faso, Goldplat said. 

Manolis added: "I am pleased to welcome Bob to the board and believe his experience and proven track record will be invaluable to Goldplat on both a corporate and operational level.  He is ideally suited to drive both the efficiency  and  profitability  of  our  gold recovery operations which generate important  revenues  for  the  company.   

“With  the  development  of gold mining projects  central to our growth  strategy of becoming a  gold mining producer, I will  be focused  on advancing  our prospective  Nyieme gold  project in Burkina Faso,  Banka Gold Project in Ghana and Kilimapesa gold mine in Kenya; building a targeted  plus  1.5 million  ounce  resource  base;  as  well  as evaluating new opportunities from which to expand our already strong asset base in Africa."

Africa-focused gold miner Goldplat (LON:GDP) said that it has begun the first phase of its drilling programme aimed at upgrading its resource at Kilimapesa in western Kenya to 500,000 ounces.

The firm now has the title deed required for the issuing of the mining lease at the property and documentation has been delivered to the Kenyan Commissioner of Mines and Geology. The application will now be gazetted in the Kenyan national press for three months before the mining lease can finally be issued.

In the mean time, the company is resuming on-reef development at Kilimapesa as allowed for by a mining location licence that was issued late last year.

The firm is also restarting underground development with a view to increasing the 250 metre underground strike exposure of the auriferous quartz veins at the Kilimapesa Hill target area. Additionally, a sub-incline will be developed to extend vein exposure in depth by 30 metres vertically below current workings in order to develop the next production level.

This development is expected to provide additional ore resources to the existing JORC-compliant resource of 1.65 million tonnes with a grading of 2.44 grams per ton for 129,000 ounces of gold at a cut-off grade of one gram per ton for all categories.

Goldplat added that, following a data-gathering exercise, it has identified four highly-prospective targets at Kilimapesa that it intends to explore with a view to publishing an upgraded JORC-compliant resource by the fourth quarter of this year.

Phase one of a two-phased drilling programme began in June and is focused on exploring the Vim/Rutha and Red Ray target areas. This programme will comprise drilling of 28 shallow holes to depths of 40 metres, with the second phase of drilling designed to follow up on the results of phase one with intercepts of up to 80 metres deep.

“With the title deed now issued I am also pleased to report that we are now a short time away from being issued with the final mining lease which will trigger the commencement of full production, with an initial target of circa  5,000 ounces of gold per annum,” said Goldplat’s CEO Demetri Manolis. “These are exciting times for the Company with significant activity across the portfolio, and I look  forward to updating shareholders further as we look to build our resource base and production profile."

Banka straddles the eastern margin of the Ashanti Gold Belt in southern Ghana. It lies 10km south west of the world’s largest gold producer Newmont’s Akyem deposit, which has around 14 million ounces of gold.

SEMS Exploration Services points out in its report that the geological setting of Banka is similar to that of the Akyem property, with Birimian volcano-sedimentary rocks occurring to the east of the property and Banket conglomerate horizons trending in north easterly direction through the western portion.

The Akyem deposit also occurs within the Birimian rocks and while the “massive gold deposits of Tarkwa occur in Banket conglomerate horizons similar to those seen in the central and western portions of the Banka concession”, added SEMS.

The consultant also pointed out that previous drill results include intersections of 0.8 metres at 13.2 grams per ton of gold and one metre at 11.3 grams per ton.  Meanwhile historical mine records suggest artisanal miners were exploiting a gold resource estimated to be at a grading of up to 26.9 grams per ton.

While the initial non-JORC compliant resource is for 262,107 ounces of gold to a depth of 100 metres at Banka, the SEMS report suggests significant potential to upgrade this and increase the resource with infill drilling, with potential to increase depth of drilling to 250 metres.

Goldplat's  CEO  Demetri  Manolis  said: “This  technical  report underpins the prospectivity  of  Banka  in  Ghana  for  gold.   Early exploration work already suggests that there is potential  for a  significant resource.   Our aim is to rapidly advance this brown-field gold project, convert  and raise the existing gold resource to a JORC compliant status, and develop Banka in the mid-term into a profitable mining operation."