www.lydianinternational.co.uk
Lydian International is a mineral exploration and development company with expertise and a proven track record in discovering and developing new gold projects in unfamiliar and frontier settings. The Company is currently focussed on developing its Amulsar gold discovery in southern Armenia. The Amulsar project was a new discovery made by Lydian in 2006 and currently hosts a global resource of 3.2M ounces after its resource update in January 2012. This resource update comprises a total of 1.7 million ounces gold in the indicated category and 0.6 million ounces gold in inferred category (using a 0.4g/t cut-off) from the contiguous Tigranes and Artavasdes areas and 0.5 million ounces gold in the indicated category and 0.4 million ounces inferred category from the Erato prospect which is located approximately 900 meters to the north of Tigranes-Artavasdes. The project remains open in all directions and is currently advancing towards Bankable Feasibility with full production due in the first half of 2014.
Lydian finds a partner to push forward Drazhnje Lead-Zinc-Silver Project
Lydian International (TSX:LYD), which has primarily been focused on advancing its 1.4 million ounce Amulsar Gold Project in Armenia, today announced that it had inked a deal with IMM Marketing to advance its Drazhnje Lead-Zinc-Silver Project in Kosovo.
IMM Marketing, which is an affiliate of the lead-zinc mining specialist Binani Group in nearby Macedonia, has agreed to fund all exploration and development work at Drazhnje through to a commercial production decision to be made no later than December 31, 2011. Assuming a decision is made to move the project into production, Lydian will then have an option to jointly fund the project on a 50/50 basis, or be paid a maximum of CDN$5 million from any profits from the mine. Lydian will also retain a 1.5% NSR (Net Smelter Royalty) over the project.
"Our success at the Amulsar gold project in Armenia has meant that Lydian is now primarily a gold focused company" said Tim Coughlin Lydian's President and CEO, "The Binani Group is production focused with a successful track record in the region. Its interests in neighbouring Macedonia provide an important treatment option for Drazhnje ore should in-country facilities remain unavailable. This deal ensures that Drazhnje gets the investment attention it deserves while allowing Lydian to focus on developing its gold assets."
Previous exploration work at Drazhnje has included approximately 80 drill holes, collared both from surface and from two levels of exploratory drives. Drilling and underground sampling led to the estimation of a Yugoslav resource (not JORC compliant) of 4.7Mt at 4.9% zinc, 2.4% lead and 45ppm silver in categories A + B + C1 and a further 2Mt at 5.8% zinc , 3.2% lead and 45ppm silver in category C2.
