www.horizonteminerals.com
Horizonte Minerals Plc. is focused on exploration and development of mineral projects in Brazil. It has a successful track record in partnering with major mining companies. The Group is led by a management team with over 50 years of combined experience in the South American exploration and mining industry.
Principal projects include the wholly-owned Araguaia nickel laterite project, located in the southern Carajas Mineral District in Brazil, acquired in August 2010 from Teck. Work is focussed on the delivery of a 100 million tonne resource with fast track to Feasibility Study stage. On the gold programme Horizonte operates in partnership with Anglo Gold Ashanti to generate new world class projects in both north and southern Brazil.
Horizonte Minerals' Martin says 'significant scope' for Falcao gold project's target zone to expand
Chief executive of Horizonte Minerals (LON:HZM, TSE:HZM) Jeremy Martin told Proactive Investors today that there was "significant scope" for the target zone at the Falcao gold project in Brazil to expand.
The firm has been exploring a 3 km area at Falcao in Brazil - a joint venture with AngloGold Ashanti - and today unveiled better than expected results from initial drilling.
The results from seven holes, from a ten hole programme, were revealed, and six holes hit gold mineralisation ranging from broad zones of near surface disseminated gold mineralisation to high grade intervals.
Headline high grade intervals were 1.67 metres at 27.7 grammes per tonne gold and 1 metre at 20.26 g/t gold.
"It's all looking very encouraging. Anglo are encouraged by it," said Martin.
The chief executive explained that two styles of mineralisation have been found – disseminated gold which is spread finely through the rock but also higher grade structures.
He said this meant that there was potential for near surface open pittable resources. But also said there are higher grade lode systems, which could be mined underground.
Results from the remaining holes are now pending, which Martin expects to receive before the end of the month, and work has also started on drilling a further five holes in the target area.
The results of these five are expected in mid to late January, he said.
Martin said all the data from the last six months will be collated and, together with AngloGold, the firm will plan a much larger infill programme to begin early next year
"We've got a large soil anomaly which is open to the east, which potentially is another kilometer of strike and we're actually doing more soil sampling at the moment," he said.
"There is significant scope for the target zone to expand," added Martin.
The chief executive said that the coming months were going to be 'pretty active' for the firm, not least with an upgraded mineral resource at its flagship Araguaia nickel project, also in Brazil, expected at the end of the fourth quarter or early in Q1, 2012.
The firm is hoping to upgrade the current 76.6 million tonne NI43-101 mineral resource there and Martin said he was "fairly confident" of achieving the firm's 100 million tonne target.
The upgrade represents a major share driver for the firm, along with the preliminary economic assessment (PEA) for Araguaia, which is due in late Q1, 2012, which will outline the process route and economics of the project.
On the back of the PEA, Martin said the firm would move straight into the pre-feasibility study for its flagship project.
Martin added that other current activities concerning Araguaia included pyrometallurgical test work at Xstrata's Process Support in Sudbury, Canada, due back this year, and hydrometallurgical test work including bottle roll leaching and atmospheric tank leaching tests at the Wardell-Armstrong laboratory in the UK - the first tests of which are also due back this year.
