Red Rock Resources (LON:RRR) is set to carry out an initial soil sampling programme at its recently acquired Alepe tenement in the Ivory Coast, it revealed, as it updated on the progress of Aussie listed Jupiter Mines, in which it has a 1.2% holding.
Alepe, where a geological team is preparing to travel, is in a similar setting to Newmont Mining's 17 million ounce Ahafo gold mine in Ghana's Sefwi Greenstone Belt, it noted. Ivory Coast remains largely unexplored.
Red Rock struck a deal earlier this year where it has the right to buy the IC Companies for £140,000 in cash. These are special purpose vehicles that own three exploration licences totalling 1,200 sq km - Dabakala, Abengourou and Alepe - and four exploration permits in the Ivory Coast.
Meanwhile, Red Rock said Jupiter's net profit for the six months to end August came in at A $4,520,490. That compares to a loss of A$2,264,630 for the eight months to Feb 28 this year as its Tshipi Borwa mine in South Africa continued production, shipment and sale of manganese ore.
Red Rock's chairman Andrew Bell said: "Profits from Jupiter's Tshipi operations were trending at nearly 30% above the previous accounting period in the six months to August, despite lower manganese prices, as Tshipi consolidated its position as perhaps the lowest cost major manganese producer. This augurs well for future performance.
"We continue active as the year end approaches and begin our first on-ground exploration in Ivory Coast. The sale of the Four Points Mining assets in Colombia we expect to conclude shortly."
Red Rock shares were unchanged at 0.18p each.