African Queen in JV deal with Akan Exploration over Newmont’s Noyem-Nyafoman license in Ghana

African Queen Mines Ltd (TSX: AQ) announced it has entered into an earn-in and joint venture agreement with Akan Exploration Ltd in relation to the Noyem-Nyafoman prospecting license in Ghana.

Simultaneously, the company has entered into an agreement with the Ghanaian subsidiary of Newmont Mining Corp (ASX, NYSE: NEM), under which Newmont is transferring the license directly to African Queen Ghana Gold Ltd, to be held in trust for the joint venture partners in accordance with the Akan agreement.

Under the terms of the agreement between African Queen and Newmont Gold, African Queen has agreed to pay Newmont a total of US$850,000 subject to development milestones. The first US$100,000 has already been paid. Newmont has agreed to transfer the license immediately upon approval of Ghana's Minister of Lands, Forestry and Mines. Newmont Gold retains a 2% Net Smelter Royalty on all production from the license.

African Queen is an exploratory resource company with diversified mineral properties in Southern and Central Africa. It is exploring its properties in Botswana and Namibia for diamonds, and it is exploring its properties in Mozambique and Ghana for gold and other metals.

Under the terms of the earn-in and JV agreement with Akan, African Queen may earn up to a 75% interest in the project by funding prescribed stages from exploration through to feasibility. Akan has the right to participate on a pro-rata basis after African Queen has reached a 60% interest by funding all costs through pre-feasibility.

African Queen will be the designated manager and operator of the JV, subject to full consultation with Akan on all material aspects of the project.

The license at the Noyem gold project currently covers approximately 28.9 square kilometres within the Birim North District of Ghana's Eastern Region. It is at the North-eastern end of Ghana's Ashanti Gold Belt, near Newmont's Akyem deposit which is presently under development for potential production.

The license hosts large numbers of artisinal miners and in 2008, a shed-off area of 8.98 square kilometres adjacent to the current license area was reserved for small scale mining. This will facilitate exploration and development of potential large scale mining operations on the license.

The license has been subject of a number of exploration programmes in the past including a diamond drilling programme in the nineteen nineties undertaken by Bonsai Gold. The Bonsai programme resulted in the definition of a historic inferred gold resource of approximately 1.1million ounces of gold, with 5.2 million tonnes at grades of 6.67 grams per tonne down to 550 meters.

The historic resource estimate was not determined in accordance with NI 43-101 regulations and African Queen does not have sufficient information to reliably base an opinion on the accuracy or validity of the historic resource estimate. African Queen views the historic resource as an exploration target for further evaluation, study and work in the near future.

African Queen will commission its own independent NI 43-101 compliant technical report after completion of its Phase 1 rxploration program if deemed warranted by results.

In addition to the work conducted by Bonsai, Newmont Gold has tested gold anomalies at the western part of the license with soil sampling resulting defining a 4km strike anomaly. Follow-up trenching intercepted encouraging mineralization.

Between 2005 and 2007, a modest program of reverse circulation drilling to shallow depth was undertaken by Newmont. Gold intersections included 4m grading 19.4 grams per tonne. Geophysical studies were also undertaken including a gravity survey of the Project area covering 37.88 square kilometres.

African Queen views the Noyem license as a highly prospective exploration target and is planning to incorporate detailed studies of all the historic data and results and available core with further ground work including mapping, sampling, trenching and, where appropriate, drilling.

The objective of the Phase 1 exploration program is to assess the overall geologic structure of the license area and the likelihood of commercially viable gold deposits within the license area, as well as to identify drill targets for a Phase 2 core drilling program. Phase 1 is planned to begin as soon as possible.

African Mining CEO Irwin Olian commented: "The Noyem project has a large body of historic work already defining highly prospective targets ... Together with the King Solomon project in Mozambique, Noyem now gives the Company two very promising gold projects with potential to host commercial, large scale deposits."