Pangolin Diamonds (CVE:PAN) said it has discovered a micro-diamond on its Mmadinare project in northeast Botswana from soil sampling results.
The one micro-diamond was found along with 44 ilmenite grains within Block 1 of the project area, after 137 soil samples were collected by Pangolin's team.
Samples were processed by the company through its dense media separation plant, with the diamond concentrates recovered then observed by an independent diamond and indicator mineral specialist, Pangolin said.
The recovered diamond, sample B105, has a maximum dimension of less than 0.5 millimetres, and is therefore defined as a micro-diamond, according to the company's statement released last night.
The 44 ilmenite grains will be sent for analysis to characterize whether they are crustal or kimberlite in origin, the diamond explorer said. The micro-diamond was also recovered from a sample that contained one ilmenite grain, with analysis expected to further refine the pattern seen.
Pangolin said the results will be reported when received in the coming months. The distribution of the ilmenites shows a need for additional sampling, the company added, to close off the anomalous area, with this work to begin in several weeks following ground surveys at its Tsabong North and Jwaneng South projects.
The Block 1 area of Mmadinare is about 13 sq km in size, within which samples were collected on a 500 m by 250 m grid spacing.
Pangolin, which has four exploration properties in the world’s leading country for diamond production by value, is focused on Tsabong North, which is about 100 km north of the town of Tsabong in southwestern Botswana. The diamond explorer has found more than 50 drill-ready targets in the area, several of which have surface areas greater than 20 hectares.
Currently, one diamond drill continues to test exploration targets at Tsabong North, including Magi, which was discovered last year after the company announced it modeled the structure at 270 hectares, making it one of the largest kimberlites in the world.
Shares of the Toronto, Ontario-based diamond company closed at 15 cents on Wednesday.