Ariana Resources has completed due diligence on the 1.3Moz Dokwe gold project in Zimbabwe owned by Rockover.
For the due diligence programme, Ariana carried out 1,222m of diamond drilling with two holes at Dokwe North and two holes drilled at Dokwe Central.
A metallurgical assessment is now underway of the Dokwe project metallurgy and potential process routes set out in a 2022 pre-feasibility study with an x-ray study of old and new cores also planned.
"Based on our assessment of the project to date, including recent geological observations from drilling, we are pleased to report that our confidence in the opportunity has only grown," said Kerim Sener, Ariana’s managing director.
“There are very few >1Moz gold projects globally with straightforward metallurgy, which are at a feasibility stage of development and have more than 95% of their JORC Mineral Resources in the Measured and Indicated categories."
Sener added that the latest drill core will be compared to historical project data to confirm the understanding of the grade distribution and controls on gold mineralisation.
“It has also been pleasing to note that Zimbabwe is attracting increasing exploration and mining interest. In particular, several foreign-owned AIM/LSE and ASX-listed companies have recently entered the country during the past year alone on a variety of projects, including those focused on gold, nickel and lithium," he said.
"Our initial market soundings in the UK and Australia relating to our potential interest in the feasibility-stage development of Dokwe have also been positive.
"We expect to announce our potential future involvement in Dokwe around the end of Q1 2024."
Ariana currently holds circa 2.1% of Rockover and exclusive discussions are ongoing for further collaboration between the companies.