Ariana Resources PLC (AIM:AAU) has identified a 500 metre long gold-in-soil anomaly in the vicinity of the Dokwe project, some 125 metres ‘along strike’ of the planned Dokwe North pit rim.
The company said it used portable X-ray fluorescence and its novel ‘detectORE’ technology to pinpoint the target.
The new anomaly mirrors the gold and arsenic signature seen at Dokwe North, Ariana added, with the proximity to the pit rim making the anomaly a high-priority drill target.
"This is a highly significant gold-in-soil anomaly, supported by other geochemical and geological information, which must be tested through drilling as a priority,” managing director Kerim Sener said.
"Today's news reveals an exciting new development for Dokwe, which could greatly improve our development plans for the project.
“Over the past few months, the team has successfully expanded the detection capabilities of the detectORETM technology by implementing the latest innovations to locate buried gold mineralisation.
“The discovery of this anomaly aligns with everything we have learnt about the Dokwe mineralisation style and its geological context, as well as the dispersal patterns of trace elements in the soil profile above the orebody.”
Ariana now plans to roll out detectORE across the surrounding area, the Bulawayo-Bubi Greenstone Belt, to test for a wider cluster of deposits.