Predictive Discovery (ASX:PDI) continues to add value to its growing West African portfolio, most recently by advancing a major new opportunity in Cote D'Ivoire.
Predictive has now received a permit grant over the underexplored Bobosso gold mineralised system in Cote D’Ivoire, which brings the company's holdings in the country to more than 2,300 square kilometres in five highly prospective belts.
This milestone follows an agreement earlier this year with an Ivoirian company by which Predictive would provide and/or arrange financing and exploration management on an 800-square-kilometre ground package.
Historic drilling at Bobosso has included 5 metres at 20.6 g/t gold from 48 metres, 7 metres at 9.5 g/t gold from 26 metres and 32 metres at 1.9 g/t gold from 12 metres.
Other intercepts at the site have recorded 35 metres at 1.6 g/t gold from 65 metres and 2 metres at 29.2 gold from 66 metres while a 7-square-kilometre gold-in-soil anomaly has been evaluated to have an average grade of 0.4 g/t gold.
Significantly, this soil anomaly has been only partially tested by reverse circulation drilling and numerous untested gold-in-soil anomalies have been identified along strike.
The two permit areas controlled by Predictive which constitute Bobosso were previously covered by a single exploration permit that was granted to Equigold in 1997, then passed onto Lihir Gold and subsequently to Newcrest Mining following the successive mergers of those companies.
The ground was surrendered last year because of the age of the permit, which was well beyond the normal time for exploration envisaged by the Cote D’Ivoire Mines Administration.
Predictive’s exploration will now start quickly at Bobosso while the company seeks additional project-level funding to enable a significant drilling program in 2016.
Project advantages
There are few or no villagers or farms directly on the Bobosso gold-in-soil geochemical anomaly, but past explorer relationships with what local villagers are in the area have been positive.
There are signs of recent artisanal mining activity but government officials have recently been actively discouraging artisanal mining in this area.
Local infrastructure is generally quite good. The nearest town, Dabakala, is connected to Cote D’Ivoire’s sealed road network and is a 90-minute drive from the project area.
There is also a substantial power line which runs within a few kilometres of the Bobosso gold anomaly.
Predictive’s initial outlay of about A$58,000 in the Bobosso arrangement is modest but will immediately give the company a 15% equity in the project.
A two-year right to raise funds will subsequently maximise the company’s ability to retain control of the project.
Bobosso lies within a regionally diversified portfolio of Predictive gold projects in Cote D'Ivoire, four of which are managed under a joint venture with private exploration and development company Toro Gold Limited.
Under this agreement, Toro will spend US$1 million to earn 51% in Predictive's local subsidiary, which controls 1,533 square kilometres of gold project areas.
These tenements include the Kokoumbo permit which hosts 6-kilometre and 2-kilometre long gold-in-soil anomalies and chip channel results of mineralised exposures of up to 44 metres at 3.8g/t gold and the Boundiali permit where a 5.6-kilometre long gold-in-soil geochemical anomaly has a peak value of 0.8 g/t gold.
Burkina Faso
As Predictive's expansive Cote D'Ivoire portfolio improves its exploration profile, the company's largest shareholder, Aurora Minerals (ASX:ARM), has supported parallel advancements in the country's northern neighbour of Burkina Faso.
Recent progress on this front has included the calculation of an exploration target of 460,000 to 563,000 ounces of gold on drilled prospects near the company's Bongou gold deposit.
This target is expected to be followed up with infill drilling in order to define resources over the next two years.
Bongou declared a maiden resource last year of 2.2 million tonnes at 2.6 g/t gold for 184,000 ounces of gold and has since become the focus on Predictive’s Burkina strategy.
This led to a 3,854-metre drilling program in May identifying new gold mineralisation at a number of locations within 10 kilometres of the project.
Around the country, Predictive holds rights to explore 12 granted exploration permits covering a total area of 1,604 square kilometres.
The bulk of the ground held lies within ten permits which are known collectively as the Bonsiega project.
Bonsiega covers 100 kilometres of greenstone belt along strike from the Samira Hill gold mine in Niger and includes many active artisanal gold mining sites.
Analysis
Predictive is in a strong position to further develop its enticing and expanding West African gold holdings, with a newly confirmed A$1.3 million capital raising demonstrating support from current investors and market appetite for the highly prospective nature of the company’s key projects.
Following this well subscribed rights issue and the ongoing exploration results from the Cote D’Ivoire joint venture with Toro, the company is in good shape to deliver solid newsflow of exploration results in 2016.
Predictive was debt free as of the end of September and has enough cash to sustain its operations for at least 18 months.
Grant of the second permit at Bobosso is a significant milestone for the company as it gears up for drilling at this site, which has clear shallow potential.
Near-term price catalysts for the company could include advances in geological mapping of Bobosso, re-logging of drill samples of key mineralised areas and ground follow-up of gold anomalous areas to identify potential future drill targets.
At the same time, Toro Gold continues its aggressive exploration program elsewhere in Cote D’Ivoire, leading to drilling in the March Quarter, providing significant newsflow.
Other upcoming work will include metallurgical testing of shallow gold-bearing material and drill planning based on 3D interpretations of target mineralised zones.
Predictive will seek additional funding to enable drilling of high-priority mineralised zones without dilutive capital raisings by the company itself.
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