Bezant Resources plc (LON:BZT) has taken another step forward in the FKJ-083 licence area of its Choco gold-platinum project in Colombia.
The company announced it has commenced extraction and processing of the higher-grade virgin gravels from the within the deeper levels of the open pit.
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It expects to announce some of the initial grades achieved from this process in the coming weeks.
“The scoping study, as announced in March 2017, calculated an estimated break-even grade of 0.17 grammes per tonne (238mg/m3) for combined Pt and Au. The verification of the grade of the virgin gravels target zone we are now mining is our priority, before progressing into volume expansion,” declared Bernard Olivier, chief executive officer of Bezant.
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“Once we have adequately assessed the recoveries from the higher-grade gravels versus our estimated break-even point, we shall then commence with the next phase of production ramp-up," he added.
Shares in Bezant were up 1.4% at 1.17 in early trading.