Ariana Resources PLC (LON:AAU) has boosted the resource estimate at its Kizilcukur project in Turkey.
The new resource stands at 21,100 ounces of gold and 620,000 ounces of silver, with contained metal on three main veins, the group said, with 85% of the tonnage in the measured and indicated categories.
Higher grade ore has been found on the Zeki Main Vein, and trial mining has commenced, it added.
"This is a significant improvement over the previous resource estimate, which integrates the latest drilling data and geological modelling,” Ariana’s managing director Dr Kerim Sener said in a statement.
“Most of the resource now sits within the lower-risk measured and indicated categories, in comparison to the previous estimate which contained only indicated and inferred Resources. This is largely the result of the in-fill diamond drilling that was completed on the higher-grade Zeki Vein in early 2019," Sener added.
Kizilcukur is 100% owned by Ariana through its subsidiary Galata Madencilik San. ve Tic. Ltd.