Tietto Minerals Ltd (ASX:TIE) has delivered more shallow high-grade gold grades from its latest infill drilling program at AG Core on the main Abujar Shear within the 3.45-million-ounce Abujar Gold Project in Côte d’Ivoire.
Standout assays include:
- 1.72 metres at 61.27 g/t gold from 9 metres including 0.72 metres at 144.34 g/t;
- 22 metres at 1.3 g/t from 34 metres including 1-metre at 11.15 g/t; and
- 2 metres at 9.2 g/t from 33 metres including 1-metre at 16.63 g/t.
The infill drilling is part of an expanded program targeting delineation of measured resources expected to be mined during the first two years of Abujar gold production.
Tietto’s six diamond rigs are actively drilling on-site, with more than 100,000 metres of drilling forecast for 2022.
“West Africa’s next gold mine”
Tietto managing director Dr Caigen Wang said: “Our infill drilling continues to add more shallow high‐grade gold intercepts to AG Core.
“These intercepts provide confirmation of the continuity of these plunging high‐grade shoots from close‐spaced 25-metre drilling.
“These latest results are from an expanded infill drilling program aiming to grow our measured resources over a 2.9-kilometre strike between Section Lines 0 to 29 at AG Core and AG South, as we expect to mine these areas during the first two years of Abujar gold production.
“Our exploration team is in the process of moving four of our DD rigs to test exploration targets on the main Abujar Shear, which remains still largely untested, and undertake new resource definition drilling.
“We are fully funded to production at Abujar, which has potential to be one of the largest gold-producing mines in Côte d’Ivoire, with an expected production of 260,000 ounces of gold in the first year and 1.2 million ounces of gold in the first six years.
“Tietto has an experienced team on board to deliver Abujar on time and on budget. We are on track to deliver another mineral resource update this year.
“Shareholders can also expect further updates from our aggressive diamond drilling program as we advance our dual strategy of ‘Drill and Build’ and develop our Abujar Project into West Africa’s next gold mine, with first gold by the end of Q4 CY22.”
Infill drilling program
Tietto’s latest batch of assays comprises 30 diamond holes across 3,063 metres of infill diamond drilling at AG Core.
The company designed this program to convert indicated resources at AG Core into measured resources in the next MRE update expected later this year.
Drilling has intersected good widths and grades in assays received to date with these new results, increasing the tally to 81 intervals greater than 50 gold gram metres, including 15 intervals greater than 200 gold gram metres at AG Core.
Forward plan
Tietto remains very well positioned to advance its dual strategy of ‘Drill and Build’ throughout 2022.
The company continues to drive rapid resource growth at the Abujar Project and fast‐track development to achieve first gold in the December quarter.
Tietto will deliver an update on Abujar’s life of mine (LOM) production plan this quarter, using the updated mineral resource estimate, increased mill throughput gold prices (spot price is+35% greater than US$1407/ounce used in the DFS), targeting a material increase to existing LOM production and higher.
The company has expanded this to incorporate a scoping study to determine the economic benefits of a heap leach operation at APG running in parallel to the Abujar CIL operation.
Tietto is advancing the construction of the processing plant and associated infrastructure, which remains on schedule.
Abujar Gold Project is progressing towards the first gold pour by the end of the December quarter and is on track to become West Africa’s next producing gold mine.