KEFI Gold and Copper PLC (AIM:KEFI, OTC:KFFLF) said it has been issued two of the three required exploration licences for the Jibal Qutman Gold Project in Saudi Arabia.
The licences were issued through the company’s Gold and Minerals Limited (G&M) joint venture with partner Abdul Rahman Saad Al Rashid and Sons, of which AIM-quoted KEFI owns 30%.
The licences were issued on a five-year term, covering 174 square kilometres; receipt of the third licence will cover a combined area of over 270 square kilometres.
Field programmes for a definitive feasibility study (DFS), which include confirmation drilling, environmental baseline studies, and geotechnical and metallurgical drilling, are expected to commence in October 2022 following the award of the third exploration licence, the company said..
The DFS has a target completion date for the end of 2022/early 2023, and is focused on a production plan of 500,000 ounces of gold over a ten-year period.
In a statement, KEFI’s executive chairman Harry Anagnostaras-Adams commented: “The regulatory processes in Saudi Arabia continue to facilitate fast-tracking development of the Jibal Qutman Gold Project for its construction to commence mid-2023 and first gold at the end of 2024.
“Our team at G&M has mobilised in anticipation that the third of our three Jibal Qutman licence applications will be issued within weeks.”
KEFI operates gold and copper-gold joint ventures with strong partners in one of the world’s largest untapped minerals provinces - the Arabian-Nubian Shield
KEFI shares rallied 5% higher to 0.61p in early trade on Tuesday.