Bezant applies for mining licence after solid drilling at Hope and Gorob

Copper-gold explorer and developer Bezant updated the market on the Hope and Gorob near-surface drill programme targeting copper-gold mineralisation on Tuesday, while also confirming it had applied for both a mining licence and an exploration licence renewal.

The AIM-traded firm said assay results for a further nine diamond drill holes at the Hope and Vendome prospects had been received, following the “encouraging results” achieved and announced on 14 June for the near-surface drill programme completed at Gorob.

It said it had now submitted a mining licence application, together with an exploration licence renewal application, to the Namibian authorities for the Hope and Gorob Project.

The mining licence application was based on an updated scoping study completed by external consultants in May, incorporating historic mineral resource estimates but excluding any subsequent additional resources to be generated from the company's recent shallow drill programme.

Bezant said the scoping study indicated that the potential for developing a surface and underground copper mine existed at the Hope and Gorob deposits, and recommended completion of additional work to “optimise” the mine development plans, including the work necessary for environmental permits.

The scoping study also recommended that further exploration work continued, to “fully define” resource potential at the deposits.

Recently-completed shallow drilling had continued to extend the strike and up-dip extension of mineralisation at both the Hope and Vendome prospects.

The company said the current drill holes had added more than 1.5 kilometres to the mineralised strike length, with the potential to add “significantly” to the previously-estimated mineral resource.

Continuous copper and gold mineralisation was intersected in drill intercepts over “substantial” downhole widths of up to 29.74 metres.

Bezant said downhole assay peak intercepts included 4.6% copper and 2.8 grams of gold per tonne over 3.81 metres from 39.32 metres depth in hole VED001, 2.4% copper and 0.36 grams of gold per tonne over 14.28 metres from 25.2 metres depth in hole HPD003, 1.9% copper and 0.36 grams of gold per tonne over 9.3 metres from 33.8 metres depth in hole HPD005, and 1.49% copper and 0.23 grams of gold per tonne over 16.97 metres from 15.5 metres depth in hole HPD004.

The company said the gold values were typically returning grades of about 0.3 grams per tonne, providing a “significant” potential by-product value addition.

It said the drill programme had proven successful, confirming the presence of shallow mineralisation at three prospects to date.

The results were “sufficiently encouraging” to warrant further drilling along strike to evaluate an estimated additional linear 10 kilometres or more of projected mineralisation never previously tested.

“The completion of the scoping study and submission of the mining licence application for the Hope-Gorob project represents a significant project milestone,” said executive chairman Colin Bird.

“The study indicates the potential for the development of a surface and underground copper mine at the Hope and Gorob deposits.

“The company will continue refining and finessing all the engineering required to bring the project forward towards production.”

Bird said the latest drill assay results were “very encouraging”, and in advance of the firm’s expectations.

“The implication is that clearly the near-surface area potentially contains enough mineralisation over good widths sufficient to support open pit mining, providing an opportunity to accelerate development of our mining plans.

“It should be noted that these results can be expanded beyond the immediate vicinity of the recent drilling and towards other areas where there has been no historic drilling or any systematic exploration.

“We are very excited at the potential offered by these results to add to the project's copper and gold base resource and further effort will be directed towards significant growth of Hope and Gorob and nearby targets.”

At 1353 BST, shares in Bezant Resources were up 18.95% at 0.11p.

Reporting by Josh White at Sharecast.com.