Vast Resources announces Carlibaba prospect's suitability as second pit mine

Vast Resources, the AIM-listed company with operations in Romania and Zimbabwe confirmed on Wednesday the Carlibaba prospect's suitability as a second open pit mine within the Manaila licence area in Romania.

That was ascertained from the results of the first 1,000m of the 2,200m drilling programme.

Significantly, development of a second open pit operation at Manaila with the construction of a "metallurgical processing facility" on site might reduce operating costs by up to 25%, the company said.

A second phase of drilling had begun in order to verify the continuation of the zones at depth which would lead to a JORC compliant resource declaration at its conclusion.

Commenting on the results, Roy Pitchford, the chief executive of Vast said: "Carlibaba is shaping up to be an important new component in our expanding portfolio of development projects and operating mines in Romania. Not only does Carlibaba appear to be a significant new mining prospect in its own right, but when coupled with the proximal main open pit at Manaila and the proposed new metallurgical complex, the entire production profile of the licence has potential to be significantly enhanced to deliver long-term profitable operations for the Company."