GoldStone looks into revitalising old Akrokeri mine

The AIM-traded company said the Akrokeri Mine is situated within the Akrokeri prospecting licence, approximate 1.5 km south of the proposed AK01 South pits.

It was recorded by the Ghanaian Minerals Commission that the Akrokeri Mine produced some 75,000 ounces of gold between 1904 and 1909, from about 104,000 tons - or 94,347 tonnes - of ore, equating to a recovered grade of about 0.73 oz/t, equivalent to 24g/t.

However, the board said the mine closed in 1909 due to a high inflow of water.

The mine was developed from two shafts 1,400 feet apart, to a maximum depth of some 500 feet vertical.

GoldStone said the gold bearing quartz vein was recorded as being about four feet in width and produced free milling non-refractory ore.

It was situated within the sediments near the contact of a suite of greywackes/ phyllites and the Akrokeri granite.

Two drilling campaigns were reportedly undertaken by Birim Goldfields in 1996, comprising nine diamond drill holes totalling 2,000 metres, and Pan African Resources in 2008, comprising 10 diamond drill holes totalling some 3,200 metres.

The board said those holes were located north and south of Akrokeri town along the known quartz vein.

From the historic data, it was recorded that the drilling encountered unknown narrow high grade quartz veins within the granite, with samples up to 51g/t.

“This indicates the potential of a high grade deposit within the entire contact zone - both within the sediments and the granite,” the board said in its statement.

The review of data and assets in 2017 highlighted that the core was incomplete in the company's core shed housed at site.

GoldStone said it has managed to locate the entire 5,200 metres of core drilled by Birim and Pan African Resources and has relocated it to its core shed, with re-logging currently underway and, if appropriate, further assaying of the core set to be undertaken.

The company added that it was currently reviewing the possibility of opening up the old underground workings at the Akrokeri Mine, to explore the potential mineralised zones along strike extensions and within the old workings, as substantial areas remained untested.

Its board said the team was continuously examining the historical data for the Homase/Akrokeri mineralised zone, which is opening up new areas to re-assess.

“GoldStone continues to review all the historical data for its licences and this has lead to the re-examination of the former mine which we are really excited about,” said GoldStone chief executive Emma Priestley.

“There is a huge opportunity to find and exploit an existing resource and also expand on these resources, not to mention the huge value in the existing infrastructure and underground development.”