Senegal
Located in south-eastern Senegal, the 472.5 sq km Senala licence is positioned in the centre of the Birimian-age Kédougou-Kéniéba gold belt that extends from eastern Senegal into western Mali and has already seen multiple major gold discoveries including Terranga’s Massawa (3.4 million oz Au) and Sabodala deposits (3 million oz Au) in Senegal, and Barrick’s Loulo (12 million oz Au) and Gounkoto projects (5.76 million oz Au) in Mali.
The Company owns 85% of Senala (formerly known as Dalafin) through its Senegal-registered joint-venture company Stratex EMC S.A., formed in partnership with private local company Energy & Mining Corporation S.A. (EMC) that holds the remaining 15%.
To date, four main geochemical targets, Faré, Baytilaye, Saroudia, and Madina Bafé, have been confirmed by drilling.
Option Agreement
In March 2018 the Company signed an option earn-in agreement with a local subsidiary of IAMGOLD (AEGM Senegal Exploration Suarl ‘AEGM’) under which IAMGOLD could earn into 51% of the Senala project by spending US$4m over four years and a further 19% (total 70%) by spending an additional US$4m over a subsequent two years. IAMGOLD completed the First Option and formalised its 51% interest through AEGM. On 26 April 2023, IAMGOLD announced that AEGM was now a wholly-owned subsidiary of Managem Group (‘Managem’). Managem has confirmed that AEGM has spent approximately US$5.8 million during the period of the Option Agreement, and thus an estimated beneficial ownership position in the Senala project of c.59%. Discussions are underway to determine the next steps for the Senala Project.
Faré
Faré is the most advanced prospect within the Senala licence and the Company believes it has potential to host a standalone deposit. The prospect comprises three main gold anomalies, Faré North, Faré South and Faré Far South, that extend over a c.6km strike length. The footprint is comparable to Barrick’s Loulo-Gounkoto mining complex further to the east in western Mali.
Diamond and reverse circulation (RC) drilling at the Faré South anomaly has, to date, returned best intersections of 20m grading 31.13 g/t Au including 10m grading 60.98 g/t Au (FARC-00007), 59.60m grading 2.20 g/t Au and 49.50m grading 1.75 g/t Au (FADD-00004) and 70.00m grading 1.46 g/t Au including 31.00m grading 2.72 g/t Au (FADD21-031C).
Phase 1 of the programme focussed on Faré and included 689.50m diamond drilling in two holes, planned to test the depth extension of the main mineralised zone at Faré South, where historic drilling delivered best intersections of 20.00m grading 31.13 g/t Au including 10.00m grading 60.98 g/t Au from RC drilling and 59.60m grading 2.20 g/t Au and 49.50m grading 1.75 g/t Au from diamond drilling. Results confirmed that the orogenic gold system at Faré South continues to at least 350m below surface and remains open at depth. The widest zones of mineralisation, associated with quartz-tourmaline veining and albite alteration within intercalated diorite, granodiorite and metasedimentary units, were returned from the near-surface oxide zone, with a best intersection of 70.00m grading 1.46 g/t Au including 31.00m grading 2.72 g/t Au.
The Company completed a Mineral Resource Estimate for Faré South (independent of IAMGOLD), that has delivered a maiden JORC-compliant Resource of 155,000 oz Au grading 1.26 g/t Au in the Inferred category, based on a 0.3 g/t Au cut off and within a US$1,800/oz pit shell. This Resource sits within a larger JORC-compliant Exploration Target estimate for Faré South of up to 280,000 oz Au grading 1.10 g/t Au. The Mineral Resource and Exploration Target have been compiled for Oriole by an independent consultant, Forge International Limited. Both estimates remain open at depth and along strike.
Images relating to the Maiden Resource Estimate can be found HERE.
The 2021 Phase 1 programme also comprised 4,854 m RC drilling in 42 holes, focussed on testing the system along strike at Faré North (three fence lines) and Faré Far South (two fence lines). Results have returned best intersections of up to 11.00m grading 1.22 g/t Au from Faré North and 35.00m grading 3.61 g/t Au including 18.00m grading 6.46 g/t Au from Faré Far South. The results are particularly encouraging for the Faré Far South anomaly, located c.1 km to the southwest of Faré South, where the system has been drill-tested at depth for the first time.
In November 2021, a follow-up programme of 2,148m of RC drilling was completed in 18 holes over three fence lines planned to test the northeast extension of the three main anomalies. Results have confirmed that mineralisation is open to the northeast at all three of the main anomalies, with best intersections of up to 5.00m grading 12.45 g/t Au including 2.00m grading 26.61 g/t Au (using a 0.30 g/t Au cut off) being returned from the Faré Far South anomaly. The anomalism at Faré Far South is now confirmed to extend over a strike length of at least 500m and the system remains open along strike and at depth. The results to date a high probability for further resource definition on the property, being located just 800m from the Faré South Mineral Resource Estimate.
The Year 5 programme at Faré comprised 10,695m auger-drilling, with two samples being collected per hole (holes drilled to an average depth of 8m) to assess the sub-surface geology and to identify potential extensions to the existing mineralisation. Drilling focussed on testing the strike extension (southwest and northeast) of the main c.six kilometre-long structure at Faré and a grid to test a gold-in-soil-sampling anomaly (previously identified by the Company) c. three kilometres to the east of Faré.
Gold assays for 2,551 samples identified multiple structurally controlled gold anomalies outside of the previously identified footprint at Faré, with the majority of these newly identified anomalies follow the same north-easterly trend as the existing Faré North, Faré South and Faré Far South mineralisation. The longest of these, a c.1.3 kilometre (‘km’) anomaly to the north-east of Faré North, is associated with a significant, >2km-long, arsenic anomaly;
Madina Bafé
Multiple further zones of gold anomalism have been identified within the wider licence, most notably at Madina Bafé, located c.50km to the SSE of Faré. Initial programmes of trenching, mapping, and sampling at Madina Bafé confirmed the presence of a 1.2 km by 30-45 m NE-striking mineralised zone in the south-east of the prospect. Here, mineralisation is hosted by sheeted tourmaline-quartz veins and quartz-tourmaline breccias with best trenching results including 4.0 m @ 1.40 g/t Au (MBT-005), 6.0 m @ 0.86 g/t Au incl. 1.0 m @ 4.40 g/t Au (MBT-005),1.2 m @ 1.14 g/t Au (MTB-003) and 1.0 m @ 1.77 g/t Au. RC and diamond drilling between trenches MBT-003 and MBT-004 has previously returned excellent intersections – including 9.6 m @ 16.08 g/t Au (MBDD-002) – that are indicative of depth-continuity of the zone and of elevated gold content.
Given its location, just 10km to the west of the 2.5Moz Boto mine development project, exploration of Madina Bafé was a key focus for IAMGOLD. In 2018, it completed a 2,428 m AC drilling programme in order to assess the geochemical signature of the bedrock, help depict alteration corridors and mineralisation trends, and define targets for follow-up deeper drilling. Results outlined a number of ≥20 ppb gold anomalies, some of which showed coincident bismuth and molybdenum anomalism. A follow-up 2,260m reverse circulation (RC) and 507m diamond (DD) drilling programme confirmed that the mineralisation continues at depth, delivering a best intersection of 8 m at 2.56 g/t Au (MBDD-013).
In 2019, IAMGOLD completed a further 4,167m AC drilling to extend the 2018 grid to the north. Results for 869 holes identified multiple further gold anomalies with best results include 235 ppb Au, 157 ppb Au, 138 ppb Au, 104 ppb Au and 99 ppb Au.
Phase 2 of the Year 4 programme has focussed on testing the main 1.2 km by 30-45 m NE-striking structural corridor at Madina Bafé, in the immediate vicinity of the Company’s previous best drilling intersection of 9.60m grading 16.08 g/t Au from 15.10m in hole MBDD-002 and where recent artisanal mining activity has been identified. Results for 493m diamond drilling in three holes have delivered a best intersection of 10.00m grading 1.69 g/t Au from 21.00m in hole MBDD21-017. This hole was collared to twin MBDD-002 and so has successfully intersected a similar width of mineralisation albeit at a lower grade. Similar to Faré, lithologies observed within the diamond holes mainly comprise diorite/microdiorite, andesite and granodiorite with thin intercalations of metasediment. The alteration assemblage is dominated by albite-hematite-tourmaline-sericite+/-pyrite and a network of strongly fractured quartz-tourmaline-pyrite veins up to 3m wide are observed within the granodiorite.
Phase 2 RC drilling was completed for 3,111m (in 48 holes) and returned multiple intersections from four fence lines that have tested a c.500m portion of the structural corridor at Madina Bafé. Best results include 2.00m grading 9.36 g/t Au from 40.00m including 1.00m grading 17.70 g/t Au (MBRC21-197) and 4.00m grading 0.98 g/t Au from surface including 1.00m grading 1.96 g/t Au (MBRC21-203). Geology observed in the RC holes completed to date shows, from north to south, a large granodiorite unit interbedded with polymictic metasediments that is crosscut by quartz-tourmaline veins.
Exploration resumed in early November and four diamond holes were drilled for 401m to test the north-eastern extension of the corridor. However, the ground conditions at Madina Bafé were deemed too wet to enable completion of the programme and so the remainder of the Year 4 expenditure was redirected to Faré. Results delivered two intersections above the 0.30 g/t Au cut-off, namely 1.00m grading 0.45 g/t Au from 4.00m (MDBB21-020) and 1.00m grading 0.44 g/t Au from 10.00m (MDBB21-022). No significant intersections were returned from holes MDBB21-021 or MDBB21-023.