Ariana Resources PLC Q2 2018 PRELIMINARY PRODUCTION RESULTS (2307U)
11 July 2018 - 4:00PM
UK Regulatory
TIDMAAU
RNS Number : 2307U
Ariana Resources PLC
11 July 2018
11 July 2018
AIM: AAU
Q2 2018 PRELIMINARY PRODUCTION RESULTS
Ariana Resources plc ("Ariana" or "the Company"), the
exploration and development company with gold mining operations in
Turkey, is pleased to announce its preliminary production results
for the quarter ended 30 June 2018 for the Kiziltepe Mine
("Kiziltepe" or "the Project"). Kiziltepe is part of the Red Rabbit
Joint Venture ("JV") with Proccea Construction Co. and is 50% owned
by Ariana through its shareholding in Zenit Madencilik San. ve Tic.
A.S. ("Zenit").
Second Quarter Preliminary Production Results*:
-- Gold production for the quarter was 7,171 ounces (Q1: 4,866
ounces), a 47% increase quarter on quarter ("QoQ").
-- Total ore processed for the quarter was 49,325 tonnes (Q1:
44,897 tonnes) at an average head grade to the plant of 4.77 g/t
gold.
-- Quarterly open pit ore mined was c. 70,400 tonnes, at an
average mined grade of 4.18 g/t gold, and total material movement
for the quarter was c. 758,000 tonnes.
-- Average metallurgical plant recovery of gold for the quarter
remains consistently high at 94.3%.
-- The Company maintains its full year production guidance of at least 20,000 ounces of gold.
* All figures are given gross with respect to the JV.
Dr. Kerim Sener, Managing Director, commented:
"The results of the past quarter are our best to date,
outperforming overall quarterly feasibility-study expectations by
92%. The tonnage of ore mined has exceeded 70,000 tonnes during the
period and grades remain substantially above 4 g/t gold. This
production rate has ensured a very healthy stockpile position
representing over four months of mill feed. Processing rates were
also maintained at the highest rates through the period, which on
an annualised basis suggests that the processing plant is already
capable of achieving throughput of almost 200,000 tonnes per annum,
or 33% above the designed rate. We remain confident in delivering
positively against our production guidance of at least 20,000
ounces for the year. I would like to take this opportunity to thank
our JV operational team in the achievement represented by the
results of this past quarter."
Q2 2018 Preliminary Production Results
Unit Q2 2018 Q1 2018 Q2 2017
(preliminary)
Open Pit - material moved
(wet) Tonnes 758,310 913,666 449,081
--------- --------------- -------- --------
Open Pit - ore mined (wet) Tonnes 70,426 68,591 59,702
--------- --------------- -------- --------
Open Pit - mined grade g/t Au 4.18 4.50 2.27
--------- --------------- -------- --------
Process plant throughput Tonnes 49,325 44,897 34,317
--------- --------------- -------- --------
Plant feed grade g/t Au 4.77 3.85 2.41
--------- --------------- -------- --------
Metallurgical recovery
rate % 94.3 95.1 93.9
--------- --------------- -------- --------
Troy
Gold produced Ounces 7,171 4,866 2,145
--------- --------------- -------- --------
Troy
Silver produced Ounces 49,508 30,864 15,634
--------- --------------- -------- --------
The Company will publish full results for the quarter ending 30
June 2018 by early August 2018.
This announcement contains inside information for the purposes
of Article 7 of EU Regulation 596/2014.
Contacts:
Ariana Resources plc Tel: +44 (0) 20 7407
3616
Michael de Villiers, Chairman
Kerim Sener, Managing Director
Beaumont Cornish Limited Tel: +44 (0) 20 7628
3396
Roland Cornish / Felicity Geidt
Panmure Gordon (UK) Limited Tel: +44 (0) 20 7886
2500
Adam James / James Stearns
Yellow Jersey PR Limited Tel: +44 (0) 7544 275
882
Tim Thompson / Harriet Jackson arianaresources@yellowjerseypr.com
/ Henry Wilkinson
Editors' Note
About Ariana Resources:
Ariana is an exploration and development company with mining
operations focused on epithermal gold-silver and porphyry
copper-gold deposits in Turkey, the largest gold producing country
in Europe. The Company is developing a portfolio of prospective
licences originally selected on the basis of its in-house
geological and remote-sensing database, which now contain a total
of 1.6 million ounces of gold and other metals (as at end-2017).
Ariana's objective is to cost-effectively add value to its projects
through focused exploration and to develop its operations,
primarily through well-financed joint ventures.
The Company's flagship assets are its Kiziltepe and Tavsan gold
projects which form the Red Rabbit Gold Project. Both contain a
series of prospects, within two prolific mineralised districts in
the Western Anatolian Volcanic and Extensional (WAVE) Province in
western Turkey. This Province hosts the largest operating gold
mines in Turkey and remains highly prospective for new porphyry and
epithermal deposits. These core projects, which are separated by a
distance of 75km, form part of a 50:50 Joint Venture with Proccea
Construction Co. The Kiziltepe Sector of the Red Rabbit Project is
fully-permitted and is currently in production. The total resource
inventory at the Red Rabbit Project and wider project area stands
at c. 605,000 ounces of gold equivalent (as at end-2017). At
Kiziltepe a Net Smelter Return ("NSR") royalty of up to 2.5% on
production is payable to Franco-Nevada Corporation. At Tavsan an
NSR royalty of up to 2% on future production is payable to
Sandstorm Gold.
In north-eastern Turkey, Ariana owns 100% of the Salinbas Gold
Project, comprising the Salinbas gold-silver deposit and the Ardala
copper-gold-molybdenum porphyry among other prospects. The total
resource inventory of the Salinbas project area is c. 1 million
ounces of gold equivalent. A NSR royalty of up to 2% on future
production is payable to Eldorado Gold Corporation.
Panmure Gordon (UK) Limited are broker to the Company and
Beaumont Cornish Limited is the Company's Nominated Adviser.
For further information on Ariana you are invited to visit the
Company's website at www.arianaresources.com.
Ends.
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END
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