Please be advised that this
announcement was initially published at 07:00hrs on 23rd January 2018. This announcement is being
re-issued to facilitate display on third party vendor screens. All
content below remains unchanged.
Karelian Diamond Resources
plc
(“Karelian Diamonds” or “the Company”)
23 January 2018
DIAMOND SOURCE
PROXIMITY SUGGESTED BY SAMPLE RESULTS
- High Kimberlite Indicator Minerals (“KIMs”) Count Suggests
Close Proximity to Diamond Source
- Nature of Purple to Red Garnets Provides Additional
Indicator of Proximity
Karelian Diamond Resources plc (“Karelian Diamonds”) (AIM: KDR),
is pleased to announce that results from ODM Laboratory* on a
series of till samples taken in order to trace the origin of the
green diamond discovered by the Company in the Kuhmo region of
Finland (as announced on
31 January 2017) suggest that the
search is now coming into very close proximity to the source of the
diamond.
All of the 17 till samples contained concentrations of KIMs. One
sample, which was collected at a depth of 4.6 metres, showed such
exceptionally high levels (98 KIMs) that it may have been taken
close to or even above the kimberlite source of the diamond.
This sample comprised 38 purple to red peridotitic garnets
(G9/10 Cr-pyrope), nine orange mantle garnets and 40 chromite
grains in the 0.25 to 0.5 mm size range. The sample also contained
six purple to red peridotitic garnets (G9/10 Cr-pyrope), one orange
mantle garnet and four chromite grains in the 0.5 to 1.0 mm size
range.
All six purple to red peridotitic garnets in the 0.5 to 1.0 mm
size range and 15 from the 0.25 to 0.5 mm size range fractions had
what are known as “partial alteration mantles”. The significance of
these partial alteration mantles is that they are a further
positive indication of proximity as such mantles are generally not
preserved if the garnets have been transported any distance from
the kimberlite source.
In the Kuhmo region of Finland,
high numbers of KIMs, as seen in this sample, are normally only
seen in close proximity or directly over a kimberlite source. This,
together with the preserved partial alteration mantles on the
garnets, strongly suggests that the sample was taken directly over,
or in very close proximity to, the kimberlite body which could be
the source of the green diamond.
This release has been approved by Kevin McNulty PGeo, who is a
member of the Company's technical staff and holds a BSc/MSc in
Geology and Remote Sensing, in accordance with the guidance note
for Mining, Oil & Gas Companies issued by the London Stock
Exchange in respect of AIM Companies, which outlines standards of
disclosure for mineral projects.
*ODM Laboratory holds a Certificate
of Authorization from the Association of Professional Geoscientists
of Ontario and is used by diamond
explorers in all parts of Canada
and the world. During the Canadian diamond rush of the 1990s and
early 2000s, ODM contributed to many kimberlite discoveries by
processing and logging more than 50,000 samples.
Professor Richard Conroy, Chairman, Karelian Diamond
Resources plc commented:
“I am delighted with these results
which suggest that we may be very close to discovering the source
of the green diamond.”
Further Information:
Professor Richard
Conroy, Chairman, Karelian Diamond Resources plc |
Tel: +353-1-479-6180 |
Virginia Bull /
James Thomas / Nick Harriss, Allenby Capital Limited
(Nomad) |
Tel: +44-20-3328-5656 |
Jon Belliss /
Elliot Hance, Beaufort Securities Limited (Broker) |
Tel: +44-20-7382-8300 |
Michael Padley,
Lothbury Financial Services Limited |
Tel: +44-20-3290-0707 |
Don Hall, Hall
Communications |
Tel: +353-1-660-9377 |
www.kareliandiamondresources.com