JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – ASX-listed Botswana Metals has lodged three extension applications with the Botswana Department of Mines (DoM) for prospecting licences at its Maibele North nickel project.
Maibele North, which has a reserve of 2.38-million resource tonnes, was being developed through a joint venture (JV) with Botswana government-owned mining and smelting company BCL Limited. This partnership was now seeking to increase its resource tonnes, with a prefeasibility study (PFS) by project delivery firm WorleyParsons currently under way.
The PFS, which was due for completion in the first quarter, would deliver a new Joint Ore Reserves Committee- (Jorc-) compliant resource estimate incorporating more than 10 000 m of drilling undertaken at PL 110/94 in 2015.
Further, Botswana Metals expected the new resource calculation to reclassify the current Jorc-compliant resource from an inferred to an indicated and/or measured category.
In accordance with the JV agreement, BCL would earn a 40% interest in the three licences by spending $4-million and would be able to complete a bankable feasibility study to earn a 70% interest in the three licences.