Aim-listed copper and gold miner Cradle Arc has been granted an extension on its mining licence by the Botswana Ministry of Mineral Resources, Green Technology and Energy Security.
The licence is now valid until May 31, 2020, and covers 28.5 km2, which includes the Thakadu openpit and adjacent Makala underground deposit – these are about 70 km southeast of the company’s flagship Mowana copper mine.
Thakadu previously delivered ore to the Mowana processing plant, up to June 2015, under former ownership. The deposit has a Joint Ore Reserves Committee- (Jorc-) compliant indicated mineral resource estimate of 2.3-million tonnes at 1.11% copper and 11 g/t silver.
Makala has a Jorc-compliant inferred mineral resource estimate of 11.5-million tonnes at 1.46% copper and 34 g/t silver.
Shallow, historical mining between the two deposits indicates the potential for future infill drilling to join the two deposits along strike to create a total strike length of more than 3 km.
“Now that we have been formally granted an extension to the mining licence until the end of May 2020, we can, subject to obtaining the requisite finance, start to plan for the additional drilling required in the future to enhance the confidence of the existing resource.
“This would be a vital step towards completing a feasibility study for a potential underground mining operation using access from the base of the existing openpit,” noted Cradle CEO Kevin van Wouw.