JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – Samples from Red Rock Resources’ gold and manganese exploration licences, in Côte d'Ivoire, are undergoing chemical analysis, following “good” preliminary exploration programmes that the company says have generated promising early results. 

The group was, meanwhile, continuing with applications for other licence areas and adjusting to take account of new regulations.

“Côte d'Ivoire remains the area with the most potential for a positive surprise in our portfolio, since some of the licence areas seem highly prospective; however, as with all exploration at this early stage, skill and calculations are not enough.

“Success requires a significant component of luck. All we can do for now is wait,” Red Rock stated in a newsletter this week.

Red Rock reported in September that it had secured the rights to three gold exploration licences and four additional pending exploration permits in the country through its acquisition of Nemex Resources and Barclay Resources.

The Dabakala licence covered 393.4 km2 in the north of the country and was considered highly prospective for both gold and manganese, with the immediate vicinity having been targeted by explorers Newmont, Randgold Resources and Resolute Mining.

“Although regional geological mapping was carried out in 1999, the licence area received limited exploration until Nemex carried out a preliminary soil geochemical sampling programme over most of the licence area in late 2013.

“Along Dabakala's eastern margin, a 17-km-long banded manganese formation ridge is considered a target for manganese deposits. The ridge will be a focus of future field programmes alongside follow-up assessment of any gold anomalies evident from the pending soil geochemical results,” the company outlined in December.

Red Rock’s Alepe licence covered 392.6 km2 in south-eastern Côte d'Ivoire and contained more than 30 km of structural target in ground considered a potential cross-border extension of Ghana's gold-rich Sefwi greenstone belt.

The company noted late last year that a team had been mobilised to complete a preliminary soil geochemical sampling programme across the licence area, the results of which would form the basis of follow-up work.

In the east of the country,  the miner’s Abengourou licence was positioned along a 35-km-long sheared corridor containing magnetic intrusive rocks.

Previous owner Nemex had carried out a regional soil geochemical programme across Abengourou, followed by infill programmes over five anomalous areas, leading to the application for an extension to the southwest corner of the licence to capture an expected continuation along the structural trend.

“Future work will focus on follow-up testing of the existing soil anomalies in additional to soil geochemical sampling of the licence extension, once granted,” noted the group.