Name of the Project
Segele gold project.

Location
Ethiopia.

Project Owner/s
Scandinavian gold exploration and mining company Akobo Minerals.

Project Description
A scoping study has confirmed the potential economics of the project.

Akobo Minerals is planning to mine the gold mineralisation using methods such as shrinkage stoping. Ore will be brought to surface using an incline shaft.

At peak production, almost 6 000 t a month of rock will be mined and this material will be fed into an industry-standard crushing and gravity circuit, with cyanidation where necessary.

The mine life is estimated at 27 months.

The company plans to buy a plant capable of processing 20 t/h, but will initially operate it at 10 t/h. The mine plant will be a turnkey solution comprising a grinder, concentrator and cyanide leach containers.

Akobo will manage the processing plant, but will appoint a mining contractor to do the mining.

The plant is expected to extract 90% of all gold in the mineralisation; this will be confirmed by ongoing metallurgical testwork.

Potential Job Creation
None stated.

Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
None stated.

Capital Expenditure
Total capital expenditure for establishing the mine plant is estimated at $8-million.

Planned Start/End Date
Mining is expected to start in October, with first gold extraction to begin in the first quarter of 2023. Full production is expected by the end of the second quarter of 2023.

Latest Developments
Akobo Minerals has encountered visible gold in its first drill hole at the third mineralisation style, 140 m from the main Segele area.

Akobo said in a statement on February 3 that, following the recent announcement of the discovery of the third mineralisation style, the exploration team continued work to understand the host structure by mapping and sampling. This work, ultimately, led to three trenches being dug where the host rock was uncovered.

Following the trench work, the team developed the first drill hole, which intersected

5 cm of mineralisation, with visible gold at 30 m downhole depth. However, the hole also intersected an artisanal (kofari) mining pit, where up to 1.5 m of potentially mineralised material had been mined in direct contact with the gold-bearing intersection.

A second hole has been started and will target the mineralisation about 5 m below the first intersection, the company has said.

The trenches have been examined in detail, providing the company with a better understanding of the structural geology that controls the gold mineralisation. The current drill programme will be adapted to target the structures in the host lithology based on these results.

If the current drill programme is successful, this mineralisation will immediately be accessible for mining and it will be a direct addition to the mine life of Segele.

Since the process plant and mine are under construction, the lead times from discovery to extraction can be very short, Akobo has said, claiming that mining could start as soon as the mineralisation is defined and deemed economic.

Moreover, the close proximity of the new discovery to the active mining area and processing plant will allow for a swift assessment of economic factors and possible fast-track to production, the company said. 

Key Contracts, Suppliers and Consultants
Peacocke and Simpson (metallurgical test work); IW Mining (mining contractor) and Solo Resources (processing plant).

Contact Details for Project Information
Akobo Minerals, tel +47 92 80 40 14 or email info@akobominerals.com.