Gold explorer Akobo Minerals has awarded the metallurgical test work contract at its Segele project, in Ethiopia, to Zimbabwean mineral processing company Peacocke and Simpson.
This, the company said on August 30, is an important step in preparations to start mining at the project and involves a series of laboratory tests to determine which series of equipment will most efficiently extract the gold from the mineralisation.
Akobo explained that the nature of gold deposits varies greatly in their complexity and that each deposit required the extraction equipment to be carefully selected.
A bulk sample of over 200 kg, containing abundant visible gold from three new drill holes, has been dispatched to specialist gold metallurgical test work laboratory Peacocke and Simpson.
Test work results are expected within weeks, and will result in a detailed plant design. After the test work, Akobo will advance immediately to plant design.
CEO Jørgen Evjen said the metallurgical test work forms a critical part of prefeasibility studies and that the miner is accelerating mining studies ahead of schedule.
“We are very positive about the results of the scoping study and the prefeasibility study is likely to give us a very solid footing on which to predict cash flow.
“Additionally, we are pleased with the performance of the Midroc contract drill rig and excited to see the intersections as we explore the Segele mineralisation ever deeper. It is of course always encouraging to see visible gold from the three test holes drilled for this purpose,” Evjen commented.
He explained that the choice to use Peacocke and Simpson was based on the company’s long history working on similar projects throughout Africa.