Aim- and BSE-listed Botswana Diamonds is advancing towards resource assessment at its Thorny River diamond project, in South Africa, following a recent kimberlite discovery.
Following the discovery of a second kimberlite blow at Thorny River, independent specialists aggregated all the geophysical and drilling data to model the potential kimberlite volume of the two adjacent blows and the connecting kimberlite.
The updated model estimates a range for the two blows of between 300 000 t and 600 000 t in aggregate, which is up to a three-fold increase on the volume following the modelling of the first blow.
Sample processing results from the May programme are expected to be available by the end of July, which will determine geological and grade continuity.
The company's expectation, based on the historical grade of the Thorny River/Marsfontain dykes, is 60 carats per hundred tonnes.
Botswana Diamonds now plans to drill the potential mineralisation between the two kimberlite blows to test its belief that the two blows potentially join.
This will also refine the estimate of volumes, the miner said on June 10.
Chairperson John Teeling said the revised model, potentially tripling the estimate of contained kimberlite, is “very positive”.
“The extension of the blow eastwards toward the blow discovered in earlier drilling offers the tantalising prospect of joining the two into one orebody. We expect to drill the area between the two blows in August. These are significant steps towards potentially discovering a commercial diamond orebody," he elaborated.