[2007-09-20]  Luiri Gold invests $2.5 m in drilling, scoping studies
LUIRI Gold Mine has invested US $2.5m (K10 billion) this year in drilling and scoping studies at Dunrobin and Matala gold deposits in Mumbwa.

Company country representative, Harry Sibbenga said the recent 4,159 metre drilling programme confirmed high grade depth extension at the Matala gold deposit.

Mr Sibbenga said soil samples from the Matala dome mineralised structure have identified several new potential targets including the extension to the Matala deposit.

Mr Sibbenga said this when Ministry of Mines and Mineral Development deputy minister, Maxwell Mwale toured the mine in Mumbwa.

He also disclosed that Boart Longyear had began drilling a 10,000 metre hole at Luiri hills with significant potential in gold deposits.

“We have completed new resources update at Luiri hills project leading to increase of 76 per cent in total gold resources, including an inferred resources of 378,000 ounces among the findings”, he said.

He said the company has currently employed 50 locals.

And Mines deputy Minister Maxwell Mwale said that Luiri Gold could only surrender the area it does not need after it has defined the ore body available.

He said the first stage in mining was to define the size of the ore body and this required drilling to determine the core samples.

Mr Mwale admitted that the mining company were holders of a large-scale prospecting licence which he he defended saying it required a big area to put up infrastructure

“ It is an issue you cannot understand what is involved in large scale mining prospecting, you can’t just get a small area and apply for huge sums of money because when you put up large infrastructure befitting large scale operation, pay-back period goes above 15-20 years”, he said.


Source: © 2005 Zambia Daily Mail.