Volume 9 Edition 3 2012 - The ASIA Miner

Central AsiaGold resource at Chaarat boosted 27%DRILLING by Chaarat Gold Holdings during2011 has resulted in a 27% incr ease in thegold resource at the Chaarat Gold Pr oject.The resource now stands at 5.59 million ounces,up from 4.406 million ounces announcedin February 2011.The Tulkubash section of the r esource,which includes mostly free milling mineralization,increased by 56% to 501,000 ouncesfrom 321,000 ounces while the sulphide orrefractory section of the r esource increasedMining of the non-refractory section of the Chaarat GoldProject – Tulkubash – is expected to start later this year.by 25% to 5.09 million ounces.During the 2011 exploration season 171new core drill holes for 29,094 metr es weredrilled and subsequently incorporated intothe resource database. Drilling has been focusedon three main projects, which Chaaratis developing into viable mining pr ojects, inorder to establish the foundation for a largescale,low-cost mining operation.At Tulkubash the company continues towork on the documentation required for theapplication for the grant of a mining licenceand it plans to start mining later this yearwith gold production due to commence in2013 once the processing plant has beencommissioned.The oxide mineralization hosted in the Tulkubashquartzite can be identified over a 6kmstrike length. Drilling has focused on a small500 metre section, where infill drilling has allowedthe delineation of a mineable r eserve.The considerable on-strike extension potential,which is likely to facilitate a rapid increasein the production rate, has been demonstratedby 440 metres of wide-spaced drilling tothe north of the deposit. Drilling has been focusedon the near surface part of the mineralizationwhich can be extracted by low-stripratio open pit mining, the oxide or e fromwhich is expected to be mostly free milling.The Contact pr oject hosts 2.78 millionounces, an increase of 39% over the pr e-vious resource update. This increase wasaccompanied by a small impr ovement ingrade to 4.32 grams/tonne. Contact is openboth on strike as well as down dip. Thewidth of the mineralization and its grade improvewith depth.The Main pr oject, formerly known asM2400 and M3000, is now r ecognized as asingle large body of 1.51 million ounces, anincrease of 17%, with the combined gradefalling slightly to 4.14 grams/tonne. Only 13holes were drilled in this project in 2011, howeverit is expected that the size will increasesignificantly and the grade will improve onceunderground drilling can take place followingthe development of an adit.Chaarat’s CEO Dekel Golan says, “I believethat the tremendous potential of Chaarat isbeing demonstrated by successful, rigor ousexploration activity and the development ofthe infrastructure needed to support a largescaleoperation. The significantly impr ovedpolitical climate in the Kyrgyz Republic is givinga welcome added impetus to our operationsduring this development phase, whilstTulkubash, the non-refractory section of thedeposit, is being fast tracked to developmentin order to stimulate early cashflow.”Study shows feasibility of Oracle coal projectA TECHNICAL feasibility study conducted forOracle Coalfields on Block VI of the Thar Coalfieldin Sindh Province, Pakistan, demonstratesthe technical and economic viability of themining project. The Thar Coalfield is 380kmfrom Karachi, and covers a total ar ea of9100sqkm with Block VI covering 66.1sqkm.The exploration licence for Block VI is heldby Oracle’s 80%-owned subsidiary , SindhCarbon Energy, a private company incorporatedin Sindh Province. On November 2, 2011,Sindh Carbon submitted an application forconversion of the licence to a mining licence.The study found there are JORC-compliantcoal resources within the 20sqkm miningarea of 529 million wet tonnes with gross calorificvalue (CV) of 3182k calories per wet kilogramwith ash content at 5.89% andsulphur at 0.91%. There are probable reservesin phase 1 of the mining area of 113 millionwet tonnes with gr oss CV of2831kcal/wkg, ash 11.50% and sulphur0.79% with a strip ratio of 8.54 bank cubicmetres per 1 wet tonne of lignite.The total capital expenditure for open castmine development is estimated at US$610million, including US$224 million for miningequipment, which will provide for annual ligniteproduction of 5 million wet tonnes overa mine life of 23 years. The total cash cost ofproduction is estimated at US$42.21 per wettonne and the coal is confirmed to be of aquality suitable for power generation.Oracle’s CEO Shahrukh Khan says, “This isanother important step for Oracle as we lookto provide a sustainable source of energy toPakistan and bring its first large scale openpitcoal mine into production. The study indicatesthe technical and economic viability ofthe project.“Further work is continuing to r efine theoverall project economics, specifically in r e-spect of offtake agreements with respect tothe proposed mine-mouth power and the miningcontractor opportunities, prior to makingany definitive announcements on the overalleconomics. The Government of Sindh, in recentpublished announcements, recognizesa project IRR in excess of 20% assumingcompletion of certain financing milestones.The Board looks forward to progressing thetechnical feasibility study to bankable standardlater this year, when we will also seek directfunding for the mining project.”The coalfield is in close pr oximity to goodinfrastructure, with ongoing development ofa road and power network in the region.14 | ASIA Miner | May/June 2012