Cora Gold Ltd announced it had been awarded a nine-year Permis de Recherche [exploration permit] for Sanankoro II at the company’s flagship gold project in southern Mali, West Africa.
The news comes after the junior miner was awarded a Convention d’Établissement1.
The permit, granted under Mali’s new Mining Code 2019, covers the same area as the previous Sanankoro permit which expired in accordance with the Mining Code 2012.
Cora Gold has now completed the permitting process for the area key to its Sanankoro gold project on the Yanfolila belt in southern Mali.
On 1 March, the junior miner announced a 35,000-metre drill campaign at Sanankoro to increase the mineral resource estimate as well infill drilling to convert existing inferred resources to indicated. bityl.co/5pYO
Chief executive Bert Monro said that the company was delighted to have concluded the permitting process for the Sankoro II permit.
“This is one of the first to be awarded under the new mining code and a great endorsement of the work on the ground.
“Having recently announced the commencement of our largest ever drill programme, the company is looking forward to announcing the results of drill programme in due course as we look to accelerate exploration and development and target the delivery of a high margin oxide mining operation at Sanankoro.”
Sanankoro is made up of five contiguous permits encompassing circa 342 km2.
Previous work at the project identified gold oxide mineralisation to 100m depth and high-grade sulphide mineralisation at depth.
In December 2019, SRK Consulting (UK) Ltd defined exploration target for the project at 1-2Moz gold to a depth of 100m.
1On 29 January 2020 Cora Gold was awarded a Convention d’Établissement in respect of the area covered by the Sanankoro permit which expired, in accordance with the Mining Code, on 1 February 2020.
The Convention d’Établissement is one of the first to be awarded under Mali’s new Mining Code introduced in September 2019.
A Convention d’Établissement sets out the administrative, legal and fiscal framework under which the permit holder will operate when working on the relevant area.