Kavango Resources plc said that a concept report confirmed the economic viability of the iron oxide copper-gold (IOCG) target at the Great Red Spot (GRS) in the northern (Hukuntsi) section of the Kalahari Suture Zone KSZ), Botswana.
IOCG SYSTEMS
The exploration company added that the IOCG target exhibited similar geophysical signatures to the Olympic Dam IOCG ore-deposit owned and operated by BHP in Australia.
Kavango noted that IOCG systems can host highly valuable copper, gold and uranium ores.
The target lies in the Western Kalahari near the town of Tshane, Botswana.
BRIEF
Kavango commissioned the viability report, which was prepared by Executive Mining Group Ltd in Africa, to assess the economic viability of the target.
The viability report is conceptual and not a definitive study.
Kavango’s brief stated that it was developing a geophysical target, based on an Olympic Dam model.
The company added that its own target “probably lay deeper” than the Olympic Dam orebody, which lies beneath 300m of cover rock and is mined down to 900m depth.
REPORT
Kavango added that the report concluded that the IOCG target would be “economically viable at depths up to 2km below the surface, should sufficient bulk of mineralisation be discovered that is of sufficient grade”.
The company plans to release an exploration plan for the IOCG target in the coming weeks.
DRILL TEST
Chief executive Ben Turney said that the IOCG target at the GRS was “highly attractive” because it was so large, and the geophysical indicators so compelling.
“As this stage it is important to understand that the numbers presented are idealised.
“Until Kavango is able to drill test the IOCG target we cannot know what the geological formations are nor whether any mineralisation is present.”
Mr Turney added that the report aimed to give confidence that the IOCG target was worth pursuing.
GREAT RED SPOT – GRS
The GRS, within target area B, is a 5km x 8km magnetic body on the western margin of the Kaapvaal Craton.
Following interpretation of data, Kavango has concluded that the GRS is located in an “enhanced position for the potential for multiple ore deposit models, including both the IOCG and Ni/Cu magmatic sulphide systems”.
KALAHARI SUTURE ZONE
Kavango holds 16 prospecting licences covering 8,831.1km2, including 14 licences over a “significant portion” of the 450km long KSZ magnetic anomaly in the southwest of Botswana.
The company is exploring for nickel-copper-platinum group element-rich sulphide ore bodies.
Kavango has previously stated that its licensed areas show a geological setting with “distinct similarities” to that hosting world cass magmatic sulphide deposits such as those at Norilsk, Siberia.