LONDON, April 12, 2018 /CNW/ - Meridian Mining SE (TSX
V: MNO) ("Meridian " or the "Company") today reported on
developments in its manganese and tin licences, in the state of
Rondônia, NW Brazil.
- The landbank for the Espigão do Oeste Manganese Project has
been enhanced following the recent DNPM approval of final reports
and the grant of new exploration tenure.
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- Final reports have been presented and approvals published for
licences 886303/2009 and 886170/2010. The approval of the final
reports in a important step in the process of converting these
licences to mining leases ("Lavras").
- A new licence has been approved for exploration, less than two
kilometres from the Company's plant (886252/2016). This licence
hosts manganese occurrences along extensions of prospective
structures identified in the Company's HeliTEM survey. The total
area of the manganese licences now covers 131,589 ha.
- In the Ariquemes tin district, thirteen exploration licences
have been approved, covering 96,173 ha.
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- The new licences are registered 100% to Meridian and provide a
strategic exploration foothold in addition to the joint-venture
area at Bom Futuro with project partners CooperSanta.
- Additional licence applications have been registered and await
approval. These licences target intrusive complexes and structures
associated with the Ariquemes tin province, identified through the
Company's assessment of the regional geophysical data.
"These new licences add significant strategic value to our
position in Rondônia", said Anthony
Julien, President and CEO of Meridian. "The new manganese
tenure enhances our land position as we increase our production
capacity, following the upgrades to our Jaburi Plant. Our
investment in the Ariquemes district reflects similarly our
confidence in the Bom Futuro project and regional exploration
opportunities through the district. Rondônia is one of the least
explored states in Brazil, and our
strategy is to take these properties through the cycle of
exploration to development to grow our business".
MANGANESE PROJECT
Meridian has gradually expanded production from colluvial and
vein sources at the Company's operations at Espigão do Oeste,
building to 51,580t of premium manganese oxide for the steel and
fertilizer industry in 2017. Production to date has been sourced
from a single mining lease (a "Lavra") and a series of Guias de
Utilização (GU's). The GU's offer scope of limited trial production
tonnage on exploration licences – normally capped at 6,000t of
manganese oxide per area.
The DNPM has completed assessment of two final exploration
reports presented for licences 886303/2009 and 886170/2010, These
licences host manganese mineralization on east-west trending
structures and are located to the north of the Lavra (Figure 1).
The assessment included site visits completed in March 2018. Approval of these reports has been
formally published on the Diário Oficial da União on 11 April 2018.
The approval of the final reports in an important step in the
process of converting these licences to mining leases ("Lavras").
The Company will now prepare an economic utilization plan for the
DNPM's assessment (Plano de Aproveitamento Econômico). Application
for mining tenure can be formally lodged after DNPM approval of
this plan. The Company will be lodging additional final reports on
other licences in the project areas through the course of the
year.
Opportunities are also being taken to consolidate new licences
in the project area. A new licence - 886252/2016 – has been
approved for exploration and is located to the immediate west of
the Rio Madeira Plant. The licence has a conductivity anomaly
extending northwest from manganese showings in the Jaburi area.
Targets defined by geophysical anomalies will be preliminary in
nature and not conclusive evidence of the likelihood of the
occurrence of a mineral deposit. Initial prospecting shows the
presence of manganese boulder trails at the western end of this
trend, with evaluation ongoing.
ARIQUEMES TIN DISTRICT
Meridian Mining's strategy in the Ariquemes tin district has
been to build a balanced portfolio, comprising advanced properties
such which offer near-term resource definition and development
potential, and grassroots properties to test for new
discoveries.
In 2017, the Company established a joint venture with
CooperSanta at Bom Futuro, where it has defined a significant Tin
Tailings Resource (Indicated Resources: 3.3Mt @ 626ppm Sn for
2,076t of tin; Inferred Resources: 57.9Mt @ 526 ppm Sn for
30,447t of tin). The Company has completed a positive
preliminary economic assessment on tailings reprocessing scenarios
and is currently evaluating financing options for construction of a
powerline and the next phase of resource definition and
exploration.
The Ariquemes district has produced over 270,000t of tin, with
principal operations being centred at Bom Futuro, Massangana, Santa
Barbara, and a range of satellite mines. A variety of
mineralization styles have been worked, including lower-grade bulk
tonnage stockwork and sheeted vein deposits, higher grade greisen
and pegmatite mineralization, and placer / palaeochannel
mineralization.
Meridian's strategy is test the near-mine discovery potential
for primary and placer mineralization in the Bom Futuro area, and
to extend its search more broadly under cover for palaeochannels
and concealed primary mineralization. An unconsolidated cover
sequence blankets much of the bedrock through the district. The
known deposits are centered on areas of exposure and have been
found by traditional prospecting methods. Modern under-cover
geophysical exploration methodologies have not been applied
regionally and offer scope to assess the potential for a new
generation of discoveries in the district. The Company is currently
conducting desktop targeting exercise, to formulate exploration
proposals whilst awaiting DNPM approvals on the broader tenure.
On behalf of the Board of Directors of
Meridian Mining SE
"Anthony Julien"
Anthony Julien
President, CEO and Director
QUALIFIED PERSON
The technical information about the Company's exploration
activities has been has been prepared under the supervision of and
verified by Dr Adrian McArthur
(B.Sc. Hons, PhD. FAusIMM), the Chief Geologist of Meridian Mining,
who is a "Qualified Person" within the meaning of National
Instrument 43-101.
ABOUT MERIDIAN
Meridian Mining SE is focused on the acquisition, exploration,
development and mining activities in Brazil. The Company is currently focused on
exploring and developing the Espigão manganese project, the Bom
Futuro tin JV area, and adjacent areas in the state of Rondônia.
The Company employs a two-pronged strategy with the objective of
growing pilot production while advancing a parallel multi-commodity
regional exploration program. Meridian is currently producing high
grade manganese at its project located at Espigão do Oeste.
Further information can be found at www.meridianmining.co.
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
Some statements in this news release contain forward-looking
information or forward-looking statements for the purposes of
applicable securities laws. These statements include, among others,
statements with respect to the Company's plans for exploration and
development of its properties and potential mineralization. These
statements address future events and conditions and, as such,
involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors,
which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements to
be materially different from any future results, performance or
achievements expressed or implied by the statements. Such risk
factors include, among others, failure to obtain regulatory
approvals, failure to complete anticipated transactions, the timing
and success of future exploration and development activities,
exploration and development risks, title matters, inability to
obtain any required third party consents, operating hazards, metal
prices, political and economic factors, competitive factors,
general economic conditions, relationships with strategic partners,
governmental regulation and supervision, seasonality, technological
change, industry practices and one-time events. In making the
forward-looking statements, the Company has applied several
material assumptions including, but not limited to, the assumptions
that: (1) the proposed exploration and development of mineral
projects will proceed as planned; (2) market fundamentals will
result in sustained metals and minerals prices and (3) any
additional financing needed will be available on reasonable terms.
The Company expressly disclaims any intention or obligation to
update or revise any forward-looking statements whether as a result
of new information, future events or otherwise except as otherwise
required by applicable securities legislation.
The Company cautions that it has not completed any feasibility
studies on any of its mineral properties, and no mineral reserve
estimate has been established. In particular, because the Company's
production decision relating to BMC's manganese project is not
based upon a feasibility study of mineral reserves, the economic
and technical viability of the Espigão manganese project has not
been established.
The TSX Venture Exchange has in no way passed upon the merits of
the proposed Arrangement and has neither approved nor disapproved
the contents of this news release. Neither TSX Venture
Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is
defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts
responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
SOURCE Meridian Mining S.E.