West Africa Gold Inc
(OTC BB: WAGI) Last Update: 10:19:03 AM ET Oct 6, 2004
West Africa Gold Inc. Announces Re-Assessment of Its 'In Darset' High Value Gold Property in Gold Rich Mali, West Africa
US$1,2 Billion of Gross 'In Ground Value' at Current Commodity Prices
NEW YORK, NY, Oct. 06, 2004 (MARKET WIRE via COMTEX) -- West Africa Gold, Inc. (WAGI) takes pleasure in announcing that the Chairman of its Advisory Committee, Dr Wayne P Colliston, has completed his report on the 438 square kilometres "In Darset" gold-copper property. This property is situated in the gold-rich Republic of Mali, Africa's third biggest gold producer and having enormous potential for further gold discoveries; it is estimated to have in excess of 350 tons of recoverable gold. In Darset has an estimated reserve/resource of 2.5 million oz (78 tons of gold).
West African Gold, Inc. has acquired certain rights to prospect for minerals in five extensive concession areas in the West African State of Mali which is currently one of the most exciting gold producing areas in the world. "In Darset" has significant gold with associated copper values and silver by-product.
BACKGROUND
The major producing gold mines and exploration targets in Mali today are mostly confined to Birimian Series greenstone belts that extend into western Mali from neighbouring Senegal, and across the central and southern parts of the country. These granite-greenstone belts are Archaean-age bodies (2700 - 3500 Ma) and typically consist of ancient metasediments and volcanic sequences, granitic rocks and various intrusives, usually highly folded and sheared through geologic time. The belts appear typically as older remnants surrounded by younger granites. Gold mineralisation is commonly found in these belts throughout Africa, particularly within shear zones and quartz veins.
An example of a producing gold mine in Mali is the Sadiola Hill gold mine which is owned by AngloGold, IAMGold of Canada, the Government of Mali, and the International Finance Corporation (IFC). It is situated in the west of the country, on the Mali-Senegal shear zone, and has ore reserves estimated at some 120 tons (3,3 Moz) of gold. Sadiola produces about 600 000 oz of gold annually, making it Mali's largest producer. The open pit has a life of 12 years at present production levels, with a grade of around 3,2 g/t gold at a reported production cost of 146 USD/oz.
THE "IN DARSET" PROJECT
This is located in the north of the country, a relatively short distance from the Algerian border. The In Darset permit area contains the largest resource base and the best grade of the Malian projects of WAGI.
It is located in the Adrar des Iforas region, on the western side of the Trans-Sahara highway which connects Oran, Algeria on the Mediterranean coast with Gao on the Niger River to the south. The 1175 kilometre road from Bamako to Gao on the Niger River is paved and there are twice-daily ferries across the river to the north bank for vehicles of all sizes up to full-sized tractor trailers.
The region lies in the 'Kidal Cercle' or special development region centred around the town of Kidal, located some 150 kilometres south of the Aguel'hoc junction. The main village in the area is Tessalit in the north of the In Darset permit, near the Algerian border.
The permit area is largely underlain by Late Proterozoic metamorphosed volcano-sedimentary rocks that have been intruded by lesser large-scale syn- to post-tectonic granitoids and smaller gabbroic bodies. The area is underlain by greywacke schists and marine-laid tillites. In Darset has a single basin of Pan-African conglomerates surrounding an anorogenic alkaline complex. The areas are located over a major structural suture zone expressed by a significant gravimetric low.
The Algerian deposits on the eastern side of the Adrar antiform include the Tirek and Amesmessa deposits with reported ore reserves of 4,96 Mt grading 14,1 g/t of gold (2,25 Moz) at Amesmessa, and 0,59 Mt grading 25,2 g/t of gold (0,45 Moz) at Tirek. The southern extensions of the Amesmessa structure pass into the Mali side of the Adrar des Iforas, and the structural settings of the eastern and western sides are essentially similar.
The In Darset permit area in Mali covers an area of 438 square kilometres. A total of seven lenses of mineralisation have been identified by an extensive sampling program. The following grades are reported -
Lens Au g/t Pb % Zn % Cu % BaNo. SO41 17,0 tr 0,40 4,32 1,4 0,7 5,95 - 1,0 1,8 24,60 -3 14,0 - 0,90 3,3 7,54 50,0 tr 0,65 4,6 14,0 tr 1,05 9,55 9,5 0,4 1,55 5,2 10,66 tr 0,3 2,70 tr7 1,0 0,6 18,00 -The overall reserve / resource base reported to date is -Gold -Proven Reserve : 960 000 tons at 5.2 g/t gold (161 000 oz)Probable Reserve : 8.3 Mt @ 4.0 g/t gold (1 067 000 oz)Possible Reserve : 11.4 Mt @ 3.5 g/t gold (1 282 800 oz)Giving a total of 2 510 800 ozAt a gold price of US $400/oz, the gross value in the ground is $1 004 320 000
Other metals -
Average silver content - 12.5 g/t (8 303 000 oz)At a silver price of US $6.00/oz, the gross 'in-ground' value is about $50 millionAverage Copper content - 0.17% Cu (35 122 tons)At a copper price of US $ 2 800/ton, the gross 'in-ground' value is about $100 million
At the current metal prices, this provides a value estimate for the "In Darset" property in the range of US $1.2 billion.
The CEO of WAGI, Michael G Saner, said today that this is another prime property in the West Africa Gold, Inc. portfolio, and we are moving rapidly to develop the potential of this property.
The full Report by Dr Colliston on the "In Darset" Property is available for download on the Company's Corporate Web Site, www.westafricagold.com.
About West Africa Gold Inc :-
West Africa Gold (www.westafricagold.com) is an aggressive gold exploration company that has acquired certain rights to mine for minerals, primarily gold, in various regions of the Republic of Mali and in North America.
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