| Wed 16 May 2012, 8:00 | | FCR - FERRUM CRESCENT LIMITED - Completion Of JORC Compliant Moonlight Iron Ore |
|
FCR
FCR
FCR - FERRUM CRESCENT LIMITED - Completion Of JORC Compliant Moonlight Iron Ore
Mineral Resource Estimate
FERRUM CRESCENT LIMITED
(Previously Washington Resources Limited)
(Incorporated and registered in Australia and registered as an external company
in the Republic of South Africa)
(Registration number A.C.N. 097 532 137)
(External company registration number 2011/116305/10)
Share code on the ASX: FCR
Share code on AIM: FCR
Share code on the JSE: FCR ISIN: AU000000FCR2
("Ferrum Crescent" or "the company" or "the group")
COMPLETION OF JORC COMPLIANT MOONLIGHT IRON ORE MINERAL RESOURCE ESTIMATE
Highlights:
- New JORC compliant resource at Moonlight iron ore deposit of 307.8 million
tonne @ 26.9% Fe
- Inferred category of 172.1 Mt @ 25.3% Fe, Indicated of 83.0 Mt @ 27.4% Fe,
Measured 52.6 Mt @31.3% Fe
- Substantial increase in the confidence and classification of the Mineral
Resource
- The Mineral Corporation has also identified several prospective targets
south, east and west of the Moonlight Deposit
- Additional exploration to commence by the commissioning of a high-
resolution airborne magnetic survey and drilling at the earliest
opportunity
Ferrum Crescent Limited, the ASX, AIM and JSE quoted iron ore developer in
Limpopo Province, South Africa, today announces the completion of the Mineral
Resource estimate update for the Moonlight iron ore deposit as prepared by The
Mineral Corporation Consultancy Pty Ltd ("The Mineral Corporation").
As announced in the Company`s quarterly report for the period ended 31 March
2012, The Mineral Corporation was commissioned by Ferrum Crescent to carry out
an updated JORC compliant Mineral Resource estimate taking into account the
results of the Phase 3 drilling and assays on the Moonlight deposit ("the
Report"). Phase 3 consisted of 11 holes totalling 990m of diamond core drilling
and 13 holes totalling 1,600m of RC drilling. The entire Report, including the
results of drilling and other exploration to be carried out on the Julietta and
Gouda Fontein farms adjacent to the Moonlight farm and the resource estimate to
be carried out following that exploration, is anticipated to be completed by the
end of 2012.
The Mineral Corporation has conducted a thorough re-interpretation of the
geological structure of Moonlight, based on historical South African Iron and
Steel Industrial Corporation ("Iscor") data collated and validated by Ferrum
Crescent and recent, Ferrum Crescent exploration results. Within the constraints
of having a cut off grade of 16% iron, geological losses of 5% and a depth
constraint of between 100m and 250m, depending upon dip and the number of
mineralised zones present, the Mineral Resources at Moonlight are now estimated
to be as follows:
Category Gross Net (attributable to Ferrum
Crescent at 81.4%)
Tonne Fe SiO2 Al2O3 Contain Tonne Fe SiO2 Al2O Conta
(Mt) (%) (%) (%) ed (Mt) (%) (%) 3 ined
Metal (%) Metal
(Mt) (Mt)
Inferred 172.1 25.3 51.2 4.8 43.5 140.1 25.3 51.2 4.8 35.4
Indicate 83.0 27.4 50.1 4.0 22.7 67.6 27.4 50.1 4.0 18.5
d
Measured 52.6 31.3 47.3 2.5 16.5 42.8 31.3 47.3 2.5 13.4
Total 307.8 26.9 50.3 4.2 82.8 250.5 26.9 50.3 4.2 67.4
Tonne are rounded
Note: Ferrum Crescent is the operator and owns 81.4% of the Moonlight Project
Based on these results, the Board believes that whilst the total average Fe
grade has decreased slightly (previously estimated to be a JORC compliant
resource of 74Mt @ 33% Fe in the Indicated Resource category and 225Mt @ 29% Fe
in the Inferred Resource category), the tonnage has increased proportionately
along with a substantial increase in the confidence and classification of the
Mineral Resource. Furthermore, the Board is of the opinion that the depth
constraint of 250m (maximum) is conservative, particularly as the previous
estimation was not constrained in this way.
The revised structural interpretation presented by The Mineral Corporation has
also identified several targets south, east and west of the Moonlight Deposit,
which the Company believes warrants additional exploration by the commissioning
of a high-resolution airborne magnetic survey and drilling at the earliest
opportunity. Planning for these exploration activities has already commenced. A
summary of the estimate parameters is appended.
Commenting on the new Mineral Resource estimation, Executive Chairman Ed Nealon
said: "The Mineral Corporation has reinforced the Board`s confidence in the
quality of Moonlight project."
Mr Nealon added, "We knew how good the material is, from a metallurgical and
processing point of view. The work by The Mineral Corporation, which is of a
meticulously high standard and has been conducted with a level of conservatism
that you would expect from such a reputable firm, has built upon the previous
good work done by the Company and its advisers."
"The Company now looks forward to exploring the potential to add to the
Moonlight Mineral Resource, as well as to carrying out further drilling and
other testwork to confirm the mineralisation at the Julietta and Gouda Fontein
farms, adjacent to Moonlight. The Company`s mining right application, which is
expected to be determined in the very near future, covers these three farms, and
we are excited about this exploration potential."
For further information, please visit www.ferrumcrescent.com or contact:
Australia and Company enquiries
Ferrum Crescent Limited
Ed Nealon T: +61 8 9380 9653
Executive Chairman
Bob Hair T: +61 414 926 302
Managing Director
UK enquiries
Ocean Equities Limited (Broker)
Guy Wilkes T: +44 (0) 20 7786 4370
Ambrian Partners Limited (Nominated Adviser)
Richard Morrison T: +44 (0) 20 7634 4700
Jen Boorer T: +44 (0) 20 7634 4700
Newgate Threadneedle (Financial PR)
Graham Herring/Beth Harris T: +44 (0) 20 7653 9850
South Africa enquirie
Sasfin Capital
Leonard Eiser T: +27 11 809 7500s
Competent Persons` Statement:
The information that relates to Exploration Results and Mineral Resources in the
report of which this statement is a summary, is based on information compiled by
Stewart Nupen, who is registered with the South African Council for Natural
Scientific Professionals (Reg. No. 400174/07) and is a member of the Geological
Society of South Africa. Mr. Nupen is employed by The Mineral Corporation, which
provides technical advisory services to the mining and minerals industry. Mr.
Nupen has sufficient experience which is relevant to the style of mineralisation
and type of deposit under consideration and to the activity which he is
undertaking to qualify as a Competent Person as defined in the 2004 Edition of
the `Australasian Code for Reporting Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and
Ore Reserves` and as defined in the June 2009 Edition of the AIM Note for Mining
and Oil and Gas Companies. Mr. Nupen consents to the inclusion in this statement
of the matters based on his information in the form and context in which it
appears.
Appendix: Mineral Resource estimation details
Drilling Technique
Drilling data from Iscor and three phases of Ferrum Crescent exploration inform
the estimates. The drilling comprised open hole, RC and diamond core drilling
and was all vertical. A total of 122 RC holes and 89 diamond core holes were
accepted for the estimates.
Sampling Technique
Limited information on the sampling techniques for the Iscor data is known. For
the Ferrum Crescent exploration, industry standard sampling techniques were
adopted. RC samples (1m-2m) were riffle split on site and diamond core samples
were halved with a diamond saw. Primary samples and quality control samples were
submitted for analysis to Genalysis Laboratory Services (Johannesburg) for
analysis by Intertek Utama Services (Jakarta).
Drill Sample Recovery
Limited information on the sample recovery for the Iscor data is known. With the
exception of surficial rubble, the sample recovery through the mineralised zones
for the Ferrum Crescent exploration was acceptable.
Geological Logging
The Iscor data included electronic codes for the main lithological unit, certain
sub-units, and the core bedding angles. All geological information during Ferrum
Crescent exploration was logged in acceptable detail, and stored in an MS Access
database. This included lithological, structural and geotechnical information.
Quality of Assay Data / QAQC
No information on the quality of assay data for the Iscor data was obtained. The
Ferrum Crescent samples were analysed at an accredited laboratory (Genalysis /
Intertek), and appropriate standards, blanks and duplicates inserted in the
sample stream. The Mineral Corporation has reviewed the results from these
control samples and considers the accuracy and reliability of the analyses to be
acceptable.
Verification of sampling and assaying
The Iscor data was verified by means of the identification and re-surveying of
borehole collars in the field, and by means of twin-drilling. On the basis of
the twinning, the open-hole data from Iscor (142 holes) was considered
unacceptable for Mineral Resource estimation. The remaining RC and diamond core
drilling showed reasonably good correlation of mineralisation depth and
abundance, and was considered acceptable.
Surveying
All Ferrum Crescent boreholes were surveyed by a registered surveyor. Of the
Iscor holes, 127 collars were re-surveyed by a registered surveyor, and good
correlation between the historical and Ferrum Crescent survey locations were
found.
Auditing
No audits of the Iscor exploration results, with the exception of the
verification described above have been undertaken. The Mineral Corporation
reviewed the results of the first two phases of Ferrum Crescent`s drilling prior
to carrying out the estimates. Phase 3 of Ferrum Crescent`s exploration was
carried out by The Mineral Corporation.
Database Integrity
The compiled database for the estimates was housed in an MS Access database. In
addition to the verification and QA/QC already described, validation of the
sampling data for over-lapping sampling intervals, duplicate samples and
spurious data was carried out.
Geological Interpretation
A thorough re-interpretation of the geological structure, and correlation
between mineralised zones was carried out. Magnetite is interpreted to be hosted
in four zones (Zone A to D), which have been subjected to folding, parallel to
the regional (Limpopo Mobile Belt) orientation. Younger faulting, oriented
parallel to and orthogonal to this trend are interpreted. The geological
interpretation is considered appropriate for the level of estimates, and the
Mineral Resource classification takes the confidence in the interpretation into
account.
Dimensions
D Zone is approximately 200m x 400m x 30m
C Zone (West) is approximately 1400m x 250m x 35m
C Zone (East) is approximately 1100m x 700m x 30m
B Zone is approximately 1500m x 800m x 25m
A Zone is approximately 1600m x 1200m x 17m
Geological Modelling
Wireframes representing the geological interpretation were generated to
constrain the block model.
Drillhole Compositing Procedures
5m vertical borehole composites were utilised, informed by an assumed minimum
mining height. These composites were not at right angles to the mineralised
zones, but as the dips are shallow (7 to 30 and typically less than 20) and a 3-
dimensional block model was used, the use of vertical composites is unlikely to
introduce any bias.
Variography
Variograms parallel to the dip of the mineralised zones were calculated and
modelled. Vertical grade distribution utilised downhole variograms. Variograms
of between 150m and 250m were obtained in the plane of the mineralised zone and
between 7m and 30m downhole.
Drillhole spacing
The combination of Ferrum Crescent`s exploration and the KIOL data has provided
an acceptable drillhole spacing which ranges from 100m x 100m to 200m x 300m.
Block Model
Horizontal block dimensions were 50m x 50m and 5m in the vertical, informed by
borehole spacing and a conceptual minimum mining unit. The block model was
rotated to the average dip (12).
Grade Estimation Methodology
Ordinary Kriging was employed for grade estimates. A three stage search strategy
was employed. A minimum of 5 and a maximum of 20 samples was used within the
range of the variogram for the first search. The second search was twice the
volume of the first, and the third extended to the limits of the mineralised
zones. The search and variogram ellipse were oriented to local dip and strike
variations using "Dynamic Anisotropy" in Datamine Studio v3.
Accuracy and confidence
Plan and section plots were analysed to evaluate the adherence of the estimation
methodology to the geological model. The methodology was found to honour the
grade continuity trends, which are assumed to be parallel to the dip of the
mineralised zones.
Moisture
Tonnage was calculated on a dry basis.
Bulk Density
The Iscor data included density measurements for all diamond core holes. No
information was provided on the methodology used to obtain these density data.
The diamond core data from Ferrum Crescent exploration included density
measurements obtained by the `water immersion` method. A strong correlation
between density and Fe was observed, and used to estimate block density after
grade estimation.
Mining Factors
A minimum mining unit of 50m x 50m x 5m aided in the selection of block size.
Approximate stripping ratios were calculated to inform the maximum depth
constraint for the Mineral Resources.
Metallurgical Considerations
On the basis of preliminary test work, The Mineral Corporation has assumed that
the Fe can be extracted by means of comminution and magnetic separation to form
a magnetite concentrate.
Cut-off Parameters
A cut-off of 16% Fe and a maximum depth of between 250m and 100m depending on
dip and the number of mineralised zones was applied.
Resource classification
The borehole spacing, surface mapping, structural interpretation, variography
and kriging error estimates inform Mineral Resources which are classified as
Inferred, Indicated and Measured. In areas of well-defined geological structure
and modest grade variability, the 100m x 100m grid is sufficient for Measured
Mineral Resources.
Resource Reporting
The Mineral Resource estimates have been compiled in accordance with the
guidelines defined in the Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration
Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves (The JORC Code, 2004 Edition).
16 May 2012
Johannesburg
Sponsor
Sasfin Capital (a division of Sasfin Bank Limited)
Date: 16/05/2012 08:00:01 Produced by the JSE SENS Department.
The SENS service is an information dissemination service administered by the
JSE Limited (`JSE`). The JSE does not, whether expressly, tacitly or
implicitly, represent, warrant or in any way guarantee the truth, accuracy or
completeness of the information published on SENS. The JSE, their officers,
employees and agents accept no liability for (or in respect of) any direct,
indirect, incidental or consequential loss or damage of any kind or nature,
howsoever arising, from the use of SENS or the use of, or reliance on,
information disseminated through SENS.
