Ferro-Alloy Resources Ltd (LON:FAR), the vanadium producer and developer of the large Balasausqandiq vanadium deposit in Southern Kazakhstan, has announced the completion of drilling for ore body one and the partial completion of drilling on ore bodies 2, 3 and 4, following a total of 19,720 metres of drilling undertaken in 2022.
Phase 1 Update
The Company has previously announced a resource and a reserve estimate for OB1 of 23 million tonnes, sufficient for a mine-life of more than 20 years for Phase 1 of the project (processing 1 million tonnes of ore per year).
As part of the ongoing bankable feasibility study, and with the objective of ensuring a high degree of definition of the OB1 folded deposit, the decision was taken to increase the drilling meterage on OB1 and the Company provides the following update:
· OB1 drilling programme now complete;
· Assaying for OB1 is expected to be completed by the end of December 2022;
· Updated resource estimate for OB1 expected to be finalised by SRK Consulting (Kazakhstan) Limited and announced during Q1 2023; and
· Ore reserves required to support Phase 1 of the project will be derived from the revised resource estimates as part of the BFS.
Phase 2 Update
The drilling programme for OB2, OB3 and OB4, that will support Phase 2 of the project (an additional 3 million tonnes of ore processed per year), has been completed so far as possible. There is an area of difficult topography (not expected to create difficulties for actual mining) and the Company is currently assessing the options available to access the undrilled area or omit it from the BFS if sufficient tonnes of resource and reserve are assessed from the remaining area.
Nick Bridgen, Ferro-Alloy Resources CEO, commented: “I am very pleased to report the completion of the drilling programme for OB1, and the drilling progress made that will support Phase 2. The early results of the expanded bankable feasibility study are expected to confirm the potential for Balasausqandiq to become a globally significant vanadium operation, and I look forward to updating our shareholders on the results of the exploration and metallurgical programmes in the New Year.”
