The mineralisation types being targeted within the Block 14 Project are broadly categorised into 3 groups, namely, Orogenic Gold, Volcanogenic Massive Sulphide, and Rift Associated Epithermal.

The geological framework of Block 14 is dominated by two distinct geological domains - the andesite dominated Gabgaba terrain of the Arabian Nubian Shield (ANS) to the east and the marine sediments of the Keraf Suture in Western Gabgaba; these are separated by the Eastern Gabgaba Fault System (EGFS). The central part of the licence is dominated by the Northern Gabgaba Graben, a downthrown portion of the Keraf that has been infilled by clastic sediments.

Galat Sufar South (GSS)
The GSS deposit is located in the central portion of the Galat Sufar Andesite Domain. The GSS deposit is located just south of the contact between marine sediments to the north (a remnant of the Keraf sediments) and an andesitic volcanic sequence to the south. The andesitic sequence is heterogeneous comprising lava flows, pyroclastic deposits and primary volcanic breccias.

Of importance to deposit formation, the andesite sequence contains a discrete 80 – 200 m wide volcaniclastic-sedimentary horizon which contains dioritic sills / dykes. Mineralisation and alteration are concentrated in this unit, which is bordered to the north and south by increasingly unaltered andesitic flows and further volcaniclastics.

The host unit has been sequentially and intensely altered ........

Given the gold grades and proximity to surface, the deposits will be mined via a conventional truck and excavator open pit mining method. The Wadi Doum deposit will be exploited through a single pit approximately 130 m deep. The GSS deposit will be exploited by eight separate pits, six of which are shallow oxide / transitional pits with minimal fresh material. The other two pits (East and Main) are approximately 260 and 270 m deep respectively.

A total of 79.9 Mt of crusher feed at a gold grade of 1.11 g/t is contained within nine pits across the two deposits, along with 119.2 Mt of waste, resulting in a strip ratio of 1.49:1.

A combined mining schedule demonstrates that a processing rate of 6.0 Mt can be sustained for 14 years, including an initial ramp up period in Years 1 and Year 2. A pre-production period of six months is utilized to strip waste from both deposits and stockpile minor amounts of crusher feed, ready for the commissioning of the processing plant. The pit at WD is mined for the first five years and blended with material from GSS. An elevated cut off grade over eight years maximises early returns by blending the significantly higher-grade material from the WD deposit and gain access to the higher grades at depth in the Main and East pits. The last six years rehandle the low-grade stockpiles.

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