Ariana Resources up 53 pct

Ariana is seeking environmental approvals The company wants to build a mine in 2014 and start production the same year.

The Red Rabbit project lies approximately 100 km east of the one million ounce vein-hosted Ovacik gold mine and 115 km northwest of the five million ounce Kisladag gold mine. The prospect hosts over 19 km in strike length of gold-silver bearing low-sulphidation epithermal quartz veins across an area of at least 3 km by 1 km.

Here is the company’s news release.

Multiple Gold-Silver Zones Discovered, Kiziltepe Sector

Ariana Resources plc (“Ariana” or “the Company”) is pleased to announce the results of recent exploration in the region of the Kiziltepe Sector of the Red Rabbit Gold Project in Western Turkey, which is held within a Joint Venture currently 82% owned by Ariana.

The Company has discovered four highly mineralised gold-silver zones within the Kepez and Karakavak prospect areas and is also pleased to report that it has substantially increased the number of gold-silver bearing veins mapped in the region.

Highlights:

• Highly silver-rich zone identified at Kepez Main, returning grades of up to 383 g/t Ag + 1.5 g/t Au and 234 g/t Ag + 1.7 g/t Au.
• Gold-rich area identified at Kepez Far West, returning results including 14.5 g/t Au + 39 g/t Ag and 5.9 g/t Au + 24 g/t Ag.
• Complex swarm of veins discovered at Kepez South, returning grades of up to 9.0 g/t Au + 58 g/t Ag.
• Karakavak South vein mapped and sampled, including grades up 20.8 g/t Au + 34 g/t Ag and 8.9 g/t Au.
• Current JORC resource is based on only 6% of the total veins mapped in the Kiziltepe Sector, reinforcing significant exploration upside.

Dr. Kerim Sener, Managing Director, commented:

“These exceptional exploration results reinforce our views on the prospectivity of the wider Kiziltepe area and continue to point towards future resource upside for our planned mine. It is important to note that our feasibility study is based on only 2km of veins out of 34km now mapped, the latest exploration having identified a further 12km of veins beyond that previously known. This underpins the potential for further discoveries to be made along the general trend of the Sindirgi Gold Corridor, much of which the Company holds under licence.

The Company remains fully committed to exploring the Kiziltepe Sector of the Red Rabbit Gold Project. While we wait for the final environmental approvals for the mine, the Company is continuing to evaluate its exploration data and to complete targeted low-cost exploration work to generate new drilling targets for testing during mine construction and start-up in 2014.”

Exploration Programme

During the Summer of 2013, the Company completed a comprehensive geological data review and mapping study across licences that it holds as part of the Kiziltepe Sector of the Red Rabbit Gold Project (Figure 1). An additional 12km of new low-sulphidation epithermal veins were mapped in this process, beyond the previously known 22km of veins. Follow-up of exploration targets generated in this process via field portable XRF analysis and complementary rock-chip sampling has led the discovery of three new zones of mineralisation within the Kepez prospect area alone. These areas are referred to as Kepez Far West, Kepez Main and Kepez South. One additional zone was also defined at the Karakavak prospect area and is also described here.

Kepez Area

The Kepez Area is located approximately 6km northeast of the Company’s flagship Kiziltepe deposit. The area is centred on the Kepez North deposit (Figure 2), which hosts 9,000 oz Au equiv. (JORC Indicated) and is a satellite prospect that will be mined as part of the planned Kiziltepe operation. Significant rock-chip results from Kepez North include 41.80 g/t Au, 33.20 g/t Au and 28.40 g/t Au. Historic drilling in this area produced intercepts of up to 4.0m @ 6.9 g/t Au.

In the Kepez Main area, a highly silver-rich extension of a known vein system was identified. Grab samples from steep scree slopes on the western side of Kepez Hill returned grades of 383.0 g/t Ag + 1.50 g/t Au, 234.0 g/t Ag + 1.73 g/t Au and 196.0 g/t Ag + 1.51 g/t Au. Previous sampling by the Company in this area concentrated on a pronounced silicified ridge that lies topographically above the new zone of mineralisation. Due to the steep topography and difficulty of access to mineralised sections of the vein, it was only possible to rock-saw sample certain parts of the new zone. Initial rock-saw sampling over 1m intervals returned grades of up to 114.0 g/t Ag and 0.63 g/t Au. Further work on this zone will commence towards the end of 2013 in order to fast track the discovery to the drilling stage. Importantly, Kepez Main is a vein system developed within a sulphide-rich rhyolitic porphyry that appears genetically related to much of the mineralisation in this area (Figure 2).

Approximately 3km northwest of Kepez Main lies an anomalous zone named Kepez West. Exploration rock-chip results from Kepez West yielded results including 9.77 g/t Au, 9.73 g/t Au + 68.1 g/t Ag and 6.30 g/t + 31.6 g/t Ag, from sulphide-rich quartz veins. Shallow reconnaissance drilling during 2012 provided a best intercept of 9.60m @ 3.02 g/t Au + 118.9 g/t Ag. During the Summer 2013 exploration programme, a new discovery was made in this area and is referred to as Kepez Far West. A cluster of silicified float samples returned grades of up to 14.45 g/t Au + 39.0 g/t Ag, 5.86 g/t Au + 24.2 g/t Ag and 4.27 g/t Au + 30.3 g/t Ag. In this area, an east-west corridor of moderate to strong argillic alteration has been identified. This corridor of alteration appears to connect to the mineralisation encountered at Kepez West and likely represents the top of an almost blind vein system.

The Kepez South prospect also represents a newly discovered vein system. A complex array of cross-cutting veins were mapped during the Summer 2013 mapping project, and then later sampled by Ariana’s follow-up team. Assay results from vein outcrops have returned grades of up to 9.00 g/t Au + 58.2 g/t Ag, 1.71 g/t Au + 35.0 g/t Ag and 1.59 g/t Au + 2.5 g/t Ag. The highest-grade results were returned from a single large vein, up to 1m wide in outcrop, striking NW-SE for approximately 220m. Detailed mapping of this structure is due to be completed. Due to the grades encountered and the continuity of this zone of mineralisation along strike, the target has been selected as a priority target for drill testing.

Karakavak Area

4km east of Kepez Main lies the Karakavak prospect. Karakavak is defined by a 2.5 x 2.5 km area containing several low-sulphidation epithermal veins; the largest individual vein (Karakavak Main) is 1.4km long and up to 6m wide. Historic rock-chip results from this vein have produced assay results of 2.77 g/t Au + 2.0 g/t Ag, 2.30g/t Au + 8.1 g/t Ag and 1.13 g/t Au + 3.1 g/t Ag. Recent rock-saw results have returned grades of 1m @ 1.94 g/t Au + 4.0 g/t Ag, 1m @ 1.15 g/t Au + 0.9 g/t Ag and 1m @ 1.07 g/t Au + 0.9 g/t Ag.

Just south of the Karakavak Main vein is another large (1.3km long and up to 2m wide) vein discovered in recent exploration, known as Karakavak South. This target shows anomalism in data collected from earlier soil sampling and IP/Resistivity geophysics programmes. First-pass exploration rock-chip results from this area returned with anomalous grades of up to 20.80 g/t Au + 33.5 g/t Ag, 8.89 g/t Au and 2.45 g/t Au + 22.1 g/t Ag. Both Karakavak Main and Karakavak South are untested by drilling and both areas remain a high priority for further exploration by the Company.