Southern Arc Minerals (CVE:SA)(OTCQX:SOACF) released Thursday what it said were encouraging drilling results from its Bising target in the Mencanggah prospect on its West Lombok property in Indonesia, as the company also announced its second quarter financial results.
Late last year, the Indonesia-focused explorer announced plans to restart drilling at West Lombok, following a strategic review that also decided the company would retain its "no-cost" joint venture interest in the East Elang project, sell its Taliwang project and reliniquish its Sabalong asset.
The narrowed focus has allowed Southern Arc to dedicate its resources in the near-term to the advancement of West Lombok, while also being able to consider new gold-focused opportunities within Indonesia and other countries.
After the decision last year, the company mobilized three drill rigs to its Bising target at West Lombok, and started a phase 2 drill program to infill and expand the zones of mineralization next to wide mineralized intercepts found in phase 1.
So far, it has completed 11 holes as part of the phase 2 program, with results to be included in an NI 43-101 resource estimate for the property - targeted for the middle of this year.
Notable results reported Thursday include 66.8 metres at 0.66 grams per tonne (g/t) gold and 2.4 g/t silver in hole MCG041, including 22.9 metres at 1.16 g/t gold and 2.7 g/t silver.
Hole MCG042 also hit 53.2 metres at 1.04 g/t gold and 1.4 g/t silver, including 1 metre at 9.67 g/t gold and 0.8 g/t silver, and 0.30 metres at 10.2 g/t gold and 61.3 g/t silver.
"We are encouraged that wide intervals averaging greater than 1 g/t gold mineralization have been intersected in a large proportion of the diamond drill holes in the Bising target," said president and COO, Dr. Mike Andrews. "These results continue to demonstrate the consistency and width of mineralization at Bising."
The width of the main Bising epithermal body, of up to 66 metres in surface outcrop, is thought to results from the intersection of geological structures.
With this initial phase 2 exploration now complete, the rigs were mobilized to the Tibu Serai target at the Mencanggah prospect, where surface channel samples returned the highest grade mineralization on the property so far, the company said.
Once all the results are received, its exploration team and board will review to determine the next steps to advancing the West Lombok project.
The West Lombok project covers a 13-km long by 7-km wide structural corridor of mineralization, hosting porphyry copper-gold and epithermal gold deposits. The two main epithermal prospects on the property, Pelangan and Mencanggah, cover broad areas of 4 km by 5 km and 6.5 km by 4.5 km, respectively.
Last November, the company secured the forestry permit required to conduct drilling on the property, allowing it to restart exploration.
As Southern Arc is an exploration company and does not generate revenues, the company incurred a net loss of $5.17 million in the quarter that ended December 31, or 5 cents per share. It had total assets of $54.3 million, and working capital of $17.2 million at the end of the period.
With regards to its other remaining East Elang property, the company said that though the asset is considered highly prospective, exploration has been deferred until Southern Arc receives the appropriate forestry permits. Under a joint venture deal signed in October 2010, Vale can earn a 75% stake in East Elang by taking the property to bankable feasibility study.
The Canadian junior also said Thursday that it is "actively pursuing" a number of acquisition and partnership opportunities, both within Indonesia and in other countries.
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