REG - Alba Mineral Resrcs. - Clogau Operational Update

Alba Mineral ResourcesAnnouncement

16/08/2023 07:30

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RNS Number : 4869J  Alba Mineral Resources PLC  16 August 2023

Alba Mineral Resources Plc / EPIC: ALBA / Market: AIM / Sector: Mining

 

16 August 2023

Alba Mineral Resources Plc

("Alba" or the "Company") 

 

Clogau Operational Update

Alba Mineral Resources Plc (AIM: ALBA) provides the following update regarding
the dewatering and associated safety and access works at its primary target
within the Clogau-St David's Gold Mine in north Wales ("Clogau" or the
"Mine"), the Lower Llechfraith workings.

Key points

·      As announced on 4 July 2023, ecological permits have been granted
at Clogau comprising a European Protected Species Licence ("EPSL"), water
discharge permit, and water abstraction (or transfer) licence, in relation to
the dewatering and associated exploration of the Lower Llechfraith workings.

 

·      Dewatering was initially successfully undertaken down to c. six
metres depth, however unseasonal and exceptionally heavy rainfall during the
dewatering period, some three times higher than the average for the time of
year, has resulted in the workings reflooding, following which the Company has
requested from NRW an extension to the higher rate (100m3/day) abstraction
rate, which the Company is awaiting approvals to undertake.

 

·      The Company is also in the process of applying for formal
variations to both the discharge and abstraction permits to increase the
applicable thresholds under both permits.

 

·      Given the initial success of the dewatering exercise, upon
obtaining the revised approvals the Company expects to proceed to a successful
completion of the dewatering process.

 

·      Encouragingly, all safety works at Level 2 and Level 3 have now
been completed, which will allow safe access down to Level 4 once dewatering
has been completed.  Alba's contractors are in the process of completing a
cabin structure on the Llechfraith Adit level which will provide the final bat
exclusion and noise mitigation measure in advance of blasting and other
exploration activities at Level 4, post dewatering.

 

·      In relation to the waste tip at Clogau, the Company is close to
submitting the pre-application enquiries to the local planning authority as a
precursor to the submission of a full planning application for the
exploitation of the tip.

 

·      Across the wider Dolgellau Exploration Project, regarding the
planned aerial, UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) geophysical survey over some key
regional gold targets, we are advised that the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA)
has issued the CAA Operational Authorisation which sets out the agreed safety
case for operating the UAV in the target area, and that the final step is to
have the area approved and notified. As such, the Company remains on track to
commence the survey in September 2023.

 

 

Further Details Regarding Operations within Lower Llechfraith Workings

Alba's principal exploration target within the Mine is the Lower Llechfraith
workings, which have been flooded for the past 2-3 decades.  In July 2023,
Alba was granted an abstraction permit and a discharge licence by Natural
Resources Wales ("NRW") to enable it to dewater the flooded workings within
the Lower Llechfraith to enable Alba to commence exploration activities
there.

However, the exceptional and unseasonably heavy rains throughout July and
early August 2023 have meant that the permissions granted by NRW, to
abstract/transfer 100m3 per day for 16 consecutive days to dewater the
workings, followed by 30m3 per day (until 2030) to keep the workings
dewatered, have to date proven insufficient to complete the dewatering
exercise.  While around 6m in vertical extent of the flooded workings were
dewatered initially during the higher rate (100m3/d pumping period), in recent
days, at a pumping rate of 30m3/d and with ongoing intermittent heavy rains,
the workings have now partially reflooded close to their original starting
level (see Figure 1).

As a result, the Company is seeking a temporary variation to recommence
pumping at the higher volume 100m3/day rate. In the meantime, the Company is
also applying for formal permit variations to allow for long-term abstraction
and discharge at higher rates.  While NRW has indicated that it is not minded
to grant a temporary variation, the Company continues to make formal
representations in that regard.

It is noted that:

-    The dewatering period has coincided with a period of exceptional
rainfall, some three times higher than the average for the time of year and in
the top 1st percentile of annual records for the period.  From the Rhyd Y
Main rain gauge, 296mm rainfall occurred in the month of dewatering whereas
during the equivalent period in the previous year the total rainfall was
79.8mm (data from NRW).  Based on the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology's
Flood Estimation Handbook (FEH), centred on the site, Clogau was impacted by
two 48-hour rainfall events within the two-week dewatering period, each storm
bringing rainfall comparable to the largest 48-hour storm, typically involving
about 70mm of rain, that one would only expect to see once a year, and of
course not in the middle of summer.

 

-    NRW did previously grant the Company an informal extension to the same
abstraction permit during the course of the initial higher-rate abstraction,
which allowed the Company to reset the clock for another 16 days at 100m3/day
because of an unexpectedly elevated zinc reading which was caused by a
galvanised frame within the settlement tank, which issue has since been
rectified.

 

-    A recommencement of the higher rate pumping regime would continue to
be subject to the Company's existing approved water quality testing and
settlement removal process, which is therefore considered preferable to the
excess rainwater discharging from the Drainage Adit directly into the river,
as would be the case if the workings were to fully reflood.

 

-    All water monitored to date is within the discharge permits criteria,
without active treatment.  The Company has, however, invested in a settlement
treatment tank onsite which is consistently discharging <4mg/L suspended
solids.  The good water quality is not surprising, given that this is a short
duration, through-flowing system.  Since the implementation of mitigation
measures within the settlement tank, daily analysis of the tank discharge
consistently shows that dissolved Cu is <1µg/L, dissolved Fe <10µg/L,
dissolved Zn <5µg/L, total As <5µg/L and total Al <50µg/L, all
being well within the discharge permits criteria.

 

-    To put the relative volumes of water in their context, a discharge to
the river (the Afon Cwm Llechen) of 100m3/day represents about 0.03% of the
total river flow during a low flow period, and an even lower percentage during
the higher flow periods experienced of late, which are more typically
experienced in the autumn and winter months.

 

-    While it may be possible to complete the dewatering exercise at the
base pumping rate, of 30m3/day under the existing abstraction permit, this
would be expected to take a considerable length of time and require a
cessation of the exceptional rainfall events which have been seen in recent
weeks.  However, an initial dewatering of the workings to at least around 15
metres in vertical extent would allow the Company to commence the planned
safety, clean-up and exploration works (surveying, mapping and sampling) on
Level 4, with the second phase of dewatering (down to around 30m vertical
extent) then allowing for the sinking of winzes below Level 4 for the purposes
of the planned bulk sampling.

 

 

Figure 1: Lower Llechfraith workings, annotated to show completed safety,
access and bat exclusion measures.  Approximate depth of flooded workings
shown on right-hand side (Level 4 at around 15m and total depth down to around
30m, with the total vertical extent dewatered, prior to reflooding, at around
6m)

 

 

 

All safety and access works at Level 2 and Level 3 have now been completed,
which will allow safe access down to Level 4 once the dewatering exercise has
been completed.

Alba's contractors are in the process of completing a cabin structure on the
Llechfraith Adit level which will provide the final bat exclusion and noise
mitigation measure in advance of blasting and other exploration activities at
Level 4, post dewatering (see Figure 2).

 

 

 

Figure 2: Cabin under construction at Llechfraith Adit Level

 

 

This announcement contains inside information for the purposes of the UK
Market Abuse Regulation and the Directors of the Company are responsible for
the release of this announcement.

 

Forward Looking Statements

This announcement contains forward-looking statements relating to expected or
anticipated future events and anticipated results that are forward-looking in
nature and, as a result, are subject to certain risks and uncertainties, such
as general economic, market and business conditions, competition for qualified
staff, the regulatory process and actions, technical issues, new legislation,
uncertainties resulting from potential delays or changes in plans,
uncertainties resulting from working in a new political jurisdiction,
uncertainties regarding the results of exploration, uncertainties regarding
the timing and granting of prospecting rights, uncertainties regarding the
timing and granting of regulatory and other third party consents and
approvals, uncertainties regarding the Company's or any third party's ability
to execute and implement future plans, and the occurrence of unexpected
events.

 

Actual results achieved may vary from the information provided herein as a
result of numerous known and unknown risks and uncertainties and other
factors.

 

**ENDS**

 

 For further information, please visit www.albamineralresources.com
(http://www.albamineralresources.com/)  or contact:

 Alba Mineral Resources plc                   +44 20 3950 0725

 George Frangeskides, Executive Chairman
 SPARK Advisory Partners Limited (Nomad)      +44 20 3368 3555

 Andrew Emmott
 CMC Markets plc (Broker)                     +44 (0) 20 3003 8632

 Thomas Smith / Douglas Crippen
 St Brides Partners (Financial PR)            alba@stbridespartners.co.uk

 Isabel de Salis / Catherine Leftley

 

 Alba's Projects & Investments
 Projects Operated by Alba          Location   Ownership
 Clogau (gold)                      Wales      100%
 Dolgellau Gold Exploration (gold)  Wales      100%
 Gwynfynydd (gold)                  Wales      100%
 Investments Held by Alba           Location   Ownership
 GreenRoc Mining Plc (mining)       Greenland  42.97%
 Horse Hill (oil)                   England    11.765%

 

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