REG - Oriole Resources PLC - Maiden JORC Exploration Target for Mbe

Oriole ResourcesAnnouncement

09/07/2025 07:00

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RNS Number : 2579Q  Oriole Resources PLC  09 July 2025

The information contained within this announcement is deemed to constitute
inside information as stipulated under the retained EU law version of the
Market Abuse Regulation (EU) No. 596/2014 (the "UK MAR") which is part of UK
law by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018. The information is
disclosed in accordance with the Company's obligations under Article 17 of the
UK MAR.  Upon the publication of this announcement, this inside information
is now considered to be in the public domain.

 

Oriole Resources PLC

('Oriole Resources' or the 'Company')

 

Maiden JORC Exploration Target for Mbe

Oriole Resources PLC (AIM: ORR), the AIM quoted gold exploration company
focused on West and Central Africa, is pleased to publish the maiden JORC
Exploration Target for its 90% 1  owned Mbe orogenic gold project ('Mbe' or
the 'Project') in Cameroon.

 

Highlights

 

·    A maiden JORC Exploration Target range for the Project's MB01
prospect of 33 to 44Mt at 0.77 to 0.95g/t Au for 0.82 to 1.34Moz contained Au
produced by independent consultant Forge International Limited.

 

·    The Exploration Target covers the MB01-N and MB01-S targets and has
been based on the assay data from the first 13 holes out of a planned 24-hole
programme at MB01-S and the 2024 trenching data across both targets.  The
model has been limited to 200m depth below surface and uses a lower cut-off
grade of 0.30g/t Au.

 

·    Grade-tonnage sensitivity analysis shows strong retention of
contained ounces at higher cut-off grades, with mid-range grades increasing to
1.07g/t Au at a 0.50g/t Au cut-off for 900,000oz and 1.33g/t Au at a 0.70g/t
Au cut off for 700,000oz.

 

·    The drilling programme at MB01-S is ongoing, with completion
scheduled for this quarter.  The Company anticipates publishing an
independent consultant's maiden, pit-constrained Mineral Resource Estimate
('MRE') in Q4-2025 and believes that the Project could be mined by open pit
mining methods.

 

·    Independent assessment of mineralogy from drill hole MBDD002 confirms
the material tested exhibits gold encapsulation in pyrite and the predominance
of gold-telluride (calaverite and petzite) mineralisation.  Further test work
is planned to evaluate the optimum processing route from the various possible
options.

 

Commenting, Chief Executive Officer of Oriole Resources, Martin Rosser, said:
"The maiden exploration target for the Company's Mbe project is a significant
milestone achieved, and we are delighted with the target range which has a
median of 38Mt at a mean grade of 0.86g/t for 1.1Moz contained gold.  As
drilling at MB01-S continues, we greatly look forward to reporting the maiden
MRE in Q4-2025."

 

 

 

 

Figure 1. Plan view of mineralised domains and informing data for the maiden
Mbe Exploration Target.

 

 

Further Details

 

Maiden Exploration Target

A maiden JORC Exploration Target for the Mbe project has been prepared by
Forge and is presented in Table 1.  It has been prepared to provide a
preliminary indication of the potential scale and grade of mineralisation at
the MB01 prospect, thereby informing the design and prioritisation of ongoing
exploration activities.  The Exploration Target* range of 33 to 44 million
tonnes at 0.77 to 0.95g/t Au for 0.82Moz to 1.34Moz contained Au has been
delineated based on diamond drilling results from holes MBDD001 to MBDD013 at
MB01-S, as well as trenching data, and the interpretation of geophysical and
geochemical anomaly maps from both MB01-N and MB01-S.

Table 1. Exploration Target* for the MB01 prospect at Mbe, comprising the
MB01-N and MB01-S targets

  Target   Tonnage Range (Mt)  Grade Range (g/t Au)  Total Contained Gold (koz)
 MB01-N    15 - 20             0.77 - 0.94           370 - 605
 MB01-S    18 - 24             0.77 - 0.95           445 - 730
 Total     33 - 44             0.77 - 0.95           815 - 1,335

*The potential quality and grade of the Exploration Target are conceptual in
nature.  There has been insufficient exploration to estimate a Mineral
Resource, and there is no certainty that further exploration work will result
in the determination of a Mineral Resource.

 

Notes:

·    The target has been delineated based on a dataset comprising 15
diamond drill holes and 16 trenches, totalling 11,582m.  Assay data is
currently only available for 13 of the 15 drill holes; the remaining two holes
are pending analytical results and have not been included in the grade
estimation.

·    The Exploration Target was generated by constructing
three-dimensional wireframe models representing interpreted mineralised
bodies.  Extrapolation is limited to 200m along strike, consistent with
observed mineralised trends, and extended to a vertical depth of 200m below
current surface topography.

·    Oxidation modelling was not incorporated into this phase of work.
 As such, the impact of oxidation on grade distribution remains a source of
uncertainty.

·    A lower cut-off grade of 0.30g/t Au was applied to define mineralised
blocks considered within the target.  The grade range has been determined by
applying a ±10% variation around the calculated mean grade above the selected
cut-off.

·    Tonnage estimates are derived from the modelled tonnage ±15%.

·    A mean bulk density of 2.7t/m³ has been applied within the
mineralised domains.

·    All figures are rounded to reflect the inherent uncertainty and
relative accuracy of the estimate.

·    Infill drilling is recommended to advance the understanding of
mineralisation continuity and grade distribution.

·    The Exploration Target estimate has been prepared by Mr Robert
Davies, EurGeol, CGeol, who is a Competent Person as defined by the JORC Code.

 

Grade-tonnage sensitivity analysis of the Exploration Target has confirmed
that it shows strong retention of contained gold ounces at higher cut-off
grades, with mid-range grades increasing to 1.07g/t Au at a 0.50g/t Au cut-off
for 900,000oz and 1.33g/t Au at a 0.70g/t Au cut off for 700,000oz (Table 2).

 

Table 2. Grade Tonnage Sensitivity analysis

 

 Cut-off Grade  Tonnes  Grade Au  Contained Gold koz

 g/t            kt      g/t
 0.2            44,000  0.78      1,100
 0.3            38,000  0.86      1,100
 0.4            32,000  0.96      1000
 0.5            26,000  1.07      900
 0.6            21,000  1.20      800
 0.7            17,000  1.33      700

 

 

The Exploration Target remains open in all directions and at depth and it is
anticipated that it will be succeeded by a maiden MRE in Q4 2025, following
completion of the Phase 1 drilling programme later this quarter.

 

Metallurgical Testwork

Initial bottle roll tests on surface samples at the Project had indicated good
gold recoveries from those samples from standard cyanide leaching.  The
Company today reports that more advanced mineralogical studies, on material
from drill hole MBDD002, located within the dominantly fresh ore zone, has
confirmed that the gold predominantly occurs as fine-grained tellurides
(calaverite with lesser petzite).  The mineralogy is therefore similar to
that identified at the Company's Bibemi gold project, and therefore likely
reflects a regional trend.

 

Diagnostic leaching test data indicates that 54.4% of the gold is recoverable
via carbon-in leach processing, with an additional 12.4% (for a total of
66.8%) recoverable by hydrochloric acid ('HCl') leaching.  Approximately 30%
of the gold is strongly associated with the primary sulphide pyrite and is not
amenable to standard cyanide leaching.  As at Bibemi, it is expected that one
processing option might be the oxidation of a flotation concentrate followed
by cyanidation of the oxidised residue to achieve an acceptable gold recovery
by negating the influence of telluride association and pyrite encapsulation.
Further testwork, which will inform the optimal processing route from the
various options available, is planned.  This includes possible alternatives
to pressure oxidation, such as other oxidation processes, e.g. the Albion
process, as well as fine grinding of a flotation concentrate, more intensive
cyanidation at high pH and a pre-leach treatment to dissolve tellurium ahead
of gold leaching.

 

Whilst gold telluride mineralogy is somewhat uncommon, ores of this type have
been mined and successfully processed using various processing methods.
Examples include Kalgoorlie in Western Australia, one of the world's richest
goldfields (approximately 60 million oz extracted to date since discovery in
1893), Cripple Creek in Colorado (approximately 21 million oz extracted), and
the Emperor mine in Fiji.

 

Further information can be found in the JORC Table 1 disclosure on the
following page of the Company's website:
https://orioleresources.com/projects/mbe/
(https://orioleresources.com/projects/mbe/) .

 

Enquiries:

 Oriole Resources Plc                                  Tel: +44 (0)23 8065 1649
 Martin Rosser / Bob Smeeton / Claire Bay

 Strand Hanson Limited (Nomad & Broker)                Tel: +44 (0)20 7409 3494
 Christopher Raggett / James Spinney / Edward Foulkes

 IFC Advisory Ltd (Financial IR & PR)                  Tel: +44 (0)20 3934 6630
 Tim Metcalfe / Graham Herring / Florence Staton       oriole@investor-focus.co.uk

 

Competent Persons Statement

 

The information in this announcement that relates to the Mineral Resource
Estimate and the Exploration Target is based on data compiled by Mr. Robert
Davies, EurGeol, CGeol, an independent consultant to Oriole.  Mr Davies is a
Director of Forge International Limited.  Mr Davies has sufficient experience
that is relevant to the style of mineralisation and type of deposit under
consideration and to the activity being undertaken to qualify as a Competent
Person as defined in the JORC Code.  Mr Davies consents to the inclusion in
the report of the matters based on his information in the form and context in
which it appears.  The Company confirms that it is not aware of any new
information or data that materially affects the Mineral Resource Estimate or
the Exploration Target, and that all material assumptions and technical
parameters underpinning the MRE and the Exploration Target continue to apply.

 

The technical information in this release that relates to Exploration Results
and the planned exploration programme has been compiled by Mrs Claire Bay
(Executive Director).  Claire Bay (MGeol, CGeol) is a Competent Person as
defined in the JORC code and takes responsibility for the release of this
information.  Claire has reviewed the information in this announcement and
confirms that she is not aware of any new information or data that materially
affects the information reproduced here.

 

The mineralogical and scouting process test work leading to the development of
the provisional flowsheet has been supervised and interpreted by Mr David Lunt
of Stirling Process Engineering Ltd. David has significant experience in gold
processing and is a Competent Person as defined in the JORC Code.

 

Glossary and Abbreviations

 Au                               Gold
 Forge                            Forge International Limited
 g/t                              Grammes per tonne
 JORC                             Joint Ore Reserves Committee
 JORC Code                        2012 Edition of the Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results,
                                  Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves
 km                               Kilometre
 km(2)                            Square kilometre
 Mbe                              Mbe orogenic gold project
 m                                Metres
 MRE                              Mineral Resource Estimate
 Mt                               Million tonnes
 Oriole Resources or the Company  Oriole Resources PLC
 oz                               Troy ounce of gold
 Phase 1                          Maiden diamond drilling programme at the MB01-S target, Mbe
 Project                          Mbe orogenic gold project
 QFP                              Quartz Feldspar Porphyry
 t/m(3)                           Tonnes per cubic metre

 

Notes to Editors

 

Oriole Resources

 

Oriole Resources PLC is an AIM-quoted gold exploration company, with projects
in West and Central Africa.  It is focused on early-stage exploration in
Cameroon, where the Company has reported a Resource of 460,000oz contained
gold at 2.06g/t Au in the JORC Indicated and Inferred categories at its 90%
owned Bibemi project and has identified multi-kilometre gold and lithium
anomalies within the district scale Central Licence Package project.  BCM
International is currently earning up to a 50% interest in the Bibemi and Mbe
projects in return for a combined investment of US$1.5 million in signature
payments, up to US$8 million in exploration expenditure, as well as JORC
resource-based success payments.

 

At the Senala gold project in Senegal, AGEM Senegal Exploration Suarl
('AGEM'), a wholly owned subsidiary of Managem Group, has completed a six-year
earn-in to acquire an approximate 59% beneficial interest in the Senala
Exploration Licence by spending US$5.8 million.  The Company has reported a
Resource of 155,000oz contained gold at 1.26g/t Au in the JORC Inferred
category for the Faré South prospect, and an additional, complementary
Exploration target range of 17 to 24Mt at a grade of 0.69 to 0.84g/t
Au for 380,000 to 650,000oz contained gold for all prospects at Senala.
Discussions on the formation of a joint venture company are currently
underway.  The Company also has several interests and royalties in companies
operating in East Africa and Turkey that could give future cash payments.

 

For further information please visit www.orioleresources.com
(http://www.orioleresources.com) ,  @OrioleResources on X

 

Background on Mbe

 

Mbe, with a licence area of 312km(2), is an orogenic gold project located
within the broader 2,266km(2) 'Eastern CLP' package of five contiguous gold
focused exploration licences in the Adamawa Region of central Cameroon.
 Since 2022, the Company's systematic exploration programmes have identified
a 3km long, NE trending prospect, named MB01, which sits within a wider 12.5km
long zone of gold-in-soil anomalism that trends ENE.

At MB01, increased dilation at the sites of structural intersections (steeply
dipping NNE and NNW trending shear structures) is believed to have resulted in
enhanced levels of gold deposition at the northern target, MB01-N, and MB01-S,
the southern target.  Gold mineralisation at these targets comprises
high-grade, sulphide-rich quartz veins, veinlets and breccias within wider
envelopes of pervasive, lower-grade gold mineralisation.

After highly encouraging results from infill soil sampling, rock-chip
sampling, and trench sampling, a fully funded maiden drilling programme
commenced at the MB01-S target in late November 2024 for a planned 6,590m in
24 holes.  BCM International has acquired an initial 10% interest in Mbe and
is earning up to a further 40% interest by spending up to US$4 million on
exploration.

 

 1  Oriole is currently undertaking a restructuring process that, once
completed, will see it increase its holding from 80% to a 90% interest in the
Project (announcement dated 17 October 2024).

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