KEY POINTS
- Tembo holds about 580,000 ounces of gold.
- Ngula 1 is the main drilling target.
- Toll milling could speed up production.
Canadian gold developer Lake Victoria Gold has announced a maiden mineral resource estimate for its Tembo gold project in Tanzania, marking a major step forward for the company’s second defined gold asset in the country.
The company reported 13.3 million tonnes of inferred mineral resources grading 1.12 grams of gold per tonne, containing about 480,100 ounces of gold. It also identified 2.69 million tonnes of indicated resources grading 1.16 grams per tonne, containing approximately 99,700 ounces.
Combined, the project has about 579,800 ounces of indicated and inferred gold resources across three near-surface deposits.
The Tembo project is located immediately next to Barrick Mining’s Bulyanhulu mine, one of Tanzania’s established gold operations. Its location could provide strategic advantages as Lake Victoria Gold advances exploration and evaluates options for developing the project.
The company plans to focus its next phase of work on the Ngula 1 deposit, which contains about 56% of Tembo’s inferred gold ounces and 63% of its indicated ounces. Lake Victoria Gold intends to carry out at least 4,000 metres of close-spaced drilling to convert more resources, improve its understanding of the deposit and support future mine planning.
Ngula 1 will be the main target of the company’s upcoming exploration programme because of its significant share of the project’s identified gold resources and its near-surface nature.
The additional drilling is expected to provide more information about the continuity and quality of the mineralisation while potentially increasing the amount of material that can be classified as indicated resources. The results will also help the company assess how the deposit could be developed in the future.
Company explores lower-cost processing option
Lake Victoria Gold is also advancing discussions with Nyati Resources on a potential toll-milling arrangement. Under such an arrangement, material from Ngula 1 could potentially be processed at an existing facility rather than requiring the company to immediately build a new processing plant.
The company sees the toll-milling option as a potentially capital-efficient route for processing near-surface material while it continues to evaluate the broader development potential of Tembo.
Lake Victoria Gold said the maiden resource estimate changes Tembo from an exploration story into a defined mineral resource located on granted mining licences. The company believes the project now has a clearer pathway towards resource growth and potentially near-term production.
Tembo joins the company’s Imwelo gold project, also in Tanzania, as its second defined gold asset. The company intends to advance exploration at Tembo while continuing to develop its broader Tanzanian portfolio.
The latest resource declaration adds to the growing importance of Tanzania as a gold exploration and development destination. The country hosts several significant gold operations and continues to attract mining companies seeking to expand their African production and exploration portfolios.
For Lake Victoria Gold, the Tembo resource provides a stronger foundation for further investment decisions, particularly as the company evaluates resource expansion, mine planning and possible processing options.
