Wia Gold has increased the Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) at its Kokoseb Gold Project in Namibia by 29% to 3.78 million ounces, with the addition of a maiden underground resource strengthening the project’s long-term development prospects.
The updated resource comprises 3.23 million ounces of open-pit resources and a maiden underground Inferred Resource of 560,000 ounces, marking the first time underground mineralisation has been incorporated into the project’s resource base.
Wia Gold Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Henk Diederichs said the update significantly enhances Kokoseb’s growth potential.
“This updated MRE delivers a 29% increase in contained gold to 3.78Moz and, importantly, includes a maiden underground Mineral Resource that adds a higher-grade component to Kokoseb and highlights the Project’s longer-term growth potential,” Diederichs said.
The update also increased the higher-confidence Indicated Resource to 2.01 million ounces, representing approximately 53% of the total resource.
“It is particularly pleasing that 2.01Moz of gold is now classified in the higher-confidence Indicated category, providing a strong foundation for the Definitive Feasibility Study and ongoing development planning,” he said.
The open-pit resource now stands at 105 million tonnes grading 0.96 grams per tonne (g/t) gold for 3.23 million ounces, representing a 10% increase on the previous estimate.
The resource includes a higher-grade component of 50 million tonnes grading 1.3g/t gold for 2.13 million ounces using a 0.80g/t cut-off grade.
The maiden underground resource totals 7.9 million tonnes grading 2.2g/t gold for 560,000 ounces and is classified entirely as Inferred. Within this, the underground block model contains 5.7 million tonnes grading 2.7g/t gold for 500,000 ounces in blocks above 1.0g/t.
Wia is continuing to expand the project, with six drilling rigs currently operating at Kokoseb.
According to Diederichs, the drilling programme is focused on extending mineralisation at depth and improving confidence in the underground resource.
“With six rigs currently operating, drilling activities are focused on testing the continuity and extent of mineralisation at depth and further assessing potential higher-grade zones to improve confidence in the underground resource,” he said.
The company has also identified an underground Exploration Target of between 10 million and 15 million tonnes grading 2.0g/t to 2.5g/t gold, which is additional to the current underground resource.
Gold mineralisation remains open at depth along more than five kilometres of strike, with further drilling planned over the next six to 12 months to assess the potential for additional underground resource growth.
Located near Okombahe, about 220 kilometres northwest of Windhoek, Kokoseb was discovered in May 2021 through a regional soil sampling programme.
The latest update is the project’s fourth Mineral Resource Estimate and the first to include an underground resource, supporting ongoing feasibility studies and future mine development.
