Overview

The zone between Tirek and Amesmessa, referred to as ZITA, contains a large number of gold deposits and showings hosted in the mylonite of the In Ouzzal deformation zone. They have only been partially investigated by trenching and limited follow-up drilling by the ORGM. Only 98 core holes totaling 10,314 m and 811 trenches for 6,890 m have been completed on a zone extending over 60 km along the prospective IODZ.

Consequently, a vast potential remains to develop some of those prospects in the ZITA zone and to delineate lower-grade, heap-leachable ore that could be rapidly mined in shallow trenches and open pits. Indeed, a few veins in the ZITA area have already been developed on the basis of the ORGM work and Resources estimates and have supplied feed to the Tirek plant.

Most of the resources for the ZITA zone have been estimated by the ORGM and are categorized under the Russian reporting system. Some of these are likely to be
translated into ore reserves by additional sampling and drilling. The main prospects in the ZITA area, with their C2 and C1 resources estimated by the ORGM in 1989 are summarized in the following table.

REPORTED IN-SITU ORGM RESOURCES (C1+C2) AT ZITA (1999).

Outside of the ZITA area, but within the IODZ, the different veins of the Djazairia showing, located in the NE corner of the concession, 12 km from Tirek, have been documented by 3 core holes totaling 210.5 m and 65 trenches for a total of 619 m. However, no details are available on the results.