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 AIM; FML
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Company Statement
Frontier Mining Ltd. is a mineral exploration and development Company that was incorporated in the state of Delaware, USA, on 5 August 1998 for the purpose of exploring and developing gold and copper deposits in the Republic of Kazakhstan. Through its subsidiaries and affiliates, Frontier locates, evaluates, acquires, explores and develops mineral properties.
Frontier currently owns two licenses in Kazakhstan. They are the Naimanjal exploration and mining licence, held by FML Kazakhstan, and, 50% of U.S. Megatech BVI which holds the Benkala licence. FML Kazakhstan is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Frontier Mining Ltd. Frontier has one producing gold mine, Naimanjal; one pre-feasibility stage gold project, Koskuduk; and the recently acquired 50% interest in the Benkala copper mine.
Frontier also has a potential copper porphyry deposit with associated gold and molybdenum, Baitimir; and several copper/gold prospects along a 25-km trend including both VMS and porphyry types. Metallurgical tests on its Beschoku and Yubileiny copper projects confirm the oxide copper ore is amenable to extraction using low cost SX-EW technology.
Frontier owns a 50% interest in KazCopper LLP, the joint venture company that owns the Benkala copper-molybdenum-gold deposit located in north-western Kazakhstan within the Urals gold/copper ore belt. A Competent Persons Report (“CPR”) on the Benkala project completed by Wardell Armstrong International (“WAI”) in March 2007 estimates 47.75 Mt at an average grade of 0.36% Cu for the oxide mineralization, and 873.75 Mt at an average grade of 0.30% Cu for the sulphide mineralisation, representing some 2.8 million tonnes of contained copper. A conceptual study team and advisory team have both been appointed to fast track the development of this project forward towards a pre- feasibility study, with a view to beginning production at the end of 2010.
Current Operations
GOLD PROPERTIES
Naimanjal Complex
The Naimanjal Complex includes the Naimanjal gold-silver deposit itself, which represents Frontier’s primary project, as well as six satellite gold prospects located within a 12-kilometre radius of the Naimanjal deposit. Naimanjal is a near surface oxide gold-silver mine. The Naimanjal gold mine is being developed to produce gold at an initial rate of 25,000 oz of gold per year.
The Naimanjal mine will process crushed ore mined by standard open pit mining techniques. Ore will be crushed through a three-stage crushing circuit. The crushed ore will be processed using conventional, cyanide heap leach technology. Precious metals will be recovered using Merrill Crowe technology to produce a dore product for export
Naimanjal Satellite Deposits
The six Naimanjal satellites include Baritovy, Naiman, Ergozy, Toksanbay, Jal, and Jantilak.The satellites are near surface oxide gold deposits similar in nature to Naimanjal. The most advanced satellite is Baritovy, which has ore stockpiled from historic trenching. At Baritovy ore was sampled to contain 4,870 tonnes of ore assaying 4.64 gpt gold containing 22.6 kilograms (726 ounces) of gold.
A preliminary resource estimate incorporating the results from the 2004 drilling, trenching, geochemical, and geophysical data contains 530,000 tonnes of ore at 1.04 gpt gold using a 0.5 gpt cut off or 271,000 tonnes of ore at 1.97 gpt gold using a 1.0 gpt cut off. The deposit is open in all directions.
An exploration program for the remaining satellites is being developed.
Koskuduk
Koskuduk includes East, West and South mineralized zones. Koskuduk is a near surface oxide gold target with sulphide potential at depth.
The current resource includes 70,000 oz of gold in C1 and 180,000 oz of gold in C2 categories. The management believes there is potential for 1,000,000 oz of gold.
Frontier is planning to undertake a feasibility study (FS) for the development of initial production of 25,000 oz of gold per year assuming a positive FS and the necessary funding are in place.
Baltemir
CenterKazNedra has extended the Baltemir exploration license till March 2007.
To date 25 core holes have been drilled at various locations along the seven kilometre long quartz vein system. While there are areas of high-grade, Frontier is still working on establishing geological control of the mineralisation. Exploration on the seven kilometre long quartz vein system will continue.
A nine core hole drilling programme at Koskia, the new mineralised target (15 km x 8 km) identified in the northern part of the license area about six kilometres from the known quartz vein system, is in progress. This is a complex mafic/ultramafic Koskia pluton with explosive breccia in vein zones and smaller rhyolitic intrusives. Gold values of 0.5 gpt have been encountered in outcrops with 0.5% lead and 0.5% arsenic.
COPPER PROPERTIES
Copper Trend - Beschoku
Geological and geophysical results to date have identified two large mineralised systems within the Beschoku area, a copper/gold VMS deposit including oxide mineralisation, and a copper/molybdenum porphyry deposit. The copper and molybdenum minerals include malachite, azurite, chrysocolla, chalcopyrite, bornite and molybdenite.
Based on alteration zoning, geochemistry, and geophysics, to a depth of 200 metres, using 10 percent sulphide content and a specific gravity of 2.7 tonnes per cubic metre, management estimate a preliminary inferred geologic resource (P1) for the VMS type deposit of 620,000 tonnes of contained copper with 1 percent grade and 1.86 million tonnes of contained copper with 1 percent grade for the porphyry copper with skarn type deposit.
The first phase drilling program started in mid-March consists of 18 core holes targeted to discover the 2.48 million tonnes of contained copper resources reported previously. Nine core holes are targeted in geophysical anomalies and nine core holes are targeted in geochemical anomalies in both VMS-type and porphyry-type deposits.
The geophysical targets are based on work performed by GaiaScan Geophysics Ltd., and included Induced Polarization (“IP”) and resistivity profiling, as well as a magnetic survey. The IP anomalies totaled six square kilometres. The anomalous IP zones range from 900 metres to 1,200 metres wide and four kilometres long with chargeability values reaching 45 mv/v.
The geochemical anomalies include copper content above 500 parts per million (“ppm”) within a one-square-kilometre area. The most significant geochemical anomaly, Kotansor, contained up to 3,230 ppm (0.3 percent) copper with gold values reaching one gpt. A mid-19th century oxide copper mine, Kotansor, is located within this anomalous area.
An expanded geochemical and geophysical programme has been initiated to pursue the above-mentioned anomalies to the northwest and southeast of the above-mentioned anomalies.
Assuming results from the first phase of the 18-hole drill program are good and confirmed the discovery, Frontier will proceed immediately with the second phase of the drilling programme that will be used to establish ore reserves as part of a pre-feasibility study.
Copper Trend - Yubileiny
Yubileiny contains C2 category resource of 30,000 tonnes of contained copper with an assumed grade of 1% and P1 category resource of 80,000 tonnes of contained copper with an assumed grade of 1%. to the north of the C2 area.
A continuous and well defined IP anomaly of 150 metres to 170 metres wide with a strike length of over 700 metres was delineated. Excellent correlation with historic mine workings and recent drilling suggests that copper mineralisation is the causative source of the delineated IP anomaly. The IP anomaly is open at depth and along strike past the extent of the IP survey grid.
Baitimir
Baitimir is a 10 sq.km. in size property of that includes six gold and copper prospects. The property is located 30 km to the north of Beschoku. Basic geology of Baitimir area indicates that the copper mineralisation is located within a 3-kilimeter-wide contact zone between a copper- bearing granitic intrusion and overlying sequence of host rocks of basaltic composition and limestone.
Frontiers exploration programme started at Baitimir in the fall of 2004 and consisted of the hydrothermal alteration mapping, detailed sampling of all prospects, 2 profiles of induced polarization electric survey (IP) and a geochemical survey on 200 x 40 m grid for the 4 sq.km. area.
A new copper mineralisation zone called Kyzylshoky has been identified as a result of these surveys. The exploration programme resumed in May-June 2005 with five core holes drilled at Kyzylshoky down to 200 m depth. Although assays are pending, the core logging shows the presence of malachite-rich oxide zone to approximately 30 m continued with pyrite-chalcopyrite content 3 to 5% in the altered intrusive rocks below.
The geochemical sampling and the induced polarization survey, as well as core drilling, are scheduled to continue at Baitimir until the end of July.
Current work
FML is currently undertaking a resource and in fill diamond core drilling campaign and will be in a position to prepare updated oxide resource estimates later this year. This drilling is targeting both potential down dip and strike extensions to the near surface oxide mineralisation as well as providing infill drilling to increase the confidence levels in the main mineralised zone which had been
previously drilled by FML. Once the oxide drill programme is completed, diamond core drilling will be continued to in fill and confirm the extent of the deep sulphide potential.
Geographical Spread
Frontier currently operates in Kazakhstan, with wholly owned licences at Naimanjal and Baltemir. The Company may expand to Kyrgyzstan, Russia, and other CIS Countries, where it is also examining a number of uranium opportunities.
Board of Directors and Key Management
| Directors |
| MR. ERLAN K. SAGADIEV - CEO AND Chairman of the Board |
| MR. GEORGE NEVILLE RALPH COLE – Executive Director & Chief Financial Officer |
| MR. BRIAN CHARLES SAVAGE – Non-Executive director |
| MR. BOYD WARRINGTON BISHOP – Non-Executive Director |
| Management |
| NURDIN DAMITOV – Executive Vice President |
| ROBERT CAMERON – Vice President |
| DUNCAN GRAY – General Counsel |
| MR COLE - Financial Controller |
Company Address4 Park Place
|
Additional Address/Key ContactKazakhstan |
CapitalFrontier currently has 218,120,095 issued and 21,812,009 reserved and outstanding options giving 239,932,104 fully diluted ordinary shares. |
Year End31st December |
Nominated BrokersNumis Securities Limited | Nominated AdvisorsNumis Securities Limited |
Related News
23/06/09 - With Funding Now Secure, Frontier Mining Hopes To Bring The Benkala Copper Project In Kazakhstan Into Production In Short Order04/06/08 - Frontier Mining Might Not Be Averse To A Merger With Another Junior Mining Company
28/03/08 - No News Is Good News At Frontier Mining’s AGM
Most Recent Statement
16/02/10 - Merger discussions16/02/10 - Board appointment
18/01/10 - Exercise of Warants
14/12/09 - Pre-close Operational Update
30/09/09 - Interim Results to 30 June 2009 & Operational Update
17/09/09 - Issue of Equity