Name of the Project
Segilola gold project.

Location
Osun state, Nigeria.

Project Owner/s
Aim- and TSX-V-listed Thor Explorations.

Project Description
The project comprises an openpit gold mine, based on a probable reserve of four-million tonnes grading 4.02 g/t gold.

It includes a new 715 000 t/y processing plant comprising a conventional crushing circuit, two-stage grinding, gravity, carbon-in-leach, elution, electrowinning and smelting to produce gold ore.

Production is estimated at 85 000 oz/y over a five-year life-of-mine (LoM).

The full potential of an underground resource has yet to be realised and ongoing exploration is planned to upgrade the current inferred underground resource to indicated resources and test the continuation of the shoots at depth.

Potential Job Creation
Not stated.

Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
The Segilola openpit has a net present value, at a 5% discount rate, of $310-million and an internal rate of return of 85% in the base case, with payback of one-year.

Capital Expenditure
$104.5-million.

Planned Start/End Date
Construction on the project started in March 2020 and first gold was poured in July 2021.

Latest Developments
Thor Explorations has announced further positive results from the initial proof-of-concept drilling programme that targets the down-plunge potential beneath the current Segilola openpit extents.

The programme targeted projections of the Segilola orebody below the current openpit design and has been successful in intersecting high-grade mineralisation in the majority of the holes drilled below the pit.

Previously reported results include 3 m grading 11.24 g/t gold from 294 m in drillhole SNMDD01,1 and 1.5 m grading 3.22 g/t gold from 269 m in drillhole SNMDD012.

The latest batch of results include 3.5 m grading 4.1 g/t gold in drillhole SNMD016 and 2.4 m grading 3.46 g/t gold in drillhole SNMD014.

“The success of the drilling programme to date has warranted the expansion of the initial 12-hole proof-of-concept drill programme, with further holes being designed to continue to explore the along-strike down-plunge trend of the southern portion of the deposit, and to test new deeper target areas underneath the pit where relatively little drill-testing has taken place.

“These results have also enabled us to investigate extending the current openpit mine life, prior to an underground mining operation. We will be carrying out optimisation studies incorporating the new drilling results and updated gold price in this regard,” president and CEO Segun Lawson has said.  

The plan is to upgrade parts of the remaining inferred resource and to increase the size of the overall underground resource to increase the Segilola LoM. 

Key Contracts, Suppliers and Consultants
Norinco International (engineering, procurement and construction).

Contact Details for Project Information
Thor Explorations, tel +1 778 373 0102 or email info@thorexpl.com.