Rainbow Rare Earths has confirmed additional rare earth mineralization at its Gakara project in Burundi. The information was released with the first update from Rainbow’s maiden drilling campaign at Gakara. The Burundi-based, Gakara project is one of the highest grade rare earth element mining projects globally, with an estimated in situ grade of 47-67 percent total rare earth oxide (TREO), and the company is targeting to ramp up production to an annualized rate of 5,000 tonnes per year (approximately 400 tonnes per month) by the end of calendar year 2018.
Highlights
· Kiyenzi target drill holes contain multiple intersections up to 2 metres thick of breccia mineralisation, with initial testing confirming the presence of multiple intersections of high grade REE
· Drilling of airborne magnetic anomaly targets now underway with the results expected in June alongside laboratory sample test results from Kiyenzi
· Encouraged by Kiyenzi results, Rainbow will now proceed with the Phase 2 exploration campaign with an aim of delivering a code-compliant resource by the end of 2018
Martin Eales, CEO of Rainbow, said: "The majority of the drill holes completed to date have been focused on just the first of five targets at Kiyenzi and we are excited to have already discovered new rare earth mineralisation, up to 2 metres thick in some cases. The discovery of REE-mineralised breccias is significant as it proves that the Gakara project has potential to include sizeable deposits over and above existing well-known vein stockworks.
"The coming months are set to be highly active on the ground. In conjunction with the on-going production and sales of high-grade concentrate from the Gasagwe deposit, we will be completing the Phase 1 targets over the coming weeks, and we are already planning for and committed to Phase 2 of the drill programme with the target of delivering a code-compliant resource estimate by the end of Q4 2018. I look forward to reporting the results of our exploration efforts with a view to expanding on our current mining operations at Gakara."