Akrokeri-Homase Gold Project

The Akrokeri-Homase gold project is a high-grade mining operation located near the Akrikeri town in Ashanti region, Ghana. It is situated 12km away from AngloGold Ashanti’s historic Obuasi Mine in the Ashanti region.

The project includes the redevelopment of two historically producing mines namely Akrokeri and Homase. Gold production at the redevelopment project is expected to be achieved by the end of the first half of 2020.

Goldstone Resources holds complete interest in Akrokeri mine license and 90% interest in the Homase mine.

Akrokeri-Homase gold project geology and mineralization

The project is located adjacent to the Obuasi gold mine, which is one of the biggest gold mines in West Africa. It is hosted within the Ashanti Gold Belt region, at an altitude of more than 2,700m from sea level.

Gold mineralization at the mine occurs in meta-greywackes and graphitic shales. At Akrokerri, gold is contained in quartz veinlets including pyrite and arseno-pyrite as well as in disseminated sulphides.

Drilling activities at the mine have led to the discovery of an 8km-long anomaly named the Homase Trend at the Homase mine. Gold mineralization at the discovery is found in birimian metasediment and disseminated sulphide over a strike length of 5.5km.

Akrokeri-Homase gold project reserves

As of 2017, the total mineral resource available at the gold project was approximately 34.05Moz grading 7.30g/t of Au. The Homase Trend is estimated to contain approximately 602,000oz of gold reserves grading 1.77g/t of Au.

Mining at Akrokeri-Homase gold project

The Akrokeri mine was developed through two underground shafts located at depths of 500ft. GoldStone Resources is focusing on reopening the underground shafts to access the mineralized zones located along the strike extensions within the shaft.

A new Norton shaft is being developed approximately 40m east of the historic North shaft. It will provide access to mining trenches located at depths of 400ft (122m). Level 1 of the shaft was intersected in December 2018 and works are being carried out to remove debris and clear old rails.

The North shaft is planned to be reopened and, along with the Norton shaft, will be used as access points for the development of the mine. The area hosting artisanal shafts and pits is being rehabilitated to ensure safety while working in shallow depths.

The Homase mine is planned to be developed using open-pit mining methods. A scoping study is currently being carried out for the Homase Trend to further define the mineralization.

Ore processing at Akrokeri-Homase gold project

A pilot heap leach project is being carried out under the scoping study for the Homase mine. The project is intended for the identification of parameters required for the mine’s near-term development. The parameters include time for leaching and potential gold recoveries using heap leach treatment.

The leach cycle estimated by the University of Mines and Technology (UMaT) in Tarkwa, Ghana, is approximately 65 days with a recovery rate of 80%. The pilot test further proved that approximately 90% of the available gold reserves can be recovered using the heap leach method and can be accomplished within the first 15 days of leaching.

During the initial 40 days, approximately 2.5t of material in the Homase Trend was used for the irrigation of a pilot heap leach plant. The recoveries obtained during the process were 67.5%.

Financing and contractors involved

Goldstone secured $1.224m in funding from Paracale Gold in December 2018 for the development of the project.

Minerex Drilling Contractors and BCM Ghana were contracted to perform drilling activities at the Akrokeri-Homase gold project site.