KARCHIGA EXPLORATION LICENCE, KAZAKHSTAN

NI 43-101 Mineral Resource Estimate, March 2010

In March 2010 Orsu contracted Wardell Armstrong International to prepare an updated NI 43-101 compliant report and mineral resource estimation for the Karchiga VMS Copper Project

The updated resource estimate incorporates all the drilling completed to date on the project by Orsu (13,827m) and 86 of the 104 historical Soviet diamond drill holes and trenches (10,330m).

At a copper cut-off grade of 0.50% Cu, Karchiga contains Indicated Mineral Resources of 8.49Mt @ 1.95% Cu and at a 0.50% copper cut-off it contains Inferred Mineral Resources of 1.79Mt @ 1.62% Cu.

Table 1: Karchiga Copper Project, Mineral Resource Estimate. Effective date March 22, 2010

*All Inferred resources are quoted completely exclusive of Indicated resources. Mineral resources are shown at a 0.3 % Cu cut-off and 0.5% Cu cut-off as these are considered to be possible economic cut-off grades for this deposit; although, economic and mining studies are required to determine the actual cut-off grade. Mineral resources are reported without mining constraints other than the cut-off grade. No pit shell, mine design, or minimum mining width has been used to restrict the reported mineral resources


The updated mineral resource estimates use all data available at the end of December 2009. Indicated and inferred resources were categorized based upon a block model utilising 5m by 10m by 5m blocks respectively. Grades were estimated utilising the Inverse Distance cubed algorithm with interpolation parameters based upon the results of Geostatistical modelling completed for the relevant oxide and sulphide data sets. WAI carried out database verification and a review of the orebody modelling and domaining for each individual mineralised zone. WAI was provided with solid models (wireframes), surface topography, drillhole databases including Lithology, assay and density data, location plans and all internal and external quality control data collected since the commencement of the project.

The estimation was completed using 2m downhole composite drillhole samples selected within a hard boundary Cu grade wireframe. All wireframe models were constructed from sectional interpretation of geological and grade boundaries with each of the 12 individual wireframe models utilised to domain the blocks within the grade estimation model. Material types and samples data were subsequently extracted and subset within these discrete domains and grade interpolation was constrained to each individual domain separately. Specific gravity measurements were carried out for the different material types collected from Karchiga diamond drill core and an in-situ bulk density value assigned to the block model based upon observed grade to bulk density relationship.

At Karchiga the drill holes spacing has now been infilled to approximately a 60m by 40m pattern within the Indicated classified material of the Central and Northeast zones and to approximately an 80m by 120m pattern within the Inferred classified zones.

The mineralisation is located within a series of stacked shallow-dipping massive and disseminated sulphide bodies primarily consisting of chalcopyrite-pyrrhotite and pyrite mineralisation. The style of the mineralisation is characterised as Volcanogenic Massive Sulphide (VMS) and hosted within a series of shallow dipping alternating Amphibolite and Quartz Mica Schist units. The zones have a strike of in excess of 1km and are intersected down to depths of 200m.  

For more information please go to 43-101 Technical Reports page.