www.lydianinternational.co.uk
Lydian International is a mineral exploration and development company with expertise and a proven track record in discovering and developing new gold projects in unfamiliar and frontier settings. The Company is currently focussed on developing its Amulsar gold discovery in southern Armenia. The Amulsar project was a new discovery made by Lydian in 2006 and currently hosts a global resource of 3.2M ounces after its resource update in January 2012. This resource update comprises a total of 1.7 million ounces gold in the indicated category and 0.6 million ounces gold in inferred category (using a 0.4g/t cut-off) from the contiguous Tigranes and Artavasdes areas and 0.5 million ounces gold in the indicated category and 0.4 million ounces inferred category from the Erato prospect which is located approximately 900 meters to the north of Tigranes-Artavasdes. The project remains open in all directions and is currently advancing towards Bankable Feasibility with full production due in the first half of 2014.
Lydian reports final gold results from successful 2009 Drilling Program at Amulsar in Armenia
Lydian International Ltd. (TSX: LYD) released the final batch of results from the 2009 step-out drilling program at the Amulsar gold discovery in Armenia. The Amulsar project is being explored through a joint venture with Newmont Mining Corp (NYSE: NEM). The latest drilling results highlighted a 96 meter intersection grading 1 gram per tonne of gold.
The Amulsar group of licenses is 95 percent owned by Lydian's wholly owned Armenian subsidiary Geoteam CJSC. The project is currently being explored as part of a gold and copper exploration joint venture with Newmont in the south Caucasus region.
Newmont has two options to increase its interest. The first is an option to earn a further 20 percent by funding the project through to feasibility; the second option allows Newmont to earn a further 10 percent by funding through to commercial production.
Results reported today cover the last 29 exploration holes to be drilled in the 2009 program. Lydian drilled twenty one reverse circulation holes and four diamond holes drilled in the Artavasdes and Arshak prospect areas to the south of the existing Tigranes resource area. Four reverse circulation holes were drilled to test continuity between the Tigranes and Erato prospect areas.
At the Artavasdes prospect, drilling results returned grades between 0.96 and 2.30 grams per tonne, the highlights of the results show intersections of 26m, 40m, 50m and 96m length all grading approximately 1 gram per tonne of gold.
Earlier this month, the previous phase of drilling results identified a new prospect and potential resource that Lydian said is more than worthy of further drill testing in 2010. The company drilled nine reverse circulation drill holes and one diamond drill hole in the Erato and Erato north prospect areas. Erato is located just 1.5 kilometres along the mineralized ridge top to the northwest of Lydian's current 1 million ounce inferred resource.
According to Lydian, the 2009 step-out program has been highly successful. The company has extended the current resource, identified new areas and further potential at Erato and Arshak. A resource update is currently being prepared and is expected to be complete in December of this year.
Lydian's President and CEO, Tim Coughlin commented on the 2009 Amulsar drilling program:
"This year's step-out drilling around the margin of the current 1Moz resource has identified extensions that remain open and untested in three directions; the northwest, northeast and southwest with approximately 25% of holes drilled to date ending in gold grade and thus remaining open at depth ... Furthermore, the drill program has identified new and exciting potential at Erato approximately 1.5km north of the resource envelope where we recently intersected 229m at 1.0g/t gold and southeast for 400m along the ridge from Artavasdes towards Arshak where we have intersected up to 100m at 1.4g/t gold."
The finalization of the drilling results for the Amulsar rounds off an eventful few months for Lydian. The emerging exploration company recently completed a preliminary NI-101 resource estimate at its Drzhnje project in Kosovo.
In September, Lydian announced the results of an NI 43-101 compliant inferred resource estimate for its 100 percent owned Drazhnje project in Kosovo, its second main project,showing 3.21 million tonnes grading 2.51 percent lead and 5.11 percent zinc. This resource estimate is preliminary and remains open immediately at depth in the Main Zone and with additional tonnage likely at depth and along strike in the Eastern Zone and at the St George and St Barbara adit areas. Further lead-zinc and oxide gold exploration potential is also evident at surface.
At the beginning of November, Lydian successfully conducted a number of small fundraisings. The group completed a private placement with Macquarie Bank Ltd of 3.33 million shares at C$0.60 each, raising C$2 million before expenses. It also placed a further 330,000 shares at the same price, raising approximately C$200,000 before expenses. Lydian said the money will be used for continued exploration of the company's mineral properties and for general working capital purposes.
