A-Cap Resources has discovered two new coal deposits in Botswana through ongoing uranium exploration programs in the basal stratigraphy of the Karoo Supergroup, which is prospective for both sedimentary hosted uranium and coal.
The first discovery occurred at the Mea Prospect, which demonstrated a vast new coal field with multiple coal seam intercepts within a thicker carbonaceous unit that is over 100m true thickness.
The second discovery, Bolau, has been made on two separate PLs and is interpreted to be the up and down dip extension of the known Sese Coal Project that extends into A-Cap ground – coal intercepts that occur in two 25m thick horizons.
The Mea Project intersected high quality thermal coal over a potentially large area and the Bolau Project encountered significant bituminous to sub-bituminous coals adjacent to African Energy Resources’s Sese coal resource.
A-Cap Resources CEO Paul Thomson said the identification of these coal projects opens up a whole new direction for the company.
"We will therefore be continuing with our ongoing feasibility work at the Letlhakane Uranium Project focusing on early development, in tandem with further exploration at the two new coal projects.
Consultant Willem J. Smuts Pr.Sci.Nat said is my considered opinion that the Mea project area contains a coal deposit of significant tonnage and better than average quality by Botswana coal standards.
"A limited exploration program could in the next 12 to 18 months, prove up a coal resource that could compare favourably to any of the recently reported projects in the country," he added.
A total of 11 core holes on PL125/2009 and 20 RC holes on PL138/2005 have been completed.
Seven of the core holes on PL125/2009 intersected significant thicknesses of coal and the six RC holes drilled in the northern section of PL138/2005 intersected the interpreted down-dip extension of the Sese deposit.
The coal logged occurs in two separate seams that vary between 3m and 25m in thickness. At this stage no samples have been assayed to determine coal quality.
Coal thickness averaged at 20m and was found in two seams, the upper seam at around 4m and a lower seam of 16m while the coal-bearing horizon has now been intersected over an area measuring about 12km x 10km.
Meanwhile, amendments to the Mea prospecting licence to include coal have been approved by the Government of Botswana and it has provided notice of its intention to approve amendments to the two prospecting licences covering the Bolau Discovery.
So far, A-Cap has completed six RC holes and seven diamond holes that intersected coal horizons and observed that in the discovery areas, the stratigraphic package dips shallowly towards the south west at around 10 degrees.
No analytical results for the coals have been received, but with logged geology and the continuity of the coal horizons in the Sese Project, the coal is interpreted to be sub-bituminous thermal coal with potential to produce doth domestic and export quality products.
The company has reported a JORC compliant Indicated Mineral Resource of 2.5 billion tins from Sese Project.
A-Cap said planning for the complete exploration and delineation of the new discoveries is underway which confirm both Botswana’s coal prospectivity.