TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - Jan. 8, 2013) - Tembo Gold Corp. ("Tembo" or the "Company") (TSX VENTURE:TEM)(FRANKFURT:T23)(OTCQX:TBGPF) - David Scott President & CEO reports: It is with great pleasure that I update you on the progress and developments of Tembo Gold Corp. In 2012, we made significant progress on a number of key objectives on the Tembo gold property in Tanzania's Lake Victoria goldfield, most importantly we made substantial progress with our exploration program such that we look forward with confidence to continuing deeper drilling and resource definition drilling in 2013;
2012 Highlights:
35,000m of drilling completed: 15,000m of diamond drilling (DD) in 57 holes and 20,000m of reverse circulation drilling (RC) in 139 holes
Gold mineralization intersected in 53 of 57 DD holes with up to 93 g/t Au intersected
Mineralized strike length of over 1,600m defined in two main project areas
Land tenure strengthened
After the completion of the 2012 drill campaign we are more confident than ever in the quality and potential of the Tembo project. The amount of high-grade gold mineralization encountered throughout the property, and the consistency with which our diamond drilling intersected these structures, provides us with geological confidence in our approach and methodology. The potential for early and phased mine development, with low capital and operating cost production, presents a very real opportunity to maximize shareholder value and minimize future financial risk. In view of this, we look forward to the next phase of our exploration program and are thankful for the hard work and support of our employees, contractors, board members and shareholders in 2012.
Target Selection and Drill Program
Artisanal mining activity is recognized as a key indicator of the extent of high-grade gold mineralization on the Tembo project. A LIDAR (light detection and ranging) survey delineated the extent of such workings and defined more than 10km of aggregate strike length from historical and current workings. Some 2,800 hard rock artisanal exploitation shafts, with average depths between 30m and 50m, occur as linear trends that correspond closely with linear magnetic anomalies. The magnetic anomalies are considered to indicate concealed, potentially mineralized, shear structures which extend well beyond current or historical workings. Less than 10% of the magnetic lineaments have associated artisanal activity suggesting that there is extensive target potential both along strike of these and along numerous parallel lineaments. From the above findings, seven priority target areas were identified for Phase I drilling; Ngula 1, Ngula 2, Nyakagwe East, Nyakagwe Village, Buly, Iyenze and Mgusu. Targeting areas beneath artisanal workings has proven extremely successful with 53 of 57 diamond drill holes encountering gold mineralization.
Comparing the 2012 Tembo project drill results with the early drilling at African Barrick's Bulyanhulu mine is informative. Bulyanhulu drilling at depths shallower than 200-300m showed inconsistent grades, but as drilling depth increased, grades and grade consistency showed a marked improvement, and this is what we have encountered thus far at Tembo. The Tembo project mineralizing event would have developed under similar pressure and temperature conditions as at Bulyanhulu. If such conditions contributed significantly to the gold distribution at Tembo, it is hypothesized that gold grade and grade consistency may improve with depth as it does at Bulyanhulu. We are very excited to undertake the next drilling phase to test this hypothesis and deep diamond drilling has already commenced at Ngula 1.
Ngula 1
Initial drilling at Ngula 1 delineated a 150-200m wide zone of multiple east-west striking shears and northwest and northeast crosscutting structures as indicated by artisanal workings and magnetic lineaments. Mineralization has been intersected over a strike length of over 600m and the zone is open in both directions and down dip. Drilling beneath active artisanal workings demonstrated the potential to encounter significant gold mineralization as it intersected robust mineralized shear zones in places hosting wide and high-grade gold structures. Deeper drilling to test the extensions of these structures at depth has commenced, and in-fill drilling to provide data and geological information to determine a resource is planned in 2013. The best results at Ngula 1 (previously reported March 13, June 7 and September 26, 2012) include:
TDD0004: 3.13 g/t Au over 25.89m from 41.00m including 9.38g/t Au over 6.30m;
TDD0005: 8.50g/t Au over 5.14m from 152.85m including 15.59g/t Au over 2.68m, and 93.30g/t Au over 0.38m;
TDD0054: 8.17g/t Au over 11.05m from 116.95m including 12.90g/t Au over 2.20m and 12.56g/t Au over 4.03m; and
TRC0013: 17.23g/t Au over 4.00m from 19.00m including 22.53g/t Au over 3.00m and 48.8g/t Au over 1.00m, and 13.00g/t Au over 1.00m from 104m.
Nyakagwe East
Drill results at Nyakagwe East combined with historic drilling demonstrate a mineralized strike length of over 1,000m along at least one structure within zones that contain multiple structures. DD targeted the area under the northern structure of two extensively mined northwest trending zones containing multiple structures, exploited along approximately 750m of strike. RC drilling where no mining has been carried out showed that the northern structure continues and is mineralized over 300m to the northwest and into the next target area, Mgusu. Historical DD and RC drilling showed the target potential with highlights including:
DD001: 10.25g/t Au over 3.50m from 38.50m;
DD005: 9.73g/t Au over 3.40m from 81.94m; and
RC056: 36.70g/t Au over 1.00m.
To complement historical drilling, the northern zone was targeted with DD to intersect 50m to 100m underneath the workings. Highlights along the Nyakagwe East target northern structure (previously reported July 24, 2012) include:
TDD0019: 4.69g/t Au over 1.67m from 67.35m;
TDD0029: 61.80g/t Au over 0.68m from 277.24; and
TRC0234: 5.46g/t Au over 2.00m from 109.00m.
The zone is open at depth and along strike in both directions and further drilling is planned to test along the northern zone and the parallel structures. The drill holes also show potential for sub-parallel deeper structures that will be targeted in a future deeper drilling program. Deeper and closer spaced in-fill drilling is also planned in 2013 as Tembo commences resource definition.
Other Targets
Preliminary drilling was conducted at the Mgusu, Nyakagwe Village, Ngula 2, and Iyenze targets. RC drilling at Mgusu (results announced September 5, 2012) intersected significant gold mineralization in an area with numerous artisanal shafts along east-west, northwest and northeast trending magnetic lineaments. At Nyakagwe Village (results announced September 11, 2012), a major artisanal mining area exploited by vertical shafts became a large artisanal open pit extracting high-grade material. Initial drilling intersected two high-grade veins south of the workings and an extremely high-grade zone at depth to the north on an unrelated structure. Follow-up drilling along strike intersected the primary zone to the east and further drilling is planned to test both high-grade prospects. Highlights from the Mgusu and Nyakagwe Village targets include:
Mgusu
TRC0423: 10.17g/t Au over 6m from 36.0m including 19.1g/t over 3m.
Nyakagwe Village
TDD0107: 16.58g/t Au over 3.55m from 43.88m and 27.88g/t over 3m from 65.90m; and
TDD0101: 78.1 g/t Au over 1.00m from 294.00m.
At Ngula 2, initial structural DD holes failed to intersect the high-grade mineralization being exploited by artisanal miners. RC fences along the Iyenze trend intersected low-grade mineralization and further drilling along the structure will be considered.
License Tenure
When the NI 43-101 was submitted in May 2011, the Tembo project consisted of six valid prospecting licenses and 28 prospecting license applications. Subsequently, all applications (with one exception in a non-priority area) were granted. There are currently 95.5km2 of valid prospecting licenses and approximately 5.5km2 under application. This is a significant improvement in the license tenure status and ensures that all current targets fall within secure license areas. There are four pending license applications for new licenses, none of which fall within the current target area where the drilling program is focused.
Corporate Update
Tembo has achieved significant corporate accomplishments since July 15, 2011 when the new management and Board of Directors assumed control. Tembo was successfully recapitalized in the fall/winter of 2011/2012 with over C$17M of funds raised and all outstanding debts cleared. A successful relisting of the company on the TSX Venture Exchange in February 2012 followed and additional funding was successfully raised at the end of 2012.
In Tanzania, the company successfully established an office and working camp, and has built key relationships with government and local communities. The exploration program has been executed by geologists from The Mineral Corporation, and we recently strengthened our exploration team with the addition of Peter Haworth as Exploration Manager and Jann Beresford as Senior Geologist.
Expert Consultant Engaged
Professor Nick Oliver (Director and Principal of Holcombe Coughlin Oliver, former Director and Professor at the Economic Geology Research Unit at James Cook University), a specialist in hydrothermal gold mineralization systems such as those of the Lake Victoria Goldfield, visited the Tembo project in November 2012. Professor Oliver recognized that Ngula 1 has potential to develop into a world-class gold deposit. He describes Ngula 1 as follows:
"The high quality geophysical datasets provide confidence that several E-W trending, metre- to 10m-scale wide, steep gold-rich envelopes will be continuous to significant depths, but the distribution of shallow gold domains within and around the steep zones requires ongoing attention."
Professor Oliver's findings have contributed to a fuller understanding of the controls and nature of the Ngula 1 mineralization and he provided important technical recommendations that are assisting targeting the next drilling phase and 3D modeling of the deposit in order to define a resource. Professor Oliver's assistance to the Tembo project has been invaluable and we plan to continue working with him as the project moves forward.
Community Integration and Engagement
Tembo, within its limited means as a junior exploration company, endeavors to be a responsible member of the communities within which it operates and seeks to establish strong, positive and mutually beneficial relationships. In so doing, it aims to achieve its social license to operate. Experienced consultants were engaged to assist the Company develop practical strategic plans to ensure continued, effective and open communication, and well-defined corporate participation in sustainable development projects. Our approach is strongly based on cooperative agreement and participation by all stakeholders. To this end the Company commenced initial support activities that included assisting with school construction and similar projects. A key endeavor is to help end the needless deaths of artisanal miners by improving unsafe mining conditions and practices, and the severe health damage they suffer from occupational hazards including noise, dust and the use of mercury.
Moving Forward
Following on the successful 2012 exploration results, Tembo will continue to explores and develop the 7 target areas on the Tembo Gold property. At Ngula 1 and Nyakagwe East, where a combined mineralized strike length of over 1,600m had been identified deeper drilling to test the extension at depth has commenced, and in-fill drilling to provide data and geological information to determine a resource is planned in 2013. Further RC exploration drilling is planned to follow the exceptional results encountered at Mgusu and Nyakagwe Village.
About Tembo
Tembo Gold is a Canadian public company listed on the TSX Venture Exchange ("TSX-V") under the symbol TEM. The Company currently has 100% interest in the Tembo Gold Project that is located adjacent to African Barrick's 20Moz Bulyanhulu Mine in the prolific Lake Victoria Greenstone belt in Tanzania. Our focus is the discovery and development of world-class gold projects in Africa. The company has assembled a highly experienced team with a proven history of developing, financing, and operating mining projects in Africa.
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain information set out in this news release constitutes forward-looking information. Forward looking statements are often, but not always, identified by the use of words such as "seek", "anticipate", "plan", "continue", "estimate", "expect", "may", "will", "intend", "could", "might", "should", "believe" and similar expressions. In particular, this news release contains forward-looking statements in respect of the use of the net proceeds from the Private Placement, the completion and timing of additional closings of the Non-Brokered Private Placement, the payment of certain finders' fees and the listing of the Common Shares on the TSXV. Forward-looking statements are based upon the opinions and expectations of management of the Company as at the effective date of such statements and, in certain cases, information provided or disseminated by third parties. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are based upon reasonable assumptions, and that information obtained from third party sources is reliable, they can give no assurance that those expectations will prove to have been correct. With respect to forward-looking statements contained in this news release, the Company has made assumptions regarding, among other things, the ability to develop the Company's properties, the economic climate in the jurisdictions where the Company carries on operations and commodity prices. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements contained in this document, and the assumptions on which such forward-looking statements are made, are reasonable, there can be no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements included in this document, as there can be no assurance that the plans, intentions or expectations upon which the forward-looking statements are based will occur. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve numerous assumptions, known and unknown risks and uncertainties that contribute to the possibility that the predictions, forecasts, projections and other forward-looking statements will not occur, which may cause actual results in future periods to differ materially from any estimates or projections of future performance or results expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, among other things, a significant drop in the price of gold, political turmoil in Tanzania and other risk factors set forth in the Company's continuous disclosure. Readers are cautioned that this list of risk factors should not be construed as exhaustive. These statements are made as at the date hereof and unless otherwise required by law, the Company does not intend, or assume any obligation, to update these forward-looking statements.
NEITHER THE TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE NOR ITS REGULATION SERVICES PROVIDER (AS THAT TERM IS DEFINED IN THE POLICIES OF THE TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE) ACCEPTS RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ADEQUACY OR ACCURACY OF THIS NEWS RELEASE.Tembo Gold Corp.Marc CernovitchVP Business Development Director416.619.9010mcernovitch@tembogold.com
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