Cabral Gold (CBR) - 4g/t over 21m, Permitted, Funded and 82% Recovery

Cabral Gold Inc. is a TSX-V and OTC-listed gold exploration company focused on advancing its flagship Cuiú Cuiú gold project. The Cuiú Cuiú gold project is a 36,000-hectare land package, located in the Tapajos region of Brazil northwest of the TZ project owned by Eldorado Gold Corporation.

Cabral Gold Inc. on the 27th of June 2022 released the results of column-leach test work on unconsolidated gold-bearing oxide material from the MG target at the Cuiú Cuiú gold project. The results show that heap-leaching is a viable extraction method for the project. The gold recoveries of the testing showed 82% after 70 days, 78% after 30 days and 70% after 15 days.

The company also announced at the end of June 2022, that it had concluded with its previously announced brokered private placement. The placement consisted of 10,038,358 units of the company, at a price of CAD$ 0.30 per unit for the aggregate gross proceeds of approximately CAD$ 3 million towards the company. The proceeds will be implemented towards exploration and development initiatives as well as general working capital purposes.

Cabral Gold Inc. further announced in June 2022, that the Para State Environmental Agency had granted two trial mining licences for both its preliminary (LP) and installation permits (LI). The LP and LI permits cover the MG and Central deposits, as well as the Machichie and PDM discoveries.

The company also released assay results from ten diamond drill holes for the southern part of the central gold deposit. The highlights of the results include 4.2 g/t of gold over an intercept of 20.9 m which includes 2.0 m at a grade of 32.3 g/t of gold.

Gold Recoveries

Cabral Gold Inc. on the 21st of June 2022, announced that it had received the metallurgical test results from column-leach test work conducted on gold-bearing oxide material of the MG deposit from its Cuiú Cuiú gold project. Alan Carter the president and CEO of Cabral Gold Inc. explains that the test work was motivated by the company’s suspicion that the gold-bearing oxide material may be amenable to heap-leaching, he states:

“We thought there was a really good chance that this material could be amenable to heap leach processing, that’s why we sent the bulk sample up to the Kappes, Cassiday. We got the results a couple of weeks ago on that bulk sample. They basically put this unconsolidated oxidised material in a plastic column and leached it with a cyanide solution, and the recoveries came back. We’ve got 82% recoveries after about 70-days, and the material is still leaching. Now, that is a very good recovery in terms of heap leach.”

The test results showed that the gold recoveries, which were based on the calculated gold content of the bulk sample, were 70% after 15 days, 78% after 30 days and 82% after 70 days of test work. Carter gives context to the metallurgical recoveries, and compares the results to various other operations as follows:

“…most of, for example, Barrick’s mines, or a lot of those big mines that they have in Nevada, are leaching. The recoveries range anywhere from about 55% to about mid-70%. El Dorado has got a big mine in Turkey, mid-50% recovery, so to have 82% recovery is extremely good.”

The leached gold recoveries showed a grade of 0.974 g/t of gold, which is higher than the average head grade of 0.896 g/t of gold the samples showed before the test. The company will further investigate the most economical heap leach timespan for future operation, Carter explains:

“How long you keep leaching the material depends. In all likelihood, what will happen is there’ll be layers of material that will keep going on top, so the earlier material that you put on the heap earlier obviously has a lot lower recoveries as the time progresses.”

Private placement

Cabral Gold Inc. at the end of June 2022, that it had concluded with a Private Placement Offering. The brokered private placement offering consisted of the issuing of 10,038,358 units of the company at CAD$ 0.30 per unit, for the gross proceeds of approximately CAD$ 3 million to the company. Each unit consisted of 1 common share of the company as well as one common share purchase warrant, which entitles the holder thereof to acquire one common share of the company at CAD$ 0.50 per common share for 24 months after the closing of the offering.

The rationale behind raising funds in the current market is to enable the company to still advance its Cuiú Cuiú gold project, Carter explains:

“...we’ve decided to continue to move forward. We have cut back the number of rigs on site. We had 5 rigs turning. We’re still drilling, but it’s a much lower level and obviously lower cost. We want to keep moving our project forward. A lot of the stuff that we’ve got planned over the next few months, particularly the resource estimate and the PEA, is relatively low-cost. A lot of the drilling here has already been done. So, that was the mindset, and as you know, that CAD$ 3 million that we’ve just raised, management has put up a significant chunk of that. I’m already the largest shareholder, but I wrote a 6-figure check into that financing too.”

Mining permits

Cabra Gold Inc. recently received both the preliminary and installation permits for two trial mining licences from the Para State Environmental Agency of Brazil. The preliminary (LP) and installation (LI) permits were previously approved by the Brazilian Mining Agency. The LP, as well as the LI permits, cover both the MG and the Central deposits of the Cuiú Cuiú gold project as well as the Machichie and PDM discoveries.

The LI and LP permits authorise the trial mining operation as well as the installation of all necessary infrastructure and equipment required for trial mining.

Carter explains that the permits enable the company to build and confirm the heap leach results through a trial mining operation:

“We’ve now got the environmental permits in place to actually build that heap leach plant for the trial mining.”

Diamond drill results

Cabral Gold Inc. on the 7th of July 2022, announced the assay results of ten diamond drill holes from the diamond drilling conducted at the southern part of the Central gold deposit of the Cuiú Cuiú gold project.

The assay results include highlights such as 4.2 g/t of gold in oxidised and weathered material over an intercept of 20.9 m, including a 2.0 m intercept at 32.3 g/t of gold. The assay results further show 1.7 g/t of gold over 23.5 m, including an intercept of 7.0 g/t of gold over 2.0 m as well as 1.2 g/t of gold over 35 m in basement mineralisation, including 6.8 g/t of gold over 2.0 m.

The assay results indicate that there may exist three high-grade veins within the broader Central gold deposit, implying the presence of more high-grade gold mineralisation at the deposit in the near-surface, as well as basement hosted mineralisation of the deposit.

The obtained assay results will be included in the planned resource update of the Cuiú Cuiú gold project. The updated mineral resource estimate is scheduled to be released before the end of August 2022 and will include more than 35,000 m of additional drilling from its predecessor published in 2018. Carter states:

“… that resource in June 2018 was based on about 29,000 m of drilling. We’ve done, last time I looked at it, somewhere between around 35,000 m to 36,000 m of additional drilling since 2018.”

Future

Cabral Gold Inc. aims to complete a preliminary economic assessment (PEA) of the Cuiú Cuiú gold project before the end of 2022. The PEA will follow the publishing of the project’s updated mineral resource estimate and will be based on an envisioned heap-leaching operation. Carter states:

“The next steps for us really are to demonstrate that this oxide material is economically viable now we’ve got the met results. So, we are planning on kicking off a PEA in the next few weeks and months. We’re doing some internal scoping work, looking at what the likely Opex and Capex costs are going to be ahead of that PEA.”

The company further plans on continuing with exploration and infill drilling initiatives at the project as well as the construction of a trial mining operation. The trial mining operation has been enabled by the obtaining of the relevant permits by the company from the local government, Carter explains:

“…in the last few days, the other thing, just getting back to this oxide material, is we’ve been granted installation licences for the 250-hectare central block that encompasses all of the main deposits that we’ve got at Cuiú Cuiú. We’ve now got the environmental permits in place to actually build that heap leach plant for the trial mining.”

The findings of the preliminary economic assessment of the Cuiú Cuiú gold project will direct the company’s future initiatives. Carter explains that should the PEA show a low capital cost, the company may move into the construction of the operation directly, and not complete a feasibility study. He further explains that should the PEA show a high capital cost (CAPEX), Cabral Gold Inc. may move to first complete a feasibility study of the Cuiú Cuiú gold project to ease the minds of investors, he states:

“We don’t think that we’re going to need to do a Feasibility Study. Obviously, for a big operation for example that needed CAD$ 250 million to CAD$ 500 million of Capex, you’d have to do the full work on it, and the Feasibility Study, which would cost millions and probably 1 year or 18 months to do. Now, I don’t think we’re going to need that. The question is, as I said, will we be able to actually be in a position to finance this thing based on the PEA? It will depend on the results of the PEA. If the capital costs are very, very low with the PEA then we’ll obviously be looking at financing this thing, talking to potential funders.”

The company has initiated talks with potential funders and will, depending on the PEA, proceed accordingly, Carter states:

“…we’ve already opened a number of lines of dialogue with potential funders for these smaller types of operations. That’s basically the timeline.”

To find out more, go to the Cabral Gold website