Mining: Akrokeri mine to be revived after 100 years

Shares rose in Goldstone Resources Ltd on Friday as it said it has started a project to revitalise the Akrokeri underground mine in Ghana, which has been closed for over a century.

Shares in the gold miner rose 10% at 2.15 pence on Friday.

The mine is in the Akrokeri prospecting licence and is recorded by the Ghanaian Minerals Commission to have produced 75,000 ounces of gold between 1904 and 1909 from 104,000 tonnes of ore, equal to a recovered grade of 24 grams per tonne.

However, the mine was closed in 1909, due to a high inflow of water.

Since then two drilling campaigns were undertaken by Birim Goldfields Ltd in 1996 with nine diamond drill holes totalling 2,000 metres and Pan African Resources in 2008, comprising 10 diamond drill holes totalling 3,200 metres. This drilling encountered previously unknown, narrow high-grade quartz veins, with samples up to 51 grams per tonne.

Goldstone has located the core drilling by Birim and Pan African Resources, which is revealed to be incomplete. Re-logging is underway and further assaying of the core will be undertaken if appropriate.

"Goldstone continues to review all the historical data for its licences, and this has lead to the re-examination of the former mine which we are really excited about. There is a huge opportunity to find and exploit an existing resource and also expand on these resources, not to mention the huge value in the existing infrastructure and underground development," said Chief Executive Officer Emma Priestley.