African Eagle Resources plc - Latest Drilling Results From African

First assay results from 2009 drilling programme
- Results received from first 17 of approximately 120 planned holes.
- Key mineralised intersections include
- 18m at 1.2% nickel including 9m @ 1.7%
- 15m at 1.1% nickel
- 27m at 0.9% nickel
- Option exercised on the Ngasamo deposit
- Deposit modelling contract awarded to Snowden Mining Services
- Logistics study awarded to Drum Resources Limited
African Eagle's Managing Director Mark Parker comments, "We are pleased to report that we have successfully completed our drilling programme to define the margins of the Wamangola Hill Deposit at the Dutwa Nickel Project in Tanzania. We recently received preliminary assay results from the first few drill holes, which are in line with our expectations. The rig will now move to Ngasamo Hill, where our recently completed surface surveys have confirmed that the laterite is nickel bearing. As a result, we have exercised our option to earn an interest in Ngasamo.
"The appointment of Snowden Mining Industry Consultants to conduct the deposit modelling and Drum Resources Limited to carry out the logistics study gets our feasibility study well under way."
Drilling
The programme of step-out and infill Reverse Circulation (RC) drilling at the main Wamangola deposit was completed last week, with 62 RC holes drilled for a total of 3299m, to an average depth of 53m.The programme was designed to improve the definition of the deposit, especially around the edges, which were not fully investigated by previous drilling campaigns. The results should allow an upgrade of the resource estimate to JORC indicated category and may also add to the 31 million tonnes, 1.1% nickel resource announced last November. Preliminary assay results for nickel have now been received from the first 17 drill holes and the results are in line with our expectations for the deposit margins, where the laterite is somewhat thinner and lower grade than in the centre. The samples are now being prepared for assay for a wider suite of chemical elements.
Ngasamo Option Exercised
Having completed the Wamangola step-out and infill programme, drilling will move 7km west to Ngasamo Hill. African Eagle recently completed surface surveys over this area, which supported the Company's view that the laterite at Ngasamo Hill is geologically very similar to that at Wamangola and holds a potentially significant nickel endowment. African Eagle has therefore exercised its option with Ngasamo's owners, (Safina a.s. of the Czech Republic and its Tanzanian subsidiary Precious Metals Refinery Company Ltd), to earn an interest in the prospect.Under the earn-in Agreement, announced 7 April 2009, the Company will now earn an initial 35% interest by conducting and co-funding the current RC drilling programme to delineate a JORC inferred resource at Ngasamo. It can then increase this to 50% by sole-funding the promotion of the resource to indicated category and to 75% by including the Ngasamo deposit in the global feasibility study. On completion of the feasibility study, Safina will convert its interest in Ngasamo into an interest in the whole project, according to the ratio of the two companies' attributable interests in the global resources.
Deposit modelling and logistics contracts
African Eagle has awarded two significant contracts which will form key parts of the Dutwa feasibility study. The Company has appointed Snowden Mining Industry Consultants to carry out deposit modelling and mine planning on the drill results. Snowden has one the best records of any consulting group in nickel laterite advanced deposit modelling, resource estimation and/or mine engineering studies including Koniambo in New Caledonia (Xstrata Nickel, formerly Falconbridge); Caldag in Turkey and Acoje in the Philippines (European Nickel); Ravensthorpe (BHP Billiton) and Murrin Murrin (Anaconda Nickel) both in Australia. Other recent Snowden clients include Heron Resources, Intex Resources, Toledo Mining(Berong and Ipilan).
African Eagle has also awarded the contract for a logistics and transport study to Drum Resources Limited, a UK based group specialising in logistics in Africa. Drum has extensive experience of providing logistics services to the mineral industry, including copper supply chain management from the Democratic Republic of Congo and for chrome and manganese mines in South Africa, as well as expertise in broader commodity import and export logistics.