Ariana Resources has reported new gold intersections from its wholly owned Dokwe project in Zimbabwe, with drilling, metallurgical testing, resource conversion and engineering programmes progressing towards a definitive feasibility study (DFS) targeted for early 2027. At Dokwe Central, diamond drilling returned 98 metres at 2.85 g/t gold from 91 metres, including a 1-metre interval grading 93.72 g/t gold.
Drilling at Dokwe North produced 24 metres at 4.71 g/t gold, including 2 metres at 46.95 g/t, along with a separate 68-metre intersection grading 2.03 g/t gold.
Diamond drilling supports technical studies
The results were generated from a 2,822-metre, 15-hole diamond drilling programme. The programme was primarily designed to provide material for metallurgical testwork and support technical studies as Dokwe advances towards feasibility, rather than solely to expand the exploration footprint. Ariana has shipped approximately eight tonnes of representative material to China for feasibility-level metallurgical testing by Hongkong Xinhai Mining Services. The metallurgical programme is intended to generate data on gold recovery, processing characteristics and flowsheet design for the DFS and subsequent reserve estimation.
Dokwe resource contains 1.60 million ounces
The Dokwe project currently has a mineral resource of approximately 62.47 million tonnes grading 0.80 g/t gold, equivalent to around 1.60 million ounces of gold. Ariana has stated that it is funded to complete the main DFS technical programmes during the first quarter of 2027. Further exploration has also identified continuation of the mineralised system towards the northeast, providing scope for additional resource growth alongside the ongoing feasibility work.
Engineering and metallurgy advance towards DFS
The latest drilling forms part of the transition from resource definition into project engineering, with metallurgical testing and technical programmes progressing alongside further work on the mineralised system. The feasibility programme will establish the technical parameters required for a subsequent reserve estimate, including information from metallurgical testing and processing studies. Ariana’s current work at Dokwe therefore combines resource conversion, metallurgical testing and engineering studies as the company progresses towards the planned DFS in early 2027.
