# SBS - Sub-Sahara Resources



## fryzie (10 May 2006)

Does anyone know much about this company? Its been trading a lot lately.


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## pkj24 (11 January 2007)

I have been hearing bits and pieces about this as a possible spec stock. I am not a techy but would be interested to hear if anyone else has been looking into this stock and their thoughts...

:newbie:


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## boiler (11 May 2007)

pkj24 said:


> I have been hearing bits and pieces about this as a possible spec stock. I am not a techy but would be interested to hear if anyone else has been looking into this stock and their thoughts...
> 
> :newbie:




Fryzie & Pkj24  I have bought in on this stock, this is what i posted on another forum. DYOR

Bought into SBS @10.5 cents. Has been in a uptrend since .012 cents November 2001. Price needs to close above 11.5 cents with volume, first line of resistance. My interpretation, comments welcome.
For the fundamentalists
Gold explorer + Uranium interests 
Market cap of about 50M excluding options
Holds 7.6M shares in Sunridge Gold (SGV.V) value 17.8M
Holds 6M shares in Currie Resources (CUI.V) value 2.4M
Has been operating in Africa for ten years
Has shown interest in U exploration with Joint Venture (possibly others in the pipeline?)
JORC report due this month from Zara gold project in Eritrea
Anvil Mining (AVM.ASX)bought 18% share holding in SBS 27/4/07 
AVM share price $18.50 reported $80M npat 2006
SBS cash in the bank $6.8M 
Have bought into this stock before it runs. dyor 
Comments welcome.


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## disarray (12 May 2007)

there looks to be some serious seller resistance to overcome up to and over resistance levels. even relatively large volumes of the last 2 weeks have seen the price stuggle to break out. this is an old stock and it has fallen far from grace, there are probably some very stubborn holders out there to work your way through


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## boiler (17 May 2007)

Some serious interest in SBS today maybe bouncing off rsi bottom trendline or at least a bounce from recent lows


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## boiler (27 May 2007)

http://www.subsahara.com.au/reports/broker/FSB Talking Point%2
Brokers report just out might help rerate stock in time.


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## boiler (31 May 2007)

For sbs holders
Thursday, 31 May 2007


THE two faces of exploration and mining in Africa – well known to all who have invested there – were on display again this week. The Outcrop by Robin Bromby.

One was the almost breathless enthusiasm from Castle Minerals, reporting that the first ever exploration at its Akoko project in Ghana had produced a 3km-long strong and continuous gold anomaly. 

The other was news from Paladin Resources that two NGOs in Malawi had started actions against the Kayelekera uranium project. 

But here's the difference between now and 15 years ago: the two NGOs stated they were not against the mine being developed and in fact welcomed it. 

The argument hinges on environmental and social impact issues. This is kid's play to what Africa used to be like for Australian mining companies.

Similarly, Sub-Sahara Resources (Eritrea) and Resolute Mining (Tanzania) have had recent hiccups – the latter case being over tax – which unlike in previous cases did not derail their operations.

The continent is becoming a surprisingly positive place as has been shown by growing investor interest in some stocks, although there still tends to be an "African discount" – AIM Resources and its high-grade zinc project in Burkina Faso being a prime example. 

Investors have well and truly climbed aboard the Botswana story: for many years in the 1990s, it was a hard sell to convince investors that this southern African nation had a solid mining law.

Equinox Minerals and its huge copper project in Zambia, Sundance Resources and its iron ore ambitions in Cameroon, Resolute moving ahead to restart the mine at Syama in Mali – all these are testament of the sea change that has occurred in the African mining story.

Even the Democratic Republic of Congo – once a no-go country for anyone who wanted some chance to see their money again – seems favoured by backers, as Tiger Resources has shown. 

And even the problems Anvil Mining experienced proved short-lived, although as London-listed company Nikanor has just found out, the Congo remains very unpredictable.

Africa has, in the past, dealt some savage blows to Australian plans. And it has taken many years for the image of unreliability, corruption and political uncertainty to be assuaged.

The degree to which the climate has changed is no better exemplified than by Mineral Deposits and its Sabodala gold project in Senegal. 

The company is moving steadily to develop and mine this deposit, with all the regulatory pieces falling into place.

Contrast that with the experience of Richard Fraser and Paget Mining. 

In 1994, Paget signed a deal with the French owners to buy a 51% stake in Sabodala.

But before a new mining licence was issued, the French joined forces with Robert Champion de Crespigny's Normandy and their new company decided to keep Sabodala. 

The fight went on for years and Fraser spent all his time in Dakar battling to get his claim recognised – meanwhile, a Senegalese company decided to start mining the deposit. Paget effectively went under.

Some other memories of what Africa used to be like: Delta Gold's shattered gold mine operation in Zimbabwe and Auridiam Consolidated closing its Ranch River diamond mine in that country, partly due to theft. 

Cambrian Resources struggled for years to get a project going in Zimbabwe only to give up and walk away.

Ghana Gold Mines found the dream of that country soon faded, closed its Obenemase mine and abandoned exploration, as did the then Takoradi Gold. 

The latter company's Gallamsays project in the Bole region of Ghana was plagued by illegal mining.

There is now the forgotten Panorama Resources. Apart from its Kenya gold projects, it ventured into the jungles of the Republic of Congo (that's the one centred on Brazzaville) and ended up with mothballing everything there.

Then there was Tony Trevisan's stable of Perth-based listed companies. 

His Pioneer Resources (later Kwan Lee Holdings) was going to make its name on the huge Rotifunk deposit, but a civil war in Sierra Leone saw that off. 

Another of his companies, Platgold Pacific, thought it was on to a gold winner in Namibia while another, Callina, briefly boasted on a copper project in Zambia.

Wheels can still fall off in Africa but less frequently. And sometimes those wheels can now be put back on again.


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## boiler (4 June 2007)

Smart money moving into this stock today  larger parcels on buy side very small parcels on sell side.


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## boiler (4 June 2007)

Im a bit slow just found the source for todays interest in this stock.

Australian explorer to start mining Eritrea gold
Sun Jun 3, 2007 10:33AM EDT

ASMARA (Reuters) - Australian explorer Sub-Sahara Resources will begin mining operations in Eritrea after test drilling revealed 760,000 ounces of high grade gold, the company said on Sunday.

"Now our intent is to make this into a mine," Chief Executive Officer Michael Griffiths told Reuters in an interview. "Zara has high grade gold," he said, referring to one of two projects the company is running in the Red Sea state.

He said it might take "a few years" before mining began while permits, financing and shareholder approval were secured.
Industry players say a new gold rush is happening in Eritrea, where analysts forecast mining revenues covering nearly 40 percent of government expenditures -- once mining starts.

There is currently only one project, a gold and base metals mine run by Canada's Nevsun Resources Ltd, that is close to operation. It plans to start work in 2008.

Some investors remain suspicious of Eritrea after the Horn of Africa nation unexpectedly ordered a halt to foreign mining work in September 2004, saying it needed to review its mining laws.

The ban was lifted in April 2005 but Griffiths said the move had caused consternation.

"However, once you start releasing very good drill results, people's memories get shorter and shorter," he said. Eritrea waged a brutal 30-year independence struggle against neighboring Ethiopia and the outbreak of a two-year border war in 1998 wreaked havoc on its infrastructure.

Griffiths said the same deposits his company had found would have twice their value if they were unearthed in Australia.

"People would value a project in Australia to have less political risk and greater infrastructure potential," he said. "We probably need to find double what we would in a developed country."


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## boiler (7 June 2007)

For something to do on a day like today My valuation of SBS obviously not the markets....as yet


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## boiler (19 June 2007)

Keeping SBS holders informed. Old story but a bit deeper than asx announcement.

Anvil likes the look of Zara
By Michael Quinn, 30 April 2007 

Zara in Eritrea … “we’ll see where Sub-Sahara can go with a bit of funding”.
HAVING proven itself more prescient and capable than most in the mining world with its highly profitable move into the Democratic Republic of Congo, copper miner Anvil Mining NL has made a second move to diversify its interests with its investment last week in Eritrean gold explorer Sub-Sahara Resources NL.

The Australian and Canadian-listed Anvil will invest $A7.2 million in Sub-Sahara for an 18% equity stake, with the junior’s Zara gold project the key attraction.

The Zara gold project in Eritrea covers an area of 196 square kilometres and is situated in northern Eritrea, about 160km north-west of the capital city, Asmara. There are a number of high-grade gold prospects within the project, with the Koka prospect being the most advanced. Mineralisation has been defined at Koka over a strike length of 500m (and remaining open), and an initial inferred resource estimate is currently being made.

Anvil chief executive officer Bill Turner told HighGrade the investment gave the company a “beachhead” in Eritrea in an interesting geological environment where further opportunities may arise. “It’s just a very interesting project (and) having a bit of gold in the portfolio is not a bad thing,” Turner said. “And who knows in Eritrea (what else will come up). It is a base metal and precious metal environment and we’ll see where Sub-Sahara can go with a bit of funding. We’re looking at other countries where we can grow the business. We do want to get in other parts of the world … we’ve been pretty single-point sensitive in terms of all our assets in Congo and the speed in which we’re growing in Congo leads you to feel that you need to diversify that political risk. Not to say that we think Congo is going to fall apart tomorrow, far from it, it is just an appropriate thing to do when you can.” 

Anvil is keen to ensure metallurgical and other scoping work is undertaken at Zara during the next 12-18 months while drilling continues. Turner wasn’t going to nominate possible development scenarios given the early stage of the project, but when pushed he responded: “In a project like that, you’d want to be producing a minimum 100,000oz. It’s a part of the world where you haven’t got a mining industry so you have to walk before you run … make it a staged development like we’ve done in Congo. Ideas of going in there with a big bang and starting a big project … those sorts of things don’t usually go very far, particularly with a junior company. Junior companies need to bite off sizeable bites that can be digested and move forward in that manner. And, it’s all about profit margins and return on equity/return on investment. Some of this stuff is reasonably high grade, this is not 2gpt dirt, this is 6-7-gram dirt, so hopefully in an openpit configuration, this can be reasonably profitable … and at 100,000oz mining at that grade you should be okay.

“We like the geology, the grades, some of intersections are not too shabby. (It’s a) long way before it’s a mine but we think it’s a pretty interesting project that’s worth supporting.”

The Sub-Sahara investment follows Anvil’s decision in February to invest a minimum of $US4 million in gold properties covering just under 3000 hectares in the Baguio district on Luzon Island in the Philippines. Turner indicated the investments were potentially just the start both in those countries and elsewhere for the emerging 100,000 tonnes-per-annum DRC copper miner.

“We go into a place like Eritrea for the upside in the country. One small al is not the end of the road (if we’re successful),” Turner said. “Like the Philippines, this is a beachhead.”


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## boiler (25 June 2007)

A big week for gold - Dryblower 


Monday, 25 June 2007


LOOKING for the next best thing is the game all investors play and Dryblower thinks he's spotted it.


OK, so gold is not exactly new, but that's half the fun of the great investment game. It is perpetual. One minute it's base metals on top, then it's the bulks, then it's energy, and then it's the precious stuff such as gold, silver, platinum and diamonds.

Over the past year the market has had time only for that 'new' energy play, uranium, and the oldest and dullest of the bulks, iron ore.

Gold and diamonds haven't even got a look in, shunted out of the way by the fat margins available elsewhere.

Well, consider the evidence Dryblower gathered last week. Just as everybody was looking at the latest $1 billion capital raising for Fortescue's iron ore projects, and Murchison Metals was merging with Mitsubishi, life returned to part of the gold sector.

Five stocks stood out in the sudden flush of interest in gold. But, of even greater interest than a burst of gold-stock buying was the timing – it happened while the gold price was falling.

Now, readers may think Dryblower old-fashioned, out-of-touch, and desperate for something to talk about but when mining shares are rising by 30% and more in a week, and the price of their principal commodity is falling, something special is happening.

Before citing the numbers here's what seems to be driving the price of selected gold shares.

First, there is the remarkable effect on market sentiment of discovery, and we do seem to be having good luck in the field.

Second, there is the gathering of smart money led by smart management putting their combined efforts into gold.

Thirdly there is the 'it's time' factor which comes back to the rotating investment theory of iron ore and uranium running out of puff, and gold staging a comeback.

Now for the evidence.

Last week the gold price, as measured on the London Bullion Market, slipped a few cents lower. From the Friday-to-Friday close it went from US$653.10 an ounce to $US652.85/oz. Modest indeed.

But, in Australia, the fall was more substantial because the Aussie dollar kept rising (from US83.86c to US84.72c) – that produced a gold price fall from $US778.79/oz to $US770.59.

Still not much, but down nevertheless.

On the stockmarket, the price of gold mattered little as discovery and deal news dominated.

That's why:

· Barra Resources shot up from 47c to 67c after spectacular assays from its Burbanks mine, a 42.5% gain as investors preferred the sight of 25.1m grading 31.8 grams a tonne over an $8.20 fall in the Aussie gold price.

· Andean Resources rose from 70.5c to $1, with a brief peak at $1.18, on the strength of assays from Argentina.

· Sleepy Alkane was reawakened with fresh results from Caloma drilling to deliver a 25% gain as it moved from 36c to 45c.

· Freshly floated Carbine added 5c in a move from 38c to 43c, and hit an all-time peak of 45c midweek thanks to drilling results from its Red Dam project.

· Apex Minerals ran hard early from 86c to $1.06, before sputtering out to close at 88c after announcing the purchase of Oxiana's Wiluna gold mines.

It isn't just Dryblower who's spotted the trend in those gold stock performances, and while other gold stocks did not do as well, it is impossible to ignore that interest in the gold sector is stirring.

Apex, with its bold plan to be the operator of difficult mines, is an example of the emerging forces in the next gold phase (better not call it a rush yet), and Monarch's vision of being a supplier of gold to wealthy Arabs is another.

But, above all else, and even with the gold price falling, there are two other factors under-pinning this revitalised interest in gold – investors' hunt for the next best thing, and the tremendous boost that comes from the most important factor of all, discovery.

Click here to read the rest of today's news stories.


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## boiler (26 June 2007)

Nevsun Resources CEO Speaks About His Company
Posted on Jun 25th, 2007 with stocks: NSU 

On June 25, The Wall Street Transcript interviewed John A. Clarke, President, Chief Executive Officer and Director of Nevsun Resources Ltd. (NSU). Key excerpts follow:

TWST: We like to begin with a brief historical sketch of Nevsun Resources and a picture of the things that you are doing right now.

Mr. Clarke: Nevsun Resources is a gold mining company with a strong gold and base metal portfolio. Our operations are in Africa. We have a small mine, the Tabakoto Gold Mine, that we brought into operation last year in Mali. Tabakoto is a 70,000 or 80,000 ounce a year producer. But the biggest asset in the portfolio and the biggest driver for taking this company forward is the Bisha discovery in Eritrea. Bisha will start as a gold mine for the first two years, producing about 450,000 ounces a year and then it becomes a long-term copper and zinc producer. The Bisha project has a very quick payback at today's metal prices - it is our job to make sure it makes this company.

TWST: What is your plan for Eritrea?

Mr. Clarke: Our plan for Eritrea is to take the Bisha project into production. The mine will produce 450,000 ounces a year at US$150 per ounce for its first two years of production, and then it will be producing copper and zinc. At current metal prices, we expect approximately $200 million in free cash per year after tax and royalties for the project. 

TWST: What about the political situation in Eritrea?

Mr. Clarke: That's a very interesting question, because we get strong support from the government there. They are trying hard to sort out our mining license. We have a drag on our company share price at the moment. With such a strong asset, why should we have a drag? It is because we are waiting for the issuing of a mining license. We were expecting to get it a couple of months ago, but the government is sorting out its own issues of capacity and very necessary bureaucracy. I am saying bureaucracy in a very positive sense there. Everybody takes a part in the decision. It is a very important decision and has to be done properly. As far as politics is concerned, Eritrea is quite a nice country to do business in. It is underexplored because of its colonial past. The government is concentrating on building the nation as well as putting in infrastructure and housing. I have never seen a third world country as intent on using its funds for road building, power and water to the villages around the major cities and building houses for people. It is what the government should be involved in, but we rarely see that. So it is actually a comfortable place to do business, but it is not the image that you would hear in every newspaper report of Eritrea. It is a small country on the Horn of Africa. It is a very peaceful, comfortable place to do work.

TWST: Would you sketch out your timetable as you look out over the next two to three years?

Mr. Clarke: In Mali, I am pretty optimistic about where gold prices are going to go. I think gold prices will help us a lot in Mali. The really good news is Eritrea. As soon as we get our mining license, we will be able to organize financing for the building of the Bisha project in Eritrea. It is a $200 million project with a payback at the current gold price of the order of 1.3 or 1.4. It will take us about two years to build the Bisha Mine. We are already well ahead with the planning for starting the engineering design. We've also had all the necessary discussions with our long lead item suppliers -the mills, the mill motors and the crushers. With financing in place we could push those ahead faster, which would take us into production mid-2009.

TWST: What would be the two or three best reasons for the long-term investor to look very closely at Nevsun Resources?

Mr. Clarke: We are undervalued because we are in a bit of a waiting game. The wait isn't going to take much longer. So we have a short-term gain from getting the mining license, re-asserting our current share price and going out for Bisha mine construction financing. A successful financing will provide a second lift to our share price. Our shareholders after that will benefit from any positive movements in metal prices in general. We are well positioned with a very strong project. Gold production at Bisha will pay for the initial capital for the project and the copper and zinc will provide cash flow and growth going forward. 

NSU 1-yr chart


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## boiler (9 July 2007)

Update for SBS holders. If the results of hole 42 are any indication the next 11 holes in progress should be very positive for the stock. Also keep an eye on Nevsun Resources, share price has been running up lately in anticipation of it receiving its mining liceince this month. SBS Chart looks good. DYOR


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## boiler (19 July 2007)

Keeping all informed.

Eritrea: Mining Picture Remains Cloudy 

By Nathan Becker
18 Jul 2007 

St. LOUIS (ResourceInvestor.com)



-- A tiny African country is giving some miners a big headache.

Eritrea, a war-torn nation on the Red Sea in northeastern Africa, is about the size of Tennessee. It’s also believed to be very rich in minerals. Yet no one in modern times has mined the country, and only a few hope they can.

MDN [TSX:MDN], formerly Northern Mining Explorations, was one of those few before it decided to withdraw from Eritrea on July 11, after waiting since 2003 for an exploration permit for its Haykota property. 

Richard Corbo, adviser to the CEO of MDN, told Resource Investor that the Eritrean government never said MDN couldn’t have a permit - just that the company had to wait. Eritrea never gave MDN a reason for the permit being put on hold.

“We’d love to know why,” Corbo said. “We can only suspect that they’ve not been allowing permits to anybody since the beginning of the year.”

Corbo said Eritrea’s border conflict, ongoing since a two-year war with neighbouring Ethiopia from 1998 to 2000 in which 13,000 Eritreans died, could indirectly be the cause of permit scarcity.

“The fact is that … unfortunately, [Eritrea] owes a lot of money to the Chinese for arms. We’re talking here, billions of dollars of arms that they bought from the Chinese, and most probably they will have to face payback time. They’re probably looking to offer properties and license or mining rights or whatever to the Chinese.”

He said MDN doesn’t think the idea will float.

“We don’t think the Chinese, whatever power or influence they have out there, will accept potential mining operations in which you invest and have to do everything from scratch. [China would say], ‘You’re trying to pay me with something that doesn’t exist, or it’s only potential.’

MDN drilled on the Haykota property in June 2006 on two targets. One hole returned 13 metres of 2.34 g/t Au at depths of 6 to 19 metres, including 3 metres of 3.52 g/t Au from 8 to 11 metres. Another hole returned 7 metres of 3.08 g/t Au at depths of 2 to 9 metres, including 2 metres of 9.03 g/t Au from 5 to 6 metres.

Since MDN’s withdrawal, only three foreign miners remain with projects in the country: Nevsun Resources [TSX:NSU; AMEX:NSU], Sunridge Gold Corp. [TSXv:SGC] and Sanu Resources [TSXv:SNU].

Corbo said MDN eventually decided to quit waiting on Eritrea after the company hadn’t seen any progress in nearly four years. Talks never made any headway, he said.

“We’ve been dealing with the minister of mines, and … discussions have always been very positive. They keep on saying to us, ‘Just be patient,’ and they never came through. The bottom line is that we simply cannot trust what’s going on up there.”

Alex Gorbansky, managing director of the Frontier Strategy Group, said Eritrea is a risky place for any miner.

“Eritrea is at the high end of the risk curve for the mining industry given unclear regulations, an authoritarian regime and the ongoing conflict with Ethiopia. Security is another major concern for Westerns ... The current risks in Eritrea and the dynamic situation on the ground make it off-limits to virtually all firms but those with the highest risk tolerance.”

But Nevsun is still optimistic that it will eventually be able to mine its Bisha project, the largest and most-advanced of any mining project in Eritrea. The company is waiting on a mining license for Bisha, but it has already received an exploration license. 

The Bisha deposit hosts 1.06 million ounces of gold, 747 million pounds of copper, 1.09 billion pounds of zinc and 10 million ounces of silver. The mine will produce an average of 447,000 ounces of gold per year in the first two years, 173 million pounds of copper per year in years 3 to 5 and 218 million pounds of zinc plus 39 million pounds of copper per year in years 6 to 10. 

Nevsun estimates a capital cost of $196 million with expansion costs at $61 million + $31 million in two phases, funded from operations. Operating costs are forecast to be $31.64/tonne ore milled through the 10+ years life of mine. Using recent metal prices of $650/oz gold, $3.00/lb copper, $1.50/lb zinc and $13/oz silver, the company calculates a capital cost payback period of just 1.2 years. 

“Nevsun is currently in active discussion with the government of Eritrea regarding our application for a mining license for the Bisha Project,” Nevsun CEO John Clarke told RI.

Nevsun has extensively explored Bisha and has presented Eritrea with a feasibility study as well as a social and environmental impact assessment, Clarke said.

“Throughout our time in Eritrea, we have continued to receive strong support from all the relevant government ministries and we are confident that the Bisha mining license will be awarded,” he said.

Nevsun isn’t without its share of problems with the Eritrean government, however. In September of 2004, after the company had finished up a 195-hole, 30,000-metre drill program that produced encouraging results, the Eritrean Minister of Energy and Mines ordered a halt to all mining and exploration activities. 

The government gave no reason for the policy change, but there’s word within this Casey report that a high-ranking Eritrean official confirmed off the record that it was because the government figured out just how big the deposit was, and it wanted a bigger cut. 

The ban was lifted in February 2005 after the government reviewed the laws and raised its maximum-available equity interest in Bisha and other properties from 20% to 30%. 

Corbo said companies currently in Eritrea are just looking to stay positive, and he said he thinks the country, which gained its independence from Ethiopia in 1993, is leading those companies on.

“[Eritrea is] not saying, ‘No.’ They’re not shutting the door, they’re not putting them out,” Corbo said. “[The companies trying to mine Eritrea] have been quite creative to announce nothing by staying positive. No permits have been allowed.”

MDN is currently looking to sell its 75% equity stake in the Eritrean Minerals Corporation, Corbo said.

“We’re looking to sell, if there’s anything to sell,” he said. “There are a couple of deals that we’re looking at, and some approaching has been done, but as we speak, nothing concrete.”

With Eritrea out of the way, MDN looks to return its focus to its properties in Quebec and Tanzania, which have shown positive results lately. The ongoing results coming out of the Tulowaka mine are encouraging, Corbo said, and MDN is looking to add years to the mine’s life as well as revise its resource estimates.

“Things are going better than expected with our other assets,” Corbo said. “We’re debt-free, cash-flow positive in 2008. We’re in great shape.”

The Eritrean Haykota project currently has no value, which made MDN’s withdrawal timing appropriate, Corbo said.

The country’s mineralization is so appealing, including gold, copper, zinc and silver, that it caused MDN to keep its interest in Eritrea maybe longer than it should have, Corbo said.

“The only reason why we took so much time is because we have to recognize it’s a great place to be, to explore, and there’s no doubt of the overall potential,” he said. “The geology there is just great.”

So great that, even though Corbo said MDN “can’t trust the overl situation” in Eritrea, company officials couldn’t rule out rethinking its withdrawal from the country if things end up looking on the up-and-up.

“We’ll keep our ears open,” he said.

Posted to the web on 16 Jul 2007 at 06:18 PM GMT-04:00


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## boiler (19 July 2007)

The good with the bad. 




Mr. Nathan
Becker of Resource Investor.com had filed a report captioned “Eritrean Mining
Picture Remains Cloudy as MDN Backs Out” dated on 16 July 2007. This report has
many factual errors that need to be brought to the attention of all the readers
and interested parties.




Firstly it
has to be recognised that a credible reporter should
have done his homework in order to ensure that his facts are correct. If
necessary he should have consulted the Ministry of Energy and Mines for
additional clarifications and balanced reporting.




We believe
that MDN was not the source of this disinformation as has been stated in their
press release and their comments in the present article.




Having said
that we would like to set the record straight by giving the actual facts:




1. MDN did
apply for the Haykota license and waited for a long
time. This is simply because the Ministry was in the process of assessing the
work programme accomplished by the different
exploration companies on the license areas that they were still holding. After
a while the Ministry had come to the conclusion that the companies needed to
invest more in their existing areas before they acquire additional licenses.
Consequently the Minister of Energy and Mines gave a written reply to MDN that
its application for an exploration licence will not
be granted and was advised to stick to its current license i.e
the Harab Suit area. It has also to be noted that
granting and/or refusing of a license application is the prerogative of the
Ministry of Energy and Mines.




2. Mr.
Becker's statement that MDN had drilled holes in the Haykota
area is totally unfounded. It has to be understood that no company is allowed
to drill or explore without a proper permit / license.




3. The
implication to give exploration licenses for Chinese companies in exchange for
arms is a totally unfounded and outrageous speculation. It is a simple logic
that no company whether it is Chinese or Western will make such kind of deals,
which is worth “billions of dollars of arms….” in an area that could be
potential but is hardly explored. We find this speculative statement
underestimates the Chinese judgment and certainly it is not the policy of the
Eritrean Government to make such kind of deals in the minerals sector.




4. Alex class=SpellE>Gorbansky was quoted to have said that “ w:st="on">Eritrea is a
risky place for any miner…”. As an analyst Mr. class=SpellE>Gorbansky is entitled to his opinion, however we would like
to make it clear that there are considerable number of Canadian, Australian,
Chinese and other companies are very keen to be granted a license. This is
hardly a sign of a high risk place to go.




We would like
to send a clear message to the existing exploration companies in w:st="on">Eritrea as well
as new incoming companies and Mr. Becker that despite the hiccups like the
temporary stoppage of exploration activities during September 2004, the policy
of the Ministry in the mineral sector is based on a transparent and solid
ground.




In conclusion
contrary to the speculation of Mr. Becker, w:st="on">Eritrea still remains a bright area
for mineral exploration and we are committed to reward all investors in the
mineral sector.




Alem Kibreab

Director General 

Department of Mines 

Ministry of Energy and Mines 

P.O. Box 272 , Asmara , Eritrea 

Tel: 002911-202889; Fax: 002911-124509


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## boiler (20 July 2007)

SBS hold 7.6M shares in Sunridge Gold. Approx 15% of issued capital. 

Lundin Mining holds Approx 19% of Sunridge Gold issued capital. Lundin mining has a Market Cap of over $4 billion

Sunridge Gold Corp.

TSX VENTURE: SGC


Jul 19, 2007 08:01 ET
Sunridge Gold Announces Technical Services Agreements for Asmara Project, Eritrea
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwire - July 19, 2007) - Sunridge Gold Corp. (TSX VENTURE:SGC) is pleased to announce that it signed technical service agreements with Lundin Mining Corp. ("Lundin Mining") and MSA Geoservices ("MSA") for ongoing resources estimations and engineering work on the Emba Derho, Debarwa, Adi Nefas and Gupo deposits on the 100% owned Asmara Project, Eritrea.

The agreement with Lundin Mining allows for Sunridge to utilize the services of several key individuals who are specialists in such areas as resource estimates, mining engineering, metallurgy and environmental work. In particular, these specialists will be involved in the advancement of Sunridge's large, newly discovered Emba Derho zinc/copper/gold deposit as well as the 3 other deposits on the Asmara Project.

Under the agreement with Sunridge, MSA Geoservices will provide independent geological consulting services to produce a NI 43-101 compliant resource estimate for Emba Derho as well as updating the resource statements for Debarwa and Adi Nefas (Sunridge announced an independent inferred resource estimation on January 29, 2007 for the Debarwa and Adi Nefas deposits). It is planned to have this work completed by the end of September 2007.

MSA is based in Johannesburg, South Africa and is Africa's largest geological contracting and consulting company with over 150 employees. MSA's client base includes some of the largest multinational mining companies and over the past 5 years has been involved in over 100 mineral exploration projects worldwide.

Michael Hopley, President and CEO of Sunridge said; "The agreements with Lundin Mining and MSA give Sunridge a world-class team of professionals which will allow us to rapidly advance Emba Derho, Debarwa and Adi Nefas deposits towards production."

In addition, Sunridge also continues an aggressive property-wide exploration program in the search for additional base metal and gold deposits such as the four deposits that have been discovered to date on the Asmara Project. Three drills are currently testing a number of geophysical/geological targets on the Asmara Project and a fourth drill is expected to commence work by mid-July.

Lundin Mining is Sunridge's largest shareholder owning approximately 19% of the outstanding shares of the company. Dr. Neil O'Brien, Senior Vice President of Exploration and Business Development for Lundin Mining, has been appointed to the Sunridge Gold Board of Directors, replacing Mr. Karl-Axel Waplan who has resigned from the Board. Dr. O'Brien has extensive expertise in early to advanced stage exploration for zinc, copper and gold which will contribute significantly to the further development of Sunridge's Asmara Project in Eritrea. Sunridge Gold would like to thank Mr. Waplan for his contributions to the Sunridge Board.

Sunridge Gold Corp. is a mineral exploration company focused on the acquisition, exploration, discovery and development of precious and base metal projects. The Company has 51.6 million shares outstanding and trades on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol SGC. For additional information on the Company and its projects please view the slide show on our website at www.sunridgegold.com or call Don Halliday at the number listed below.

SUNRIDGE GOLD CORP.

Michael Hopley, President and Chief Executive Officer

The TSX Venture Exchange does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

For more information, please contact

Sunridge Gold Corp.
Don Halliday
(604) 899-1505
Email: odealmeida@sunridgegold.com
Website: www.sunridgegold.com


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## boiler (24 July 2007)

SBS having a bit of a run last few days,with no announcement. Buy side has filled up,but it's going to take some volume to close above that .115 cent resistance which has been in place since January 06. Looking forward to Quartly update/drill results.


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## boiler (24 July 2007)

S..t i hope Anvil not making a bid for this yet somethings going on, Might be just buyer jumping in under  resistance


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## boiler (24 July 2007)

Looks like we will have to wait for another day fos SBS to break the .115 cent resistance, all in all it was an exciting day today with more to come.


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## motion (26 July 2007)

Morning guys 

This is one to watch has broke the 0.9c mark and moving along pretty well...

Here is the ann today:

*Koka prospect in Eritrea continues to deliver high grade results*

Assay results from Sub-Sahara Resources (ASX: SBS) Koka prospect, part of the Zara Gold Project in Eritrea, Africa, has returned further multiple, significant high grade gold intercepts.


It seems there has been alot of interest in this company Here is a little profile on it. 

*Sub Sahara Resources NL* (SBS, formerly Maiden Gold NL) is an Australian exploration company based in Perth, Western Australia. The company focuses on exploration in Eritrea, Tanzania and Australia. 

*Eritrea:Asmara Project:* SBS has interests in two exploration licences, Debarwa and Adi Nefas. The Asmara project is a joint venture with Canadian stock exchange-listed company Sunridge Gold Corp. Zara Project: The Zara project is a joint venture with Dragon Mining and Africa Wide Resources. It comprises a single licence about 160km north-west of Asmara. 

*Tanzania:Nyanzaga JV: *The Nyanzaga joint venture with Barrick Exploration Adrica Ltd (BEAL), a subsidiary of Barrick Gold Corporation, covers around 500 square kilometres of highly prospective geology and is located 60km south-south-west of Mwanza City on the north-eastern flank of the Sukumaland Archaean greenstone belt in central Tanzania. Mabale Hills: The Mabale Hills project consists of five licences and one application covering 261 square kilometres. Western Rift JV: SBS has an agreement with Tanzanias Canyon Resources Ltd covering around 16,000 square kilometres in western Tanzania. Kahama: JV with Resolute Mining Limited (RSG). It comprises a number of tenements located on the western extent of the Nzega greenstone belt, approximately 30km west of RSGs Golden Pride Gold Mine in central Tanzania. RSG has a 51% interest in the project and an option to earn an additional 19% interest by contributing an additional $5m over four years or producing a Bankable Feasibility Study. Other projects include Lake Victoria, Mabale Hills, Jubilee Reef, Western Rift, Kasamwa, Nyamirembe and Musoma-Mara. 

*Australia Duketon Project: *The Duketon project consists of four prospecting licences 120km north of Laverton in WA.


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## mick2006 (26 July 2007)

agree with you there motion, this one has had some spectacular gold hits recently with one today up 67 g/t au.  With management already talking up the prospect of further high grade results and an increase in the already robust deposit size, I think the market will start to take this one higher as the news keeps coming out.

Looks like if the 12.5c level was to fall that this one might want to run up a little higher.  We have seen it so often recently once a stock takes out the technical/chart resistance point it tends to run further higher, I get this feeling with SBS.

And with the increase in volume recently wouldn't take much now too break that level.

Also good to see it has formed a solid base above the 10c meaning very little downside from here.


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## mick2006 (26 July 2007)

massive orders now going through this one may now run pretty hard now, 3 million just taken in less than a minute. The 12.5c level is broken not much left now.


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## motion (26 July 2007)

mick2006 said:


> massive orders now going through this one may now run pretty hard now, 3 million just taken in less than a minute. The 12.5c level is broken not much left now.




Yep mick seems to be having a good run now... 

They also  had a good ann on the 24/07/07 which I think has really kicked this run off to the market after todays ann.. There is no shortage of ann if you review the history of this company.

I think the management are doing a great job in marketing this company and it's findings...

Ann as follows..

*24/07/07*

*Sub-Sahara Resources announced* that it has received positive metallurgical test work results for ore samples taken from the Koka gold deposit, part of its Zara Project in Eritrea. Test work was completed by specialist metallurgical consultants, Ammtec of Perth, Australia on three representative composite metallurgical samples selected from 3 diamond drill holes (ZARD009, ZARD015 & ZARD035). Gravity separation results include: ZARD009 42%, ZARD015 40% and ZARD035 73%


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## motion (26 July 2007)

mick2006 said:


> massive orders now going through this one may now run pretty hard now, 3 million just taken in less than a minute. The 12.5c level is broken not much left now.




Well mick the 800,000 order is getting eaten away very fast...this is a vey postive sign for SBS... Well be an interested few days...


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## Bushman (26 July 2007)

motion said:


> Well mick the 800,000 order is getting eaten away very fast...this is a vey postive sign for SBS... Well be an interested few days...




As an aside, for those interested in Eritrea, here is a link that provides details on the country:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/country_profiles/1070813.stm

It is a country with a brutal 20th century history (colonial outrages by the Italians, wars with its neighbours, warlords and famine) and it still has unresolved issues with its border with Ethopia and feeding its general populace. As such, I would suggest that there is a strong sovereign and political risk attached to this Eritrean tenement. It amazes me that people are interested in investing in these types of countries. 

Having said that, I think it is great that all these investment dollars are flowing to African nations! Lets just hope that it lands in the hands of the people who need it. Good luck to SBS and Eritrea I say. Whopping amount of gold too.


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## motion (26 July 2007)

Bushman said:


> As an aside, for those interested in Eritrea, here is a link that provides details on the country:
> 
> http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/country_profiles/1070813.stm
> 
> ...




It's always good to highlight the good and bad with investing in 3rd world countries. So having been to Eritrea on my travels from Egypt to Cape Town via overland, Money is a power and a government of it's own in these 3rd world countries as seen in Zimbabwe back in the early days of diamonds, tobacco and now tourism. 

My point being the main reason people can invest in these countries and feel safe about the investment is money buys anything in these countries and thats why big company like SHELL and so on can mine for oil, gold or any thing else that will bring in the money. 

Which in turns leads to money in the local economy and you are right bushman the 3rd world countries who really do need it.


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## boiler (27 July 2007)

SBS will post as an asx announcement today (not the best day Dow down possibly a good buying opportunity) cheers



Currie Rose Resources Inc.: Mwamazengo Prospect in Tanzania Continues to

Return Good Results
Thu Jul 26, 10:45 AM

Email Story IM Story Printable View ST. CATHARINES, ONTARIO--(CCNMatthews - July 26, 2007) - Currie Rose Resources Inc. (TSX VENTURE: CUI.V) - 

Highlights 

- MBND008 5 metres grading 2.25g/t gold from 6 metres at Mwamazengo 

- MBNR-D003 22 metres grading 2.03g/t gold from 131 metres at Mwamazengo 

- MBNR-D004 13 metres grading 3.22g/t gold from 116 metres at Mwamazengo 

- MBNR-D007 3 metres grading 29.34g/t gold from 151 metres at Mwamazengo 

Currie Rose Resources (TSX VENTURE: CUI.V) advises that the recent phase of drilling on the Mabale Hills project in Tanzania Africa, which forms part of the Lake Victoria Joint Venture with Australian-listed Sub-Sahara Resources NL, has been completed and all assay results have been returned. 

 Link for the complete announcement 

http://ca.news.finance.yahoo.com/s/...c-mwamazengo-prospect-tanzania-continues.html


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## boiler (29 July 2007)

Extract from Eritrean newspaper

Notice is hereby given to the public that SUNRIDGE GOLD
Eritrea has been incorporated as a branch company in Eritrea.
1. The Offi ce of the Branch Company is in Asmara
2. The Capital of the Company is 150,000.00 (Nakfa)
3. The business objectives of the Company are:
a) Mineral exploration and development
b) All legally permissible activities in relation to mineral
exploration and development
4. Amanuel Arafaine has been appointed General Manager of the
Company for indefi nite period or offi cially replaced.
5. The Company has been registered as a branch for unlimited
period of time or until replaced by another form of a Company.
Sunridge Gold Eritrea
NOTICE


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## boiler (30 July 2007)

Does anyone have any information or opinion re Nevsun Resources Bisha Mine, Mining Licence? Decision due soon.


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## boiler (6 August 2007)

Gold's time is coming: Lassonde 

Rebecca Lawson
Monday, 6 August 2007

THIS year's recipient of the 2007 Diggers & Dealers G J Stokes Memorial Award, Newmont vice chairman Pierre Lassonde, believes the resources boom will last a whole generation. 

Pierre Lassonde 

Kicking off the annual mining forum held in Kalgoorlie, Lassonde warmed up the packed house by telling his tale of lost luggage and the hardship of trying to buy a "polyester" suit in the town on a Sunday afternoon. 

Peppering his presentation with entertaining anecdotes, Lassonde got down to business, paying particular attention to the "super cycle" the resource sector is enjoying and drawing comparisons to the last super cycle between 1966 and 1980. 

Lassonde said that just like the last super cycle that was propped up and prepared by the baby boomers, this cycle was the work of China and India's booming economies. 

He said the external factors were also strikingly similar, including wars in both cycles, for example, the Vietnam war in the past and the current war in Iraq and on Al Qaeda. 

Inflation was also high in both eras and gold in the past shot up 2300% while currently it is up 170%. 

"Gold's time is coming," he said. 

However Lassonde said the similarities ended there and the difference between the two super cycles was that more companies – paying particular homage to the oil sector – were increasingly government controlled. 

He said profits were not going into exploration, hence discoveries have decreased, and permitting, political and environmental responses have become more challenging.

Building on the differences, Lassonde said the gold sector was not coming up with the big discoveries made in the past super cycle, although this time around exploration budgets were bigger. 

"The big discoveries – the Yancochas, the Super pit – they were all made back in the 60s, 70s and 80s," Lassonde said. 

"Look at the past 20 years, [discovery is] coming down and down and down.

"When is the last time you had a 30 million ounce discovery in the world? Not in this decade I can tell you that." 

Lassonde also said demand for gold jewellery is at an all time high, with advertisements placed by the World Gold Council – which Lassonde is a member of – in China, India, America, Europe and the Middle East having a profound effect. 

Wrapping up the presentation, Lassonde gave several predictions for this current super cycle, based on past events. 

"This bull market in natural resources will last a whole generation, that's 20 years plus and, yes, China and India will have hiccups, but while they have crisis situations they will not stop growing," he said. 

"The $US dollar over the next five years will plunge against [China's] RMB."

Lassonde predicts the Canadian and Australian dollar will grow a further 5-10% against the US dollar, with the Canadian dollar reaching a high of around $1.06. 

Based on history, Lassonde said copper and moly producers have been unable to withstand prosperity. He added that we have probably seen the metals' price reach its peak. 

Commodities to perform well in this cycle are nickel, platinum, gold and oil, and in his mind the last two commodities will perform the best in this cycle.

Lassonde also brought in the Dow Jones index into his prediction, saying the gold price and the index will come down to a 1:1 ratio. 

This would be similar to the path taken in the last cycle in the 1960s when the ratio was 28:1, and in the 80s when it was a 1:1 ratio.

Lassonde said in 2000, the ratio was 42:1 and that the ratio has decreased to 20:1. 

Sure to leave a good taste in the mouths of gold investors, Lassonde's final prediction was that gold would have three zeros in its price, however he conceded he had no idea what the first number could be.


Click here to read the rest of today's news stories.


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## boiler (14 August 2007)

Nevsun Resources Announcement    13.08.07


The Government of Eritrea has substantially completed its review of the Feasibility Study and the Social and Environmental Impact Assessment (SEIA) for the Bisha project. These documents were prepared on behalf of the Company by AMEC Americas for the purpose of licensing the Bisha Project. The Government of Eritrea engaged an international mining consultancy to complete a due diligence review of these documents, and the Company requested Endeavour Financial to arrange a further independent review to be completed on behalf of prospective project financing partners. 
The Company has continued constructive discussion with the Government of Eritrea regarding the development of a mining agreement with a view to taking the Bisha Project into production. These discussions are still progressing. 
In parallel with the mining agreement discussions, Nevsun has undergone a bidding process and has selected its EPCM (engineering, procurement, construction and management) contractor for 
the Bisha Project; SENET of South Africa. The Company also sought competitive quotes for the procurement of the project’s major capital long lead items and has identified its preferred supplier for the critical long lead items, including the crusher, SAG and ball mills.
Finance and Timing 
Endeavour Financial is advising the Company in the financing of the Bisha project. Representatives of several multilateral financial institutions have visited the site and an independent technical consultant (ITC) has carried out third party due diligence on behalf of the interested financial institutions who would be expected to provide project finance. 
The Company anticipates completion of a comprehensive mining agreement with the Government later this year, with the grant of a mining license to follow shortly thereafter. 
Assuming a normal progression with finance, the Company anticipates commencement of production in late 2009 or early 2010.


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## boiler (3 September 2007)

Sold all SBS shares for .08c on 20.8.07. Eritrea US relations deteriorating, Nevsun unable to obtain a mining licence.DYOR. All the best to current holders.


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## boiler (30 October 2007)

Some of the risk has just been taken out of this stock,time for a re rate.

TORONTO (Reuters) - Nevsun Resources Ltd said on Monday it had signed an agreement with the government of Eritrea over ownership of Nevsun's Bisha gold and base metals project, raising hopes that it will soon get final approval to begin construction on the mine.

The news drove the Canadian miner's shares up as much as 25 percent and boosted shares of other miners active in the northeast African country, which see the Bisha development as a test-case for further development.

Under the agreement, Eritrea will take an additional 30 percent stake in the project, to add to the 10 percent interest provided under the country's mining legislation. The price will be determined by an independent valuator when Bisha ships its first gold, which analysts see occurring in 2010 or later.

Nevsun said the Eritrean government had assured the company that the mining license and agreement for Bisha will be "advanced very promptly." Nevsun expects the mine to yield around 1 million ounces of gold, 747 million pounds of copper, and 1.1 billion pounds of zinc over its 10-year life.

"This is a precursor to the finalization of discussions regarding a mining agreement for the Bisha project," the company said in a statement.

Just after midday on Monday, the company's stock was up 31 Canadian cents at C$2.11 on the Toronto Stock Exchange, after initially rising as high as C$2.25 following the news.

Haywood Securities analyst Stefan Ioannou said the government's additional stake in the project was unexpected, but said the agreement shows Eritrea is serious about moving the project ahead.

"I would like to think by the end of the year we'll see the (mining) permit itself," Ioannou said.

He also said it was a good sign that an independent valuator would determine the price of the additional 30-percent stake, which he valued at $136 million.

Nevsun said the agreement will help reduce risk of disruption at the local level. The government will make a cash payment over the next few months that will help offset capital funding requirements for the mine, which are expected to total close to $300 million, according to the company's Web site.

Gold explorers have flocked to Eritrea in recent years, although some investors have remained suspicious after the nation unexpectedly ordered a halt to foreign mining work in September 2004. The ban was lifted the following year.

Bisha is expected to be the first new mining project in the country to reach production, and shares of other locally active companies rose on the news of the agreement.

Sunridge Gold , which is also trying to bring a project to production, rose 30 Canadian cents to C$1.90 on the TSX Venture Exchange, while Sanu Resources was up 18 Canadian cents at C$1.50. Base metals player Lundin Mining , which holds a stake in both Sunridge and Sanu, was up 41 Canadian cents at C$12.80.

Haywood's Ioannou said Bisha was "ripe for the picking" in an industry that has seen heavy consolidation as miners search to replace reserves.


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## boiler (30 October 2007)

Old news but interesting for SBS followers.......

Press Release by the Ministry of Energy and Mines concerning License award
By Staff
Oct 2, 2007, 14:11


Eritrea has a significant endowment in minerals exploration and in recent years notable exploration successes have been made with world class gold, copper and zinc discoveries. To hasten the continued development of exploration opportunities in Eritrea, the Ministry of Energy and Mines has been reviewing applications for the award of exploration Licenses for gold, base metals and industrial minerals. 

The Ministry is pleased to announce that it has recently issued two exploration Licenses for iron and base metals to Beijing Donia Resources Co. Ltd. in Defere (Central region) and Kenatib (Southern region), and gold and base metal exploration License to Eritrea-China Exploration and Mining Share Company (J.V Company) in Augaro (Gash-Barka region). 

The Augaro License area includes the largest colonial era gold mining operation in Eritrea and early stage exploration in recent times has shown that the area has potential for further discoveries. 

The Ministry looks forward to continuing its review of new applications for exploration Licenses throughout Eritrea. The Ministry further looks forwards to concluding its active review and discussions with Nevsun Resources concerning its application for a Mining License for the Bisha project in Gash-Barka region. 

The Government of Eritrea is committed to build a modern and efficient mining industry to harness its mineral wealth in partnership with both local and international mining development businesses and organizations from all corners of the world as is reflected in these recent agreements.


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## boiler (3 November 2007)

Gold explorers in Eritrea all up a minimum of 7% overnight

Nevsun Resources up 8.41%

Sunridge Gold up 9.73% (SBS holds 7.6M shares @ $2.03 valued @ $15.4M)

Sanu Resources up 7.25%

All these companies have risen sharply due to Nevsun Resources positive progress towards a mining liceince in Eritrea.

SBS also holds 6M shares in Currie Rose Resources valued @ $2.2M

and SBS has a market cap of $40m???????????????


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## boiler (23 November 2007)

Nevsun Secures $60M From Eritrea to Develop Bisha 

By Jon A. Nones
21 Nov 2007 at 08:56 PM GMT-05:00


SAN FRANCISCO (ResourceInvestor.com) -- On Oct. 31, Nevsun Resources [AMEX:NSU; TSX:NSU] announced that the government of Eritrea had finally signed a participation agreement for the company's massive Bisha project, agreeing to purchase a 30% stake at a “full fair value.” At the time, RI noted that the biggest question that remained was what price the Eritrean government would pay for the interest in the project. That question has now been answered.

At this year’s Hard Assets Conference in San Francisco, Nevsun CEO John Clarke confirmed with RI that the government of Eritrea has secured $60 million for its additional 30% interest in the Bisha project. He said this is the first time the government has secured funding for a foreign mining project, which is a rare occurrence in any underdeveloped country.



On Nov. 16, media sources reported that the China Import-Export Bank will lend $60-million to Eritrea so that its state-owned mining firm can buy a partial stake of the gold mine. Eritrea had agreed to purchase a 30% paid participating interest in Bisha, to add to its 10% free participating interest. The government will also require a 5% royalty tax on gold and 3.5% base metal tax per mining legislation.

Bisha is one of the largest undeveloped gold and base metal deposits in Africa, with 1 million ounces of gold, 9 million ounces of silver, 747 million pounds of copper and 1 billion pounds of zinc. But the fate of the project has remained up in the air as the Eritrean government has been slow to issue a formal mining permit. 

Clarke told RI that the mining agreement is almost in place, with only a few more details to iron out. He expects to have the mining permit in hand by year end, with development slated to begin immediately thereafter. This would be the country’s first new mine since the colonial times, he said, which could open the door for many more. 

The agreement shows confidence in the country that it will fulfil its promises to miners, and is an important step forward for the industry, according to Clarke. He said in the next 3 to 4 months, the market will see a sequence of events that may change popular opinion of Eritrea, noting that some majors have visited the country recently. 

After gaining independence from Ethiopia in 1993, Eritrea and Ethiopia have been in a border conflict, ongoing since a two-year war from 1998 to 2000 in which 13,000 Eritreans died. Both countries currently have more than 100,000 troops close to the frontier, raising fears of a repeat of their war.

Under a peace deal that ended the two-year war, a U.N. peacekeeping force of 1,700 monitors a security buffer zone on Eritrea's side of the 1,000-kilometre frontier. Eritrea has had strained relations with the force, and restricted helicopter flights and expelled western peacekeepers. 

Although Eritrea is believed to be very rich in minerals, few miners have braved the war-torn nation in recent years. In addition to Nevsun, Sanu Resources [TSX-V:SNU], Sunridge Gold [TSX-V:SGC] and Sub-Sahara Resources [ASX:SBS] have properties in the country.

MDN [TSX:MDN], formerly Northern Mining Explorations, was one of those few before it decided to withdraw from Eritrea on July 11, after waiting since 2003 for an exploration permit for its Haykota property. 

In fact, Nevsun was ordered to halt operations by the Eritrean government in late 2004, and only allowed to resume exploration activity in early 2005. Clarke said Eritrea had held off on releasing any permits for at least three years up until just recently.

Frontier Strategy Group’s Above Ground Risk Report rates the country as a C for foreign mining investment, the bottom 10 of countries globally for political risk. Alex Turkeltaub, managing director at Frontier Strategy Group, told RI the risk is not improving, but the country “has no choice” but to allow more foreign investment “given its political isolation.” 

Turkeltaub indicated that the decision to advance the Bisha project may have been a political move more than anything else. 

“The involvement of the Chinese is part of the new trend across the natural resources sector in Africa, whereby the Chinese offer terrific terms in order to get access to resources,” he added.

Richard Corbo, adviser to the CEO of MDN, previously told Resource Investor that the Eritrean government “owes a lot of money to the Chinese for arms,” noting billions of dollars.  

“They’re probably looking to offer properties and license or mining rights or whatever to the Chinese,” he said. 

The loan by the Chinese Import-Export bank is the first commercial loan to Eritrea, after it signed a 500-million yuan ($67.36 million) soft loan with the country last year. 

In early February, as reported by RI at Mining Indaba 2007, Chinese President Hu Jintao toured eight African nations chasing mineral resources. China had plans to lend African nations as much as $3 billion in preferential credit over three years and double aid and interest-free loans over the same time. 

Clarke said the country’s ability to obtain funding from outside sources simply shows promise in the mining sector.

“The government has access to the funding - China being one of them that are very happy to help out with business arrangements,” added Clarke. 

Nevsun shares rose 3 cents to $2.15 today on AMEX. 

< Back  |   Post to del.icio.us  |   Digg this  |   Respond to this story >


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## shaunm (23 November 2007)

Some impressive gold finds there. I guess the issue is the stability of eratria as to whether investors jump in.
africa sounds like it has a wealth of natural resources but high sovereign risk.


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## So_Cynical (24 November 2007)

Theres Gold in Eritrea?/Ethiopia....seriously.:dunno:
Sth Africa, Ghana, Cote d'Ivoire, Congo i can beleve...Eritrea/Ethiopia
jezz i dont know. 

Drill results please.


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## doogie_goes_off (28 November 2007)

Check out these monster grades/intersections with a resource due by the end of the year. If you have no aversion to risk, slip this one into the portfolio.

Hole From (m) To (m) Interval (m) Gold (g/t)
ZARD073 105-108 3 *49.05*
ZARD075 31-61m 30m *38.01*
ZARD075 69-86m 17m *13.79*
ZARD081 37-47m 10m *76.82*
ZARD081 65-69m 4m *28.71*
ZARD083 38-44m 6m *69.50*
ZARD084 96 -102m 6m *17.46*


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## doogie_goes_off (28 November 2007)

Obviously no one cares about a potentially massive gold resource in the back blocks of africa, maybe I should post about a tin-pot uranium explorer with no hope of production in Australia and everyone would be excited!


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## doogie_goes_off (28 November 2007)

There has been a big jump in the number of shares traded in the last hour or so, over 40 million traded for the day now. Anyone have access to course of sales to see if there was a big buyer?


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## melbmade (28 November 2007)

We can't know for sure the individuals or brokers until a few days...even with access to course of sales.


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## doogie_goes_off (28 November 2007)

Sorry, I should re-word that. Were there any particularly large trades? because there was a significant bundle swallowed in a shor time and a quick secondary rise.


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## pauldoohan1 (28 November 2007)

doogie_goes_off said:


> Obviously no one cares about a potentially massive gold resource in the back blocks of africa, maybe I should post about a tin-pot uranium explorer with no hope of production in Australia and everyone would be excited!




LOL, I would get involved Doogie but I'm still smarting from RMS today.  Tin pot Uranium explorer you say, might have to look into that one.


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## doogie_goes_off (29 November 2007)

Obviously the furious trading was a bit of a storm in a teacup with a retrace of the SP today. For Paul's benefit it would seem that SBS have not announced a huge nuggety intersection like RMS did but still managed to report high grades over wide intersections in multiple holes, this broad high grade type of result allows for greater confidence in any resource calculation. SBS are also drilling a gridded pattern which indicates that access to the site is probably quite good. I think we can look forward with confidence to a significant improvement in SP with the announcement of the upgraded resource figure due before the end of year.


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## doogie_goes_off (30 November 2007)

Fundamentally I think this is a good stock, I'm going to throw in some speculative but conservative figures here just to highlight the potential. Current resource is 760,000 oz Gold at Zara (Koka resource). Let's just say they could sell for an average price of $600/oz ($US) over the next ten years ~700,000 tonnes a year processed = medium sized plant required. Let's say that cost of production was something horrific (exaggerated) like 2/3 of sales. They would have profit of (760000*600*1/3)= $152M. They own 80% of the project (or will do soon), so proportionally prifit is ~$122M. The approx number of shares on offer by my calcs is 545M, so the profit per share is 22c, spread over 10 years that's an EPS of 2.2c.

For a share price of <10c and a quality >3g/t average gold grade in a deposit of this size with soild drill results like I have posted recently, I don't think this gold explorer can be ignored.

Three things that would be positive from here would be:

New Resource figure (due by end of the year)

Positive bankable faesability with a clear plan for infrastructure (presumably the next step after the new resource - 6 months?)

Interest from a big gold producer or financing for construction (1 year?).

Risks that I can see are:

Amount of interest the government takes in the project (I think up to 10%) which would dilute earnings.

Preventative infrastructure cost or lack of water for processing.

Political turmoil/war.

I'm putting a few of these under the mattress now because they could be a good little earner and will spend the time to research the project a bit further. If anyone else has a handle on other risks or positives for the company I'd like to hear them.


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## doogie_goes_off (30 November 2007)

AGM presentation released at 2:40pm today, indicates the potential of their other projects including a 30% free carried interest to BFS on a 4.5Moz Au deposit in Tanzania, Barrick to finance if they go ahead.  Ignore at your peril.


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## jman2007 (9 December 2007)

Can't say I know a huge deal about this company, but...

IMO I believe the sp adequately reflects the markets stance towards SBS at the moment, personally I wouldn't go near a company with interests in Eritrea.  The Koka x-sections look interesting, but in reality are just plotting drill interecepts, if they want the market to take them seriously they will need to come up with something a little more sophisticated than that. I wonder what kind of security arrangements a mining op would require here?

The Tanzanian projects look ok, but some of the JV arrangements basically appear to be utilising SBS to fork out a disproportionate share of the initial costs and then carry forward a diluting interest over time.  The classic "farm-out the high risk stuff to the little guy" story.  Again, these deposits will require a huge amount more work to be done on them before they can even think about beginning to mine.

I have no idea what the infrastructure constraints are at any of these projects.

One to watch from the sidelines, but imo PRU or CGX would be better companies if you are looking for developing gold stories and don't mind an element of geo-political risk.


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## So_Cynical (9 December 2007)

jman2007 said:


> SBS One to watch from the sidelines, but imo PRU or CGX would be better companies if you are looking for developing gold stories and don't mind an element of geo-political risk.




Hardly think its fair to lump these 3 in the same boat....as it would appear that we have missed the boat 
with PRU & CGX as far as a good entry goes.


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## jman2007 (9 December 2007)

So_Cynical said:


> Hardly think its fair to lump these 3 in the same boat....as it would appear that we have missed the boat
> with PRU & CGX as far as a good entry goes.




Fair enough,

Although it wasn't all that long ago that CGX was ripe for the picking at 70c or so.  Bear in mind though that neither PRU or CGX are Au producers as yet, so a future entry point may present itself.

As far as SBS goes, the exact intentions and precise level of interest that the Eritrean Govt would take in any project requires some clarification, as they appear to be entitled to a 10% free carried interest on the application of any mining lease, a 30% equity participation interest in any mining project and 5% royalties on any precious metals mined.


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## So_Cynical (9 December 2007)

jman2007 said:


> Fair enough,
> 
> Although it wasn't all that long ago that CGX was ripe for the picking at 70c or so.  Bear in mind though that neither PRU or CGX are Au producers as yet, so a future entry point may present itself.
> 
> As far as SBS goes, the exact intentions and precise level of interest that the Eritrean Govt would take in any project requires some clarification, as they appear to be entitled to a 10% free carried interest on the application of any mining lease, a 30% equity participation interest in any mining project and 5% royalties on any precious metals mined.




Eritrea seems fairly stable....theres no internal strife even though...Eritrea has two 
dominant religions, Christianity and Islam. Muslims, who make up about 49% of the 
population predominantly follow Sunni Islam. The Christians (about 49%)  wow.

I'm thinking Eritrea is not as geo-politically risky as many would think...lets face it 
they need the development and the single party political system seem to be working.

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: $25 million (2006 est.)  
Exports - partners:Italy 26.7%, France 13.8%, Australia 8.2%, Sudan 7.9%, US 7.8%, China 6.2%  

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eritrea

https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/er.html#Govt


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## So_Cynical (12 December 2007)

Yippy I'm in, finally got my buy order filled today 

How could u not like this company?

Market Cap: 40,092,788 
Approximate total inferred & indicated Gold resources, in excess of 1.7 million
ounces....thats like over 1.3 billion $ in gold. 
20+ million worth of shares in 2 Canadian mining company's.
no debt and 3 million in cash....JVs with Barrick and Resolute.

How could u go wrong.


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## So_Cynical (25 January 2008)

I topped up yesterday at a super low price...just as well with the good ann out today.

Sub Sahara encouraged by further high drill intercepts from Zara Gold Project in Eritrea.

The company has just received assay results from diamond drilling (ZARD85-ZARD096) completed 
last year, which have returned additional significant high grade gold intercepts such as 
*6m @ 89.62g/t 
4m @ 20.55g/t 
3m @ 34.98g/t*
all within 60 meters depth.:dance:

It is only infill drilling so they knew there was gold there anyway, more drill results to come over the next few months.

So i'm thinking theres no way they can not go ahead with this project, theres just too 
much gold there...Sub Sahara Resources will be producers at some stage....IMO

http://www.subsahara.com.au/reports/announce/2008/ASX-Release Zara 08-01-25 _final_.pdf


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## doogie_goes_off (21 February 2008)

Trading halt... do we expect that Barrick will undertake feasibility on their projects and buy in? do we expect more high grade drilling results? or a war in and Eritraean province?

I'm holding so lets hope ann. is good!


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## So_Cynical (21 February 2008)

SBS really need a miner with deep pockets to help with Zara, if the halt is 
just more great drill results as i suspect...just makes it easier to get the 
third Zara JV partner.

Whatever the halt is...its good news. 

Nothing bad happens in north Africa....right


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## So_Cynical (25 February 2008)

More Good news from Sub-Sahara Resources....as expected. 

From todays Ann.....Koka Resource Highlights:


Resource increased to *1.04 million ounces of Gold* from 5.13 million
tonnes at an average grade of *6.31g/t Au* at a cutoff of 1.5 g/t.


This is an increase of 250,000 ounces of gold to previous resource.


Considering selective mining scenarios, the grade of the deposit has
increased to 6.31g/t while tonnage has decreased.


*Mineralization still open at depth and along strike*, with a number of
additional high priority targets still to be tested


Additional infill diamond drilling results since October 2007 are yet to be
included in resources estimate


Read all about it.
http://www.subsahara.com.au/reports/announce/2008/ASX-Zara 25-2-08 final-3.pdf

So in summary and as ive said before...theres just too much gold there for 
a mine not to happen...whatever minor issues this project has, the dollar 
value is just to high to not find a way forward.

Lets keep in mind that the Mineralization is at surface in many places and 
open at depth and along strike in 1 direction...so the resource will almost 
certainly increase again.


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## Sean K (8 April 2008)

I'm trying to make heads or tails out of SBS and why it seems so cheap on an oz au basis. Must be something to do with the Koka deposit. Has great grades, but perhaps capex/opex may make it untenable? Deposit looks to be at 50 - 200m so depth not really an issue. How's access I wonder. Looks pretty barren out there. Or, is it the country risk?

Must also consider they only hold 69%

AND



> On application for a Mining License the Government has the right to:
> 10% free carried interest, and
> the right, by agreement, to a 30% equity participation interest in any mining project, and
> a negotiable royalty (up to a 5%) on mined precious metals.




So, some dilution to occur here, if it goes to mining. 

Yes, has some good JV's in Tanzania.



> *Nyanzaga Gold Project*
> Sub-Sahara hold 49%
> Barrick spent US$13m
> Barrick to complete BFS to earn 70%.
> ...




Also,



> *Lake Victoria JV *(SBS-manager) – diluting to 30%
> Potential for +1moz
> SBS free carried to completion of BFS, Currently drilling
> 
> ...




So, 1m oz au in Koka, have 69% interest but could be diluted by up to 45% by the look of it, which will leave them with roughly 300K oz as a guide, with potential for a few more ounces.

Nyanzaga 4.5m oz diluting to 30% = 1.35m oz au. 

Lake Victoria (possibly 1m oz) diluting to 30% = 330K oz au.

So, total oz au to SBS is around 2m oz. 
Current MC about $22m. 

Maybe there's too much dilution and country risk? 

But you'd think just on the Barrick JV they're looking OK value? 

Chart wise, eeeek!


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## jman2007 (8 April 2008)

kennas said:


> I'm trying to make heads or tails out of SBS and why it seems so cheap on an oz au basis. Must be something to do with the Koka deposit. Has great grades, but perhaps capex/opex may make it untenable? Deposit looks to be at 50 - 200m so depth not really an issue. How's access I wonder. Looks pretty barren out there. Or, is it the country risk?
> 
> Maybe there's too much dilution and country risk?
> 
> ...




Ooops...

She's headed south bigtime Kennas.  Some good points there about the dilution factor which I hadn't really taken into consideration. Personally, there is just too much uncertainty revolving around Eritrea. I know some people would dispute this, but there are a few case histories of foreign-owned companies that have left Eritrea with their tails between their legs. 

At the end of the day, whether it was due to errors on the part of the companies, the Dept of Minerals (or whatever they call themselves), or just simple cultural misunderstandings and misconceptions, Eritrea remains a risky place to do business. Trading wise, these levels might provide a bit of a taster for the bold investor who isn't afraid of some volatility 

The infrastructure issue would be my other main concern, particularly the availability of water in this type of arid climate. Even for a modest 1Mtpa mill, it would simply be impossible to truck that amount of water in daily due to the ridiculous costs, which leaves the options of a pipeline which would need to be constructed from a major urban center/source of fresh water.  Perhaps there is a local source they could tap into which I'm not aware of, in which case this concern becomes irrrelevant. But at the end of the day, even the most stunning high-grade deposit is worthless if you aint got no water....

My 
jman


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## So_Cynical (8 April 2008)

Hey Kennas...welcome to the SBS thread

The weakness in the SP this week is Opes Prime related..the weakness overall
u have already summed up.

leaving the Tanzania assets of of the equation....the Koka deposit will end up being around the 
1.2 mil OZ mark (minimum)...with POG back to over 1k USD thats 1.2 billion dollars worth of Gold 
at (mostly) less than 200 meters down, in open desert land, in a country that has pretty much 
no environmental controls and almost no history of mining....oh and the Govt is flat broke.

With all these real world factors...theres just no way that nothing will happen with this deposit, the 
10% free carried interest the govt will get, would i imagine, be there biggest single asset.



> On application for a Mining License the Government has the right to:
> 10% free carried interest, and
> the right, by agreement, to a 30% equity participation interest in any mining project, and
> a negotiable royalty (up to a 5%) on mined precious metals.




I take the "30% equity participation" to mean the the Govt will have to pay
30% of the mine dev costs...30% equity in the mine :dunno:

The royalty is no big deal...lotsa country's demand royalty's, just usually 
less than 5%.

Anyway SBS up around 8% today, so my buy order (top up) went unfilled.


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## jman2007 (13 June 2008)

What the hell is happening with SBS atm?...down another 8.5% so far today and pushing hard to test out an all-time low around the 4c mark... Although I am  personally not a big fan of this stock, this is now entering back into the "ridiculous category" in terms of MC to ounces ratio.

The resignation of the MD Mr Riekie looks to have been a bit of a body blow, and absolutely no explanation or reason given by the company!...almost as though it was just another item on the daily agenda conveniently ticked off.... hmmmm a little bit sus me thinks 

jman


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## So_Cynical (13 June 2008)

Finished the day down more than 11% 

Hard to believe with the current SP woes, that these guys have over a million ounces, 
with some mineralization at surface...its a dream deposit in so many ways.

Still lots of stocks (with much bigger caps) getting hit today and over the last few weeks...on no news.


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## jman2007 (23 June 2008)

kennas said:


> I'm trying to make heads or tails out of SBS and why it seems so cheap on an oz au basis. Must be something to do with the Koka deposit. Has great grades, but perhaps capex/opex may make it untenable? Deposit looks to be at 50 - 200m so depth not really an issue. How's access I wonder. Looks pretty barren out there. Or, is it the country risk?
> 
> So, 1m oz au in Koka, have 69% interest but could be diluted by up to 45% by the look of it, which will leave them with roughly 300K oz as a guide, with potential for a few more ounces.




kennas,

Looks like October 08 has been targeted by SBS as the completion date for the Koka PFS. Pretty tight deadline if you ask me. At least it's some good news for shareholders to see SBS advancing on this front.

All things considered, SBS have actually done quite well in delineating 1 million oz > 6g/t, with favourable metallurgical characteristics. Probably still scope for extensing @ depth and for another few hundred m's along strike.
In the best case scenario, if the PFS returns a favourable outcome, and SBS advance into a full BFS, and manage to secure finance , we would still be at least 2-2.5 years away from production. And that's a best-case scenario.

What concerns me slightly is the surface topography over the resource, as a lot of the drilling looks to have been into the side of a hill, and the actual vertical depth of the a good portion of the mineralisation. eg ZARD108 intersected mineralisation from approx 140-170m down-hole, which when you factor in the surface topography would be a vertical depth of at least 180-210m. This is obviously more of an engineering challenge, I really don't know if it's possible to come up with an economic pit shell to mine the shallower ore, and then stope down to grab the higher grades. I'm sure it's been done successfully somewhere else though... 

It looks like a dedicated hydrological search is underway, and that there may be an aquifer out to the west they can tap into.

I'm a little bit ambivalent about some of the Tanzania JV projects with Barrack, Barrick's exact motives here would be interesting to know. I am unsure if there is an expiry date on any of the JV's, raising the possibility that Barrick could just sit on the ground for a very, very long time relegating SBS to a somewhat of a backburner position.

Anyway, my 

jman


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## JTLP (2 April 2009)

Blow the dust off this old turkey and let everybody know that:

SBS is in a trading halt pending a proposed merger

DNH but sounds interesting...

EDIT***

Found it...looks like it's going to merge with CHN - Chalice


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## So_Cynical (2 April 2009)

Just noticed the ann...how do u know its CHN - Chalice ?

care to share?

Ok so CHN is in a halt too

http://www.chalicegold.com/

Company Summary
Market Cap:	8,736,000
Issued Shares:	72,800,000 
Cash:                10 mill (approx)


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## gagoskt (4 April 2009)

what was the point to sell the tanzanian Assets ?

i dont think it is a good idea this merge, they should wait till the market calm down.

cheers


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## So_Cynical (4 April 2009)

gagoskt said:


> what was the point to sell the tanzanian Assets ?
> 
> i dont think it is a good idea this merge, they should wait till the market calm down.
> 
> cheers




SBS was just never gona be in a financial position to go forward with 
Zara...its difficult to raise money with a share price under 2 cents.

Sub-Sahara Shareholders will receive 1 Chalice Share for every 10.73 
Sub-Sahara shares held, and end up with approx 39% of the merged Chalice.

I would expect a capital raising soon after the merge.


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## So_Cynical (4 September 2009)

SBS - Sub Sahara Resources is now no more...merger with CHN - Chalice Gold Mines 
complete...link to Chalice thread below.

https://www.aussiestockforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=4163


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