AuKing Mining Ltd (ASX:AKN) welcomes recent rock chip sample assays that confirm potentially significant gold mineralisation at the Shaib Marqan project in Saudi Arabia.
Earlier this week the company, alongside its Saudi partner Barg Alsaman Mining Company (BSMC), was awarded the Shaib Marqan exploration project by the Saudi Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources.
The project area is considered highly prospective for orogenic vein-hosted gold mineralisation and is significantly under-explored.
Notably, the Al Amar gold mine is 100 kilometres to the north-west and produced nearly 30,000 ounces of gold in 2022.
AuKing managing director Paul Williams said: “AuKing is very pleased to have secured the Shaib Marqan exploration licence with its local partner BSMC.
“We carried out a detailed site inspection as part of the pre-bid due diligence and obtained the gold assays that clearly validate the historical reported gold mineralisation at Shaib Marqan."
Gold assays reported
The rock chip samples were collected during a recent due diligence site visit, made before the licence bid.
The gold assays included the following results such as 2.97g/t gold, 1.31g/t gold and 13.72g/t gold.
These results validate the historically reported gold results and provide a clear basis for an extensive soil/rock chip sampling and survey program, which AuKing expects will take place once the new Shaib Marqan exploration licence is granted.
The company says discussions will proceed over the next few weeks to finalising the terms of the grant of exploration licence at Shaib Marqan by the Ministry.
“Instead of project activities commencing with limited available data, these results enable us to immediately commence a targeted soil and rock chip sampling program when the new licence is granted by the Ministry,” Williams said.
Shaib Marqan licence area showing historical gold results and recent assays from AuKing due diligence sampling activity.