Cluff Gold plc: Yaoure Project Drilling Results

LONDON, Jan. 19, 2012 - Cluff Gold (“Cluff Gold“ or the “Company“) (AIM:CLF) (TSX:CFG), the dual AIM/TSX-listed West African focused gold mining company, is pleased to announce significant sulphide drilling results from its Yaoure Project (previously known as Angovia) in Côte d'Ivoire.


HIGHLIGHTS

- Very promising sulphide drilling results, including 28.35 metres at 3.24 g/t in Hole YD0021, 31.60 metres grading 1.97 g/t in Hole YD0014 and 13.25 metres at 4.14 g/t in Hole YD008.

- Results give confidence that existing sulphide resources at Yaoure, consisting of 169,000oz (3.4Mt at 1.6g/t) in measured category and 123,000oz (2.2Mt at 1.7g/t) in indicated category(i), can be significantly increased during 2012.

- Initial metallurgical testwork indicates that sulphide mineralisation is not refractory.

- Favourable location of Yaoure, within 5km of a hydro-electric power source and abundant water minimise resource hurdle required for CIL processing plant.

- Follow up drilling underway targeting up to a 160m down dip extension to the known mineralised zone over a 700m strike length.


Peter Spivey, Chief Executive of Cluff Gold, commented:

“Following the Company's decision to re-evaluate the Yaoure project in 2011, we are extremely pleased to be able to report such strong sulphide mineralisation from the initial 1,967m diamond drilling programme. Given the early successes we have had in regard to our sulphide drilling, we have taken the decision to focus on the significant sulphide potential that we believe exists and have therefore chosen to rename the project both to reflect this and differentiate it from the previous strategy which focused solely on the oxide resources.

The favourable location of Yaoure, with existing mine infrastructure, a nearby hydroelectric dam capable of supplying low cost power for a sizeable milling operation, and abundant available water, add to our belief that Yaoure has the potential to become a further significant project for Cluff Gold.

Initial metallurgical test work indicates that the sulphide mineralisation is not refractory and the relatively shallow dip of the mineralisation, 25-35 degrees to the east, could result in significant open pit resources being delineated at favourable stripping ratios. To this end, we have approved a US$6.6 million budget for an aggressive 79,000m exploration drill programme in 2012 which is currently underway. Our focus is to delineate sufficient sulphide resources to sustain a CIL operation, whilst at the same time continuing to search for lateritic and saprolitic oxide resources which could result in an early re-opening of the heap leach operation. We remain confident in the project's ability to deliver considerable value for our shareholders and we look forward to updating the market on progress made during the course of 2012.“


Yaoure Project Strategy

During the second half of 2011, the Company embarked on a dual exploration strategy on its 367 square kilometre property to further investigate the potential for resource delineation. The drill results reported in this release refer to initial results from the sulphide ores at Yaoure Central (previously Prospect 4) where oxide mining had previously been undertaken.

A map showing the location of the Yaoure project and the various prospects thereon, together with drilling maps and cross sections, is set out on the Company's website at www.cluffgold.com.

The drilling results announced today focus on the sulphide potential of Yaoure Central, where the current sulphide measured and indicated resources total 249,000 ounces (4.9Mt at 1.6g/t)(ii). This resource is based on previous RC drilling typically extending down to about 100m below the original surface (60m below the current pit floor).

A total of 23 diamond drill holes (1,967m) were completed at Yaoure Central by late December 2011: 13 holes (838m) to test east-west (“E-W“) trending structures previously not included in any resource models, of which 11 results are reported; and 10 holes (1,127m) to test the main north-south (“N-S“) trending structure, of which 2 results are reported. Results from the remaining 10 holes will be announced once received.

Although the testing of the main N-S structure was the primary objective, the E-W structures were drilled first due to easier access within the pit during the later part of the rainy season in September and hence a higher number of results are available from this drilling. A full set of results is set out in Appendix 1.

The results from the initial two holes drilled to intersect the N-S structures are highly encouraging, confirming the width and grade of the main mineralised zone reported from historic RC results (30m at 3.64g/t). The aggregate composite results are:

- YD0021: 28.35 metres at 3.24 g/t Au from 35.30 metres
- YD0014: 31.60 metres at 1.97 g/t from 31.80 metres.

Initial geological interpretation suggests that the intersected width approximates to true thickness.

A second phase of diamond drilling focusing on the N-S structures, consisting of 2,000m across 9 holes, has commenced to follow up over a strike length of 700m and 250m down-dip, with results expected in March 2012.


Drilling results from the E-W structures include:

- YD0001: 14.20 metres at 1.87 g/t Au from 48.70 metres
- YD0003: 21.05 metres at 2.45 g/t Au from 55.45 metres
- YD0004: 17.30 metres at 2.02 g/t Au from 27.22 metres and 2.80 metres at 25.56 g/t Au from 2.90m
- YD0008: 13.25 metres at 4.14 g/t Au from 31.90 metres.

The E-W structures dip steeply to both the north and south, and are expected to further enhance the resource potential from the main N-S trending structures.

An additional 1,000m drilling programme following up on the E-W structures is planned for February 2012, with results expected in April 2012.

The Yaoure project is ideally located in Côte d'Ivoire with tarred roads being within a few kilometres of the mine site and having a low cost hydroelectric power source from the Kossou power station, within 5 kilometres of the property. Due to these natural infrastructure advantages, the resources needed to justify the construction of a CIL/CIP plant should be lower than would be the case in other less beneficial locations and the project would be expected to benefit from relatively lower capital and operating costs.


About Cluff Gold

Cluff Gold is a gold developer-producer with assets in West Africa. The Company generates significant cash flow through its Kalsaka gold mine in Burkina Faso, and is rapidly exploring the significant sulphide potential at its Yaoure project in Côte d'Ivoire. The Company remains focused on its objective of becoming a mid-tier producer through the development of its wholly-owned Baomahun project in Sierra Leone, which is expected to contribute an additional 135,000oz of gold per annum, with significant exploration potential along strike. With its experience of bringing new mines into production and a project pipeline spanning Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire and Mali, the Company aims to further increase its production profile with its highly prospective exploration work across all assets.

Baomahun is Cluff Gold's defining development gold project in Sierra Leone. Definitive feasibility study work is progressing in the immediate resource area, where 2.1Moz of indicated resources (25.6Mt at 2.5g/t) and a further 0.9Moz of inferred resources (comprising 9.6Mt at 2.8g/t) have been delineated to date(1). The current resource base is limited to only 1.5km of a total 12km strike length. Exploration drilling is on-going, targeting the 4km northerly strike extension of the current resource area.


Appendix 1: Yaoure Central Drilling Results

Hole ID From
m To
m Interval
(1)
m Gold
g/t UTM
East UTM
North Elevation
UTM RL Azimuth Dip Structure

YDD0001 7.00 9.00 2.00 4.98 220648 777342 214 180 -60 E-W
24.20 28.00 3.80 0.99
48.70 62.90 14.20 1.87

YDD0002 27.00 30.00 3.00 2.62 220648 777375 215 180 -60 E-W
43.00 46.00 3.00 1.30
48.35 53.00 4.65 0.72
76.00 83.00 7.00 1.01

YDD0003 25.78 29.15 3.37 0.75 220662 777359 215 180 -55 E-W
32.05 35.15 3.10 4.93
44.80 45.55 0.75 2.74 (4)
55.45 76.50 21.05 2.45 (4)

YDD0004 2.90 5.70 2.80 25.56 (4) 220661 777406 211 360 -60 E-W
27.22 44.52 17.30 2.02 (4)
50.06 53.00 2.94 0.81
55.39 57.84 2.45 0.91 (4)
65.30 68.00 2.70 2.56
70.05 74.62 4.57 0.99

YDD0005 0.00 5.00 5.00 0.65 220641 777426 208 360 -50 E-W
13.00 27.28 14.28 1.54 (4)

YDD0006 4.00 7.00 3.00 0.83 220641 777438 208 360 -50 E-W

YDD0007 10.00 11.00 1.00 4.81 (3),(4) 220638 777503 206 360 -50 E-W

YDD0008 5.93 12.30 6.37 0.57 220686 777361 212 180 -55 E-W
31.90 45.15 13.25 4.14

YDD0009 49.30 50.63 1.33 1.60 (3) 220711 777361 212 180 -55 E-W

YDD0010 25.78 27.85 2.07 0.53 220691 777415 209 360 -60 E-W
37.75 43.40 5.65 1.76
46.00 48.00 2.00 1.68
62.74 73.15 10.41 1.60

YD00011 32.40 35.46 1.26 9.12 (4) 220736 777443 202 360 -60 E-W
38.39 42.10 3.71 1.36
45.70 50.42 4.72 7.41
53.10 56.06 2.96 0.67
60.62 62.94 2.32 0.77

YDD0014 36.80 68.40 31.60 1.97 (2) 220787 777411 202 270 -60 N-S
Including 36.80 41.45 4.65 2.48
[and] 43.75 49.41 5.66 2.73
[and] 52.80 57.95 5.15 5.70
[and] 63.00 68.40 5.40 0.88
[and] 73.35 75.44 2.09 1.02

YDD0021 35.30 63.67 28.35 3.24 (2) 220796 777487 194 270 -60 N-S
Including 35.30 40.70 5.40 1.93
[and] 45.73 58.15 12.42 1.96
[and] 60.63 63.67 3.04 18.54
[and] 87.03 89.75 2.72 1.00
[and] 97.70 104.18 6.48 0.61
[and] 122.00 124.21 2.21 0.43


As at 31 December 2011, 23 holes were completed at Yaoure Central, of which assays for 13 holes have been received. It is not anticipated that results from the outstanding 10 holes (2 testing the E-W structures and 8 testing the N-S structure) will differ significantly from those announced herein.

(1) Interval lengths are not true widths. Composite intersections are based on a minimum width of 2m and a cut-off of 0.4 g/t gold. Internal dilution of up to 2.00m at less than 0.4 g/t has been allowed for continuity.

(2) Aggregated composite intersections for YD0014 and YD0021. Internal dilution of greater than 2.00m at less than 0.4 g/t has been allowed - up to 5.05m for YD0014 and 5.03 m for YD0021

(3) No intersection greater than 2m. Significant intersection in hole shown.

(4) All samples with visible gold or returning >10 g/t are being reassayed by 500g Metallic Screen Fire Assay and will be reported in due course.

Yaoure Project Geology

The geology of Yaoure consists of Birimian (Lower Proterozoic) metavolcanic greenstones which have been intruded by a suite of small, mainly granodioritic, bodies. Syntectonic gold mineralisation is associated with shear zones, injected by quartz veins and stockworks that trend N-S (Yaoure Central), NW-SE (Kongonza) and NE-SW (partly in-filled CMA South Pit). These mineralised shear zones are evidenced by two major geochemical soil anomalies of greater than 200 ppb Au which have strike lengths of 3 km (Yaoure Central) and 2 km (Kongonza).

The gold mineralisation at the Yaoure Central pit is mainly located in a series of N-S trending lenses associated with N-S shearing. The whole package has a total thickness of about 125m and dips to the east at 25-35°. The traces of two N-S shears have been delineated and the Main Zone, an approximately 30m thick high grade mineralised zone in the middle of the package, is associated with these two shears. The mineralisation occurs in a stockwork of quartz veins ranging in thickness from more than a metre to a millimetre and in the enclosing pervasively altered (silicification and lesser pyritisation) greenstones. Small syntectonic granodioritic bodies intrude the N-S shear zone and have themselves been deformed and mineralised.

There is a second set of mineralised structures at the Yaoure Central pit trending 65-75° (E-W structures). Both N-S and E-W structures have suffered deformation and are regarded as being coeval - a syntectonic conjugate pair. Visible gold is more common in the E-W structures.

This report includes certain “forward-looking information“ within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation.

All statements other than statements of historical fact included in this report, including, without limitation, the positioning of the Company for future success, statements regarding exploration, drilling results, resource calculations and potential future production at Yaoure, and future capital plans and objectives of Cluff Gold, are forward-looking information that involve various risks and uncertainties. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from Cluff Gold's expectations include, among others, the Company's ability to delineate sufficient sulphide resources for the development of a CIL/CIP operation, risks related to international operations, the actual results of current exploration and drilling activities, changes in project parameters as plans continue to be refined as well as future price of gold. Although Cluff Gold has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Cluff Gold does not undertake to update any forward-looking statements that are included herein, except in accordance with applicable securities laws.

The diamond drilling programme at Yaoure was undertaken by an independent drilling contractor. All holes at the Yaoure Central Pit were drilled from within the pit and collared at a depth of between 20m and 35m below the original surface level. All holes were drilled at inclinations of between -50° and -60°. The 13 holes testing the E-W structures were drilled towards both the north and south with an average down-hole depth of 64m and a maximum down-hole depth of 72m. The 10 holes testing the main N-S structure were all drilled towards the west at an inclination of -60°, with an average down-hole depth of 113m and a maximum down-hole depth of 136m.

Drill cores for assaying were taken at a maximum of two metre intervals and were cut with a diamond saw with one-half of the core placed in sealed bags and sent to the SGS sample preparation facility in Yamoussoukro, Côte d'Ivoire. The core samples were then crushed down to minus 2 mm, split with half the sample then being pulverised down to 85% passing 75 microns. About 200g of the pulverised sample was then shipped to the SGS Laboratory in Tarkwa, in Ghana, an independent laboratory to the Company, where the samples were analysed for gold by fire assay using a 50 g sample. As part of the Company's QA/QC procedures, internationally recognised standards, duplicates and blanks were inserted and check assays will also be submitted to other external laboratories.

Peter Brown is a “Qualified Person“ within the definition of National Instrument 43-101 and has verified the data disclosed in this release, including sampling, analytical and test data underlying the information contained herein, and reviewed and approved the information contained within this announcement. Mr Brown (MIMMM) is the Group Exploration Manager.

(1) See news release dated 5 September 2011 entitled “Cluff Gold: Significant Resource Increase at Baomahun“

(i) Detailed geology, descriptions of Yaoure Central (previously Prospect 4) and other exploration prospects at Angovia, and other exploration information can be found in the Company's NI43-101 report Technical Review of Angovia Gold Mine, Mount Yaoure, Côte d'Ivoire, as prepared by SRK Consulting, dated October 2008 and available on SEDAR. Resource estimation has been subsequently updated for production and exploration changes in Cluff Gold's 2010 Annual Report.

(ii) Encompassed within the 169,000oz (3.4Mt at 1.6g/t) in measured resources and 123,000oz (2.2Mt at 1.7g/t) in indicated resources set out in Cluff Gold's 2010 Annual Report.

NO REGULATORY AUTHORITY HAS APPROVED OR DISAPPROVED THE CONTENT OF THIS PRESS RELEASE



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