Bibemi Delivers High-Grade Intersections

Oriole Resources PLC 

('Oriole Resources' or 'the Company' or 'the Group')

Bibemi Gold Project

Continues to Deliver High-Grade Intersections

Oriole Resources PLC (AIM: ORR), the AIM-quoted exploration company focussed on West Africa, is pleased to announce further results from the recently completed 3,118m maiden diamond drilling programme at its 51%-owned Bibemi gold project ('Bibemi' or 'the Project') in Cameroon. The results reported today are for holes BBDD002 to BBDD009, all of which are from the 5.3km-long Bakassi Zone 1 prospect ('Bakassi Zone 1' or 'the Prospect'), and include best intersections of 2.45 metres ('m') grading 2.96 grammes per tonnes ('g/t') Au, 3.60m grading 1.75 g/t Au and 12.40m grading 0.71 g/t Au. The results have confirmed more than 100m vertical continuity (from surface) to the system, which remains open at depth. 

It is anticipated that the remaining results from the programme, relating to a further 20 holes, will be released by the end of Q2-2021.

Highlights

·    Results for 8 holes (BBDD002 to BBDD009) drilled at Bakassi Zone 1 deliver multiple multi-gramme intersections from two fence lines (BZ1_L6 and BZL_L7) in the southwest of the prospect and confirm more than 100m vertical continuity to the system from surface.

·    Best results, predominantly associated with sub-vertical laminated (shear-hosted) quartz-tourmaline veins and their interaction with flatter-lying extensional quartz veins, include:

BBDD004

o  1.30m grading 1.03 g/t Au from 31.60m

o  1.00m grading 1.44 g/t Au from 97.20m

o  1.00m grading 2.54 g/t Au from 135.20m

BBDD005

o  1.00m grading 1.41 g/t Au from 10.20m

BBDD007

o  2.45m grading 2.96 g/t Au from 95.60m including 1.55m grading 4.30 g/t Au

o  3.60m grading 1.75 g/t Au from 110.30m including 1.20m grading 4.65 g/t Au

BBDD009

o  12.40m grading 0.71 g/t Au from 29.20m, including 1.20m grading 3.43 g/t Au

o  1.00m grading 1.08 g/t Au from 46.60m

o  1.00m grading 5.65 g/t Au from 60.40m

o  1.00m grading 6.15 g/t Au from 92.40m

·    These results confirm the potential for Bibemi to host multi-gramme intervals within wider envelopes of lower grade mineralisation.

·    SRK has recently completed a site visit and endorses the orientation of the drill programme with respect to the key structural controls observed. Both styles of veining are believed to be related to the same mineralising event that appears to be synchronous with the observed structural deformation.

·    It is still anticipated that the remaining results for Bakassi Zone 1, Bakassi Zone 2, Lawa West and Lawa East (a total of 20 holes) will be the reported by the end of Q2.

Oriole Resources CEO, Tim Livesey, said: "We are very pleased to share these early results from the Bakassi Zone 1 prospect, a significant strike length of mineralisation within the more extensive Bibemi gold system.  These results prove that our preliminary exploration model for mineralisation is correct and that the orogenic-style mineralisation we had previously identified at surface does indeed continue vertically along the mapped shear / vein systems. 

"The structural logging, mapping and interpretation work carried out by our geological team, in addition to the recent support of a specialist structural geologist from SRK, has further strengthened our understanding of the area. Each of the four prospect areas at Bibemi shows subtly different host geology and dynamic structural regimes and we are looking forward to developing our geological models further once the remaining results are returned later this month. 

"Already this maiden drill programme is proving to be a success and the team is starting to plan the follow-up work programmes that will commence in Q4."

Further Details

In Q2-2021, the Company completed its maiden drilling programme to test four key prospects (Bakassi Zone 1, Bakassi Zone 2, Lawa West and Lawa East) at Bibemi for a total of 3,118m in 29 holes. First results relating to hole BBDD001, located on the northernmost fence line at Bakassi Zone 1 (BZ1_L1), confirmed proof of concept for orogenic gold style mineralisation at Bibemi, with a best result of 1.00m grading 4.09 g/t Au (announcement dated 31 March 2021).

The results reported today, for eight holes (BBDD002 to BBDD009) drilled at Bakassi Zone 1, continue to confirm the prospectivity of the Project, with multiple significant intersections (greater than 0.3 g/t Au) being reported from holes on the two southernmost fence lines (BZ1_L6 and BZL_L7). A drill plan for Bakassi Zone 1 and a section across fence line BZ1_L6 (covering holes BBDD004, BBDD005 and BBDD007) can be viewed at the following link: http://www.rns-pdf.londonstockexchange.com/rns/7180B_1-2021-6-13.pdf

Best intersections include 2.45m grading 2.96 g/t Au and 3.60m grading 1.75 g/t Au from BBDD007 and 12.40m grading 0.71 g/t Au from BBDD009 (see Table 1). These holes are located approximately 3.8km and 4.5km to the southwest, respectively, from BBDD001, highlighting the significant scale of the gold system that has now a confirmed vertical continuity of more than 100m below surface and remains open at depth.

Table 1. Significant intersections to date from diamond drilling at Bakassi Zone 1 

* Intervals greater than 1m in wide, calculated using a 0.3 g/t Au cut-off and no more than 50% internal dilution. True widths are approximately 77% (for holes inclined -50 degrees) to 91% (for holes inclined -65 degrees) of the reported downhole interval.

** Abandoned due to broken ground / poor recoveries. Re-drilled as hole BBDD009.

The reported intersections are predominately associated with northeast-trending, laminated (shear-parallel) quartz-tourmaline veins that dip steeply to the southeast and their interaction with flatter-lying extensional quartz veins that are sub-horizontal to shallowly east-dipping. The shear veins can range from a few centimetres to over a metre in width, with the high-grade ore shoots likely to plunge in a north-easterly direction, being parallel to the intersection of the vein sets. A recent site visit by independent consultant SRK has confirmed that the drilling programme was conducted at a favourable orientation with respect to ensuring both structural orientations were intersected. Both vein sets are believed to be broadly contemporaneous, having formed during the same structural deformation event. Results for a further five holes are still awaited for this Prospect.

All remaining samples from the programme have now been received by Bureau Veritas in Cote d'Ivoire for assaying, with subsequent multi-element analysis being completed at Bureau veritas in Canada. The Company still anticipates that full gold results for the programme will be released before the end of Q2-2021.

For further information on the Bibemi project, including drill plans and a JORC Table 1, please see the following page of the Company's website https://orioleresources.com/projects/bibemi/. 

Under the terms of its option agreement with Bureau d'Etudes et d'Investigations Géologico-minières, Géotechniques et Géophysiques SARL ('BEIG3'), the Company has satisfied the conditions to earn a 90% interest in RMC Cameroon SARL, which owns Bibemi, the Wapouzé project (20km to the north) and three licences in Central Cameroon. The administrative process to formalise this ownership is currently underway, including the formation of a new local subsidiary company into which the licences can be transferred.

At the Central Cameroon project, located approximately 300km to the southwest of Bibemi, regional mapping and stream sediment sampling programme is continuing over the entire 3,592 square kilometre land package. To date, a total of 368 samples of a planned 1,360 samples have been collected, with two of the eight licences (Niambaran and Tenekou) now complete. As previously reported, results are expected in H2-2021.

For further information on the Central Licences project, please see the following page of the Company's website https://orioleresources.com/projects/central-cameroon/. 

Competent Persons Statement 

The information in this release that relates to Exploration Results has been compiled by Claire Bay (VP Exploration and Business Development). Claire Bay (MGeol, CGeol) is a Competent Person as defined in the JORC code and takes responsibility for the release of this information. Claire has reviewed the information in this announcement and confirms that she is not aware of any new information or data that materially affects the information reproduced here.

** ENDS **

The information contained within this announcement is deemed to constitute inside information as stipulated under the Market Abuse Regulations (EU No. 596/2014) which is part of UK law by virtue of the European Union (withdrawal) Act 2018. Upon the publication of this announcement, this inside information is now considered to be in the public domain.

For further information please visit www.orioleresources.com, @OrioleResources on Twitter, or contact:

Notes to Editors:

Oriole Resources PLC is an AIM-listed exploration company, operating West Africa. It is focused on early-stage exploration in Cameroon (Bibemi, Wapouzé and Central Licences projects) and the more advanced Senala gold project in Senegal, where IAMGOLD has the option to spend US$8 million to earn a 70% interest. The Company has several interests and royalties in companies operating throughout Africa and Turkey that could deliver future cash flow, and it continues to assess new opportunities in both regions.