Singida
Key facts
Location
- Ikungi Administrative District, Singida Region, central Tanzania
Size
- Three prospecting licences covering approx 52 km2
- Three mining licences covering 30 km2
Ownership
- One of the mining licences is wholly owned by Shanta Mining Company Ltd (SMCL); a portion of another is owned 90% by Shanta with the balance held in a Joint Venture with GL Jossue & JB Joel Limited. The third licence is held by the Joint Venture in the same proportion.
- Ownership of the prospecting licences is 100% with Shanta Mining.
Project status
- During FY2017 the pilot mining project was put on hold. A JORC resource of 12.3 million tonnes at 1.84 g/t for 728koz was declared in late 2017. An exploration campaign is being planned for 2018 at Singida.
| MEASURED | INDICATED | INFERRED | TOTAL RESOURCES | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TONNES | GRADES | OUNCES | TONNES | GRADES | OUNCES | TONNES | GRADES | OUNCES | TONNES | GRADES | OUNCES | |
| (‘000) | g’t | (‘000 oz) | (‘000) | g’t | (‘000 oz) | (‘000) | g’t | (‘000 oz) | (‘000) | g’t | (‘000 oz) | |
| CORNPATCH WEST | - | - | - | 722 | 1.67 | 39 | 995 | 1.4 | 45 | 1,716 | 1.51 | 84 |
| CORNPATCH | - | - | - | 415 | 1.73 | 23 | 474 | 2.07 | 31 | 889 | 1.91 | 54 |
| VIVIAN | - | - | - | 259 | 2.27 | 19 | 153 | 2.25 | 11 | 412 | 2.26 | 30 |
| JEM ZONE 1&2 | 387 | 2.68 | 33 | 541 | 2.28 | 40 | 741 | 1.95 | 46 | 1,668 | 2.23 | 119 |
| GOLD TREE ZONE 1 | 522 | 3.43 | 58 | 575 | 2.88 | 53 | 2,003 | 1.77 | 114 | 3,099 | 2.26 | 225 |
| GOLD TREE ZONE 2 | 172 | 1.51 | 8 | 130 | 1.31 | 5 | 250 | 1.2 | 10 | 552 | 1.32 | 23 |
| GOLD TREE ZONE 3 | 295 | 1.67 | 16 | 303 | 1.71 | 17 | 1,867 | 1.61 | 96 | 2,464 | 1.63 | 129 |
| KAIZER CHIEF | - | - | - | 234 | 1.27 | 10 | 398 | 1.36 | 17 | 632 | 1.33 | 27 |
| GUSTAV | 128 | 1.12 | 5 | 435 | 1.41 | 20 | 295 | 1.29 | 12 | 858 | 1.33 | 37 |
| TOTAL | 1,504 | 2.47 | 120 | 3,614 | 1.94 | 226 | 7,176 | 1.65 | 382 | 12,290 | 1.84 | 728 |
The geology of the Singida area is dominated by the Tanzanian granite-gneiss craton. Poorly exposed greenstone remnants were identified within the granite gneiss terrain during mapping by the Geological Survey of Tanzania (Haidutov 1976). These greenstones comprise an intercalated sedimentary and volcanic sequence with similarities to the Nyanzian Supergroup (System) of the Lake Victoria Goldfields.
The volcanic rocks encountered are predominantly basaltic lava and localised hypabyssal diorite/microdiorite intrusives. Meta-sedimentary rocks consist mainly of metaquartzitic lithologies, with subordinate siltstones, mudstones and banded ferruginous chert also encountered. The orientation of the layering is generally parallel to the basement foliation. Isoclinal folding is also evident.
The Nyanzian lithologies are generally metamorphosed to greenschist- and lower-amphibolite facies with localised occurrences of upper amphibolite grade. Post tectonic granite intrusives are common throughout the area.
Gold mineralisation is associated with penetrative brittle-ductile, steeply dipping, quartz veined shear zones that generally approximate the strike of lithological contacts.
The area south of Singida is exceptionally flat lying with little relief except for the granite intrusives that form prominent tors. Weathered overburden profiles are dominated by Neogene transported pedogenic gravels and related soils. Black Cotton soils (Mbuga) occurs locally.