Anuncio • Aug 08
Ongwe Minerals Provides Update on Its Newly Discovered Nguni Prospect and Exploration Results
Ongwe Minerals Inc. has provided an update on the accelerating exploration work program at its newly discovered Nguni gold prospect, situated 17 km from the Manga Gold discovery at its Omatjete Gold Project. Nguni is a large, high-grade gold-in-soil anomaly discovered by Ongwe in May 2026 via a regional soil sampling program. The program targeted the regionally significant Okondeka Fault Zone (OFZ), which hosts both WIA Gold’s Kokoseb Gold Deposit and Ongwe’s Manga Gold Discovery. Situated 55 km east of Kokoseb and 17 km east of Manga, Nguni is being rapidly advanced through detailed surface work and drilling, with the goal of converting the target into a large-scale economic discovery. The infill work on the Nguni prospect is now complete. Alongside work at Nguni, progress continues at the Belmont prospect within the Khorixas Gold Project. Recent surface geochemistry, mapping and a structural re-interpretation guided a short RC drill program. Assay results from the RC program are pending but there are visual indications of quartz veining and sulphide mineralization. Following the initial identification of the Nguni Gold Anomaly, the Company proceeded with an infill 50m x 50m soil sampling campaign. This infill program has now been completed across the full extent of the Nguni anomaly currently accessible with 1,605 samples collected. Ongwe is in the final stages of securing land access for the two adjacent farms covering the northern, eastern, and western strike extensions, with formal granting expected imminently. Detailed surface geological mapping, supported by trial pitting, indicates that the region is covered by alluvial scree ranging from 1 to 5 meters in thickness. Limited outcrop of schist and granite is confined to river cuttings, and it is our interpretation that aside from localized surface drainage movement, the gold in soil anomalies are largely in situ. Fire assay results from the Nguni soil grid included 50 samples exceeding 300 ppb Au and established a continuous 6 km strike footprint above 50 ppb Au. This detailed sampling confirms that the gold mineralization is hosted by metasedimentary rocks adjacent to granitic contact zones, similar to the geological architecture observed at the Kokoseb gold deposit. The highest grades are located in the northern and southern sectors of the current grid, both sectors truncated by the current extent of the sampling. In the northern section, radiometric data indicates the presence of a small leucogranite intrusion. The Company considers this leucogranite to be an integral component of the mineralizing system, making it a high-priority target for the next phase of sampling. To the southeast, a prominent magnetic anomaly aligns directly with a leucogranite contact and gold grades trend upward towards the magnetic feature. This area also represents a high priority for the next phase. The Company is finalizing preparations to mobilize a diamond drill rig to the Nguni prospect, with drilling scheduled to commence towards the end of August. As Nguni is a greenfields discovery with limited bedrock exposure, diamond drilling is essential to maximize geological, structural, and stratigraphic information. The initial drill program comprises 5,000 meters and will target the core areas of the gold-in-soil anomaly. Operations will commence with one diamond rig, with capacity to deploy additional rigs as structural control and mineralization patterns are clarified. Upon execution of access agreements for the adjacent farms, field crews will be mobilized to extend the soil grid and delineate the full extent of the anomaly. The drill schedule is adaptable and high-grade targets will be incorporated as they are generated by the ongoing surface work. In addition, field teams have been deployed to initiate systematic soil sampling along regional fault structures to the south and east of Nguni, where complete land access has already been secured. The structural corridor linking the Manga and Nguni prospects falls under the pending land agreement and will also be prioritized for sampling immediately upon authorization. More than 80km of combined strike along prospective fault structures remain un-sampled within the Omatjete Gold Project. Bedrock sampling to test the eastern extent of the Manga Gold Discovery is complete and results are pending. In house detectORE™ analysis suggests that the system remains open to the east and calcrete sampling is planned to trace the mineralization further eastwards. At the Khorixas Gold Project shallow RC fencelines have been drilled across surface calcrete anomalies to test the BK2, BK7, BK12 and BK13 splay targets and assay results are pending. The Plains gold anomaly on the northern Damara boundary structure will be tested with diamond drilling later in the year. The Exclusive Prospecting License (EPL) hosting the Nguni anomaly is currently advancing through the standard renewal process. Having submitted all documentation well ahead of schedule alongside proof of extensive ongoing work on the EPL, the Company fully expects a positive renewal outcome in the coming weeks. The Company initially utilized the detectORE™ analytical technique, designed to enable the measurement of trace gold concentrations in geological samples using a portable X-Ray Fluorescence (pXRF) instrument. This process overcomes the traditional limitations of gold analysis by pXRF including low gold concentrations and metal peak interference. The method involves leaching 250g of sieved material in a sealed pouch with 500ml of GLIX-20™ lixiviant and a Collector Device (CD). Following a 16-hour tumble in a Maxi Mixer barrel to dissolve the gold, the CD is removed, rinsed, and analyzed for 150 seconds using detectORE™ mode firmware. This partial analysis technique is managed through pLIMS™ software with strict QA/QC protocols to identify relative gold anomalism. An extensive orientation program was carried out before putting the detectORE™ methodology into production by comparing soil, calcrete and rock chip sample assays with Aqua Regia and FireICP. The detectORE™ system performed extremely well and identified the same anomalies as the laboratory techniques in all conditions. The detectORE™ gold technique is designed for rapid on-site assessment and is not used for the formal quantification of gold content or the estimation of Mineral Resources. As part of the current exploration program, all soil samples undergo initial multi-element analysis utilizing the Company’s in-house pXRF. All trace element anomalies, including base metal and arsenic anomalies are then analyzed through the Company’s detectORE™ system. Any area returning a value equal to or greater than 10 detectable Units (dU) are prioritized for follow-up soil sampling. All follow-up soil samples are analyzed via Fire Assay at the MSALAB facility in Omaruru, Namibia.