Afri-Can Marine Minerals has completed its reconnaissance sampling layout for the block J marine diamond concession, situated 105 kilometres north of Luderitz in Namibia.
The initial sampling program will consist of 29 anchor spreads displayed over 17 prospective features that were previously identified by a regional geophysical survey. These features with potential for diamond entrapment represent a variety of depositional environments occurring at water depths ranging between 75 metres and 120 metres. The company intends to collect a minimum of 250 samples over the targeted areas with an average of 12 samples per spread. The objective of the prospecting sampling program is to provide information on the geology of each site and consequently prove the presence of diamonds.
Afri-Can is currently in negotiation with a contractor and if the contract meets the requirements of Afri-Can, the prospecting program should start before the end of the year. Shareholders will be advised of future developments.
Block J covers an area of 994 square kilometres measuring approximately 45 kilometres long by 21 kilometres wide in water depths ranging from 70 metres to 167 metres. The concession lies on the northern boundary of the known rich diamondiferous deposits currently being mined along the south and central Namibian west coast. To the south of the project, an inferred resource exceeding four million carats has been estimated for the region between Halifax and Mercury Islands (Marine & Coastal, June 6, 2000).
