FEATURED MINING COMPANY

ANGLOGOLD

Greenfield exploration:
An expansive greenfield exploration programme was undertaken during 2010 in Australia, China, North and South America, the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), Sub-Saharan Africa and South East Asia. A total of 276,346m of diamond, reverse circulation, and aircore drilling was completed in testing existing priority targets and in the delineation of new targets in Australia, Colombia, the Solomon Islands, Gabon, Guinea, Egypt, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Canada.

In 2011, total exploration expenditure of some $375 million is planned, with $100 million to be spent on greenfield exploration and $ 111 million allocated to pre-feasibility studies at the La Colosa and Gramalote projects in Colombia, as well as feasibility studies at the Central Mongbwalu deposit in the DRC and associated expenditures. Of the balance, $143 million is earmarked for brownfield exploration, inclusive of $50 million of capitalised expenditure and $21 million for the De Beers joint venture focusing on marine exploration on the continental shelf.

DE BEERS

Greenfield exploration:

In 2010, De Beers Exploration spent US$43.3 million on work programmes focused in Angola, Canada, India, Botswana and South Africa. Deposit assessment work programmes were completed on five kimberlites in advanced stage projects in Angola, Canada and a further 22 kimberlite discoveries were added to the company’s impressive portfolio of 195 kimberlites.

In Angola: the focus will be on the work programme to deliver the Mulepe-1 cluster to an Inferred Resource by mid-2012.  A further 12 priority kimberlites in the Lunda NE concession with sizes from 10 to 50 hectares will be the focus of deposit test work programmes. 

In Botswana:  South Africa and India, work will continue to focus on defining high priority target areas, through technical reviews of the databases and the execution of work programmes to establish discovery portfolios.

GOLD FIELDS

MALI