Ariana drills into fresh growth options at Turkish gold project

Thu Nov 27 2025

Ariana Resources PLC has reported encouraging drilling results from its Kizilcukur prospect in western Türkiye, backing its plan to use the small deposit as an extra source of ore for its producing Kiziltepe gold and silver mine. Through its 23.5% stake in Turkish joint venture Zenit Madencilik, Ariana has just finished a diamond drilling campaign at Kizilcukur, about 22km northeast of Kiziltepe.

The aim is to turn Kizilcukur into a “satellite” deposit, trucking ore to the existing Kiziltepe processing plant rather than building a new plant from scratch.

The latest programme covered 2,769 metres across 31 holes and tested three main zones of mineralisation known as Zeki, Ziya and Zafer.

Some of the best intercepts included 4.90 metres grading 4.53 grams of gold per tonne and 118.3 grams of silver per tonne from a depth of 24.40 metres, and 1.90 metres at 5.39 grams of gold and 70.6 grams of silver per tonne from 66.10 metres.

In simple terms, “grams per tonne” is a measure of how much metal there is in each tonne of rock.

Higher numbers generally point to richer ore, though mine economics also depend on factors such as depth, rock type and mining costs.

Ariana said the campaign not only confirmed existing mineralised veins but also identified potential extensions, including a newly drilled vein system on the eastern flank of the deposit that could offer “further upside”.

Zenit is now working towards bringing Kizilcukur into production as a bolt-on source of feed for Kiziltepe, with environmental permitting underway. It is currently targeting a late-2026 start to operations, effectively extending the life and flexibility of the Kiziltepe mining complex.

Kizilcukur already has a declared mineral resource of 256,900 tonnes at an average grade of 1.98 grams of gold and 74.54 grams of silver per tonne, containing an estimated 16,400 ounces of gold and 615,600 ounces of silver.

Within that, ore reserves, the portion considered economically mineable under current assumptions, stand at 84,900 tonnes at 1.97 grams of gold and 84.23 grams of silver per tonne.

Dr Kerim Sener, Ariana’s managing director, said the latest drilling “continues to demonstrate that the extensions of the known vein systems remain prospective and have the potential to add to the resource opportunity at this deposit”.

He added that a recent local public consultation meeting, part of the permitting process, had been “completed successfully”, with the team working towards integrating Kizilcukur into the wider Kiziltepe mining schedule for a late-2026 start.

Source: https://www.proactiveinvestors.com.au/