SUMATRA Copper & Gold has released updated resource estimates for the Berenai, Siamang and Bujang deposits at Tembang Gold-Silver Project in South Sumatra. There are now 200,000 ounces of gold and 3.175 million ounces of silver, up from 167,500 and 2.618 million ounces a year earlier.

New estimates were compiled following a 52 hole, 4380 metre drilling program. The phase four drilling was primarily focused on infill and extensional drilling at deposits scheduled for open pit development in the second half of 2015. The new resource models will form the basis of final open pit designs in the lead-up to commencement of mining activities scheduled for later this year.

Infill drilling within the DFS ore reserve pit at Siamang intersected wider zones of lower grade gold-silver mineralization resulting in an overall resource increase. There are now 428,000 indicated and inferred tonnes @ 2.0 grams/tonne gold and 28 grams/tonne silver for 28,000 ounces of gold and 388,000 ounces of silver. This compares to the 2014 total of 181,202 tonnes @ 3.7 grams/tonne gold and 55 grams/tonne silver for 21,500 and 319,000 ounces respectively.

Infill and extensional drilling at Berenai confirmed the 2014 resource estimate and outlined an additional small mineralized lode in the footwall to the Berenai main lode. There are now 2.297 million indicated and inferred tonnes @ 2.0 grams/tonne gold and 33.6 grams/tonne silver for 148,000 gold ounces and 2.482 million silver ounces compared to the 2014 total of 1.869 million tonnes @ 2.0 grams/tonne gold and 33.3 grams tonnes silver for 123,000 and 2.001 million ounces respectively.

Extensional drilling outside the DFS pit design at Bujang demonstrated continuity of the high grade mineralization down plunge towards the southwest. One hole intersected 2.2 metres from 100.9 metres @ 11.1 grams/tonne gold and 18 grams/tonne silver.

There are now 286,000 tonnes @ 2.6 grams/tonne gold and 33 grams/tonne silver for 24,000 gold ounces and 305,000 silver ounces compared to 272,000 tonnes @ 2.6 grams/tonne gold and 34 grams/tonne silver for 23,000 and 298,000 ounces respectively in 2014.

Two exploration drill holes were also completed at the adjoining Racambai prospect. One hole intersected 5.3 metres from 103.5 metres @ 0.46 grams/tonne gold and 27 grams/tonne silver confirming the presence of a significant mineralized structure with a +1km-long gold-in-soil geochemical anomaly.

Tembang lies within the back-arc environment of the Barisan Mountain range and Trans-Sumatra Fault Zone with epithermal mineralization related to the intersection of faults and fractures.