Stellar Africagold - First GOLD from Balandougou, Mill Begins Full Time Operations, Non-Core Asset Review, Private Placement Update
STELLAR AFRICAGOLD - FIRST GOLD FROM BALANDOUGOU, MILL BEGINS FULL
TIME OPERATIONS, NON-CORE ASSET REVIEW, PRIVATE PLACEMENT UPDATE
Vancouver, June 14, 2018 – John Cumming, President and Chief Executive Officer of Stellar AfricaGold Inc. , (TSX-V: SPX)
("Stellar" or the "Company") announces:
FIRST GOLD RECOVERED FROM BALANDOUGOU GRAVITY MILL
The Company’s Balandougou gravity mill has tested processing operations and recovered its first gold.
During a management site inspection which included a comprehensive mill operations test and demonstration, 21.5 tonnes
of gold-mineralized oxide was processed with 49 grams of gold recovered, a 2.28 gram per tonne gold recovery. See photos
below.
FULL-TIME MILL OPERATIONS STARTED
The Company, after testing some final modifications made to the waste disposal circuit, has begun full-time mi lling
operations at its Balandougou gravity mill processing the previously stockpiled 15,000 tonnes of bulk sample oxide gold
mineralization taken from three different locations along the B3 sheared structures.
Management Commentary
“I was both pleased and impressed to see Stellar’s gravity mill in operation” commented Stellar President and CEO John
Cumming. “The 2.28 g/t recovery rate from the mill demonstration test gives us increased confidence as we proceed with
the bulk sampling program and our goal of achieving a 1.5 g/t average rate of recovery across our 15,000 t onnes bulk
sample.”
“The purpose of building the Balandougou mill was to demonstrate two things: a) that Balandougou’s B3 Zone gold
mineralization could be processed using gravity methods only, and b) that such processing could be done on an economically
viable basis sufficient to justify continued profitable operations. Having seen the mill operating firsthand, and witnessed the
free gold being recovered on the shaking table, I can confidently state that the first of those objectives has been achieved
with the gravity methods employed in our mill successfully recover ing gold from the B3 Zone oxide mineralization. A
substantial challenge when using gravity milling methods is the difficulty in separating and recovering fine and very fine gold
particles from oxides containing very fine clays. This is the style of oxide mineralization that Stellar has at its B3 Zone and
we are pleased that the two Knelson Concentrators we selected proved very efficient and that the fine particle gold within
the concentrate output from the Knelsons separat ed perfectly on the shaking table forming the desired yellow line of fine
and very fine gold dust on the heavy materials side of the table. Also, repeated close visual inspections of the rejected mil l
output showed no evidence of significant residual gold in the mill’s tailings.
Stellar has begun full time milling operations of the 15,000 tonnes of oxide mineralization stockpiled for its bulk sample
program. To improve efficiency of daily operations Stellar’s VP Exploration and COO Maurice Giroux instructed the
Balandougou site supervisor to begin hiring and training sufficient staff and to implement as quickly as p ossible a second
shift to extend mill operating hours and allow for uninterrupted milling operations from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. with midday shift
overlap for crew breaks and mill cleanup. To further improve general operating efficiency Stellar is putting finishing touches
on final improvements to the mill including installation of larger capacity slurry pond pumps and construction of a settling
pond for final treatment of recovered waste water prior to returning it to the reservoir. These final improvements will not
impact operating hours.
I want to use this opportunity to thank and congratulate COO Maurice Giroux, our Guinea colleagues and our Balandougou
crew for a job well done. Bringing the Balandougou gravity mill from forested ground in an isolated eastern Guinea location
to an operating mill in slightly over 12 months is an impressive achievement of which they should all be very proud.”
The first gold from Balandougou.
This is the gold concentrate after processing on the shaking table at the end of the mill demonstration test.
The concentrate contains easily visible gold nuggets which were flattened into flakes of gold leaf in the ball mill,
visible specks of fine gold, and very fine gold particles not visible to the naked eye.
…and later, the 49 grams of recovered gold on the scale!
NON-CORE ASSET REVIEW
Management has completed a non-core asset review, specifically the 100% owned Opawica Project in the Chibougamau
mining camp in Quebec, and determined that the asset should be divested in some manner and monetized to the benefit
of the Shareholders. Opportunities for the sale or joint venture of the Opawica Project are being sought and other avenues
of divestiture are also being considered.
PRIVATE PLACEMENT UPDATE
Further to the Company’s news releases of April 25 and May 18, 2018 the Company has closed a fully subscribed non -
brokered private placement offering (the “Offering”) and issued 6,200,000 units at a price of $0.05 per unit for gross
proceeds of C$310,000. Each unit is comprised of one common share and one -half share purchase warrant with each full
warrant exercisable at $0.10 per share until May 17, 2019.
The net proceeds received from the Offering will be used for the Company’s Balandougou Gold Project in Guinea, new
project acquisitions and for working capital. All securities issued are subject to an investment hold period until September
18, 2018. No commissions and/or finder’s fees were paid in respect of this Offering.
The private placement constit uted a related-party transaction within the meaning of TSX Venture Exchange Policy 5.9 and
Multilateral Instrument 61-101 as two directors of the Company subscribed for 800,000 units, approximately 12.9% of the
Offering, at a cost of C$40,000. The Company relied upon exemptions from the valuation and minority shareholder approval
requirements of MI 61 -101 contained in sections 5.5(b) and 5.7(1)(a) of MI 61 -101, as the Company is not listed on a
specified market and the fair market value of the participation in the offering by insiders does not exceed 25 per cent of the
market capitalization of the Company, as determined in accordance with MI 61 -101.
ABOUT STELLAR AFRICAGOLD INC.
Stellar AfricaGold Inc. is a Canadian gold exploration company with offices in Vancouver, BC and Montreal , Q C, and
operations concentrated in West Africa and in Quebec.
In addition to developing its Balandougou Gold Project in Guinea including construction of a 150 tonnes per day gravity mill
(construction completed) to process a 15,000 tonnes bulk sample to test the commercial economics of gravity extraction
only. In Quebec, the Company owns 100% of the Opawica Project in the Chibougamau mining camp.
The technical content of this press release has been reviewed and approved by independent consultant Greg Isenor, P. Geo,
a Qualified Person as defined in NI 43-101.
For further information please contact:
John Cumming, President & CEO, Stellar AfricaGold Inc., or Maurice Giroux, VP Exploration, Stellar AfricaGold Inc.,
4908 Pine Crescent, Vancouver, BC, V6M 3P6, 1035 West Laurier Street, Suite 201, Montréal, QC H2V 2L1.
Email: [email protected] Tel.: 514-866-6299 Email: [email protected]
Additional information is available on the Company’s website at www.stellarafricagold.com.
On Behalf of the Board
John Cumming, LLM
President & CEO
This release contains certain "forward-looking information" under applicable Canadian securities laws concerning the Arrangement. Forward -looking
information reflects the Company’s current internal expectations or beliefs and is based on information curren tly available to the Company. In some
cases forward-looking information can be identified by terminology such as "may", "will", "should", "expect", "intend", "plan", "anticipate", "believe",
"estimate", "projects", "potential", "scheduled", "forecast", "bu dget" or the negative of those terms or other comparable terminology. Assumptions
upon which such forward-looking information is based includes, among others, that the conditions to closing of the Arrangement will be satisfied and
that the Arrangement will be completed on the terms set out in the definitive agreement. Many of these assumptions are based on factors and events
that are not within the control of the Company, and there is no assurance they will prove to be correct or accurate. Risk factors that could cause actual
results to differ materially from those predicted herein include, without limitation: that the remaining conditions to the Ar rangement will not be
satisfied; that the business prospects and opportunities of the Company will not proceed as anticipated; changes in the global prices for gold or certain
other commodities (such as diesel, aluminum and electricity); changes in U.S. dollar and other currency exchange rates, inter est rates or gold lease
rates; risks arising from holding derivati ve instruments; the level of liquidity and capital resources; access to capital markets, financing and interest
rates; mining tax regimes; ability to successfully integrate acquired assets; legislative, political or economic developments in the jurisdictions in which
the Company carries on business; operating or technical difficulties in connection with mining or development activities; laws and regulations governing
the protection of the environment; employee relations; availability and increasing costs associated with mining inputs and labour; the speculative nature
of exploration and development; contests over title to properties, particularly title to undeveloped properties; and the risks involved in the exploration,
development and mining business. Risks and unknowns inherent in all projects include the inaccuracy of estimated reserves and resources, metallurgical
recoveries, capital and operating costs of such projects, and the future prices for the relevant minerals.
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange n or its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts
responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.