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VANCOUVER,
BC - Willis W. Osborne (M.Sc. Geol.), President of African
Metals Corporation (TSX Venture Exchange AFR), is very pleased
to announce information on the previous discoveries of alluvial
diamonds of 34, 51, 98 and 232 carats within the Company's
new 1063 sq. km Kenieba Diamond
concession. At the time of the September 3, 2003 news
release on the granting of a permit on the Kenieba Diamond
concession to the Company, sufficient confirmation of the
location of these diamonds had not been received. The Company
now has adequate information on the location and history of
them.
The discovery of the 34, 51, and 98 carat diamonds
was documented by the Bureau de Recherches Géologiques
et Minières (BRGM), an agency of the French Government.
The diamonds were discovered in three separate locations within
the eastern part of the concession. Mamadou Keita (M.Sc. Geol.),
Director of African Metals reports that the 34 and 51 carat
diamonds were found by farmers as they were working their
fields.
The Koufara, Batifara and Kassama kimberlites,
also in the eastern part of the concession, are aligned in
a south-southeasterly direction. These are aligned along a
fault, which, if projected a further 12 km south of the Kassama
kimberlite, comes close to the site of the discovery of the
98 carat diamond and provides possible evidence for the existence
of a nearby kimberlite. Further evidence for a kimberlite
proximal to the locations of the 34, 51 and 98 carat diamonds
is the fact that previous sampling within 600 to 1000 m of
the site of each diamond shows moderate to high counts of
picroilmenite, an indication that kimberlites could occur
in close proximity to each of the diamonds. No detailed follow-up
has been done in any of these three areas.
The 232 carat diamond was found 3 km south of
the location of the discovery of the 51.7, 98.0, 102.0 and
137.5 carat diamonds mentioned in the September 3, news release.
It might be added that the 51.7 and 98.0 carat diamonds are
not the same as the 51 and 98 carat diamonds mentioned above.
The 232 carat diamond was discovered in 1981 in a pit dug
by a man known by Mr. Keita. The diamond was sold at the Banque
du Development du Mali. Just recently diamonds of 0.3 and
0.5 carats were discovered by women orpailleurs in the same
area.
In the Company's initial program in the area,
to start in mid-September, 3 of a total of 10 large, test
pits will be dug in the area where the 232 carat diamond was
found. Additional pits will be dug where the cluster of large
diamonds were found 3 km to the north. The remaining pits
will be dug between the two sites. The Company is currently
outlining a second program to attempt to locate the source
kimberlites for the large diamonds found on the concession.
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