Callabonna Resources can potentially earn up to 70.4% interest in the Ansongo Manganese Mine Lease in Mali after varying the original development agreement.

Ansongo is located about 60 kilometres from the borders with Burkina Faso and Niger and connected by good roads to the south-west African coast.

Manganese oxide outcrops extensively in the south east part of the mining lease in eight hills known as Takavasita that had some previous exploration and limited mining of manganese oxide.

Less well explored areas of the Project mining lease also contain manganese in outcrop 15 kilometres to the west in hills at Agualla and Tondibi which is as yet unexplored.

Plans to commence drilling are well advanced and expected to commence in November.

This will focus on a 2 kilometre Takavasita part of the Project mining lease where an initial Exploration Target has been estimated at 5 million to 15 million tonnes at 35-45% manganese.

A mine scoping study is targeted for the end of 2015.

Under the original Share Purchase and Sale Agreement, Callabonna would acquire 17.2% of Ansongo Limited after spending $3.5 million or achieving a Maiden Resource of at least 5 million tonnes at 35% manganese oxide.

The company can now earn a further 33.8% of Ansongo Limited over a 48 month period through project related expenditure at a rate of A$1million per 4% interest, or about $11.95 million.

It also has a pre-emptive right over the remaining 49% interest in Ansongo Limited.

Ansongo Limited owns a 70.4% interest in Sahara Manganese Limited that owns Mali Manganese SA, which in turn owns the Ansongo manganese mining lease in Eastern Mali.

The other two project shareholders (through Sahara Manganese Limited) own manganese smelters with off take rights to future production from the project.

• [Editor:Sophie]