Sumatra Copper reports improved gold recoveries at Tembang project

ASX-listed Sumatra Copper & Gold Plc reported on Tuesday of an improved overall recoveries of gold and silver from its Tembang gold and silver project located in central Sumatra, Indonesia.

Metallurgical test-work, completed by ALS Ammtec and project managed by Lycopodium Minerals Pty Ltd, significantly improved the overall silver recovery, increasing from 68% (2009, METS ) to 82%.

Similarly, the overall recovery of gold increased from 84% to 91%. These test-work results were based on metallurgical composite samples taken from diamond core drilling carried out in the first half of 2011. The improved recoveries are in line with Laverton Gold NL - Barisan Tropical Mining - historic recovery rates in the 1990s, the company said.

The company?s Chief Executive Officer, Julian Ford, said the samples tested by ALS Ammtec were a more proportional representation of the project than samples taken by METS in 2009 and included results from a larger geographical area and from a greater depth (maximum 150 meters).

?The heightened mineral recoveries will significantly improve the Tembang project?s economics which will be further accentuated if silver and gold prices continue their strong upward trend,? said Ford.

?We are currently focused on the permitting for the Tembang project, and we also expect to publish a revised resource estimate for Tembang later this month.? (romel)