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| | Wed Aug 24, 2005
Anooraq-Anglo Platinum Boikgantsho Joint Venture Infill Drilling Program Confirms Continuity of Drenthe Deposit
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August 24, 2005, Vancouver, BC - Anooraq Resources Corporation (TSX Venture: ARQ; AMEX: ANO) announces that the results from the infill core drilling program have confirmed the continuity of the mineralization within the Drenthe platinum group metals ("PGM") and nickel deposit. Drenthe is one of two deposits (Drenthe and Overysel North) being developed under the Boikgantsho Platinum Mine Joint Venture agreement ("JV") between Anooraq (50%) and Anglo Platinum Limited ("Anglo Platinum", 50%). The goal of the JV is to delineate and develop large-scale PGM deposits amenable to open pit mining. The Drenthe and Overysel North deposits are located on the Northern Limb of the Bushveld Complex, 250 kilometres north of Johannesburg, South Africa.
The 2005 infill drilling program focused on the Drenthe deposit, testing the mineralization on a 50 by 50 metre grid pattern in order to define measured mineral resources and advance the project toward a Bankable Feasibility Study. The program tested the entire area within the provisional open pit design for the Drenthe deposit that was used for the March 2005 Preliminary Assessment.
One hundred and thirty six vertical holes, totaling 24,418.23 metres, were drilled from January to June 2005. Representative results from the final holes in the program are listed in the Table of Boikgantsho Assay Results - 2005 (attached). Highlights include:
- 1.67 g/t 3PGM, 0.19% Ni and 0.12% Cu over 90.0 metres in hole PR-318
- 1.47 g/t 3PGM, 0.15% Ni and 0.08% Cu over 48.0 metres in hole PR-334
- 1.63 g/t 3PGM, 0.21% Ni and 0.14% Cu over 54.2 metres in hole PR-350
- 3.38 g/t 3PGM, 0.22% Ni and 0.16% Cu over 11.2 metres in hole PR-357
- 2.02 g/t 3PGM, 0.19% Ni and 0.11% Cu over 15.0 metres in hole PR-364
Tabulations of the 2005 results and a map showing the locations of all of the holes drilled in the Drenthe deposit since 1998 are posted on Anooraq's website.
The results from 2005 program confirm both the robustness of the geological model and down-dip consistency of the PGM mineralization within the Drenthe deposit - from surface to vertical depths exceeding 300 metres. The block model for the Drenthe deposit has been updated with these results. Resource modeling, which began in early August, will form the basis for mine planning in the Pre-feasibility study that has commenced.
Rigorous QA/QC procedures, designed and supervised by qualified persons, are integrated into Anooraq's exploration programs. Keith Roberts, M.Sc., Ph.D., P.Geo., is Anooraq's qualified person for this drilling program.
The procedure for the program was as follows: core samples were sent to Set Point Laboratories in Mokopane, South Africa, for preparation (drying, crushing and pulverizing), then a 180 gram pulp from each sample was shipped to Acme Analytical Laboratories (an ISO 9001:2001 accredited laboratory) in Vancouver, British
Columbia for analysis. Samples were analysed by Fire Assay (FA) fusion with an Inductively Coupled Plasma
Atomic Emission Spectroscopy (ICP-ES) finish for Pt, Pd and Au, and Aqua Regia ICP-ES for 36 elements. A
stringent quality assurance program is in place with standards, blanks and duplicate samples making up 10% of the samples processed. For the 2005 program, a duplicate of one in every 20 samples was sent to Set Point Laboratories (an ISO 17025: 2004 accredited laboratory) in Johannesburg, South Africa for checks of the analyses for Pt, Pd, Au, Cu and Ni.
Anooraq is actively engaged in the advancement of platinum group metals projects in the Bushveld Complex, the world's premier PGM environment. In addition to attractive land positions on the Northern and Western Limbs of the Bushveld, the Company holds a 50% interest in the advanced stage Ga-Phasha PGM project on the Eastern Limb. Anooraq is the only Black Economic Empowerment ("BEE") company with a primary listing on a North American stock exchange. This combination of significant PGM assets, status as a BEE entity, and direct access to financing opportunities through North American and European markets, positions Anooraq to become a leading PGM company.
Ronald W. Thiessen
President and CEO
For further details on Anooraq and its South African properties please visit the Company's website www.anooraqresources.com or contact:
Melanee G. Henderson
Investor Relations
Vancouver, Canada
Phone: (604) 684-6365
Toll Free: 1-800-667-2114
Phumzile Langeni
Executive Director, Investor Relations
Johannesburg, South Africa
Phone: +27 (11) 883-0831
The TSX Venture Exchange and the American Stock Exchange have neither approved nor disapproved of the contents of this press release.
This release includes certain statements that may be deemed "forward-looking statements". All statements in this release, other than statements of historical facts, that address future production, reserve potential, exploration drilling, exploitation activities and events or developments that the Company expects are forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements include market prices, exploitation and exploration successes, and continued availability of capital and financing, and general economic, market or business conditions. Investors are cautioned that any such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. For more information on the Company, Investors should review the Company's annual Form 20-F filing with the United States Securities Commission and its home jurisdiction filings that are available at www.sedar.com.
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