The Zambian govt has awarded a diamond exploration license to Tamarisk investments

GOVERNMENT HAS AWARDED AIM-LISTED PARAGON DIAMONDS THROUGH ITS SUBSIDIARY TAMARISK INVESTMENTS A DIAMOND EXPLORATION LICENSE IN THE COUNTRY.
THE LICENSE WHICH GOVERNMENT HAS GIVEN TO PARAGON DIAMOND IS IN THE EAST OF THE COUNTRY COVERING 862 SQUARE KILOMETERS AND CONTAINS 14 OLIVINE LAMPROITE PIPES.
AND OF THE FIVE HIGH-PRIORITY OLIVINE LAMPROITE PIPES CURRENTLY TARGETED BY TAMARISK, TWO TARGETS WERE LOCATED OUTSIDE THE LUANGWA NATIONAL PARK, WITH THE REMAINING THREE LOCATED WITHIN 3 KILOMETERS OF THE WESTERN BOUNDARY OF THE PARK.
DE BEERS ALSO LOCATED A SET OF 13 PHOTO ANOMALIES 10 KM NORTH OF THE TARGET LAMPROITES, OUTSIDE THE PARK, WHICH MIGHT REPRESENT A NEW, HITHERTO UNTESTED LAMPROITE FIELD.
TAMARISK INVESTMENTS, THE ZAMBIAN SUBSIDIARY OF INTERNATIONAL DIAMOND CONSULTANTS (IDC), IN WHICH PARAGON HOLDS A 44.3% INTEREST, WAS GRANTED THE PROSPECTING LICENSE FOR THE KAPLAMP AREA FOR AN INITIAL TWO-YEAR PERIOD AND EXPIRES IN NOVEMBER 2012.
CHAIRPERSON FRANK SCOLARO SAID THE AWARD OF THE KAPLAMP LICENSE WOULD ADD TO PARAGON’S GROWING ASSET BASE.
HE NOTED THAT THE LICENSE HAD PROVIDED THE COMPANY WITH PROSPECTIVE OPPORTUNITIES, GIVEN THE ESTABLISHED PRESENCE OF RECOVERED DIAMONDS IN A PREVIOUSLY LITTLE UNDERSTOOD STRUCTURE TYPE.
IDC IS NOW PRIORITIZING TARGETS WITHIN THE LICENSE AREA FOR FURTHER EXPLORATION, USING MODERN EXPLORATION TECHNIQUES.
THESE FEATURES WERE INCLUDED IN THE DIAMONDIFEROUS LAMPROITES IN TAMRISK’S RECENTLY GRANTED KAPLAMP LICENCE.
PARAGON BELIEVED THAT THE KAPLAMP PROJECT WAS HIGHLY PROSPECTIVE, OWING TO THE SIZE OF THE LICENSE AREA.
HISTORIC EXPLORATION WORK UNDERTAKEN BY DE BEERS IN THE 1960S AND EARLY 1970S ALSO RECOVERED SIGNIFICANT NUMBERS OF DIAMONDS.
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