Oriole Resources plc (LON:ORR), the AIM quoted exploration and development company focused on Central and West Africa, has announced that a maiden drilling programme has recently been completed at its 85%-owned Wapouzé limestone project in north-eastern Cameroon. The samples are being prepared for analysis and a maiden Mineral Resource Estimate for the Project is anticipated in late Q3-2026.
Highlights
· The Programme, which targeted steeply-dipping metamorphosed limestone (or “marble”) units in the northeast of the licence, was completed for 1,053.80m in 21 holes. These units had previously been classified as high-grade carbonate material, potentially suitable for use predominantly within the cement industry in Cameroon.
· Outcrops within three main zones, covering a cumulative strike length of 1.2km, have been tested to vertical depths of up to 47.50m from surface.
· Marble units were intersected in all holes, with narrow interbedded meta-volcanic sedimentary lenses, and occasional narrow metamorphosed dykes cross-cutting the marble units.
· Based on an in-field portable X-ray fluorescence (“pXRF”) pre-screen on the core, the intersected marble units across the programme appear to be good quality (i.e. >50% CaO with low magnesium and silica). The core will now be sent for laboratory-based analyses with results expected next month.
· The Company anticipates that the Programme, together with historical surface exploration and the completion of an on-going ground geophysics (resistivity) survey, will support the delivery of a maiden Mineral Resource Estimate (“MRE”) and/or a JORC Exploration Target for the Project in late Q3-2026.
· Oriole Resources is continuing its discussions with industrial partners for the potential development of this asset.
Chief Executive Officer of Oriole Resources, Martin Rosser, said: “The maiden drilling programme at Wapouzé has gone extremely well. We are highly encouraged by the data generated and geological interpretation made to date and eagerly await the outcome of our geological consultant’s maiden MRE. This will considerably enhance our efforts to bring in a cement industry partner and potentially to achieve royalty-based income and valuable in-country revenue that could be used for funding Oriole’s gold-based exploration work in Cameroon.”
Figure 1. Wapouzé maiden drilling programme collar map over outcropping metamorphosed limestone units within three zones in the northeast of the licence. Rock-chip sampling results plotted on MAXAR satellite image, with MgO values of less than 5 wt% and more than 50 wt% CaO shown in yellow. Samples with >50 wt% CaO and low MgO are considered to have appropriate carbonate content for use in the cement industry
Further Details
The Wapouzé Project is in north-eastern Cameroon, approximately 100km NE of Garoua and 20km north of the Company’s Bibemi gold project. It was initially an early-stage gold exploration project; however, the Project was deemed less prospective for gold than Bibemi and instead, the Company noted the presence of large quantities of carbonate rock (predominantly metamorphosed limestone), and subsequently applied for a change in commodity, granted in 2022.
Since the change in commodity, a number of surface exploration programmes have focused on the potential high-grade carbonate limestone (>50% CaO with low magnesium and silica) material that would make it potentially suitable for use in the cement industry (see announcement dated 21 April 2026).
Oriole Resources today reports that it has completed the maiden diamond drilling programme for 1,053.80m in 21 holes at Wapouzé. The Programme, which was planned to provide a better understanding of the depth continuity of these carbonate units has targeted the shallow subsurface (up to 47.50m vertical depth from surface) along the ~1.2km cumulative strike length, with all holes drilled towards an azimuth of 320 degrees, at an inclination of 50 degrees, and completed to a downhole depth of between 26.50m and 62.00m.
Figure 2. Drill collars over Zone 1, on MAXAR satellite image with mapped geology and MgO (wt%) data for all limestone rock chip samples collected to date at Wapouzé, where CaO content is greater than 50%. Samples with a minimum 50% CaO are considered to have appropriate carbonate content for use in the cement industry
As previously reported, the marble units in drillhole WPDD001 were the predominant lithology encountered within the metamorphosed sequence of meta-volcaniclastics which were also cross-cut by narrow metamorphosed intrusive dykes that exhibit schistose textures (see announcement dated 22 June 2026). This has been repeated across all drilling fence lines, with the Programme confirming the extension of the marble units at depth and along-strike. The intersected width of the marble packages is up to 85m (approximately 80m true width).
Figure 3. Simplified interpretive cross sections for two fence lines drilled at Zone 1, showing holes WPDD010 and WPDD012 (top) and holes WPDD004 to WPDD007 (bottom).
Direct geochemical measurements on the core using a handheld pXRF unit have confirmed that the marble is good quality (i.e. >50% CaO with low magnesium and silica). The core has subsequently been sampled and will shortly be sent for laboratory-based X-ray fluorescence (XRF) analysis.
The Company’s local partner, Bureau d’Etudes et d’Investigations Géologico-Minières, Géotechniques et Géophysiques (“BEIG3”), is nearing completion of a ground-based resistivity survey over the main outcrops mapped to date. The Company anticipates the cumulative exploration data to date, along with the geophysical and drilling data will support the estimation of a maiden MRE and/or a JORC Exploration Target for the Property in late Q3-2026.
Commercially, a significant limestone deposit at Wapouzé could be highly suitable for use within Cameroon’s cement industry, which is believed to be worth several hundred million pounds per year, largely supported by expensive imports of required clinker material. The Company believes that there is a significant demand for cement (for concrete) within Cameroon and neighbouring Chad (with its capital, N’Djamena, located approximately 250km NNE of Wapouzé). Furthermore, Cameroon has seen substantial foreign investment made into expanding its cement manufacturing capacity, with neighbouring plants to Wapouzé producing cement from similar material, and the government is keen to see its reliance on imported clinker reduce significantly.
Oriole Resources is continuing its discussions with potential industry partners that could advance Wapouzé towards development and exploitation on an expedited basis. The Company is ultimately looking to achieve royalty-based income from a commercial scale quarrying operation, likely to be based upon the volume of material extracted, which would provide valuable in-country revenue that could be used for funding its gold-based exploration work in Cameroon.
For further information on Wapouzé, including maps and a JORC Table 1, please see the following page of the Company’s website https://orioleresources.com/projects/wapouze/.
