Bezant Resources plc has made a successful first blast at the Hope open pit site at its 90% owned Hope & Gorob copper-gold project within the prospective Matchless Copper Belt, central Namibia.
The company said that the 20,000-tonne blast is expected to break up around 2,000t of commercially viable mineralisation. Assays from the blast hole will be compared with current surface mineralisation.
Run of mine ore will be sent to the Tsaoxaub Metals Ltd (previously NLZM*) flotation plant to produce a suitable stockpile for commissioning the plant.
Blast holes have been drilled for the second blast, while mining contractor Unitrans has started to clear the ground and separate the ore and waste to take either to the plant site or waste storage.
Bezant has held a mining licence since 2025 and is currently recruiting plant operators.
“The blast was successful with excellent fragmentation and extremely well positioned relative to ore,” added executive chairman Colin Bird.
“The result is testament to our external geological advisor Sound Engineering and also our newly recruited geological staff.
“The project continues to move forward in all aspects and we are particularly pleased with progress at the NLZM plant where current activity is intense.”
Bezant previously improved approximately 100km of haul road which runs through the Namib Desert, connecting the mine site to the highway towards the flotation plant.
A revised independent mineral resource estimate from April 2026 shows more than three million tonnes of resource for the Hope open pit, a life of mine from one to seven years, and a potential additional 3.6Mt of mineralisation.
*Namib Lead and Zinc Mining