Appendix A

GENERAL SAMPLING
GUIDELINES

In

EXPLORATION DRILLING
INTRODUCTION

This document is a compilation of best sampling practices as adopted by major nickel

exploration and mining companies in the Philippines and globally. The guidelines herein
comply with JORCC requirements to achieve transparency and materiality in the data
gathering related to the resource estimation. The preceding general protocols have
three components herein, which are:
1. Drilling
2. Preparation
3. Assaying

DRILLING
General
 Drill holes will initially be located by local survey teams using compass and
measuring tape or by a GPS..
 Drillholes as well as test pits are preferred reference points. At regular intervals,
these sites will be accurately surveyed by professional surveyors to establish
coordinates and elevations.
 Drilling will be carried out, preferably using man-portable rigs with minimum of
NQ drill rods and tungsten carbide bits. Man-portable rigs reduce adverse
environmental damage as minimum clearing will be required to access drill sites.
 Bedrock penetration should be three (3) metres into hard rock to ensure that
bottom is not on floater; discretion may be used based for shorter penetration
into bedrock depending on the geologists knowledge on nature/size of boulders
and of the weathering character in any Zone C of the rock profile.
 Core recovery will be checked at the drill site after each ‘run’ and recorded in the
Drill Hole Log Sheet.
 It is essential that all drilling be logged by a geologist so that he gains an
intimate knowledge of all geological aspects of the deposit. In any case that a
geological assistant logs the cores, supervision and checking will have to be
made by the site geologist before sampling the cores.
Guidelines in the detailed logging of cores:
Codes for Lithological Core Logging
The matrix below is the adopted standard codes for logging as a way to classify the
saprolite according to grit/rock content:

LF Red-brown limonite (overburden)

LA Yellow limonite (without Mn staining or veins)
LB Yellow limonite (with Mn staining or veins)
TM Transition Material, Limonite + Saprolite
SAP Saprolite (gritty clay with <10% boulders of weathered bedrock)
R_SAP Rocky saprolite (with 10 to 50% boulders of weathered bedrock)
S_ROCK Saprolitic rock (with 50-90% bedrock)
SD Serpentinized Dunite
SS Serpentinite
Hz Harzburgite
Lz Lherzolite
In Intrusive rock; specify rock type
Tl Transported limonitic clay
Ts Transported saprolitic rock

The following classification may be used for convention as an aid in the analysis of
rock distribution and screening in the saprolite and limonite where boulders are not
common:

Code Description

1 <20cm (will be acceptable for shipping)

2 20—50cm (will be screened at the grizzly)
>50cm (Low grades will be left in the pit; most mines recover the
3 boulders with nickel content as there is a good market in China. Many
use hydraulic hammers mounted on excavators to break the oversize.)
Weathering Scale
The following is the standard:

Lithology Classification Characteristics

Black/ green/ light grey, unweathered, dense &

Fresh Rock 0
hard
Black/ brown, slightly weathered, discolored, still
Saprolite 1
hard
2 Brown/ gray
3 Pink/ brown/ green

Pink/ brown/ green, friable, relatively low

4
density with some remnant textures.

Brown, yellow / red, pink/ green-gray, very soft,

5
original textures still visible

Yellow — red, very soft "soil like", very low

Limonite 5F density to compact, mud-like texture, brown,
yellow brown.

Dark reddish brown clay; vegetal materials such

Regolith,
5G as roots and organic materials may be visible at
overburden
the upper zone.

Red-black, hard, includes pisolites, cobbles and

Ferricrete 6
boulders of hematitic nature

Combinations of the various weathering “stages” could be used i.e.) 2/3, 3/4, 2-5 or
0-3. The first number in double-digit references indicates the predominant
weathering stage, but the numbers separated by a hyphen include all intermediate-
weathering stages.
 Photography
• Color-photograph the core in boxes (1 boxes, 1 picture), using digital
cameras for easier e-compilation. The picture number should have systematic
correspondence with the drillhole number.
• Core should be photographed fresh after completing each core box.
• Each photograph should have ‘header board’ showing: a) project name b)
hole number c) box numbers for the hole d) ‘from and to’ hole depth for
reconciliation of core boxes.

Field Supervision
Field staff led by a geologist will be required to:
 Supervise drilling for maximized core recovery
 Collecting and packaging of samples in sealable plastic bags to avoid moisture
loss
 Supervise core handling security in the field, in transit and in sampling
 Undertake core logging

Additional Comments
Other features / characteristics to be taken into consideration when logging core
include:
 Texture
 grain size
 colour
 friability
 fracturing / RQD

Field Logging Sheets

The logging sheet has been designed to conform to the above criteria and to be
compatible with the resource database.
An example of a typical entry is shown in the first row of each sheet.

SAMPLING

Sampling Procedure
 Sampling of the drill core should be at one (1) metre intervals down the hole,
except at lithological boundaries and important facies/mineralogical change
 Samples lengths across this boundary should stay in a range of 1.0 + 0.25m
to avoid excessively short or long samples
 Whole core sampling is essential eliminate bias when splitting of the core,
particularly in heterogenous or saprolitic sections
 Sample Preparation
Sampling will be carried out on site in an appropriate sample preparation house and
equipment including a mobile jaw crusher, pulverizer and drying oven. Sample
preparation is normally the bottleneck between drilling and assaying of the samples.
The efficiency and appropriate number of equipment should be commensurate to
the turn-in of samples from the exploration and as well as shipments.
The sample preparation is as per PT KPT’s procedure.
A strict record of duplicate samples must be kept using sample submission sheet.
These sheets are to be filed separately from that of the assaying laboratory.

Wet Density Determination of Core Samples

Fresh core samples sealed in plastic bags were analysed for SG using weight-volume
measurement.
There are alternative methods to measure densities, ranging from laboratory tests
on mini-samples to bulk samples from trenches and open excavation faces.
The following procedures may be applicable:
• Use 10-15cm & ‘representative’ core
• As much as possible avoid bias in saprolites, particularly when collecting hard
rock portions that may be unrepresentative. Do not sample if expected
deviation is significant.
• Initially weigh in ambient air, then immerse in water for 10 minutes to allow
complete water absorption.
• SG calculation is as follows:

W eight in air
SG = _________________________
W eight in air – W eight in w ater

For small pits and shafts, in-situ bulk densities will be measured using standard
geotechnical procedures.

Moisture Content Determination

Moisture content
 Individual samples will be weighed prior to drying, and as soon as possible
after transport from drilling sites to avoid water loss due to evaporation
 The sample will then be weighed after drying but before sample crushing
 The formula used for calculating the moisture percentage is:
 W eight of w et sam ple – W eight of dry sam ple
M C% = ____________________________________ X 100
W eight of w et sam ple

After sample preparation, 150-200gm pulp samples will be sent to laboratory for
analysis. The transport will be organized under strict supervision of field staff. It is
recommended that batches of approximately 250-300 samples be submitted to
enable consistent assessment of laboratory performance through insertion of
standard samples with each batch along with duplicate or check samples. Security of
samples in respect of consistent numbering and transport supervision is essential.

ASSAYING
Method

Each sample will be analyzed at the Laboratory for Ni, Ca, Fe, Mg, Si and Al.
The analytical method is as follows:
 Ni, Ca, Fe, Mg and Al will be assayed by dissolving a 25g charge with a two
acid digest (using hydrochloric and nitric acid), and reading the results by
Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy (AAS)
 Si analysis for the Feasibility drilling program by a gravimetric process.

Assay Data Quality Analysis

The objective of quality control & assays is to check the precision of sample
preparation, consistent performance of the laboratory and accuracy of the
laboratories’ analytical results.
This can be achieved as follows:
1. Duplicate Samples
Duplicate samples will total about 5% of all samples (1 in 20) after
preparation.
These samples will be selected subjectively by the Project Geologist to
systematically cover the full range & lithologies. Each sample will have a
unique number, which is different from the original and can be selected
during the ‘pulp to storage’ stage of the sample preparation process.
For reference purposes all samples submitted for preparation should be
accompanied by the sample submission sheet.
In this way a check can be made on the field homogenization process as well
as a check on Laboratory A (third party).
2. Standard Samples
A set of standard (reference) samples may be prepared by Laboratory B
(third party). An option is for Harita Jayaraya-KPT to prepare homogenized
samples in batches of 200kg and pulped samples assayed by Laboratory B.
These control samples should consist of high-grade limonite and one low-
grade limonite (blank) taken from a representative area of the resource.
Preparation will need homogenisation and packing in separate sample bags
(at approximately 100g each).
Separate batches of the prepared samples will have to be sent to Laboratory
C (third party and Laboratory D (third party) for analysis. This will allow
unbiased double checks to calculate accepted average or benchmark values
for each standard. Analysis will be for all six (6) relevant elements.
One of each standard sample is to be included with each 250 pulp sample
batch that is to be freighted to Lab A.
The purpose of standard sampling is to monitor the accuracy of the assay
process on a batch by batch basis. For example problems such as a change in
instrument calibration or change in assay protocol can be detected and
rectified.

3. Check Samples
Approximately 2% of the total sample reject pulps from Lab A should be sent
to at least one independent and internationally accredited laboratory. This
equates to about 1 in 50 samples.
Samples should be taken across a broad spectrum of lithologies and sent at
appropriate times during the program so a constant check on Lab As analyses
is maintained.
The recommended laboratory may be the credible local Indonesian
laboratories such as Intertek, SOS, etc.
Note:
Drillhole and assays may be e-transmitted in agreed format in Excel or Access.
The agreed format should allow for easy review and resource modeling. CD copy
is advised for storage in 2 separate data banks.
 DRILL HOLE LOG SHEET ___ of ___
PROJECT :

Drill-hole No. Date Started

Location Date Completed
Co-ordinate E Remarks
Co-ordinate N Drilling Co.
Collar Elevation Logged by
Final Depth Units:

Sample No. From To Litho. Colour Wth % Rock R. Size % Rec Comments