African Pioneer Plc (LON: AFP) has commenced a major drilling programme at its Ongombo copper project in Namibia, marking an important step towards the planned development of a new mining operation covering the Ongombo and neighbouring Ongeama deposits.
The exploration and resource development company confirmed that drilling has begun under its conditional financing and technical services agreement with Hong Kong Xinhai Mining Services Limited, announced in July 2026.
The programme will involve 119 drill holes covering approximately 7,000 metres, with drilling expected to continue for several months before final laboratory assay results are received.
Operations have initially started with one drilling rig to allow technical teams to establish the necessary procedures for handling, logging and sampling drill core. Additional rigs are expected to be introduced as the programme progresses.
African Pioneer is also planning an onsite core processing and storage facility to support geological analysis and provide secure long-term storage of exploration samples.
The Ongombo project, in which African Pioneer holds an 85% interest, already hosts a JORC 2012 mineral resource estimate of 29 million tonnes grading 1.1% copper equivalent, providing an established resource base for future mine development.
The drilling programme has several objectives, including investigating potential extensions to the open-pit mineral resource and validating estimates that could support three to four years of initial open-pit mining.
At neighbouring Ongeama, drilling will examine potential up-dip extensions of known mineralised bodies, which could provide additional ore feed during the early years of mining operations.
The programme will also collect geological and geotechnical information to support mine design, underground development planning and the assessment of longer-term extraction opportunities across both deposits.
Additional drilling will target the East–Ost mineralised shoots, where historical exploration identified thicker sections of mineralisation but where drill density remains limited and some gold assays were not completed during the 1980s.
Improved drilling coverage could help establish the grades, widths and continuity of mineralisation, potentially supporting additional resource tonnage if the results prove favourable.
A key objective is to develop a combined mineral resource for Ongombo and Ongeama, providing a more integrated basis for future mining and processing plans.
Chairman Colin Bird welcomed the start of drilling, highlighting the collaboration between Xinhai and African Pioneer’s Namibian technical team.
He said the company is developing the local technical capabilities required to manage core logging, sampling and laboratory analysis, while preparing to increase the number of drilling rigs to accelerate the programme.
For investors, the commencement of the 7,000-metre drilling campaign represents a significant milestone in advancing Ongombo and Ongeama towards potential mine development, building on the existing 29-million-tonne resource.
However, the timing and scale of any future mining operation will depend on drilling results, technical studies, financing arrangements and the necessary development approvals.
Attention will now turn to drilling progress, assay results and potential resource extensions, particularly the prospect of establishing additional open-pit material and developing a combined resource to support a future copper mining operation in Namibia.
