Mako Gold (ASX:MKG) has begun a 500m maiden drilling program on two 7km-long manganese-rich units at the Korhogo Project in West Africa.
The exploration company said all 22 rock chip samples returned significant manganese values, averaging 22% Mn.
It also said the drilling program aims to test for subsurface manganese mineralisation in the two units discovered during the recent rock chip sampling program to determine the strike extent and grade of manganese.
Mako Gold said its core focus remains on expanding the gold Mineral Resource on its flagship Napie Project where a two-drill, 10,000m RC drill program commenced last week.