16 Commitment to expanding our gold resources and production base During the past year Resolute has continued to expand its exploration activities. An increased level of exploration activity and spending is a reflection of Resolute’s commitment to expanding its gold resources and production base. The main thrust has been to fund exploration activities where there is a reasonable chance of defining economic mineralisation close to our existing operations and by entering strategic joint ventures in parcels of ground that have been identified in our regional studies. exploration overview