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Spartan Resources Limited (“Spartan” or “Company”) (ASX: SPR) is pleased to advise that a major new 25,000m multi-rig drilling campaign has commenced at its 100%-owned Dalgaranga Gold Project in Western Australia targeting further rapid growth in the high-grade resource inventory.
Highlights:
- New 25,000m surface drilling campaign underway targeting rapid growth of high-grade gold resources on the granted Mining Lease <2km of the 2.5Mtpa Dalgaranga Process Plant.
- Four rigs operating – three diamond drill rigs (“DDR”) and one Reverse Circulation (RC) drill rig. Drilling to strengthen case for multiple underground mining scenarios and enhance existing open-pit optimisations, including potential Gilbey’s cut-back options.
- Focus on extensions to the high-grade Never Never Gold Deposit at depth, as well as targeting maiden resource potential of the Never Never “look-alikes” – the Four Pillars and West Winds gold prospects, located along strike to the south.
- More high-grade assays received from recent drilling at the Never Never Gold Deposit:
- 33.10m @ 8.15g/t gold from 169.40m including 8.56m @ 19.54g/t (DGDH036) – first hole in the new program, targeting base of conceptual open pit
- 14.00m @ 6.20g/t gold from 241.00m including 2.40m @ 32.14g/t; and also,
- 18.42m @ 3.63g/t gold from 293.00m including 1.42m @ 16.27g/t (DGRC1205-DT) – final in-fill hole from the previous campaign, not included in July 2023 MRE update.
- Initial assays received for drilling targeting the shallow Arc gold prospect:
- 10.00m @ 2.75g/t gold from 79.00m, 5.00m @ 2.79g/t from 139.00m and 3.00m @ 3.67g/t from 153.00m (DGRC1237)
- Re-interrogation/re-logging of drilling completed in late 2022 during the care and maintenance period at Dalgaranga has highlighted significant high-grade potential at these prospects:
- 15.00m @ 11.64g/t gold from 224.00m (DGRC1161) – West Winds
- 8.00m @ 16.22g/t gold from 256.00m (DGRC1162) – West Winds
- 60.00m @ 2.35g/t gold from 141.00m (DGRC1173) – Four Pillars
- 32.00m @ 4.13g/t gold from 40.00m (DGRC1154) – Four Pillars
- Updated global Mineral Resource and Ore Reserve statement for Dalgaranga scheduled for December Quarter 2023, incorporating an updated MRE for Never Never and an updated MRE for the Gilbey’s Complex incorporating current drilling.
The new drilling program will target extensions and a further upgrade in the high-grade 721,200oz Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) for the Never Never Gold Deposit, while also aggressively drilling out “near- mine” targets and the nearby Arc gold prospect.
In addition, investigative work by the Spartan geology team, in conjunction with external structural geology consultants, has confirmed two high-priority drill targets, the Four Pillars and West Winds gold prospects, located approximately 500 metres to the south of Never Never directly beneath the Gilbey’s open pit. A number of additional as yet unnamed medium-priority drill targets have also been defined, all less than 2km from the 2.5Mtpa Dalgaranga Processing Plant.
Included in this release are results for two drill-holes completed adjacent to the Gilbey’s Pit in late 2022 but due to the suspension of mining and processing operations at the time were given low priority. As an underground mining scenario is now likely for nearby Never Never, re-evaluation of the assays for these “historic” drill-holes (DGRC1161 and DGRC1162) has been conducted and they are now presented as more meaningful intercepts.
Never Never Gold Deposit Update
Figure 1: Long section of Never Never Gold Deposit with location of recent drill assays and current targeted in-fill and extensional drilling in relation to the classified block model grade (underlay).
This release also includes initial assay results from the first hole of the new drill campaign at Never Never (DGDH036) and from the final in-fill hole of the previous campaign (DGRC1205-DT), which was not included in the July 2023 MRE update for the Never Never Gold Deposit.
The Never Never Gold Deposit is just one example of late-stage east-west-striking local/regional scale structures (faults, shears, failed folds) intersecting with older north-south-striking regional rocks (greenstones, typically gabbro/basalts and volcanic sediments “volcaniclastics”) at Dalgaranga.
Building on the spectacular discovery efforts at Dalgaranga – in particular visual observations of “Never Never-style” mineralisation in Never Never drill core – comparative investigative work by the Spartan geology team outlined evidence for a number of nearby high-grade gold structures with the same characteristics within the footprint of the very nearby Gilbey’s gold deposit. Follow-up drilling of these new targets is underway.
Given the Company’s previous focus on the “low-grade” Gilbey’s gold deposit complex, a large amount of resource drilling data was generated for this deposit.
This information has been used to focus and generate a number of high-grade near-mine targets within the “Gilbey’s Complex” and within 2km of the processing plant. The highest priority targets are detailed in the following section of the announcement.
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This article includes content from Spartan Resources Limited, licensed for the purpose of publishing on Investing News Australia. This article does not constitute financial product advice. It is your responsibility to perform proper due diligence before acting upon any information provided here. Please refer to our full disclaimer here.
SPR:AU
Drilling Commenced at Viani in Fiji
HIGHLIGHTS
- The Phase 1, three-hole diamond drilling program has commenced at the Viani Project, Fiji and will test for extensions to the quartz vein gold mineralisation at depth.
- Phase 1 is expected to be completed in early 2025, with plans for additional drilling under the same program dependent on the initial results
- The Viani Project (SPL1513) covers an area of approximately 200km2 and is largely underexplored.
- At the Dakuniba prospect within Viani, low sulphidation epithermal high-grade gold mineralisation has been mapped over >3km strike length.
- Diamond drilling completed by Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) in 1995 to 1997 intersected high-grade gold in low sulphidation epithermal quartz veins, including 0.6m @ 27.6 g/t Au.
Alice Queen’s Managing Director, Andrew Buxton said,
With drilling underway, Alice Queen is positioned to test the epithermal gold-style mineralisation identified in historic drilling at the Viani Project. Weather permitting, we anticipate completing the Phase 1, three-hole diamond drilling program in early 2025. Following this, our exploration team will mobilise the drill rig to the Sabeto Project in Fiji to maintain the momentum of this campaign. To deliver timely results to shareholders, we intend to accelerate the analysis of the drill core at ALS Brisbane.”
Image 1 – Diamond drilling at Viani
Details
Geology
The geology of the Viani Project (SPL 1513) comprises olivine basalts and volcaniclastics of the Natewa Volcanic Group which are intruded by andesite sills and dykes. In the 1940s, gold mineralisation was found by local prospectors near the village of Dakuniba. At Dakuniba, low sulphidation style epithermal gold occurs in quartz veins, and silicified rocks along a 3km long NE trending zone.
In 1995-1997, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) drilled six diamond holes at Dakuniba and intersected high-grade gold in chalcedonic, crustiform, colloform banded quartz veins at depths of 50m to 100m below surface (i.e. MJVFV-5 intersected 2.2m @ 11.3 g/t Au, incl 0.6m @ 27.6 g/t Au at 121m downhole). This high-grade gold mineralisation is open in all directions.
Proposed Drill program
The initial Phase 1 drill program at Viani (see Table 1) will comprise three diamond drillholes designed to test continuity to the epithermal gold mineralisation previously intersected in JICA drillhole MJVFV- 5 (2.2m @ 11.3 g/t Au) (see Figure 2). The drilling will test for extensions to the gold mineralisation at depth and along strike.
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This article includes content from Alice Queen Limited, licensed for the purpose of publishing on Investing News Australia. This article does not constitute financial product advice. It is your responsibility to perform proper due diligence before acting upon any information provided here. Please refer to our full disclaimer here.
Maiden Drill Program Set to Commence at the High-Priority Cangallo Porphry Copper Project
- Maiden RC drill program to commence at Cangallo in mid-December
- Program will test a large-scale, undrilled porphyry copper target
- Assay results expected around the end of January 2025
- Permitting underway for drill programs across other high-priority, large-scale porphyry copper targets at Lantana and Playa Kali
Access and drill pad preparations have commenced with drilling scheduled to start around mid-December. The planned program, which comprises a minimum of eight drill-holes for a total of ~2,500m, will take 3 to 4 weeks to complete with assay results expected around the end of January 2025.
Figure 1: Cangallo Porphyry Copper Prospect showing copper and molybdenum values and permitted drill sites.
Geological mapping and rock-chip sampling has outlined a partially exposed potential copper (+/- gold) porphyry system, within a large-scale (3km x 2km) caldera-like structure containing extensive colluvial and younger sediment cover.
The initial drilling program will test areas containing relatively intense veining (quartz) and porphyritic dykes, where higher copper (up to 0.65% Cu) and gold (up to 0.3g/t Au) values have been found. The possibility of a buried porphyry copper system beneath the extensive cover within the interpreted caldera-like structure will also be tested.
Cangallo is located close to significant infrastructure and is approximately 25km from the town of Chala, and within 10km of the coast.
Commenting on the imminent commencement of drilling at Cangallo, AusQuest’s Managing Director, Graeme Drew, said:
“This is a very exciting time for the Company as we are about to commence the maiden drill program at this high-priority porphyry copper target in Peru which we have been working towards for over 12 months.
Cangallo has never been drilled before and demonstrates classic geochemical and alteration signatures which suggest there is significant potential to discover large-scale copper porphyry mineralisation.
Success at Cangallo has potential to create significant value for our shareholders and we look forward to keeping our shareholders updated as the results become available.”
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This article includes content from AusQuest limited, licensed for the purpose of publishing on Investing News Australia. This article does not constitute financial product advice. It is your responsibility to perform proper due diligence before acting upon any information provided here. Please refer to our full disclaimer here.