Alice Queen (ASX:AQX) has begun a drilling campaign, targeting up to 5,000m at its flagship Horn Island Gold Project in Far North Queensland.
Drilling will use a dual-purpose, track-mounted rig that is capable of conducting both reverse circulation and diamond drilling programs.
The program is designed to target ‘high-grade’ gold mineralisation, while also testing the exploration target areas.
Exploration target areas indicate the project has potential to host a ‘large-scale’ gold mineralised system.
The company began drilling last week, following a series of ‘key’ achievements for the project, including the announcement of an exploration target.
Other recent achievements include the delivery of a project definition study, an updated resource estimate, and the progression of Feasibility Study work.
Horn Island currently hosts a JORC Code 2012 resource estimate of 21.2 million tonnes @ 0.84 grams per tonne gold for 569,000 ounces of gold.
Managing Director Andrew Buxton says the Horn Island Project has “significant growth potential”, which the company is targeting through this drilling campaign.
“The drilling is designed to build on our existing resource and test the broader exploration target areas, where we see strong potential to add high-grade ounces across multiple styles of mineralisation,” Buxton says.
“Importantly, the program will be undertaken alongside our development work, with the results feeding directly into ongoing Feasibility Study work and helping shape the future of the Horn Island Project.
“The more we can grow the resource base, the stronger the foundation we will establish for project development.”
Alice Queen is a mineral exploration company focused on advancing the Horn Island Gold Project, located in the Torres Strait region of Far North Queensland.
Write to Maddison Elliott at Mining.com.au
Images: Alice Queen
