Avira Resources (ASX:AVW) has suspended its phase one reverse circulation (RC) drilling program at the Mt Cattlin Gold Project due to sustained wet weather conditions in Western Australia.
The company completed 1,910m across 18 of the planned 37 holes before deciding to pause operations until conditions improve.
At the Maori Queen prospect, 13 holes totalling 1,412m have been completed, with just two holes remaining to finish the program at that location.
Drilling has tested extensions to the ‘high-grade’ Main Lode below the historical mining floor and along down-dip and along-strike continuations of the system.
“Western Australian winters bring genuine seasonal risk to drilling in this part of the state, and rather than push through deteriorating ground conditions, we’ve made the disciplined call to pause,” Executive Director James Robinson says.
“This protects our crews, protects the integrity of our data, and protects shareholder value by avoiding the cost blowouts that come with drilling in the wet.”
Following the program suspension, 11 holes totalling 1,700m remain to be drilled at Sirdar, while five holes for 540m are planned at Ellendale.
A further 366 RC samples from the five most recently completed holes are in transit to SGS Laboratories. First-batch assay results, submitted mid-June, are expected in mid-to-late July.
Robinson says the suspension gives the technical team time to investigate results collected so far and sharpen targeting at Sirdar and Ellendale before the rigs return.
Avira views the current hiatus as an opportunity to assess results received to date and refine future drill targeting using an improved understanding of the gold mineralisation established through the program.
Drilling is anticipated to resume in early spring, with the company targeting a maiden mineral resource estimate in the December quarter. Assay results will be reported progressively as received and interpreted.
Avira Resources is a Western Australian and Swedish-focused explorer advancing the Mt Cattlin Gold Project, the Tangadee Copper-Zinc Project, and the Puolalaki Copper-Nickel-Cobalt Project in Sweden.
Write to JC Villarba at Mining.com.au
Images: Avira Resources
