Ballymore Resources (ASX:BMR) reports it has found further ‘broad’ gold intersections from recently completed drilling programs within the Ravenswood Project, located near Charters Towers in North Queensland.
Follow-up drilling at Seventy Mile Mount targeted the breccia zone recognised by Ballymore with similarities to other mineralised breccias present at Mount Leyshon and Mount Wright, both major gold producers in the local region in the past 30 years.
Previous drilling by Ballymore in November last year reported 40m @ 1.06g/t Au (BSMDD001: 47m-87m) and further step-out drilling has confirmed ‘broad’ intervals of gold mineralisation associated with this breccia zone, including 57m @ 0.24g/t Au (BSMRD003: 23m-80m) and 61m @ 0.23g/t Au (BSMRD004: 23m-84m).
Drilling also encountered ‘narrow’, ‘high-grade’ zones including 2m @ 4.78g/t Ay (BSMRD003: 215m-217m).
Ballymore is ‘highly encouraged’ by these results, which confirm the potential of this mineralised breccia to host a ‘significant’ shallow gold system.
In addition to these workings at Seventy Mile Mount, initial drilling was completed to test beneath shallow workings in the King Solomon area, 37km east-northeast of Charters Towers, and has a reported number of ‘shallow’ intersections such as 17m @ 0.61g/t Au (BKSRC001: 45m-62m), including 9m @ 1.01g/t Au (BKSRC001:45m-54m).
This drilling has demonstrated the ‘potential’ for this area to host a shallow gold system that will be further investigated in follow up works
This drilling has demonstrated the ‘potential’ for this area to host a shallow gold system that will be further investigated in follow up works.
Seventy Mile Mount is located on EPM 18424 and within the highly prospective Mount Leyshon Corridor, approximately 20km south of Charters Towers and 7km east-northeast of the Leyshon gold mine.
Ballymore completed its initial drilling program in November 2021 and targeted a second breccia which the company identified on the northern margin of the Seventy Mile Mount main breccia pipe.
The surface expression of the second breccia zone is approximately 300m by 50m in area and it remains poorly tested at depth.
The initial drill program at Seventy Mile Mount consisted of 2 drillholes for a total of 654m, testing the gap in previous drilling on the targeted breccia.
Both holes intersected ‘broad zones’ of altered breccias similar in style to Mount Leyshon mineralisation. These mineralised breccias were consistent with the geological model developed based on mapping completed by Ballymore.
Ballymore subsequently completed the Stage 2 drilling at Seventy Mile Mount in August, including 3 holes for 1,048.8m.
Drilling targeted the down-plunge extension to breccia-hosted gold mineralisation as well as an IP geophysical target under the main breccia pipe.
All 3 holes encountered a number of intervals of brecciated granodiorite infilled with pyrite mineralisation.
Drilling by Ballymore, along with check logging of available historic holes and detailed mapping of the areas has led to the recognition of a mineralised breccia zone that has potential to host a significant gold deposit.
Historic drilling focused on testing the eastern part of this breccia zone and reported a number of significant drill intersections.
Drilling by Ballymore has targeted the western extension of the breccia zone, which remains relatively undrilled beneath the top 50m.
This drilling has extended the known mineralisation by over 200m with mineralisation open along strike to the east and west.
Mineralisation is modelled to occur in an arcuate zone of breccia on the northern margin of the Seventy Mile Mount breccia pipe.
In addition, drillhole BSMRC005 was drilled in the southern part of the breccia pipe into the main granodiorite breccia to test a strong chargeability anomaly recognised in an IP survey completed by Ballymore in 2021.
The drillhole encountered a number of intervals of pyrite mineralisation which is the likely source of the chargeability anomaly, however gold results were generally ‘subdued’ in this area, which is located outside the main mineralised breccia zone.
The drillhole reported a best intersection of 3m @ 0.35g/t Au (BSMRC005: 59m-62m).
King Solomon is an extensive line of historic gold workings located within EPM 18637, 37km east-northeast of Charters Towers and 8km southwest of Mingela.
In the immediate vicinity of EPM 18637, the most significant mineralisation occurs at the Welcome Breccia and Christian Kruck gold deposits, located 1km north and 4km northwest of EPM 18637 respectively.
King Solomon hosts a series of pits and shafts over an area of 600m by 100m that are associated with a set of steeply dipping shear zones within altered diorite and gabbro.
A program of shallow drilling by Metals Exploration/Gold Mines of Kalgoorlie in 1988 intersected several intervals of ‘moderately’ to ‘highly’ anomalous gold, with best intersections including 8m @ 7.69g/t Au.
A portable XRF soil sampling program was completed by Ballymore over a large part of EPM 18637 in 2021 and 2022 and defined a ‘significant’ 5,000m long by 500m wide, east-northeast trending Cu-Zn-Fe-Mn soil anomaly (i.e +20ppm Cu and +30ppm Zn) associated with the historic workings extending from King Solomon and Rose of Allandale in the west, through to a series of unnamed prospects east of EPM 18637.
A RC drill program was subsequently planned to test the King Solomon area.
Four RC drillholes were completed in August for a total of 550m (BKSRC001-BKSRC004) to test for potential extensions to mineralisation recognised in shallow workings.
All holes intersected sheared, altered diorite and granodiorite overprinted by quartz and carbonate veining and associated pyrite mineralisation.
A number of shallow intersections of gold mineralisation were reported with a best intersection of 17m @ 0.61g/t Au (BKSRC001: 45m-62m), including 9m @ 1.01g/t Au (BKSRC001: 45m-54m).
The Ravenswood Project remains a priority project for Ballymore with numerous targets that require evaluation.
Key targets include Day Dawn, Seventy Mile Mount, Matthews Pinnacle, and Pinnacle Creek with further evaluation of other targets underway.
An IP survey is currently being finalised over the Day Dawn gold-silver prospect on EPM 18426.
This target hosts a stacked set of quartz lodes along strike from Hadleigh Castle and Disraeli mines, within Mount Leyshon Corridor. Previous rock chip sampling has reported ‘bonanza’ gold-silver results including up to 127.5g/t Au and 2m770g/t Ag.
Soil sampling has also highlighted a large 1,400m by 300m gold-lead anomaly in the Day Dawn-Old Man area, corresponding with an interpreted fault corridor.
Pending the results of the IP survey a drilling program is scheduled to test this target in 2023.
Further ‘significant’ drilling results have been received for the Seventy Mile Mount target, confirming the existence of a ‘significant’, breccia-hosted gold deposit.
Following the receipt of the latest results, data will be reviewed and modelled and a follow-up drill program will be planned.
Substantial broad intervals of gold have already been reported, associated with the mapped breccia zone, including 58m @ 1.54g/t Au (PD90-06: 114m) and 28m @ 2.89g/t Au including 8m @ 9.21g/t Au (LSD002: 260m-288m).
Potential exists to define a ‘significant shallow’ Mineral Resource in this area.
Other breccia targets in the area, including the Matthews Pinnacle and Middle Mount also represent similar breccia targets with geochemical and geophysical targets that remain to be tested.
In addition, a review of the King Solomon target will be completed now that results for the preliminary drill program have been received.
The prospect area hosts a series of pits and shafts over an area of 600m by 100m and historic drilling has reported a number of significant shallow intersections including 8m @ 7.69g/t Au (KRC06: 26m-34m).
A soil sampling program completed by Ballymore in 2020 and 2021 has defined a significant 5,000m by 500m wide, east-northeast trending soil anomaly associated with the historic workings extending from King Solomon and Rose of Allandale in the west, through to a series of unnamed prospects located in the east of EPM 18637.
This corridor remains poorly explored and will be reviewed in 2023.
Other future work Ballymore is conducting includes finalising an IP survey at the Day Dawn Prospect, mapping and soil sampling at the Maniopota Prospect at the Ruddygore Project, completing a RC drilling program at the Cedar Ridge Prospect at the Dittmer Project, and developing additional drill platforms at the Dittmer Project.
The Ravenswood Project is situated in the Charters Towers region in northeast Queensland, approximately 20km to 60km south of Charters Towers.
The Ravenswood Project contains numerous prospects, historic drill intersections and geochemical anomalies located within the 17Moz Charters Towers gold province including Charters Towers vein-hosted gold targets and Mount Leyshon-style breccia pipe-hosted targets including the Seventy Mile Mount prospect.
The project consists of EPM’s 18424, 18426, 18637, 25466 and 25467, which comprises a total of 96 sub-blocks and encompass an area of 309km-square.
In October 2019, Ballymore entered into a farm-in agreement and joint venture with ActivEx for the Ravenswood Project, with Ballymore resources earning-in to the tenements.
In August 2021, Ballymore earned its initial 51% stake in the project and subsequently acquired the remaining 49% from ActivEx in November 2021.
Ballymore Resources is a minerals exploration company committed to the acquisition, identification, and delineation of new resource projects through active exploration.
The Ballymore portfolio is focused on copper, gold and critical mineral projects, with substantial tenement packages in north Queensland.
Ballymore has 4 project areas at Dittmer, Ruddygore, Ravenswood and Mount Molloy.
These consist of 2 granted Mining Leases, 13 granted Exploration Permits for Minerals covering an area of 1,461km-square.
Images: Ballymore Resources Limited
