Belararox (ASX:BRX) is now planning for a proposed phase two drilling program at the company’s flagship Belara Project following a busy Q4 2022 in which it delivered a Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE).
The advanced mineral explorer, which focused on ‘high value’ clean energy metals, today (27 January) reported its quarterly activities for the period ending 31 December 2022.
During the quarter, the company delivered a MRE at the Belara Project, further progressed its exploration program, and successfully completed a $3.85 million capital raising.
During the current quarter, planning has started for a proposed phase two drilling program at Belara. This combined reverse circulation / diamond drilling program aims to target down dip extensions to the Belara deposit, and the Native Bee mine and its southern extensions.
Gradient Array Induced Polarisation (GAIP) and Fixed Loop Electromagnetic (FLEM) surveys completed during 2022 over the Native Bee mine and environs has identified an anomalous chargeability response extending some 1,000m to the south of the mine site. This response could indicate extensions to known mineralisation as either zones of massive sulphide or more widely distributed disseminated sulphides.
Addressing the past quarter results, Belararox Managing Director Arvind Misra says: “We were thrilled to deliver the promised Maiden Resource for the Belara/Native Bee Project in the December 2022 quarter. At the same time, our team also got cracking with the next stages of the Belara Project’s exploration program. These included metallurgical test results and EM data analysis that further enhanced the prospectivity of this NSW-based project.
“Importantly, the successful capital raising undertaken in the quarter leaves the company in a strong cash position to progress our exploration strategy”
We additionally completed much of the prep work for the soon-to-get-underway extensive phase two drilling campaign at Belara-Native Bee. Importantly, the successful capital raising undertaken in the quarter leaves the company in a strong cash position to progress our exploration strategy.
More recently, we unveiled plans to diversify our asset portfolio, announcing a proposal to acquire an exciting Argentina-based zinc/copper project acquisition. This potential transaction demonstrates our commitment to growing the Company via value-enhancing transactions that are the right strategic fit.
Looking ahead, we expect to soon start providing investors with regular updates on results coming out of the pending Phase 2 drill programme at Belara and other exploration activities.”
Belararox has a 100% interest in the 643km-square Belara Project located in the Lachlan Fold Belt of New South Wales, where drilling to date has already delivered a JORC compliant Mineral Resource Estimate in H2 CY22. The project includes the historic Belara and Native Bee mines that have been drilled to a depth of around 400m and 150m vertical metres respectively and have massive sulphide mineralisation showing excellent continuity and containing significant intersections of zinc, copper, lead, silver, and gold.
At Belara, metallurgical test work during the quarter produced high grade concentrates. Diamond drill core intervals, representative of a lower grade mill feed from early drill testing on the Belara project, were composited to form a single 23kg Master Composite, then were subjected to metallurgical characterisation and flotation testwork.
This composite was obtained from early drill holes BLDD001 and BLDD002a drilled as part of the phase one drilling program for Belara. These drill holes are considered to represent typical polymetallic stratiform sulphide mineralisation for Belara, albeit at lower grades compared to later drilling on the project.
Subsequent drilling has identified higher grades such as BLDD028 – 3m @ 11.17% Zn, 1.69% Cu, 2.25% Pb, 88.13g/t Ag, and 1.68 g/t Au.
Testwork was conducted at Auralia Metallurgical Laboratories under the management of JT Metallurgical Services with the key outcomes being the derivation of a flowsheet and reagent conditions capable of producing saleable copper (>20%), lead (>30%), and zinc (>50%) concentrates.
A significant MRE was delivered for Belara and Native Bee during the quarter. A nominal cut-off grade of 0.5% Zn Equivalent (ZnEq) has been used to define mineralisation. In places, samples reporting less than 0.5% ZnEq were included to improve domain continuity and reduce modelling issues.
SRK has identified 2 major mineralised horizons/domains of interest (termed Domains 10 and 20 at Belara and Native Bee respectively). The major horizon/ domain could be traced over almost the full North–South strike length of both Belara and Native Bee, and orientation and thickness was observed to be relatively consistent over the extents of the mineralisation.
Belararox also has a 100% interest in the 49km-square Bullabulling Project located in the proven gold producing Bullabulling goldfield near Coolgardie, Western Australia. The Bullabulling Project surrounds the 3 million-ounce Bullabulling Gold Project and is along strike of the Nepean Nickel mine with 3D geology and prospectively mapping underway to generate drill targets.
Both 2D and 3D prospectivity modelling using Machine Learning techniques have mapped 7 high priority targets for exploration drilling on the Bullabulling Project area in WA. These targets have the same geophysical, geological, and geochemical characteristics as the nearby 3Moz Bullabulling and 320,000oz Geko gold mines.
Initial reconnaissance mapping and XRF soil sampling is proposed in Q1 CY23 to ground truth these targets and to assist with drilling proposed in Q2 CY23.
Write to Adam Orlando at Mining.com.au
Images: Belararox Ltd
