Chalice Gold Mines Limited (ASX: CHN, OTCQB: CGMLF) has announced a highly encouraging update on the drilling at the Karri Target of its Pyramid Hill Gold Project in Victoria.
The company reported that significant new results were received from ongoing early-stage air-core (AC) drilling at the Karri Target.
CHN said that the re-split and fire assay of the previous best AC drill intercept returned 1m @ 15.85g/t Au within 2m @ 11.54g/t Au within 30m @ 1.12g/t Au. The company said that this is the best intercept returned to date from the Project.
Chalice reported that significant 3m / 4m composite drill intercepts from 62 new AC drill holes include 3m @ 3.86g/t Au to end-of-hole (EOH) associated with a zone of laminated quartz veining, within 23m @ 0.67g/t Au; plus, significant gold results (>0.1g/t Au) in a further 7 holes.
The company said that geological diamond drilling is ongoing at the Karri Target.
Pyramid Hill gold project
Chalice’s 100%-owned Pyramid Hill Gold Project is a district scale holding comprising an extensive 5,190km² area located in northern Victoria, Australia.
The Project comprises three key districts centred around the northern Bendigo Zone: the Muckleford, Mt William, and Percydale areas.
Drilling at Pyramid Hill
Chalice reported that it is continuing its systematic exploration drilling program at the Pyramid Hill Gold Project with two rigs currently on site.
Chalice’s phased drilling program includes Phase 1 reconnaissance AC drill program, Phase 2 reconnaissance AC drill program, step-out and infill AC drill program, and geological diamond drill-hole program.
Phase 1 reconnaissance AC drill program
A ~350 hole, ~39,000m Phase 1 reconnaissance AC drill program in the Muckleford and Mt William Areas across several greenfield target areas had commenced in October 2018 and completed in June 2019.
Phase 2 reconnaissance AC drill program
A ~250 hole, ~25,000m Phase 2 reconnaissance AC drill program at the newly identified Karri, Ironbark and Beech Targets in the Muckleford Area had commenced in October 2019 and completed in early February 2020
Step-out and infill AC drill program
A ~170 hole, ~20,000m step-out and infill AC drill program at the Karri and Ironbark Targets had commenced in early February 2020 and is currently ongoing. The AC drilling tested the continuity and extent of previously intersected gold mineralisation at the Karri Target on a 250-500m x 50m infill and step-out grid.
Geological diamond drill-hole program
A maiden geological diamond drill-hole program at the Karri and Ironbark Targets had commenced in mid-January 2020 and is currently ongoing.
Encouraging assays reported from Karri
The company reported high-grade results from Karri from the New AC drilling as well as re-assay.
New AC drill results
Chalice announced that encouraging new assay results have been received for 62 AC holes at Karri, following on from the results released previously.
Significant new 3m / 4m composite drill intercepts include 3m @ 3.86g/t Au and 322ppm arsenic (As) to EOH, within 23m @ 0.67g/t Au and 252ppm As from 116m; 4m @ 1.35g/t Au within 20m @ 0.39g/t Au from 76m; 4m @ 0.70g/t Au and 272ppm As within 32m @ 0.18g/t Au from 78m; 38m @ 0.12g/t Au from 86m to EOH; and 3m @ 0.60g/t Au and 7,770ppm As from 124m to EOH.
Chalice said that significant gold results (>0.1g/t Au) were also returned in a further 7 drill holes. The company said that all infill drilling continues to demonstrate the robustness of the multi-kilometre scale gold trends, with all defined gold trends showing continuity on 250m and 500m spaced infill drill lines.
The company said that the main Karri gold trend defined by AC drilling remains continuous over ~4km of strike, open along strike to the north and open at depth. CHN said that the continued robust results support the potential for a significant gold system at depth.
CHN reported that the vertical infill and step-out AC drilling continues on a tightened 250m x 50m grid, with assays currently pending for an additional 42 drill holes.
Re-assay results
CHN said that the re-split and fire assay of the previous best AC drill intercept of 4m @ 3.97g/t Au in hole PA547 has returned 1m @ 15.85g/t Au within 2m @ 11.54g/t Au within 30m @ 1.12g/t Au. The company said that this is the best intercept returned to date from the Project.
Chalice said that the original result in hole PA514 (4m @ 0.98g/t Au and 342ppm As) was upgraded to 1m @ 3.54g/t Au within 4m @ 1.28g/t Au.
Geological diamond drilling at Karri
Chalice said that the initial geological diamond hole (the first ever test at depth below the main gold trend) intersected a favourable tightly folded anticline-syncline structure – a characteristic feature of the large gold systems in the Bendigo Zone including Fosterville (>9Moz Au) and Bendigo (>22Moz Au). CHN reported that all assays are pending.
The company announced that the maiden diamond drill program has now extended to a total of 11 holes for ~4,000m and a second diamond drill rig is expected to arrive on site in mid-March.
Capital and funding
Chalice said that it is well positioned in the Victorian Goldfields region with a 100%-owned, >5,000km2 land position and remains fully funded to continue its systematic exploration at Pyramid Hill, with a working capital and liquid investments balance of ~A$30 million (~A$0.11 per share).
Updates and next steps
CHN said that assays are currently pending for 42 AC drill holes and the first two completed diamond drill holes at the Karri and Ironbark North Targets.
The Company said that its maiden 15 line-km 2D seismic survey was completed over the Karri Target in mid-February and results, including a detailed structural interpretation to a depth of ~2km, are expected in April.
The company said that the follow up diamond drilling is being undertaken to improve the understanding of the geological controls to anomalism.
CHN said that one AC and one diamond drill rig are currently drilling on site. A second diamond rig is expected to arrive on site in mid-March.
The company announced that the planned forward work program includes a ~170 hole, ~20,000m step-out and infill AC drill program at the Karri and Ironbark Targets – expected to continue until early April; an extended 11 hole, ~4,000m maiden geological diamond drill hole program at the Karri and Ironbark Targets – expected to continue until late April; and, 15 line-km 2D seismic program within the Muckleford Area (including across the Karri Target) – acquisition completed, full interpretation of results expected in April.
Management comments
Chalice’s Managing Director, Alex Dorsch, said: “Our momentum in Victoria continues to build, with another round of exciting drill results. The potential for a high-grade gold system at Karri is now supported by the highest grade gold intercept from the project to date of 1m at 15.85g/t Au. This result is especially important as it lies at the centre of a new 4km long, continuous gold trend that is yet to be tested at depth.
We expected the likelihood of intersecting primary gold zones to increase as our air-core hole spacing progressively tightened up, given that primary gold zones in the Bendigo Zone are typically less than 15m wide. Drilling has indeed now identified several higher grade primary gold zones within the widened main gold trend, providing immediate targets and justification for an extension of our maiden diamond drill program.
The first ever diamond hole at Karri has encountered tight folding of Castlemaine Group sediments, which are a key feature of the large gold deposits in the Bendigo Zone. The presence of this structural setting at Karri further upgrades the target and gives us confidence that the gold trends identified by shallow air-core drilling may be caused by a gold system below.
Two rigs are currently drilling on site, with an additional diamond drill rig scheduled to arrive in mid-March. Step-out and infill AC drilling continues to refine the secondary dispersion footprint of the target, while our maiden diamond drill program, which has now been extended to 11 holes, gives us the first insight into the geological and structural picture at depth.”