Challenger Exploration (ASX: CEL) has announced further encouraging results from the 5 rig 45,000 metre drilling program at its flagship Hualilan Gold Project in San Juan Province, Argentina.
The company reported multiple new zones of high-grade mineralisation outside the boundaries of the existing historical resource. Significant results from the current round of drilling included 2.5m at 42.1 g/t AuEq including 36.8 g/t Au, 111 g/t Ag, 8.6% Zn (GNDD-141); and 4.10m at 56.8 g/t AuEq including 55.7 g/t Au, 12.9 g/t Ag, 2.1%, from 291m (GNDD-157).
CEL also reported new high-grade discovery below the Sentazon Manto with GNDD-142 recording 40.0 metres at 6.2 g/t AuEq including 10.7 metres at 13.3 g/t AuEq and 12.8 metres at 5.7 g/t AuEq.
The company said that significant new zone of mineralisation was discovered south of the Magnata Fault in GNDD-134 and GNDD-157 (12 metres at 20.9 g/t AuEq) with results for the bottom half of GNND-157 pending.
CEL said that vertical extent was tripled by the high-grade intersection of 2.9m at 10.2 g/t AuEq from 530m in drill hole GNDD-134. The bulk of the historical resource1 lies within 80 metres of surface.
Drilling at Hualilan project
CEL had recently commenced a 5 rig 45,000 metre drilling program at the Company’s flagship Hualilan Gold Project. The company had completed 27,000 of 45,000 metres till date.
Challenger said that the results have now been reported for a series of holes targeting the high-grade skarn with the holes predominantly designed to explore for extensions to the historical resource estimate. The company said that the results from 67 completed drill holes remain pending with holes GNDD-191 to 195 currently drilling ahead.
High-grade results extend boundaries
Challenger reported multiple new zones of high-grade mineralisation outside the boundaries of the existing historical resource.
GNDD-142
CEL said that hole GNDD-142 discovered a broad zone of high-grade mineralisation 50 metres below the Sentazon Manto returning 40.5m at 6.2 g/t AuEq including 10.7m at 13.3 g/t AuEq and 12.8m at 5.7 g/t AuEq.
This new zone is highly significant as all previous Sentazon drilling was not deep enough to test this new broad high-grade zone of mineralisation. The company said that the scale created by this new zone below the Sentazon Manto is indicated by the broader intercept of 110.5m at 3.0 g/t AuEq in GNDD-142.
GNDD-134
Challenger reported that the drill hole GNDD-134 intersected 4.0m at 11.3 g/t AuEq which extends the Magnata Fault zone 80 metres deeper and is the westerly most test of the Magnata Fault – confirming that the Magnata Fault is open and strongly mineralised to the west and at depth.
The company said that the hole intersected a potential new zone of mineralisation in intrusives south of the Magnata fault (208.5m at 0.5 g/t AuEq incl 81.0m at 0.9 g/t AuEq) which has been followed up in GNDD-157 and GNDD-174 (assays pending). The hole intersected mineralisation to 632 metres downhole, including a significant new high-grade zone at (2.9m at 10.2 g/t AuEq) at 530 metres. This extends mineralisation to 500 metres with the bulk of the historical resource in the top 80 metres.
GNDD-157
The company said that the hole GNDD-157 discovered a new high-grade zone south of the Magnata Fault returning 12.0m at 20.9 g/t AuEq from 289 metres including 4.10m at 56.8 g/t AuEq. Interpretation is preliminary with results for the top and bottom of the hole pending. CEL said that this zone could represent a possible east-west Magnata Fault repeat or a new zone of high-grade intrusion hosted mineralisation. GNDD-157 also intersected mineralisation in the Magnata Fault.
Gap zone drilling
Challenger reported that the follow up drilling of high-grade skarn mineralisation into the Gap Zone returned 6.5m at 16.4 g/t AuEq, including 2.5m at 42.1 g/t AuEq in drill hole GNDD-141. GNDD-141 was drilled to test for interpreted plunge extensions of the high-grade mineralisation encountered in GNRC-098 and GNRC-104.
The company said that the mineralisation remains open in all directions and results continue to suggest the mineralisation is part of a much larger gold bearing system than was originally envisioned.
What’s next?
The company said that further work to be undertaken in the next 12 months include additional data precision validation and drilling as required; detailed interpretation of known mineralized zones; geophysical tests for undercover areas; structural interpretation and alteration mapping using high resolution satellite data and geophysics to better target extensions of known mineralisation; field mapping program targeting extensions of known mineralisation.
The company said that investigating further drilling requirements to upgrade both the unclassified mineralisation and mineralisation in the existing historical resources to meet JORC 2012 requirements; initial drill program comprising verification (twin holes) and targeting extensions of the historically defined mineralisation; and metallurgical test work is also planned.