Gold and lithium explorer Desert Metals (ASX:DM1) has completed a 2,784m aircore drilling program at its new Tengrela South Project in northern Côte d’Ivoire, West Africa.
The company technically took over the drilling work when it completed its acquisition of Côte d’Ivoire-based gold and lithium explorer CDI Resources in January.
At the time of the acquisition, CDI had already commenced the aircore drilling work, and Desert — now in control of the company — says the 64-hole program was completed without a hitch.
The drilling work was designed to test the southern extensions of gold mineralisation at the Podio and Logbog prospects within the Tengrela area. Desert has submitted roughly 1,600 drill samples for gold analysis via the Chrysos PhotonAssay technique, with results due in April.
Desert says these latest aircore holes were drilled vertically into the weathered oxide layer in the project area, stopping when they hit fresh rock. Hole depths varied from 11m to 72m, with an average depth of 43m.
The drilling tested ‘elevated’ gold-in-soil anomalies to the south of the prospects, where ‘significant’ gold mineralisation was intersected in historical drilling.
“Desert Metals is pleased to have completed this initial air core drilling program so soon after settling the 100% acquisition of CDI Resources Limited in Côte d’Ivoire,” Desert Managing Director Robert Stuart says.
“The Tengrela South Project is within 30km of Perseus Mining’s (ASX:PRU) operating Sissingué gold mine and 10km from the Atex lithium discovery. Any further gold discoveries could significantly enhance the development potential of current gold mineralisation at the Podio and Logbog prospects.”
Desert completed its acquisition of CDI on 17 January, along with a $3.75 million capital raise to support drilling and exploration work across its project portfolio.
Alongside a string of gold projects in Côte d’Ivoire, Desert also owns the Narryer Terrane projects northwest of Meekatharra in Western Australia.
On 31 December 2023, prior to the completion of its recent capital raise, Desert Metals had around $600,000 cash and cash equivalents at hand, according to its latest quarterly report,
Images: Desert Metals
